Hassan II Mosque, Casablanca

This morning we left home at 9:30 and rode to Casablanca in the mini-bus to go on a tour of the Hassan II mosque.  Unfortunately, today is the anniversary of the king’s coronation (who knew?), and the mosque was closed to tours.  This was not unexpected – there are no guarantees when it comes to making plans in Morocco, or most of Africa for that matter, but it was still a little disappointing.

Here are a few stats on this mosque:

• largest mosque in Africa, 7th largest in the world
• tallest minaret in the world – 689 feet (6o stories)
• completed in 1993
• lasers on top of the minaret point toward Mecca
• can accommodate 25,000 worshippers inside and 80,000 outside
• has a glass floor over the Atlantic, and a retractable roof
• construction cost is estimated at 585 million Euro (almost 800 million dollars)

Some photos from the exterior…

Nic looking through the keyhole:

The pattern on the door:

This light fixture is at least 4′ tall:

I’m fascinated by this inside corner with the perfect zelij pattern:

A close-up of zelij:

Ben and the kids on the rocks next to the mosque:

We may try to go back for a tour at some point if the schedule allows.  It’s definitely worth the (second) trip.