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If anything in Casablanca should remind you of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, it should be the old city with its old colonial buildings built in the art-deco style. But the city also boasts a modern side, which is as far away from its Hollywood image as it is from Oriental romanticism. But nonetheless beautiful in its own respect.

The centre of Casablanca is fairly impressive with big, lively boulevards, and high, white, well-kept buildings. It is clean and efficient. People visiting Casablanca as their first city could easily end up hating this place, as there are few things here offering the visitor a reaffirmation of its Orientalism. But for people having visited other parts of Morocco first, Casablanca is a respite! The city is modern in a Moroccan way, and an excellent example of Moroccans' capacity of taking charge of the future of their country.
But for those who are adventurous enough to venture out of the centre of town, dark clouds loom and poverty and prostitution prevail, an extreme matched only by Tangier. No other place in the country displays bigger differences between the haves and the have-nots than Casablanca.
It is mainly made up of smaller houses, which all seem to be from this century. Narrow alleyways that dominate in the other old cities are rarely found here. Among the most visible aspects of Casablanca are the wide boulevards flanked by tall white buildings. The streets run out like the leaves of a fan from the Place de Nations Unies. This place is the focal point of downtown Casablanc, and also the point where the modern town meets the medina.

The Hassan II Mosque, the third largest in the world after the mosques in Mecca and Medina, remains one of the key attractions in Casablanca.

Quick Tips:

Casablanca is a good shopping spot. There is a good market here, but look around before you buy-shopkeepers here know their skills. The traditional Medina and Houbous offer a good variety of craft and typical Moroccan shopping. You will also find good shopping in Casablanca's malls.

Casablanca isn't really the place to go searching from shop to shop. The city has a laidback feeling to shopping, especially if you step out from the market zone of the Medina. The commercial areas reminds you principally of Europe's. But if money isn't a problem—and as far as I can find, the handicraft shops here are not cheap—Casablanca is one of the better places in all of Morocco to buy pick up something nice and different.

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A walk around Casablanca will demonstrate clearly that Casablanca was the place that the French colonial authorities gave most attention. And money. The old colonial centre of Casablanca is not small and refreshingly beautiful. The buildings are of a French version of Arabo-Andalucian architecture, white with soft lines and often plenty of details.

Corners do often give away the best examples, and happily, the buildings are most of the time in very good condition. The area to explore is south of Avenue des Forces Armées Royales, but of special interest is the Place des Nations Unies, which has the largest structures. Further east and south buildings are less impressive, but equally interesting.

Being the only mosque in the whole of Morocco that is open to the non-Muslim public everyday except Fridays. Although it costs around US$20 per person for the guided tour, it is more than just sightseeing, but an eye-opener to the world and religion of Islam. There are four guided tours per day (from Saturday to Thursday at 9, 10, 11am and 2pm) so make sure that you time it well or else you’d be left sitting around and waiting for your turn. And each tour can only take up to about 20 or 30 people.

There are benches on both sides of the mosque and a nice place to sit and take a bite while you're waiting for the tour to start. There is no shade, but the temperature is tempered by the breezes blowing in from the ocean. And occasionally you can hear the whistles of police officers who swarm the grounds.

Having purchased your ticket and been appointed a guide (according to the language you have indicated you'd like the tour to be conducted in), you will be informed where and when to gather for your guided tour. Our English-speaking tour guide was able to explain not just the architecture well but also gave us an insight into the religion. The tours are also conducted in French. And there is a concession for students. Photography is allowed inside but not filming with a video camera.

Before entering the mosque, you are encouraged to cleanse your hands and face at one of the many colourful, mosaic fountains outside the mosque on the esplanade.

At the entrance into the building proper, you will be given a sticker which identifies that you are part of a group tour which is stamped with a number and the date of the tour. After which you will be given plastic bags to store your shoes, as you will be walking barefoot throughout the interior.

On the guided tour, which will take about 1.5 hours, the guide will walk you through the many prayer halls and huge ablution chambers that can accommodate 500 people at any one time. Especially on Fridays, when it is compulsory for the men to go for noon prayers. The prayer halls are divided into an area for men, and an area for women upstairs with windows so they can see the religious master ~ faqih.

Part of the building is built over the cliff and certain areas of the great hall has transparent glass flooring, from where you are able to see through to the ocean below.

At the end of the tour, you are expected to tip the guide, we gave ours US$2 per person. But of course, as always, it is up to your own discretion.

And if you'd like you can take the elevator up the minaret but that costs extra.

Boulevard Muhammad V is Casablanca's busiest shopping street, and it is along this boulevard where you will find a charming combination of European and Oriental architectural styles, especially #3, 40, 67 and 97. Halfway along this boulevard is a small and unexpected discovery, the Brasserie du Petit Poucet, a fashionable gathering place since the early ‘20s. Illustrated letters from the famed writer of The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, congratulating the owner on the high standard of his establishment, still hang on the walls.

The most eye-catching façade is that of #208; the colourful zellige with which it is covered mark the contribution of the Moroccan craftsmen made to the construction of buildings designed by French architects.

Casablanca's main market, Marche Central, takes place every morning along the boulevard, offering a wealth of the finest Moroccan produce from the agricultural regions of Fez, Meknès, Gharb, and Doukkala.

The place is a small, but high-quality, version of the traditional souks of Morocco. Catering to the needs of the Moroccans, it is a guarantee that you will be able to find something truly local.

The market is divided into different sections, with stalls selling dried produce, including nuts and fruits, fresh flowers, pets, and livestock, and a wet area where you can buy fresh produce. There is also a section where you will be able to find hand-woven straw baskets, moccasins, rugs, and handicrafts.

