Rabat – Sousi Ab is a Moroccan-Dutchman who has been traveling the world on his bike since May 3, 2018. He is documenting his mission to travel from Suriname to Mecca through his Instagram and Facebook pages. Ab grew up in Morocco but now lives in the Netherlands.
Ab began his journey in May 2018 in the South American country of Suriname. He traveled around the country, forming relationships and exploring new places. Along his journey, he discovered another Moroccan in Nieuw Nickerie, Suriname, who moved to Suriname in 1987.
Ab spoke to the Moroccan man, who has yet to return to Morocco since his departure. The man’s children were born and raised in Suriname and now have strong Surinamese accents. Amused by the Moroccan-Surinamese boy’s accent, Ab uploaded a video of the man’s son speaking, which has since received over 24,000 views on Facebook.
In addition to Suriname, Souisi Ab traveled to Guyana, Venezuela, Italy, and Russia, among other countries. Ab visited Russia over the summer during the World Cup and met other Moroccans who were in Russia to support the Moroccan football team.
During Ab’s travels, his main mode of transportation is a bike. He visits various mosques around the countries which he explores. Ab is currently traveling through Brazil and intends to arrive in Mecca at the beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Ab is one of almost 380,000 people of Moroccan descent living in the Netherlands. Moroccan-Dutch people represent 2 percent of the Netherlands’ population, according to the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics. Of Dutch people with immigrant backgrounds, Moroccans are the third-most populous in the Netherlands, after the Turkish and Surinamese, according to SpringerLink.
