Taxis

     It's been so long since we've had to ride in a taxi that we have forgotten how grateful and blessed we are to have a car of our own [in spite of how trashy our car might seem]. We just realized that we never wrote a post about taxis... and so we apologize because  a taxi post is well worth a post of its own.

     There are two types of taxis in Casablanca: white and red. Red taxis are contract taxis: they will take you to the general area [though typically not to a specific driveway] where you need to go within their city limits. By law, they will only carry 3 passengers at a time.
     White taxis, on the other hand, have specific routes that they take repeatedly every day. They are cheaper than red taxis; however, they will not commence driving their route until either their taxi is full or you pay for every empty seat. A full taxi means 4 people in the back, and 3-4 people in the front, including the driver. How do you get 4 people to fit in the front, including the driver? Easy: 2 people in the front passenger seat [one who must uncomfortably straddle the clutch while the driver shifts], and 1 to the left of the driver.
     Technically, it is illegal for a white taxi driver to put a passenger to his left. In reality though, driving "laws" are rather meaningless and even the police could care less. Nevertheless, experience has taught us that you should not, under any circumstance, try to capture an 8-person taxi ride experience through photography. Nicole was almost beaten/mugged for taking the below photograph which, though poor in quality due to the lack of a flash, serves as proof that 8-person taxi rides do exist:

-David & Nicole