31 Friday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
beauty, blue, Chefchaouan, green, Morocco, photography, purple, shades of blue, The Blue City, village
I still don’t know why the city of Chefchaouen is blue. But in the 1930’s, Jewish people painted it such. But why!? No clue. But really, who cares. I was too busy taking photos and gawking and oohing and ahhing to care. At every turn there was more beauty! So much so that after a few hours it almost got tiresome. Take a look. And imagine seeing all of this in person!
31 Friday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
adhan, artist, call to prayer, Cat Stevens, fes, morning has broken, muezzin, musician, songs, wild world, Yusuf Islam
Word has it that Yusuf Islam, a.k.a. Cat Stevens, lives in Fes. But the best part? He is the muezzin who recites the adhan! He’s the guy who’s voice is heard on the loudspeakers perched on the minaret! He’s the guy that calls the prayer! Suddenly I’m star struck.
Of course I think of him singing his prayers like he might sing ‘Wild World’ or ‘Morning Has Broken’ and then I laugh…
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
calm place, fes, handicraft center, medina, Morocco, souk, souq, tour guid, tour guide
It’s always good to hire a tour guide. Two main reasons I can think of now. 1. He can show you details about a place you might’ve otherwise missed, and 2. He keeps people from driving you crazy in the souq. My guide was Aziz. And a very sweet man at that. We picked him up at a cafe and he presented wearing a sports jacket, nice polo shirt, and slacks. Spiffy. I liked him instantly. And he didn’t skip a beat. Immediately upon being sat in the car he began describing to me Fes and how it has the largest medina in the whole of Africa. And how it is more tranquil than Marrakech. But I already knew that part! What a laid-back, calm place this is. So different from the hustle of Marrakech.
Of course there’s the requisite visit to the handicraft center to see the pottery being made from start to finish, and then being sat in front of a book of mosaic examples to choose the perfect piece to be made specifically for you and then shipped home. For $1200 for a table about 15″ diameter. But other than that, it’s a wonderful experience to see Fes with a guide.
Flour and grains
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
dental sales, dentistry, mint tea, relationship, rugs, sell, selling, shopping, souq
Buying things in Morocco is a big commitment. You don’t just buy something, you create a relationship with the shop owner. It’s not easy.
Massive quantities of mint tea are consumed during the process and endless question-answering like where are you from? Or, is this your first trip to Morocco? And lots of comments, like: our insert-product-here are made by women, we offer fair prices, if you don’t buy, that’s ok, just look. Or, “Now we are family. You are my sister. I offer you family price when you return.” It’s actually sweet. They do a good job.
But having bought many, many rugs (or whatever) in my past, I know what I want and I don’t want the bullshit that goes along with it. I don’t care about the relationship. Well, it’s not so much the relationship I don’t want, it’s that I don’t want to invest the time it takes to make a purchase. Sit! Have some tea! Let’s get to know each other! Argh. “No thank you,” I plead. “I’m just here to buy a rug quick.” I ask for a neutral-colored, small rug. “3×5 rug in light color?” he confirms. I nod to the affirmative and he shows me a room-sized red rug. Again I tell him what I want and emphasize it this time with ‘I don’t have time to shop.’ To which he pulls out about 25 more rugs for his man to unfold (and later put away!) for me.
They figure if they show me everything I’ll be more apt to buy one. But that’s not true! If they show me what I want, like he eventually did, I will most likely be torn as to which of these beauties I will purchase and I might buy more than one, like I almost did this time! I had a hard time selecting just one but I stuck to my guns and named my price and sat there until he agreed, bantering back and forth about how I just can’t do more than $X. Thankfully, he considers me his sister and even loves me (or so he says), so I got the deal. And it was a good deal for both of us and we were happy.
This makes me think about selling in my profession: dentistry. It’s a relationship business we always say. Well, yes, it is but only if the customer wants a relationship. But some people just want to buy and we need to make it easy for those people to buy, too! A big lesson for me.
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
death, dye, fes, fes morocco, hard work, leather, Morocco, sales, tannery, vats of dye
As part of my tour through Fes, Morocco, I visited the tannery. It’s beautiful! But a little stinky. People carry sprigs or bouquets of mint with them and wag them in front of their noses to divert the smell. I wasn’t effected by it. But it wasn’t all that hot on the day I visited.
The thing about the tannery is that it’s all done by hand. The skins are treated and then scraped of their hair. It’s all soaked in lye and then in vats of dyes. Orange from saffron (and probably some chemicals), red from beets (and probably some chemicals), yellow from flowers (and probably some chemicals) and so on. This makes for some excellent picture-taking, for sure. It’s gorgeous. And it’s interesting to see that these workers work so hard. For so long. And under these conditions: beating sun, vats of liquid, lifting heavy skins, and just managing to get from here to there on the edges of vats about 3″ thick. It is amazing. And it made me feel a little bad taking the photos of these hard-working, weary men. Generation after generation of men work here. Year after year. “If they could do something different, they would.” Aziz, my guide, told me later.
