Morocco 2023

Spent the morning at a rug shop! (I know!!) where we bought an Amazigh kilim from a southern Moroccan tribe. It's the kind that is both woven and embroidered. They've been catching out eye all along, and we succumbed on our last day. You'll have to visit us, though, to see it, as it got wrapped up before I thought about taking a picture. Then on to the Abderrahman Slaoui Foundation Museum, basically a small private collection of stuff, much of it Asian. The main thing I liked was the collection of silver articulated fish that apparently were a reference to Jesus and we're hung from the ceilings of churches.I guess that put us in the mood for fish-- delicious seafood salad and grilled sardines for lunch! Took the train to the airport and made our way to a nearby hotel in anticipation of our stupid early flight tomorrow. Decided we'd had enough tagine and couscous, so had pizza even though it's our last chance for a while. Handmade, of course, with a white sauce, ...

Walking in the "new city" is definitely tricky --broken pavement, miscellaneous holes, uneven steps and motorcycles everywhere--except around the royal palace, where everything is clean, tidy and streets are blocked to vehicles. Tried to go to a music museum, but it was closed so went to the olive market instead. Nice sign, though! Successfully moved to our new hotel, a riad in the medina. After a nap ventured out for a walk through the medina, along the coast and back through what seemed to be endless markets for everything from shoes and cheap clothes to furniture makers and motorcycle repair. Definitely not targeting tourists! My favorite was a small van set up as a moveable coffee stand, solar powered...

Moving day, from Marrakech to Casablanca. Stopped for lunch at a home for unwed mothers. It's a very tough situation everywhere, but culturally extremely tough here. Then a guided tour of Mosquée Hassan 2, the third largest in the world and the only one in Morocco that allows non-muslims in. Then to our hotel. We decided to skip dinner and crash early. We, and everybody, are exhausted! So much to process, plus I seen to have s little cold--at least I hope that's all it is!

Not so much to report today: a bit of shopping, the primary museum we wanted to go to turned out to be closed on Tuesday. Our visit to the Museum of Culinary Arts was more successful. Interesting, but more reading than we had every four (it was 100 degrees again! They have a spectacular setup for cooking classes... Home for a nap, then a very interesting presentation from a woman who grew up in a very traditional village family, but she went to university, decided to stop wearing the hijab, and is intending to choose her own husband. Then official goodbye dinner with the group at a very nice (formerly French villa). We've been eating these foods, but it was a top-notch take on them.

Morning walking tour through a bunch of market areas--as usual, separate districts for wood, iron work, textiles, etc. Got bread fresh from the wood oven. Then to a carpet store for a very interesting presentation about different styles of carpets,  Ice cream for lunch, then home for a nap (already in the 90's). Late afternoon crazy carriage ride, with horses, cars, busses and a million motorcycles all sharing the road. One of our horses was white with an orange mane and tail (henna) Nice Spanish/Italian meal for a break, then home exhausted to laundry and bed!

Drove through the High Atlas Mountains to Marrakesh. The mountains are rocky and pretty much bare as the trees have been cut down (for firewood, building, etc.) And there isn't much rain even before the current drought. The valleys are plush, well irrigated farms. Once at Marrakesh, went to our Riad for lunch and got settled in our rooms. Then an introductory walking tour that took us through some market streets to the extremely ornate, 19th century Bahia Palace. Dinner was a variety of delicious street food in the Djemaa al Fna (the giant square that is full of everything from foodstalls of every kind to people selling everything to people who want to hang a snake around your neck and charge you for it. Sensory overload!