The Gran Café de Paris, possibly the most famous café in Tangier.
The Gran Café de Paris, famous for the clientele who used to frequent it.
Paul Bowles was an American writer, composer, and translator who lived in self-imposed exile in Tangier for over 50 years. A city that was a great source of inspiration. His novel, The Sheltering Sky, a story of three American travellers adrift in the cities and deserts of North Africa, written in 1949, became a best-seller.
William Burroughs was an American visual artist and writer who lived in Tangier for a time. His best work, Naked Lunch, was set in Tangier.
The Gran Café de Paris is located on the small intersection known as the Place de France, opposite the French Embassy in Tangier.
This is my 4th visit to Morocco and my 8th visit to Africa, yet this is my first blog post from Morocco. So many countries were backpacked before blogging was a thing. There will never be time to do those posts. But just imagine how comprehensive this blog would be if I had been blogging then.
I like these types of places.
It’s a bit like the El Floridita in Havana, Cuba which has become a tourist attraction, not for really for the legendary daiquiris but because it was Ernest Hemingway’s favourite bar.
I am a big Jason Bourne fan, and this is the real reason why I went to drink an overpriced mint tea at the “Gran Cafe de Paris” as it featured in the 3rd instalment, The Bourne Ultimatum; the scene where Nicky Parsons is waiting for Desh to come and pick up a new phone.
My overpriced mint tea at the Gran Café de Paris in Tangier,
I also saw the Velasquez Garage, where Daniels had parked his car, a few blocks away.
Years previously, I also visited certain film locations in Goa.
The Telegraph Office, where Kirill is asking questions and the Nerul Bridge, where Marie is hit and their car crashes through the guardrail into the river below.
Can’t wait for Bourne 6!