Morocco (cont.)

9:54 PADOVA - Woke up pretty early to grab a quick orange juice in the market and then we took off to see the beautiful mosque in the center of the city. It was closed for some reason and we couldn't go in but it was cool to see that and the gardens around it. After that we did a little more shopping in the market and eventually (after some difficulties explaining where we needed to go) made it to the station to go to Casablanca. In Casablanca we took another "taxi" to our hotel from which we could see the port and water. We were given a room originally in which we weren't allowed to sleep in for "safety reasons". Whatever that meant. The hotel had internet and I was able to call home and talk to the family who were either up north or at the ballgame.
That night we took a walk around Casablanca towards the mosque where we really felt like we were in a different world. Of the hundreds of people there we were obviously the foreigners and I don't think there were many (if any) other tourists around. That was a really cool feeling. We eventually made it to Rick's for dinner. The atmosphere at Rick's was really chill and they had a live jazz band playing while we ate - a lovely end to a lovely trip.
It was a little sad to leave this strange and foreign place but it was nice to be going back to somewhere more familiar at the same time.
Real quick thoughts:
Having just finished a course on the sociology of Islam it is really interesting comparing the cultures (our Christian world with their Muslim world). I, personally, think it stems from differences in how we view time and money. There, it seemed, that everyone lived in the same poverty-stricken boat, where every helps everyone else get through life by buying from each other, trading, helping the elderly. It was cool for me to contribute to their way of life by buying stuff there. It seemed to me that even though I didn't speak their language(s), they still tried to communicate with me and were very personable. Yes, they wanted my money but they were happy just to "talk" and help me out by providing services, and products that I might need. It was a stark contrast to when we returned and on the bus ride home we overheard these older Italian men talking condescendingly about the Japanese and Americans that are here in Italy. In more ways that I can express the trip to Morocco was definately an eye-opener.