Tangier In Morocco
The first associations that arise when mentioning Tangier are the end of the earth, where the Strait of Gibraltar merges with the Atlantic. Also, the heroic dream of Hercules before the next feat. Not to mention, the heroine Tilda Swinton walking barefoot through the old medina in the movie Only Lovers Left Alive.
Districts. Where is the best place to live:
Of course, housing must be chosen in the center. Tangier is a fairly large city, there are places where no foreigner has set foot. In sleeping ghettos, even with all the flavor of authentic life, an unprepared traveler will be somewhat uncomfortable.
As in any other Moroccan city, Tangier has two central territories.
Old Medina (Medina) – a historical downtown with an ancient fortress (Kasbah) and narrow disturbing streets, along which, in fact, vampires walked in the Jarmusch film. Personally, I have not met any vampires, and I stumbled upon the ghost of William Burroughs only once. But there are a lot of dubious personalities here offering different types of oblivion – whether it’s illegal drugs or corrupt sex. There are many inexpensive (from $ 25 for a double room) private hotels and guest houses in the Medina, but for my taste, it is better to find a place in a quieter place. For Morocco private desert tours.
The cultural center (Ville Nouvelle) stretches along the seashore between the two main arteries of the city – Mohammed V Avenue and Mohammed VI Avenue. The most convenient location will be on the territory from the railway station to Place de France. And the beach can be reached on foot, and a taxi is easy to catch. The cost of apartments – from 35-40 dollars per day to the most incredible numbers, it all depends on the amenities, service and greed of the owner. If the landlord speaks some English, be prepared for the fact that this will also be reflected in the price. Bargaining is possible and sometimes even necessary.
If you wish, you can take a ready-made tour with a flight and a hotel, prices are here .
I usually book hotels on Booking , and you can compare prices from different sites here .
When renting an apartment from a private person (you can look at the options at this link), you definitely need to make sure that everything works flawlessly – electricity, plumbing, whether gas cylinders are filled. Hot water is heated by gas or in a boiler, ask for an explanation on how to handle them. There is no central heating in the city, in winter you will definitely need electric heaters and warm blankets.
Main attractions. What to see
As I said, Tangier will first of all appeal to those who prefer urban tourism. There are sights here with a gulkin nose, but there is where to take a walk. Without looking at a map or a GPS navigator (it will deceive you anyway – Google maps in Morocco is a bad adviser, the terrain is very poorly processed and there is always confusion due to different interpretations of toponyms in different languages), hit the road. If a place seems interesting, feel free to go there.
old medina
For starters, be sure to explore the Old Medina . If you have already visited other Moroccan cities, it is unlikely to impress much, but it is worth wandering through the labyrinths. Well, and go to the fortress, of course.
Having recognized a foreigner, home-grown guides will immediately begin to importunate you with bad English escort services. They will not tell anything interesting, but they will try to rip off more money. It is better not to enter into any discussion at all. Fortunately, it is impossible to get lost in the Tangier medina and outside help is hardly needed.
Market
The sparsely populated streets of the Medina smoothly turn into the city market (Grand Souk), which opens onto the Grand Socco, marked on maps as the Square on April 9, 1947 (Place du 9 Avril 1947, named after the speech of Mohammed V on the independence of Morocco ).
In the bazaar you can buy inexpensive and tasty fruits, good meat, sweets, nuts. In some shops – goods for the home, in others – counterfeit, in others it is not at all clear what rubbish. Merchants simply lay out their goods on a newspaper directly on the asphalt.
There are not so many purely tourist shops, but each of them tries to contain everything that can be brought from Morocco – carpets, scarves, leather goods, trinkets. As a rule, the pavilions of such shops are located on several levels, floors, and all this magnificence is crowned by a restaurant on the upper terrace, where you can admire the city roofs and eat at a high price. if you visit Marrakech you can do the 3 days desert tour from Marrakech to Merzouga.
Museums
Walking around the fortress, you should definitely look into the Kasbah Museum (Musée de la Kasbah) with a beautiful Sultan’s garden, a good place for meditation. Entrance 10 dirhams (1 dollar). The museum is located on the Kasbah Square (Place de la Kasbah), open from 9 to 16 except Tuesday.