The guide who is licensed to walk clients through the tannery, Hamza in my case, walked me through and explained things to me. But not before trying to sell me every purse, shoe, or pouf in the place! “The lamb’s leather is the softest,” he urged. I had to agree. But no. I don’t want a jacket made from it. These purses (“pieces of fashion”) are perfect for you! No. I don’t want a purse. “These are the best quality shoes we have. The red ones look so good with your skin tone,” he prolifically described. BINGO. “Yes they do,” I effused. “I’ll take them along with an orange pair!” I now own two pairs of gorgeous shoes for $50. Bloop. Bloop.(And this after I just wrote I felt a little bad for taking their photo!)
So when I asked if these workers get sick, Hamza said, “Of course! Everyone gets sick. We’re humans.” “No, I know, but do they get sick from standing in these dyes all day? Honestly, Hamza.” No reply. Then I added, “Do they die from it?” Hamza said,”Everyone dies, miss. We all die. We just don’t know when and often why.” Yes, I had to agree. Everyone dies.
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
call to prayer, choice, country, freedom, minaret, Morocco, mosque, Muslim prayer, religion
A big realization for me whilst traveling through Morocco: here there is no freedom from religion. Or of religion. You’re a Muslim and that’s that. Religion is woven into the fabric of everyday life. It’s everywhere. In the phraseology used regularly, in the decisions for the future, in the dress of the people, and in the daily plan. Prayers blare and bellow from every minaret (tower of a mosque) in every village in every town all over the country at the same time each day. “It’s morning, get up and pray,” the prayer urges sometime around 4 a.m.
I find it beautiful and peaceful. And I look forward to it, even at 4 a.m. But while that’s one sort of endearing thing about Morocco (or any Muslim country), or at least a stable and sure thing, I can’t imagine dealing with this day in and day out with or without being Muslim. But religion keeps a society in check. It controls it when the government or its people cannot. So it is. This is a Muslim country and you’re going to live with it, gosh darn it.
29 Wednesday May 2013
Tags
countryside, grand daughter, granddaughter, grandma, grandmother, hitchhiker, hitchhikers, intimate questions, moroccan woman, Morocco, non-Moroccan, non-Muslim, school, t, taxi, tourist
1. Men don’t touch women.
2. Men can’t break up the fight of two women by touching them; they can only use words.
3. Women hitchhikers will not get in to the car of a man, unless a woman is present.
4. Never let your daughter get into a car of a man or a Moroccan couple. But if there’s a tourist woman in the car, it’s ok.
I have learned these things firsthand. But the first one is iffy. In the medina I am often approached and touched by men but always in an affectionate, slap-on-the-arm kind of way when we are joking. But I’m not Muslim or Moroccan. And it’s obvious. So that must make it OK for them. It’s never in an offensive way. Not at all. And I quite enjoy the interactions. I’ve had comments like, “Where did you get your dress?” or “Look at your curly hair!” or “Do you think the reason you travelled so far to Morocco and then met me means we are meant to be together?” (to which I answer with a blank stare). I highly doubt a Moroccan woman would be asked these intimate questions. But I’m a tourist. I’m here to interact. And interact I do!
Whilst watching two women physically fighting about their sons, Mokhtar was helpless except with his words. He couldn’t step in and stop them physically since they are women. He could only stand on the sidelines with the other men and shout for them to stop. Had I been there, I could have stepped in and helped. Glad I wasn’t there.
Two women hitchhikers we picked up the other day would not have gotten in the car had I not been there. The presence of a woman, a tourist, helped increase their confidence that they would be safe.
Two women on the side of the road where we parked to take photos smiled shyly as I stood near them taking photos. After a few minutes, the older one approached Mokhtar and asked if we could take her granddaughter to school since she needed to be there in 20 minutes and no taxi was coming by. Of course! So grandma shook my hand and hugged and thanked profusely and granddaughter got in the car and off we went. The family dog happily joined grandma and she walked two miles or so back to her village assured of the safety of her granddaughter. All because of the female tourist in the car.
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
birka, blond hair, blonde, chefchouan, green eyed, Morocco, police security, rif mountains, security checkpoints, tour guide, tourism, tourist, travel
Tourism is king here in Morocco. Or queen. Either way, seems I’m the get out of jail free card when passing through police security checkpoints. But I’m also the flag that sometimes gets us stopped. For instance, when stopped for a requisite hash check in the Rif Mountains, we were waved through. (Presumably I can transport hash, no problem?) But when driving to Chefchouan in the Rif Mountains, we were stopped to confirm that the car is actually authorized as a tourism car. I’m the flag that alerted them to check for that. The green-eyed, blonde-haired tourist. The obvious non-Muslim. So if Mokhtar is walking with me through a village, he is stopped and asked if he has a tour guide license to take me.* It’s often discretely and I don’t even know about it, but it happens. We are always being watched. He doesn’t have a tour guide license so it can sometimes be a problem. “Can’t you just tell them we’re friends traveling together?” I ask naively. “No. We’re not married. Only married men and women travel together. Not friends,” is the answer he gives. Wow. This is amazing to me! So while we can walk together sometimes, especially in a larger city, it still poses a problem because I’m obviously non-Muslim. The tourist. Always trying to find a solution, I suggest I wear a hijab. But I’m told it won’t work. They’ll still know. That’s exactly what I was told in Turkey when I suggested I wear a birka through the markets. “It won’t do any good,” they told me, “We still know.”
