Casablanca, Morocco
Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco
The Hassan II Mosque stands on a rocky promontory on Casablanca's western shore, partly built over the Atlantic and partly on land, the first mosque in Morocco built partly over the sea. It is the largest mosque in Morocco, the second largest in Africa and one of the largest in the world. King Hassan II commissioned it to designs by the French architect Michel Pinseau, and it opened on 30 August 1993. Its minaret rises 210 metres, the second tallest in the world and as high as a sixty-storey building, topped by a laser whose beam points towards Mecca. It holds about 25,000 worshippers in the prayer hall and 80,000 more on its esplanade, and the prayer hall's roof slides open to the sky. The mosque is a living showcase of Moroccan crafts: around 3,300 artisans from across the kingdom worked on its carpentry, carved plaster, zellij and marble. Walls are of hand-carved marble, ceilings of carved and painted cedar, columns faced with coloured tiles, and the lower level holds vast ablution halls and traditional baths with marble fountains. The complex also includes a Quranic school, a library and a museum.
It is one of the few mosques in Morocco open to non-Muslims, through guided tours at set times, so book or buy tickets in advance. Modest dress is required: shoulders and knees covered, headscarves for women, shoes off. Allow an hour for the tour and half an hour for the esplanade and corniche. Sunset from the corniche is the best time for photos.
Hours and prices change — check before you go. Source: en.wikipedia.org
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