Latitude:35.57097 Longitude:-5.36377

Today, I'm writing from a cyber (internet cafe) from Tetouan, a city about halfway between Tangier and Chaouen.  I am only here for the day, and it happens to be the same day the king is here too, so the big street, Avenue Mohammed V, is largely barricaded to allow His Highness unobstructed access to his Palais Royal, which is right where the Ville Nouvelle meets the medina.  I didn't see the king, but I did get to see his royal motorcade leave the palace.   Everyone was pressed against the barricade waiting for him to leave.  I had originally started waiting a few blocks away but got impatient.  And I'm glad I did because even with a view of the palace itself, all I saw were guards in dress unforms salute and secret service types bow as a slew of Mercedes and Beemers flew out of the gates.  And the people clapped.  His Highness must have recently returned to the palace because I heard the crowds clapping just a few minutes ago.

The royal family is highly revered here.  Most towns and cities use the same names for their main thoroughfares and plazas:  Mohammed V, Hassan I, and Hassan II.  Mohammed V was exiled to Madasgascar and returned to Morocco in 1955 when, I believe, it gained independence (fact-checkers activate!), so he gets the most street cred, literally.  But most businesses keep a photo of the current monarch somewhere, and you are advised by the guidebooks not to criticize.

I have bad luck being in cities when the museums are closed in Morocco.  It's typically Tuesdays, but it varies, so I won't see the Musee Ethnographique here in Tetouan since it's closed Sundays and Mondays now.  But the consolation prize is a school almost at the coordinates above where they teach Moroccan crafts to the young.  Only boys may attend this school where leatherworking, woodworking, and other artisan skills are taught.  But when it's open, you get to wander through the classrooms and see the action happen, which is a really cool way to see how all this beautiful stuff is made.  And the building itself is wonderfully decorated with a central gallery displaying the fruits of their labors.  Very neat and alone worth the visit to Tetouan.

I did finally break down and buy an umbrella - the battered thing I had brought so far was simply unable to cope with the frequent deluges I'm experiencing.  If I am repeating myself, I apologize, but you absolutely should visit Morocco.  However, absolutely do not come in February.  Not a single day has passed where it has rained less than 6 times a day, not counting drizzle or mist.  The only time I'm ever truly dry is when I get out of bed in the morning.  From there, it's a constant dance along the continuum of damp to dripping. 

But it's just water, so yesterday after the hammam, Anouar (this is how he spells it) and I brought our umbrellas on a hike up the hill that Chaouen is built on.  It was fantastic - beautiful views of blue Chaouen below and some of the countryside beyond.  It's part of a national park, and there is camping as well as more extended hikes of the 6-7 hour variety.  It's a special place - you are high up, with the Chefchaouen mountain in front of you (loosely translated 'to see the horns' as the mountain has two peaks), and the oued (river) below, and all the wind moving the clouds over the mountains so quickly you can just watch it.  After all that walking and nature appreciation AND learning to count to 10 in Arabic, I was hungry, and I wanted to treat Anouar to dinner as a small thank you for showing me his town, so we had a fried fish feast at a restaurant in the ville nouvelle.  Good stuff.  I will get you photos - of the view, not the fish, though I was tempted to take a photo of that too.   I think I was just too hungry to be bothered to get my camera out.

Tomorrow, inshallah, I leave the north and head down to Meknes, west of Fes, and formerly an imperial capital.  Not sure how long I'll stay, but there is a lot to see, including Roman ruins at nearby Volubilis.  And I'm a sucker for Roman ruins.  And maybe I won't need my umbrella...