at home in S'pore: Rabat's Riad Kalaa

One of the loveliest places I stayed in while on holiday in Rabat was Riad Kalaa. We booked this place based on the fabulous recommendations it received on trip advisor, but as cynics, we remained skeptical of our own decision.

When Hamid, our guide led us to our Riad in the heart of the Medina, we were very apprehensive people. The walls were narrow, and it was dark, and the alley leading to our medina reeked of ammonia. At the mouth of yet another dark alley, a rowdy group of teenagers were kicking a ball, their laughter ringing through the air. They stopped and stared at us as we walked past - a pint-size chinese couple with large bags trailing behind a tall dark-skinned man - we were certainly a sight to behold.

"Do you need help? Are you lost? Looking for Riad Kalaa? I show you!" a young boy enquired eagerly, breaking the silence. Hamid quickly shook his head, muttered something in Arabic and picked up pace. We had been warned that young children in the medina would lead tourist on a wild goose chase in search of their hotel before demanding a few dirhams for their navigational services. We were lucky to have Hamid with us, I thought with a shudder as I imagined myself being surrounded by street children demanding dirhams. Whatever Hamid said worked like a powerful magic charm, the street children backed off and went back to their ball game, allowing us to continue walking without interruption.

Soon after our mini-encounter with Moroccan children, we found ourselves at the door of our Riad. Unlike the glossy pictures on their website, the wooden front door was large but dull and almost nondescript in the moonlight. Our skepticism deepen. Were we to walk into abyss and never return? Were Moroccans so skilled in the art of photoshop that they could transform this dull door into something so exquisite-looking?

As the large door creaked open, a tall young man in a neatly pressed uniform greeted us under dim lighting, bowing slightly.

"This is Mohammed and he will be here for you both." Hamid beamed as he made introductions. Mohammed wasted no time in leading us to the interior garden of the raid.

It was beautiful!

Under a netted dome, white ratten chairs and glass tables sat demure at each corner of the interior garden.

"You are very lucky today" Hamid grinned, his eyes sparkling "just last week the Riad was not decorated like this. Now they put up the lights for christmas. you very lucky."

As we tended to the task of filling out personal ID forms, Mohammed brought us the emblem of Moroccan hospitality - two glasses of mint tea and a plate of sweet cookies and biscuits. They were surprisingly very delicious and certainly set the tone for our experience at Riad Kalaa.

We were then shown to our room upstairs, the Amber room, the smallest (and cheapest) option in this luxury riad.

G and I are not travelers with high expectations so we were pleasantly surprised by the presence of simple things like a hair dryer, a mirror, and soap in playful bottles.

This was our safe, "western" haven inside a messy, convoluted medina we could barely understand, try as much as we did. I knew instinctually that it was 'not right' to transform a tradition riad into a modern hotel equipped with western comforts like an emerald swimming pool and a spa in the name of preservation and money. But when confronted by the luxury and extravagance before me, all was quickly forgotten. Afterall, were we not on a holiday?

So G took long morning bathes oblivious to the fact that many Moroccans suffered from severe droughts in the summer while I pranced around snapping pictures of Riad Kalaa's beauty