A powerful flywheel a skyline of shopkeepers and mosques. Sometimes even some eyes pointing from all corners. why see a woman driving a taxi never ceased to be a stranger to Moroccan society.
Souad Hdidou is a 34-year-old woman considered to be the only female taxi driver in the city of Rabat . Quite an inspiration for a country that prefers to see its women cooking chebakia in the kitchen and depending on a husband, although Morocco is confirmed as the most tolerant Arab country regarding the timid inclusion of women in society.
We walk the streets of the city in the north of Morocco next to Souad, example of sorority for local women who have found in her a new ally to feel safe and understood when moving around Rabat.
Souad Hdidou, the only female taxi driver in Rabat.
MOM, I WANT TO DRIVE
Born in the nearby city of White House Since childhood, Souad felt a passion for a steering wheel that promised more independence and freedom. “I was lucky to have more liberal parents although it is true that I dedicated myself to driving for a long time until I officially told him so, ”Souad tells Condé Nast Traveler through a phone call.
"Morocco It is the most common Arab country when it comes to finding the first female pilot, the first head of a political party, etc. . I never had criticism from my family, only encouragement. There has been a change in mentality towards women after the arrival of the new millennium in Morocco”.
Souad's first contact with the steering wheel was like driver of a frozen food company van delivering fish . However, for her this job was not enough and she took inspiration from her friends who were drivers from her native Casablanca: “I needed to be more independent and have a budget within my reach ”, she continues. "That's how the idea of becoming a female taxi driver came about."
For five years, Souad has been driving a blue petit taxi (a name she receives because of its small size). During the first years, she worked with four other women drivers who ended up leaving their jobs. Souad assures that the first years were not easy, since they were robbed and her male companions still did not see a woman driving favorably. “ Although the mentality is changing little by little, there are still thousands of men who prefer that women stay at home or work in the kitchen ”, adds Souad.
Souad with her petit taxi.
THE SORORITY TRAVELS ON WHEELS
Souad works normally from 8 in the morning until mid-afternoon or, if she needs it, even until midnight with a break in between to eat. Charge from 10 to 20 euros per day , although income has decreased after the arrival of the pandemic, since it is currently not allowed to share a petit taxi in Morocco for health reasons. Equally, Souad's clients remain loyal to her ally.
The existence of a woman taxi driver in Rabat It spread through the Souad neighborhood and the rest of the city, which is why numerous women call her to request her service at any time of the day. “ Many women call me directly, especially the younger ones, because they feel safer with me when they go around the city or to the clubs on the weekends, ”says Souad. "Once even one of my clients gave birth in the back seat of the taxi."
Souad also affirms that many clients have offered to meet her children and she laughs. Some of them even suggest traveling to another nearby city and she Souad acts as a perfect guide: “There was a client from the United States who paid me to take her to the city of Fez and I accompanied her throughout the day. She told me that she would call me again when she returned to Morocco”.
Many female travelers feel safer with Souad Hdidou at the wheel.
RABAT, THROUGH THE EYES OF SOUAD
Souad's life in Rabat is the best kaleidoscope of culture and contrasts in the Moroccan city. “ I like to get up early every day and have breakfast at Café Haning, where they serve a plate of eggs with dried meat (Jle’a) and barley bread ”, says Souad. “I also usually go to eat fried fish at Poissons Anass, although sometimes I get lost in the old Medina of Rabat to have a kefta skewer or chop snails and pickles that they sell at the stalls.”
On Wednesdays, Souad goes to the Hammam Marassa and on Sundays she likes to walk around Skhirat beach to watch the sunset. “ Rabat is a very quiet place and recommended for those who are looking for that authentic Morocco beyond big cities like Marrakech ”. On his few days off, Souad also likes to visit places like the Chellah Necropolis, an ancient roman complex abandoned for years until the arrival of the benimerines.
Rabat, Morocco.
While she eats her snails lost among the colorful bazaars, Souad receives a call from a client who trusts her to go to the other side of the city. It is the community language of women who today make their way arm in arm around the world and, sometimes, even sharing reflections in the same car. Women who face a pulse of history as ancient as it is slow, sometimes even threatening. "Even if it's 4 in the morning, if a woman calls me, I go and pick her up," concludes Souad.