The lost friends of my childhood

As you all know, Morocco got its independence in 1956. Before then, Morocco was French for almost a hundred years.

I was born in the centre of Casablanca in 1959. As a child, my friends in the neighborhood were French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese. We all played together; rugby, soccer, ping pong and tennis. We all went to the same beach.

It was normal to hear all these different languages around me and to play all these European sports. Europeans were in the majority where I grew up in Casablanca. Things also started to change at this time. There were fewer Europeans around. They were leaving the country quite rapidly. Most of these European families had been living in Morocco for more than five generations.

I was too young to understand why my friends were leaving. Some left overnight without leaving any address. Their houses were locked and abandoned. I remember the old Spanish barber who used to be all day long so busy. His shop was always crowded with Spanish people, most of them were old men who used to wear a beret.

I remember as well the many funeral corteges heading along my street, followed by many mourners all wearing black. The catholic church was not far from where I used to live. Some European families were leaving and some were dying from old age on the Moroccan soil where they were born.

I loved that part of my childhood despite the fact that my European friends left without giving any notice or saying where they were going. Surely, their parents were worried and fearful of the changes that were to come with Morocco's independence. As I am guessing that my friends were sad too for leaving their friends behind.

At the end, we lost each other and we never heard from each other again....

This clip reminds me of the lost friends of my childhood
Souvenirs Casablanca 1958 - Morocco