Aside being a hobby, traveling to new places, experiencing new cultures and meeting new people, has been one of the biggest sources of inspiration and exposure to me. Every travel opportunity, by air, land or sea, comes along with its life lessons, good or bad.

I was recently privileged to travel to Morocco with for some crucial meetings and researches.

Our trip to Morocco, beyond opening doors of new experiences unto me, resurrected in me the age long question, "which way Nigeria?"

Why does it seem like any Nigerian who gets the opportunity to experience life beyond the borders always comes to the conclusion that anywhere is better than here? One cannot but admire how other countries, that have no meeting point with Nigeria in terms of resources, wealth and influence, end up living in well organised manners and growing happily in their pace and space, while Nigeria continues to swing between poverty and insecurity and whatever bad you can think of. Aside having traveled to some European countries, I have visited a couple of African countries, and my position is the same - Nigeria lags behind in all fronts of existence.

Do we talk about the depressing level of corruption and financial imprudence that has crippled our economy? Or the disheartening level of insecurity that has kept everyone on edge, rich and poor alike. Do we begin to mention the poverty rate, unemployment rate, political rascality, under development, poor quality of health and education - everything that can ever go wrong in a nation is found in our nation, in large quantities. And we are the giant of Africa - giant in societal ills, sufferings and deaths!

Enough of Nigeria and its wahala biko! Back to our trip to Morocco.

Ours was a 5.30am flight to Casablanca via Royal Air Maroc. Royal Air Maroc, more commonly known as RAM, is the Moroccan national carrier, as well as the country's largest airline. RAM is wholly owned by the Moroccan Government, and has its headquarters on the grounds of Casablanca-Anfa Airport. With a fleet size of 52 and air service to 103 destinations around the world, RAM has over 5400 workers on its payroll. I remember flying KLM during my trip to the Netherlands in 2018. KLM, one of the earliest airlines to exist, is the national carrier of the Netherlands and flies to 145 destinations, with over 35400 workers on its payroll. Same as British airways, Fly Emirates, Ethipian airlines, Air Rwanda, Kenyan airways etc, which are all national carriers of their respective countries. So where is Nigerian Airways? A nation of over 200 million people without a national carrier? I have lived a little over 3 decades in Nigeria and I have only seen pictures of our national carrier on different web pages on the internet. So much for the giant of Africa!

The boarding process at the airport was pretty easy. The customs and immigration checks at Murtala International Airport, Lagos seem to be more organised now than before - a huge improvement I must say. No one harrassed you for tips. Follow the due process, present the right papers for documentation and you are fine.

We were then done with boarding. RAM, to the best of my knowledge operates an all Boeing fleet. Lagos to Casablanca is a 4 hour flight, and the aircraft was comfortable enough for the trip. The cabin crew did their pre take-off checks and then our journey began.

The take off was smooth and normal. The skies were dark as we made our ascent, and remained so for the first few hours of the flight. As we progressed into the journey and the sun began to rise, I could see clearly the lands beneath. Either the plane was flying at a lower altitude, or the skies were short of clouds, I could see clearly the desert that lay beneath us - the Sahara Desert.

Sahara Desert - the world's largest hot desert borders Morocco to the East and spans through most North African countries. I looked down through my window, and there was it, in its naked beauty - a long stretch of nothing but sand dunes of different shapes, sizes and heights. Perhaps the rising sun over the land scape added to its beauty. There was no sign of human habitation, not that I expected any. It was just inhabited by dusts, debris and sand dunes.

I was lost in admiration of the varieties of shapes taken by the sand dunes and rock formations, which only reinforced my belief in God. All the earth, and its inhabitants did not just come into existence by some loud bang. God created them. He gave the seas their boundaries. He spread the deserts. He stood the skies on pillars best known to Him. He rules over the world and keeps the earth in check.

The plane banked slightly to the left, giving me a clearer view of the arid land. I thought of African youths, who in search of greener pastures outside their homelands, may have been deceived into embarking on the suicidal journey through the deserts. How many of them lay buried beneath the desert sand? Could any human survive the desert heat, or the dusty desert wind that sweeps through the vast dry land? It is unfortunate that leadership failure had driven many youths into such unthinkable adventures.

