From February 28 to March 29, 2025, I traveled about 800km by bicycle in the Kingdom of Morocco, from Casablanca to Erfoud. This first part covers the photos and ride logs (.GPX files) from Casablanca to Fes.
This time, I'm bringing my bike from Japan.It barely fit. Truly, Nissan is a company of technology.My last New Chitose Airport experience as a student.It's huge.Zayed Airport was way too luxurious.A two-hour layover is tough.Arrived in Casablanca. I was kept waiting for over an hour to pick up my bike.There was a big hole in the box, but the contents were safe.Assembly complete.Arrived at the hotel near the airport. The scary person in the back is a hotel staff member.Taking a taxi to downtown Casablanca.A knock-off of Uniqlo, which you can find everywhere in the world.On the way back from shopping. The scenery is nice.Dacia has a high market share in Morocco. A rare experience.Early morning departure.There are lots of palm-like trees growing.Cacti too.The pavement is quite clean.Looks tough.There are many things in the distance that look like Ayers RockArrived at the hotelThe interior is also quite impressiveThe hotel breakfast is also niceThere is nothing around the hotelMoved to Berrechid the next dayTerritorial disputes are a topic you shouldn't touchEven if your bike breaks down on the wayYou can fix it (they let me work in the pit after I bought the parts and tools)Before I knew it, I was riding on the Casablanca highwayA sudden UFC gym. Is it officially licensed?It's definitely a highway. A police car passed by, but nothing was said to meA rare private shop open during RamadanJust keep goingAll traffic signs are in ArabicNothing but gasoline is sold during Ramadan. SadIt gets quite cold when it's cloudyForeign-owned restaurants are open even during RamadanI feel the locals' gaze when I eat or drink during RamadanThe scenery started to get more beautiful as I approached the capital, RabatArrived in RabatPublic safety seems goodPushing through the crowd with confidenceThere is an atmosphere of constant vigilance against terrorismVery MoroccanThere are trams running tooIt's quite a cityThere's even a building that looks like Mode GakuenThe countryside has an exclusionary vibe and is a bit scaryTaking a break in an inconspicuous spotRural towns during Ramadan are seriously desertedThe pavement is as divine as everThey tend to put mysterious monuments in roundaboutsThe scenery is always Windows XPEven in prosperous rural towns, this is about as good as it getsIt's scary at night, so it's probably best not to walk around muchThe countryside is desertedFrench-style supermarkets are basically only in fairly large citiesSeeing scenery like this is the real thrill of bicycle travelThe terrain is amazingBreathtaking scenery appears one after anotherThe Moroccan countryside has high potentialArrived in the World Heritage town of MeknesRiding my bike around the walled cityStaying at a Riad tonightThe square in the center of Meknes; maybe because it's Ramadan, there were no food stallsThe World Heritage gate is surprisingly underwhelmingVisited a musical instrument museum near the squareThe interior is amazingThe kind of stuff boys loveThe weather is bad as usualAn alleyway that doubles as a shopping streetHeading to Fes in the rainArrived in Fes after all sorts of thingsThe old town is visible in the distanceTook a commemorative photo in front of the famous Blue Gate.Once you pass through the gate, it's like a post-apocalyptic USJSaw a few Japanese people here and thereI wanted to eat rice so badly that I got sucked into this placeNothing beats riceThe journey from Fes onwards will continue in Part 2...