The fresh food section offers vegetables, meat, and all kinds of seafood. You'll even find live turtles -- sale of turtles as food is prohibited in many Western countries -- deemed to be somewhat of a delicacy here.

For some of the greatest shopping and a taste of local favourites, nowhere beats the souks, or the Medina, where you will be able to find the most traditional of arts and crafts and the most exotic of food items, including the one cure-all known as the "little doctor in your home," the eucalyptus seed. If you place a small amount in a small scrap of cotton, twist the cloth so it tightens into a round ball, rub it against your palms, and place it under one of your nostrils, inhaling deeply, I assure you, any head flu, cold, or blocked nose will immediately be cured!

This was an ambitious project undertaken by King Hassan II, whose aim was to build the most magnificent mosque at the most western point of the Muslim world. He was assured that this monument would be the North African equivalent of the Statue of Liberty. The pride of Morocco, it marries modern metallic titanium with traditional stonework.

Being the third largest mosque after Mecca and Medina, this awesome building is perched on the precipice of a cliff, with part of it hanging over the sea. Inspired by the Koran, which says that "the throne of God was built on water," this project was ingenious as the symbol of a developing Atlantic nation because, for centuries, the Arabs were plagued with the Sea of Obscurity-Atlantic Ocean-associating it with invaders, colonists, and weak tribes driven back from the heartlands of Morocco. But with the rise of Casablanca as the country's economic powerhouse, the Moroccans are finally focusing on the coast.

Work began on the mosque in 1980, being built right over the sea on the site of a former municipal swimming pool south of the city. Financed largely by donations at an estimated cost of $800 million, the astronomical cost is matched by designs of a gigantic scale, covering a total area of 24,000 square yards. The prayer hall can accommodate 250,000 worshippers with space for another 80,000 pilgrims on the esplanade. A laser beam, indicating the direction of Mecca, shines as far as 22 miles from atop one of the world’s tallest minarets. Visible from anywhere in the city, it is topped by three gilded balls on its roof that are the size of a football pitch.

As the brainchild of French architect, Michel Pinseau, the mosque has tones of ochre and green (the traditional colour associated with Islam). It was inaugurated on August 30, 1993 in commemoration of the 60th birthday of the former Moroccan king, Hassan II.

Beyond the massive doors of the mosque, the interior shimmers with polished marble floors, granite columns, and Moorish arches topped with cedar-panelled cupolas. The intricately decorated roof is lit by pale green Bohemian crystal chandeliers and can be opened to flood the hall with light. Just about every square inch is precisely carved, painted and chiselled by the best of the best of Moroccan artisans. Over 2,500 men worked on two separate shifts to complete its construction. The mosque has a retractable roof and a heated floor, and the seating area for the women seems to levitate above the main floor. You can see through the floor to the fountains and baths below.

A cultural centre, with a library, museum, and Muslim schools, adjoins the main building. The creation of this vast complex was followed by an extensive program of urban development in which whole areas in the immediate vicinity were demolished and a wide access road was constructed.

Finishing our tour of Hassan II Mosque in the early evening, we decided to take a stroll along Boulevard de La Corniche, an area where Casablancans go to play. It is the Riviera of the African continent, the Blackpool of Morocco, the South Beach of Casablanca.

It stretches from the Mosque on a crescent to the El Hank Lighthouse, which stands on a rocky headland west of Casablanca. The sea swell and a great sandbank once made the port of Casablanca extremely dangerous, so to help ships negotiate these obstacles, the French built the lighthouse in 1905. Today, you can still see ferocious crashing waves upon the outcrop. From the lighthouse, northwards along the waterfront is bordered by an uninterrupted sweep of beaches, swimming pools, cafés, hotels, and restaurants. Casablancans come here to take an evening stroll, have a drink, and breathe the salty, bracing sea air.

Overlooking the sea, Fondation Saoudienne Ibn Seoud (The Ibn Saud Saudi Foundation), built in 1985, comprises a mosque, a center for higher education, and an ultra-modern library. At the far end of the corniche near the resort of Aïn Diab are the Casablanca health clinic and the Sinbad Amusement Park, with its colourful carousels, dizzying dodgems, slippery slides, and pedalos. A rare sight indeed, but no less fitting here on the beachfront – it kinda reminded me of Tom Hanks’s movie "BIG", except it’s Sinbad instead of Zoltar smiling mysteriously down at you.

People suffering from psychological problems or nervous disorders often visit The Marabout of Sidi Abd Er Rahman, a shrine consisting of a group of whitewashed tombs, perched in a striking position on a rocky promontory that can only be reached at low tide. Every year, a large number of pilgrims go to bathe and spend the night there.

Some of the most luxurious villas in Casablanca are found just behind the Corniche, in the residential area of Anfa. And it was in one of these hilltop houses in 1943 that Churchill and Roosevelt met to plan the Allied landing in Normandy and Sicily. Although the Spanish secret service had been informed of a possible meeting in "Casa Blanca," they were unable to prevent it taking place, because they were under the impression that it was to be held in the White House in Washington, D.C.!

We ended our little walking tour with dinner at a restaurant that came highly recommended by our local guide -- La Cabestan -- which was excellent! Set in an exotic garden in the shadow of El Hank Lighthouse, the waves crashing against the yellow rocks below whilst Mme Viot, a culinary artist, tantalised our tastebuds with lobsters and fish so fresh, you could still smell the seas. Add steak with foie gras and tarts and profiteroles, which will have you licking your lips. It was topped off with impeccable service worthy of a five-star French restaurant; it was absolutely one of the most unforgettable nights we had in Morocco.