Traveling West Europe in COVID era

  After hostel breakfast and meeting new friends, I walked towards Mahkama du Pacha: court house close to royal palace to take some photos, but I cannot get in either. “Mahkama du Pacha was constructed in the traditional style, brick by brick, using zellige (mosaic tilework), multi-foil arches, honycomb stuccowork, cedar timber and green tiles.” I then strolled via the nearby new market before it woke up on Sunday morning. The new market Quartier Habous is a calmer, cleaner alternative to the Old Medina. “Habous was built in the style of a traditional Medina, using Moorish style and materials, but at the same time its French architects applied Modern urban planning concepts. In amongst the intricately moulded street arches, horseshoe arcades and whitewashed buildings are street cafes where you can watch the neighbourhood going about its business over a glass of mint tea and a pastry. Vendors are famously less pushy in the Quartier Habous and you can seek out leather goods, olives...

 I dropped my bags and ate a quick lunch at the international youth hostel (including sun riding in the mountains and then just highways)， after 6-hr bus ride. Then I walked around Casablanca to capture views, taste food, and buy souvenirs. I walked via the old market to pick up some desserts then tried to check out two Synagogues but cannot get in. I saw Casa Tramway running in a Commerical area. I also walked by Place Mohammed V square, 1918 Grande Poste (central post office), 1925 Palais de Justice to the east, the Sacred Heart Cathedral (under maintenance), and the Parc de la Ligue Arabe. “The Sacré-Cœur Cathedral is an architectural masterpiece designed by the French architect Paul Tournon and built in 1930 in a Neo-Gothic style with Moroccan Muslim and Art Deco influences.”  Then I walked along the  palm-lined Boulevard to Hassan II Mosque near the ocean which is Africa’s largest mosque and the third-largest mosque in the world. “Its floor is made of glass so worshi...

 On my last day in Chefchaouen, I got Covid test today before 6-hr bus ride to Casablanca on Saturday, and then fly back to USA from Casablanca on Sunday.  We only took photos and walked around the blue city, cooked egg drop soup for lunch, relaxed at the hostel, and had a big dinner of cuscus, a bean snack, and two kinds of desserts.  Couscous is prepared only on Fridays in many Moroccan homes and restaurants. “Couscous with seven vegetables, is one of the most popular versions. Lamb, beef, or chicken is stewed along with a variety of vegetables, then arranged on a glorious heap of tender, steamed couscous grains. As with many other Moroccan dishes, everyone gathers round to eat from one super-sized communal plate. “