Landing in Casablanca.

Gradually, our plane commenced its descent into Morocco. A view of the country from the sky could tell it's a beautiful nation - a cool blend of nature and civilization. Our landing at Casablanca’s Mohammed V international airport was equally smooth. The airport was quite big, clean and busy with a lot of human traffic. It is the biggest and busiest airport in Morocco, hosting more than 40% of air traffic volume conducted by all Moroccan airports. It is reported that the airport records, on the average, 10 million passengers every year, with RAM, being a major contributor to the passenger traffic.

Done with airport security checks, we stepped into Morocco!

kenevision:
Gradually, our plane commenced its descent into Morocco. A view of the country from the sky could tell it's a beautiful nation - a cool blend of nature and civilization. Our landing at Casablanca’s Mohammed V international airport was equally smooth. The airport was quite big, clean and busy with a lot of human traffic. It is the biggest and busiest airport in Morocco, hosting more than 40% of air traffic volume conducted by all Moroccan airports. It is reported that the airport records, on the average, 10 million passengers every year, with RAM, being a major contributor to the passenger traffic.

Done with airport security checks, we stepped into Morocco!

How much was the flight
I also want to take a tour to an African country of choice

Powerbando:




How much was the flight
I also want to take a tour to an African country of choice

The trip was made few months back, before the hike in exchange rate and aviation fuel scarcity.

I spent a little above N500K on flights

Morocco is a country of approximately 37 million people, with a land mass of 446,550 km². The official language here are Arabic and Standard Moroccan Berber. But a lot of educated Moroccans speak French too, and many English. More than 99 percent of the population in Morocco is Muslim. Religious groups together constituting less than 1 percent of the population include Christians, Jews, and Baha'is. Morocco is a beautiful country, and I could not wait to experience the beauty.

Our journey from Casablanca to Rabat, was approximately 2 hours. The roads were well constructed and maintained. There were neither potholes nor road blocks from policemen. The traffic laws were well followed. It was a super organised country, safe and secure. Journeying through the thick forests that separated Casablanca from Rabat, I felt no sense of insecurity. There were no fears of kidnappers and bandits. Rail tracks for TGVs ran through the forests connecting travellers to different routes.

Up to 1 hour into the journey, I had not said any further word to my friend, the driver. My earlier attempt at starting a friendly chat fell flat. "Wow, this is a beautiful and neat country," I had said, as I settled into the front seat. No response. "It's really beautiful here," I continued. No response. He only pointed to my seat belt and muttered some words. I crossed my belt and we were fine, all set to journey in silence. If he was not responding, then I was done talking. Little did I know that ours was a language barrier. He understood no English word.

Finally he spoke, and when the words came out, it was French language. My little knowledge of French kicked in.

"Premier au Maroc?" he asked.
"Oui, Bien sur," I responded.

"Bien venu"
"Merci beaucoup"

"Comment t'appelle?"
"Je m'appelle Bosco, et toi"

"Kofi" (not real name)
"'accords"

And we smiled to each other for the first time.

Finally, after an estimated 2 hour drive, we arrived the city of Rabat.

Rabat is the capital city of Morocco and said to be the the country's seventh largest city.

One thing one easily notices about Morocco, is the heavy blend of Arabic and European culture in the country. The streets are super clean. Their structures are well organised. The roads are well maintained. They have trams operating within the city to ease transportation. People here obey traffic laws. The police, called gendarmes, were everywhere in the city and on the roads, maintaining law and order, not with guns, but with smiles. Most residential, and even official, houses here are built with Arabic designs.

I settled into my hotel room and rested.

Morocco has a great varieties of local and western cuisine. There are Italian, Spanish restaurants littered everywhere in the city. when I needed to eat, I opted for a Spanish Restaurant called, Al Marsa. I hardly remeber the names of the food, but I had a decent three course meal that was well worth the price. I spent the rest of the day touring the city and admiring the giant developmental strides of the people with whom we share our African heritage.

