palette please

In an effort to keep the peace with my waste processing system, I don't go overboard with food when I travel abroad. I will try new things, just won't make it a full day of new introductions and will watch the amount of raw fruits and vegetables I intake. What I’m still not and may never get used to are the breakfast buffets with selections of pale, unappetizing cold cuts. Thank goodness, for petite croissants and in Morocco, fresh breads were also in abundance everywhere and quite filling.

The first thing I ate upon arrival in Morocco was pizza they way I like it, thin crust, browned cheese, a little marinara sauce. Throughout my travel, I had more than my share of poulet brochettes, enjoyed fresh local fish, even had delicious Chinese, Tai, and Italian meals. However, my favorite food hands-down was poulet pastilla, a crunchy sweet and savory chicken pie made with the local version of phyllo dough stuffed with chicken, almonds and spices dusted with a little powdered sugar…my palette did a dance that it will happily repeat any time!

I’m still wondering if they could freeze, package and ship a dozen or more to my front door!

Since I’ve been home, I've tried to prepare a dish of mashed squash spiced with cinnamon, sweetened with honey that was quite tasty; I’m still trying to get it right, so I'll keep at it while you...

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back

Two Sunday’s ago, we boarded the bus for Casablanca in Marrakesh. I remember feeling a bit sad knowing that our trip would be over in just a couple of days, thought back to all the cities we had slept in, passed through, seen…

Rabat

Condo in Meknes where we stopped for lunch in route to Fes from Rabat

Old Town Medina Fes

Morning routine Erfoud

Family shopping in Ouarzazate

Marrakesh

and a familiar site

Day visit out to Essaouira on the Atlantic

Casablanca

It’s hard to pick a few photographs when I took thousands. For me, any one of them brings me right back to the location where it was taken, right back to all that I felt as I stood with the view in front of me. I realize that what I saw and captured are people, places and things that though different to my eye upon first glance, are the norm where I was. Makes me wonder what visitors to our country find interesting enough to take pictures of...

As I rode the shuttle to work on my first day back, I looked out the window at the many people waiting for the bus and immediately felt transported back to Morocco looking at a bus stop; we truly are one so...

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time out

In Morocco, no matter where, there before me was a photo op! My entire trip was full of exhilarating sights, sounds, tastes and though we were on the constant move, I found moments to quiet the busy and images to reflect such…

Rest stop at the Ifrane Ski Resort…

Sahara Dunes…

Karam Palace hotel property in Ouarzazate…

Amanjena Spa and Resort, Marrakesh…

Morning drink poolside, Kenzi Farah Hotel in Marrakesh…

It was always nice to rest each evening and because of the schedule, I slept in six different beds and cities; the moments above were a much needed respite and kept me ready for the next. Sunday’s blog will give you a peek from each city, so…

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ps…fun(ny) stuff and tip…1) never leave the country without a wash cloth, only one hotel had them; 2) drank a lot of Coke NORMAL…meaning not diet; 3) lots of men spend lots of time “shoofing”, i.e., loafing and watching the day go by, there are chairs specifically set in position to do so and shoofing is done in EVERY town I visited or passed through even if the town consisted on one short row of shops or was high up in the High Atlas Mountains; 4) don’t ask me what this was about because I asked and was not given an answer but two little boys maybe 4 or 5 years young in two different cities pinched me on the underside of my butt…I was shocked and startled both times and when I turned to see who had been so bold, each little one looked at me with innocent mischief…had to chuckle.

mosaic maroc

I became interested in Morocco when I came across a book filled with page after page of various textiles and vibrant colors over 25 years ago. I was fascinated with what I saw solidifying within a desire to visit some day in the future. Now that I have been there, I can say that Morocco is much more than ceramic tiles and fabrics; it is a country that is one huge mosaic of both colorful and muted textures, landscapes, climates (they do have snow in some regions), people, clothing, architecture, cultures, and foods. Often, I didn’t know which way to look, sometimes just taking it all in rather than taking photographs. That said, I was enthralled with and not disappointed by the many stone/ceramic/enamel mosaics and patterns throughout each city we visited be they on buildings, floors, ceilings, tables, pottery, or furniture. Here are just a few…

I also love the way lettering is worked into the patterns…

Came across this fossil that seemed to be the top of a heart…

It was wonderful to live a dream and though I can now cross Morocco off of my list of places to go, I do believe I will return some day to spend some relaxed concentrated time in a couple of cities. Touring is a great way to cover lots of territory and we did have time off (spent hours on this outdoor bed by the pool talking with my girlfriends until dark),

plus my little group hired a private guide one day as well as split away from the group to do and go to some of the places that were not included in our package. However, the itinerary can be a bit grueling -- two consecutive days we were on the bus for 8 hours, goes by faster than you think and we stopped every 1 ½ hours -- with early wake-up calls. That said the only way to see all of Morocco is to fly to a specific city then drive or be driven, something I came to understand once I understood the lay of the land. Speaking of which, I am still adjusting to being back in my own land, going to try to catch a nap before dawn. I’ll leave the light on…

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no place like home

The worst thing about traveling abroad is the travel time to and from; both ways are long and tiring the difference being that going, I’m excited with anticipation, ready to see everything when the plane lands and coming back, I am drained, can barely walk by the time we touch down in DC and feel so disoriented. Today, I’m a bit tired, happy to have slept in my own bed last night after 13 days away and have been in and out of bed taking naps. I did take a quick peek at some pictures…there are more than 2700 to review and that’s just ONE flash memory card! Dozing again, so…

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pure exhileration

Exhileratingly exhausted as I continue to see the expected and un! Yesterday was spent in the beach and fishing town Essaouira on the Atlantic...bright and sunny, warm with a nice breeze, a place to rent a condo and escape from the world. Leaving Marrakesh heading to Casablanca in a couple of hours then back to the states in a couple of days, absorbing everything I can before I depart so...

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moving through morocco

On Monday, we traveled by bus from Fez to Erfoud, an 8 hour drive with stops; we passed through so many different terrains that I lost track of time never wanting to nap for fear I'd miss something. Next thing I knew, we were pulling into an oasis in the desert that played to all of my senses -- incense burning all over the property,  a blue pool beckoning to cool the feet of weary travelers and OMG, that tall handsome chocolate colored man took my bag as someone else welcomed me with mint tea while dancers and musicians greeted our group.  If that wasn't enough, I caught a sunset just before the star show against the jet black backdrop; fell asleep humming the tune Midnight at the Oasis.

  

Wake-up call on Tuesday was at 5:00am to jump into a 4x4 at 5:20 that whisked us away in early morning pitch black dark to the desert though the entire galaxy of stars plus more filled the sky for as far as the eye could see, crescent moon slice present and accounted for. This was the morning I was waiting for...the camel back trip up the high dunes of the Sahara for sunrise.

So far, Morocco is nothing like I thought it would be, much more than I ever imagined.  Every moment, I am just in awe and best of all, tomorrow I will  continue this part of my life journey as I celebrate my birthday! More stories to come so...

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