4.3 Going places

Interviewer: Malik: I’m at school here in Casablanca, in Morocco. I’ve lived here for three years. My parents are both engineers, so we’ve lived in several different countries.

Interviewer: And have you travelled around much?

Malik: Yes, we’ve been on trips to quite a few parts of the country, to the coast near Agadir, to the Atlas Mountains and to the edge of the Sahara Desert.

Interviewer: Is it easy to get around?

Malik: Yes, it is, especially between the big cities. We went to Marrakesh recently, on the train. I love trains. The railway between Casablanca and Marrakesh was built a hundred years ago. It’s not very fast, but it’s comfortable and it’s a great way to see the countryside. It’s a little bit more expensive than the bus, but it’s worth it.

Interviewer: Are there special fares for young people?

Malik: Yes, if you’re under 12, you get a cheaper ticket.

Interviewer: How long did the journey take?

Malik: It took 3 hours, 20 minutes.

Interviewer: How far is it?

Malik: I think it’s just over 200 kilometres.

Interviewer: Have you been on the high-speed train yet?

Malik: You mean Al-Boraq? Yes! We went from Casablanca to Tangier. It travels at 300 kilometres per hour. It’s a double-decker train: it’s got an upper and a lower deck. We went on the upper deck. It was fantastic!

Interviewer: You said you went to the Atlas Mountains. How did you get there?

Malik: We went to Marrakesh by train and then we went in a taxi, which we shared with some other people.

Interviewer: And what about in your day-to-day life. How do you get to school? Do you walk, do you cycle or do you go by car?

Malik: None of those.

Interviewer: Oh.

Malik: No, I use the tram. The trams are really good.

Interviewer: Oh, really? I didn’t know there were trams in Casablanca.

Malik: Yes, the tram network was opened in 2012 and it was extended in 2019.

Interviewer: You seem to know a lot about it.

Malik: Well, my parents are both engineers and I’m doing a project on transport at school.

Interviewer: Ah, that explains it. Well, thank you, Malik, for giving us a very interesting interview.