Seun
Justwise
Lalasticlala
Disguy

Come and read my story ooo

The following day, I journeyed to Tangier, a city in North Western Morocco. Tangier, is said to be a Moroccan port on the Strait of Gibraltar which has been a strategic gateway between Africa and Europe since Phoenician times. Most exports from Morocco to Europe are done through the Tangier Med Ports. The Port has handling capacities of 9 million containers, one of the largest industrial ports in the world, and the largest port in Africa. Morocco, as a leading player in Africa's automotive industry, produces an average of 700,000 cars a year, most of which are exported to Europe, mainly France, Italy, Spain and Germany. Morocco is now the leading exporter of passenger cars to Europe, grossing billions of dollars per year. Aside cars, Morocco exports agricultural products to Europe and other African countries. All these exports are done through the Tangier Port.

As we approached Tangier, I could feel the beautiful mix of cultures and nationalities. Another beautiful medieval city in Morocco, Tangier appeared more serene and quiet than Rabat. I could see the Mediterrenean Sea from a far in all of its beauty. A shallow part of the sea was used as a beach by locals. Kofi told me that the beach is only open from June to August/September. After a long ride, we arrived my hotel in Tangier - Le Mirage Hotel. It was a hotel build partly on the Mediterrenean Sea. As one of the most expensive hotels in the city, Le Mirage offers a variety of services and comfort worth the price.

After settling into the hotel, I made a trip to Tangier Med Port. As I partly pointed out above, Tanger Med Port is the only African port among the 50 biggest ports in the world, handling about 9 million containers and 7 million passengers annually. There are over 900 individual companies, cutting across automotive, aeronautics, trade industries, clustered around the port, contributing to the port’s activities and providing jobs for the populace. The port plays a critical role in the growth of Moroccan economy.

I spent the rest of the days engaging in business meetings, researches and tour of the country. I thoroughly enjoyed my few days trip to Morocco, and I hope to visit the beautiful country again in the future. I flew back through same Royal Air Maroc. It was a night flight that departed Casablanca by 10pm and arrived Lagos around 5am. I slept through the flight.

Your pictures don't do this country justice. The first time I went to Morocco. I thought I was in Europe for real. So beautiful and modern. Good roads, modern infrastructure everything Is just nice.

Unfortunately, my camera did not do justice to the pictures. It was an emergency journey, so I traveled with my phone only.

1. Shepherd watching over his flock

2. A street in Rabat

3. Petrol station

4. Express way

Congrats bros, you’ve successfully japa.

1. Sighting the Mediterrenean from far

2. Capturing the Mediterrenean from the Hotel Veranda

3. Hotel Sit Out

4. The Hotel Mirage

Some Dishes

1. All kinds of bread for breakfast

2. Fruits mix

3. Honey, jam etc

4. Butter and co

Nigeria is fuccccked up

still yet some ediot people still want to vote for stupid old politicians

Has anyone traveled to the country recently, kindly share your experiences with us

Omo









My Signature

Lordbinsmar:
Nigeria is fuccccked up

still yet some ediot people still want to vote for stupid old politicians

LoL Nigeria is better than all the countries in sub Saharan Africa except south Africa. The north African countries are in a league of their own entirely. I won't even compare them to countries in sub Saharan Africa.

The country is beautiful and Thier women are as beautiful,once had a Moroccan girlfriend in Lagos,and we used to Bleep like crazy,she really wanted to marry a Nigerian because she is not the typical Muslim girl that like to cover everywhere up.

Beautiful country

Nice trip

Let me see whether this thread will make sense.

The country fine but I know say them go get village kwa

This is very nice.

PerfectStranger:
Congrats bros, you’ve successfully japa.

Lol

Me wey dey Naija like this.

I only visited Morocco for few days

Lordbinsmar:
Nigeria is fuccccked up

still yet some ediot people still want to vote for stupid old politicians

Relax Nigeria is better than this country oh! The only country that is a little bit above Nigeria is SA based on White others are nonsense

Only in Nigeria you will see roads with open gutters..


Who gave our politicians this type of road construction?

Bonesbreaker:
Relax Nigeria is better than this country oh! The only country that is a little bit above Nigeria is SA based on White others are nonsense

Lol, Nigeria is better than Morocco?

By what standard of measurements are you basing your judgement?

Regex:
This is very nice.

Thank you �