Info About Morocco, Know Before You Come
Official country name: Kingdom of Morocco.Capital : Rabat.
State: Constitutional monarchy.
Independence: March 2, 1956 ( from frence).
Area : 710,850 km ².
Population: 35 million of which 44% is rural. (Berbers, Arabs, Haratin, Jews ...).
Official languages: Arabic and Tamazight, other languages: Moroccan dialect, Hassani, French, Spanish.
Head of State: His Majesty King MOHAMED VI (since 23 July 1999)
Language :
Arabic and Tamazight ( Berber) are the official languges, although French is widely spoken, particularly in large cities. Some English is spoken at hotels, restaurants and shops but it is useful to have a sprinkling of French to improve your enjoyment of your trip. In mountain areas various dialects of Berber are spoken, and in more remote villages not even Arabic is spoken, let alone French or English.
Geography :
Morocco is the most mountainous country in North Africa and has enormous variations in topography across the country. There are numerous mountain ranges, the most important in terms of land mass are the High Atlas, the Middle Atlas, the Anti-Atlas and the Rif mountains. The Atlas mountains stretch all the way from the Algerian border to the Atlantic coast and have numerous sub-chains. In the south the volcanic ranges of the Sirwa and the Saghro lie just south of the Atlas and other more minor ranges extend towards the desert. Marrakech sits on a flat (and quite fertile), plain and much of central Morocco is fairly flat and classified as semi-arid. Morocco has some 3000km of Atlantic and Mediterranean coast, and much of the south of the country is classified as desert. The south of the country in fact borders the Sahara desert.
Religion :
Islam is the official religion in Morocco and peacefully co-exists alongside other religions.
Each day of the year is marked by five calls to prayer and the muezzins announce prayer times from the top of the mosques' minarets.
Mosques in general are closed to non-Muslims however the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, open to non-Muslims every day except Friday, and is well worth a visit.
Please do not be offended if, sitting in a café or walking out of the bank, someone holds out his/her hand to ask for charity, which is an inherent part of Islam - you are free to hand over a dirham, or not. However, please do not give coins, sweets or biros to children as it encourages them to beg from every passing visitor.
Berber Art and Culture
Culture and traditions within each Berber community is very tribal and will differ from region to region. Day to day life is nomadic with men taking care of the livestock and women taking care of the family and handicrafts. The community will move to ensure that the livestock has ample grazing, water and shelter. This allows the women to continually collect different plants that they will use to dye wool and cotton. Their livestock provide them with wool which they use to weave kilims, a tapestry like woven carpet. These are sometimes made for personal use but are also often sold at local souks (markets). The patterns woven into the kilims are distinctive and characteristic of the tribe and region. The Moroccan Berber women like to embellish their kilims with fringes and sequins whereas other Berber weavers from different regions will simply use geometric designs such as diamonds and triangles.
Berber art is predominantly crafted and expressed as wearable or useable pieces such as in pottery, furniture, fabrics, jewelry or carpets. Artistic design is also represented in their architecture.
Cuisine :
Moroccan cuisine is home to Berber, and Moorish. It is known for dishes like the couscous, tajine, pastilla and others. Moroccan cuisine uses a lot of spices like cinnamon, turmeric, ginger and saffron, giving it an original taste. Moroccans everyday go-to meal is the tajine as it is a balanced and quick to make meal. On special occasions, more complex meals like the Moroccan pastilla and some special pastries like gazelle corns and briwates are served for guests.