I am walking down a narrow alley which, visually, is hypnotic.
The stone path below my feet is stark white and glows in the sharp Moroccan sun.
The shoulder-height walls which flank me are ocean-blue, before transitioning to a blinding white, before merging with the blue sky.
This white-to-blue-to-white-to-blue pattern is simple but wonderfully pleasing to the eye. The pattern is broken by a kaleidoscope of bright colours contained within the outfits of two Moroccan girls who walk into the alley.
They are carrying books, seemingly on their way home from school. This reminds me that I am not in a hyper-colour maze ripped from a dream, but rather, in a residential neighbourhood of Rabat called the Kasbah les Oudaias.
Many readers will have seen stunning photos of Morocco's famous "blue city" Chefchaouen, the kind of place which births incurable cases of wanderlust.
The Kasbah les Oudaias is not quite as spectacular. But it offers a similar aesthetic while being far more accessible than Chefchaouen, which is isolated in the mountains of northern Morocco.
The Kasbah les Oudaias is the original location of the fortress after which Rabat was named.
Constructed in the 12th century on a cliff overlooking the Bou Regreg River to one side and the Atlantic Ocean on another, it attracts not only travellers but also locals, who savour its sprawling views across the water to Rabat's sister city, Sale.
Locals also gather to relax in the adjoining Andalusia Gardens.
After exploring the maze-like environment of the Kasbah, I take my lead from the Moroccans around me and have a rest in this lush, green space.
The gardens are a peaceful, idyllic setting in a city which at times can be noisy and confronting.
Beyond their attractive appearance, these gardens reflect the varied cultural influences apparent in Morocco. The gardens were designed by the French in the early 19th century during their period of colonial power over the northern half of the country.
But the earthen-red walls which surround the gardens, and sections of the Kasbah, have architectural flourishes of Andalusia, a part of southern Spain which was once a section of the mighty Moroccan empire, the Almohad.
This empire controlled a swathe of northern Africa and southern Spain and Portugal from 1121 to 1269. The French also left their fingerprints on the modern part of Rabat, with its wide boulevards, leafy parks and stately government buildings.
The architectural influence of the Almohads, meanwhile, is clearest in the city's older areas. The most striking structure they left behind is the magnificent Hassan Tower.
Constructed from red sandstone and standing 44m tall, it was initially intended to be twice as high and adjoined by a huge mosque.