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Realizing
Rick's :
I see palm trees, I see water...
( Continued )
Suddenly some of my best contacts were walis of
Casablanca, Marrakech and Fes. Ironically I had
just had a conversation with Driss Benhima, then
the CEO of the National Office of Electricity,
in which I asked him if he'd ever considered running
for Mayor of Casablanca. While it would be interesting,
he gave me a number of reasons why it would not
be possible. When I called him that afternoon
to congratulate him on being named the wali of
Casablanca he said, "I just said to my deputy,
'perhaps Kathy got me nominated!'" Then came September
11, 2001. Literally in shock I continued working
on details for a Moroccan delegation I was accompanying
to an African Business Summit to be held in Philadelphia
at the end of the month, while the TV in my office
continued to describe the shock and horror of
the attacks. In the days that followed I worried
how Morocco would be perceived following the tragic
events. I arrived in an empty Marrakech the first
Friday night and was invited on Saturday by the
wali and his family to the opening of a night
club at the Meridien Hotel. We were the only party.
In the three years since my arrival, Morocco was
starting to change. I worried that in the reaction
to September 11 there was the danger this country
that I'd come to appreciate so much would be misperceived
and lumped together with extremist Arab states.What
makes Morocco unique is the hospitality, openness
and tolerance of its people gained from its proximity
to Europe and mix of Arab, African, European and
berber cultures. King Mohammed VI had made tourism
a priority industry with programs put in place
to attract more tourists to Morocco...now what
would happen to these initiatives?
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I began to consider staying in Morocco and giving
up my career with the U.S. government. I had the
potential to buy the house across from mine in
Marrakech and create a guest house. But another
idea came to mind...develop a Rick's Cafe in Casablanca.
It seemed so obvious - what better way to demonstrate
Morocco's uniqueness than for an American woman
to realize a project that hadn't been undertaken
since the release of "Casablanca" in 1942. I made
an appointment with Driss Benhima and told him
I was going to stay in Morocco and build Rick's
Cafe. He asked where and I said maybe it could
be in the New Corniche which was planned for development.
"No," he said, "You're going to put your cafe
in the Ancienne Medina (old city) so that it can
be a magnet to attract other investors." This
idea excited me as I love historic preservation
and have seen first hand how it can add to the
richness of cities - my home town of Portland
a case in point. He made a member of his staff
available to help navigate through the Ancienne
Medina and we set off on a Sunday in January,
2002 looking at properties. I saw an old hotel
and a large house, neither one having the location
or the architectural characteristics I was looking
for. I told the agent I wanted to see something
bigger and closer to the sea, preferably with
a view. The next weekend we visited this house
- I knew it was perfect when I set foot inside.
I could see lights, plants and their shadows on
white walls and arches and I could imagine the
piano and the bar and beaded lamps on tables.
Plus it was across the road from the sea, and
had a large terrace where an apartment could be
built for me. It was like a dream. And - if you're
still following this closely - looking out the
windows, at last, "I see palm trees, I see water."
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