*Tour guides are a protected resource in Morocco. The licenses protect their livelihoods and the tourists from scammers posing as guides. So it’s really a good thing it’s followed so closely. But frustrating when you’re just two friends trying to explore Morocco together, especially when one is actually Moroccan!
29 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
age, beauty, car, driving, fes, hitchhiking, love of people, Morocco, motherhood, neck surgery, old woman, road, travel, volubilis
Returning to Fes from Volubilis we passed two women hitchhiking. “Do you mind?’ Mokhtar asked. Of course not so we stopped to pick them up. “She’s an old lady,” he added. I agreed. They both looked like old ladies though of different gradients of old. In they hopped after many smiles and handshakes, hugs and ‘chukrans.’ Beautiful women with bright faces. Their story? Mother and daughter. Mother is on her way to Fes (50km away) to have neck surgery – – or hopes to. She was a maid for some people in Dades Valley and when her neck gave her so many troubles, the family let her go. Daughter came to get her and was so surprised how bad she really is. So now she is taking care of her old mom. Mother is 49. The “old lady” is 49.
27 Monday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
1st century, Morocco, nature, roman ruins, unesco, volubilis
Volubilis is the site of ancient Roman ruins from like the 1st century. Without going into all the details (those which I have not retained), I’ll list a few high points. To review more, check out my link on it on this blog.
From that link:
The ruins remained substantially intact until they were devastated by an earthquake in the mid-18th century and by Moroccan rulers subsequently looting the site for stone to reuse in building Meknes. It was not until the latter part of the 19th century that the site was definitively identified as that of the ancient city of Volubilis. During and after the period of French rule over Morocco, about half of the site was excavated, revealing many fine mosaics, and some of the more prominent public buildings and high-status houses were restored or reconstructed. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, listed for being “an exceptionally well preserved example of a large Roman colonial town on the fringes of the Empire”.
So here’s my experience. Driving through verdant and green, olive tree-filled rolling hills with grazing cows, sheep, and donkeys, you see a small sign pointing in the direction of Volubilis. But be careful or you’ll miss it (my experience) and will have to turn around and hunt for it again. And suddenly, you see it in the distance. And it takes your breath away. Because here in the middle of literally nowhere is an ancient Roman ruin from the first century! Are you even kidding me right now? And no one was practically even around! Spending an entire day here would not be out of the question if you were really into this kind of thing. Even for me I think I left too soon. But I was so taken by the wildflowers it was hard to decide what to focus on: ancient Roman ruins or these beautiful purple and pink flowers growing up through the ancient columns! Amazing all the way around.
26 Sunday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
barbecue, bread, brochette, cutlets, fez, food, lamb, Meknes, Moroccan salad, olive oil, olives, succulent meat, tajine
Lamb in tajine is amazing. Lamb brochette (skewered meat, barbecued) is fantastic. But the cutlets eaten today in a small town outside Meknes is something I will never forget. Ever. These cutlets are cut directly from the lamb that’s hanging on hooks right in front of you. So in other words, it’s fresh. The guy stands there with his big knife and cuts off what you desire. Then the butcher chops it all up for you in the cut you request. Then the waiter brings it by to show you before it’s barbecued. Then the Moroccan salad arrives along with some olives from the region (Meknes is famous for its olives and olive oil). All this along with bread to sop up extra juices along the way. As if all of this isn’t enough! Then the guy delivers the freshly cooked lamb and you think to yourself that there’s no way you’ll ever be able to eat that pile of just-meat. Especially after the salad and olives and the ubiquitous bread. But then you take the first bite of the crispy-fat and the succulent meat and you’re hooked. I can guarantee that. It is a flavor that I will not forget and that I’m afraid I am now hooked on and will crave. Forever.
26 Sunday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
Dar Jnane, fez, gorgeous interior, guesthouse, medina, Morocco
There’s a guesthouse here in Fez that is spectacular. It’s called Dar Jnane. I think it’s cool that it’s sort of got my name. It’s in a quiet part of the medina so it is relatively peaceful. Aside from the gorgeous interior that has been restored to mostly (or a lot of) the 1700’s original, the terrace is beyond amazing! It’s large and tiled and has a main floor, stairs leading up to a mid-level that’s quite large, and a small third level big enough for a small table and a couple of chairs. And the view is beautiful.
26 Sunday May 2013
Posted in Morocco
Tags
cloudy day, fez, moroccan countryside, Morocco, nature, travelling, weather
It was a cloudy and damp day. Unlike the Morocco I’ve known in the past. In fact, my hair gets curlier as the days go on. So un-Morocco. But photography is better without the sun. The sun becomes another character in the image to futz with so it’s almost easier without it.
25 Saturday May 2013
25 Saturday May 2013
See Jane Travel 