Rabat is the capital of Morocco, and it has an easy, civilised feel compared with the bigger rush of Casablanca. The city sits on the Atlantic coast where the Bou Regreg river meets the sea, facing the old pirate town of Sale across the water. The Kasbah of the Udayas, a fortress with a blue-and-white village inside it, stands on a bluff above the river mouth. Its gardens and narrow lanes are a quiet place for tea and a look at the sea. In the twelfth century the Almohad ruler Yaqub al-Mansur started to build a huge mosque here, and it was never finished.
What remains is the Hassan Tower, a red sandstone minaret that rises to about forty-four metres and would have been much taller. Beside it stand the stumps of some two hundred columns, forming a forest of broken stone in an open plaza. Opposite is the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the king who led Morocco to independence in 1956, finished in the late 1960s and built of white marble with a green tiled roof. Guards in red and white uniforms stand at the doors, and visitors may look inside. It is a calm and dignified place.
For a rider, the interest here is the coast road. From Casablanca to Rabat the motorway, tolled but fast, covers around ninety kilometres, and parallel coastal roads give a prettier, slower route past beaches and eucalyptus groves. Traffic in the cities is heavy, with scooters and taxis, and rules are loosely observed. The best strategy is to ride predictably and allow plenty of space. Police checks are common on the roads outside towns, and speed limits are enforced, so keep to them.
Fuel is available everywhere in town and along the motorway. Food is good, and fish is the speciality, grilled at stalls by the port, along with seafood tagine and fresh orange juice sold from carts. Chellah, an old Roman and medieval necropolis with storks nesting on the ruins, is a short ride from the centre and worth a visit. Spring and autumn are the best times, with mild weather and clear light.