Affter about 20 hours in transit we have arrived in Rabat. Our trip was not the best, but the problems were all small. The trip from Columbia to Dulles was without problems--the weather was lousy but there weren't many cars on the road, and we got to the airport around 2. After wasting some time in the checkin line, we discovered that since we had checked in online, we could go to the baggage drop line and that line was very sort. We had time to get something to eat before we boarded our flight, and were very happy that we had done so, because the dinner was one of the worst I've ever eaten on a plane. The first course was soybeans and pastrami (and it was worse than it sounds). There was a choice for the main course, I picked the cod, which ended up being mashed potatos with some sort of green tinge with little pieces of fish. The other choice was a chicken dish which according to Marilyn and my seatmate was awful. The rolls were ice cold and stale, and dessert was a chocolate raspberry cake that sounded good but was dry and tasteless. Even the champagne was not very good--it tasted bitter. The best thing on the tray was the Cozy rice pudding. I was really disappointed in Air France which usually has great food. The flight was full and the seats were narrow, and I couldn't sleep. Because we left at 4:30, my body thought it was just midnight when we got to Paris, although it was almost 6 am local time. We had about an hour and a half to get to our gate for the flight to Casablanca. We needed every bit of that time. First it was a long walk to catch the shuttle bus, and then a 5 minute wait until it arrived, then about a 15 minute bus ride, another trip through airport security and then a long walk through the new terminal.  We arrived about 15 minutes before we were to board our flight, and I went in search of some water, since we had to dump ours in order to clear security. I finally found one kiosk that was open and sold water. It was 3.50 Euros for a medium bottle and` I was so thirsty I would have bought it, but I ran out of time and had to hurry back to the other end of terminal to get on our flight.  

It was a 3 hour flight to Casablanca, but we were late in leaving and in arriving. There was a great view of Paris as we took off and I could actually see the Eiffel tower. I'm not sure about our exact route but we flew over some very rugged and barren mountains that I think were the Pyrenees before reaching the coast. Then it was only about 45 minutes until we landed in Casablanca. Clearing immigration was a long ordeal (at least an hour) but we met some other people that are taking an OAT tour--but they aren't in our group. They are going to Essaouira first and starting the main tour in 4 days, while we have started the main tour and will go to Essouiria at the end. Finally we got our passports stamped and went to pick up our luggage. I couldn't find either my bag or Marilyn's and was waiting to file a claim, when Marilyn finally located our bags. Then we had to walk back to the other end of terminal, get our checked luggage but not our carry-ons X-rayed before we could get to the public area. We found an OAT rep, but he was waiting for the other people. Because our plane had been in for an hour and a half our leader had gone to another terminal looking for us. Finally we met him, and learned that the rest of our group would not be in until 3 pm, so he was sending us to Rabat in a taxi, and we could check into the hotel and rest until dinner this evening. It was an interesting ride, even if our driver spoke no english and we don't speak french or arabic. 

We got to the hotel and went directly to our rooms where we both crashed. After a nap and a shower, we took a little walk around the area. We were looking for a place to buy water since it cost 25 Dirham at the hotel and that is a little over $3. The market is across the street from the hotel and is not much to look at, but was very interesting inside.   Besides water for 4 Dirham (or 50 cents) they had beautiful vegetables, spices, nice cheeses,and a butcher counter. We also found a lovely little tea and pastry shop where plan on returning.. Now, we are back at the hotel where there is wi-fi in lobby but not in the room. It is 5:30 and the rest of the group has not arrived. I hope that they get here before our 7 pm dinner.   It has been a long time since breakfast, and I'm hungry.