A-MAZE-ing Race- Team Conner

by kinsay20December 26, 2015December 26, 2015

Traveling through so many cities without any guides is not an easy task. This is especially true in Morocco with the maze-like streets of the medinas- where even a decent map provides little accuracy or reference. Thank goodness my husband is a pretty good navigator! He has the sense of direction which I lack. However, I like to think my good company and positive attitude (most of the time) makes up for that. Hence the title of this post. I think John and I may be great contestants for the,”Amazing race” show. I have gotten pretty good at walking fast through crowded streets, even with my big pack on. I have learned to go more for comfort then for fashion. My Toms and Nikes may not be so cute with certain outfits, but I can out walk anyone in them.

Many had said they loved Fes, so we were excited! As we boarded the crowded train we realized people were in our seats. We tried to explain to them and show them our tickets but nobody was moving. We had our heavy packs on and were sweating by this point. We asked a man who worked on the train to help us but he wasn’t much help. A young guy who spoke English, French and Arabic helped us. He explained that the woman, who was in one of our seats, was from Tunisia and on the wrong train. She spoke French and he told her she was in our seat and on the wrong train. She just smiled at us and pretended as if she didn’t know. She didn’t get up. Another guy realized ( or admitted) he was in the wrong car and moved. Finally we could sit, although not in the seats we paid for. Tunisia lady got off an hour later with her 3 huge suitcases. Good riddance lady! We were not fooled by your smile and faking like you didn’t know you were in our seat!

The rest of the train ride we slept, played dice games, and enjoyed the scenery. There is such a strong French presence all through Morocco. Even on the trains they mostly announce in French.

Arriving in Fes we grabbed a taxi to our riad which was located in the middle of the medina. We had been warned that the Fes medina was very, very confusing and maze- like with thousands of winding streets so narrow that cars can’t get down.

Fes is made up of 3 completely different sections: the medina , or old city dating back 1500 years, the new city 150 years, and the modern city 100 years old. The old city in the medina functions like a city did a thousand years ago in all aspects, except they have television, electricity and cell phones. Other than that, everything is transported by donkeys down the narrow streets. There are craftsman who make copper, tanneries for leather, small bakeries, shops and seamstresses. You do feel as though you are transported back in time.

Once outside of the medina walls the new town still has a different and traditional feel but not as “old”. The modern area of Fes has bigger buildings, cars, bars, movie theaters- resembling most modern cities.

Our riad in Fes , Riad Le Calife, was another gorgeous place! We got the “blue” room!

The French owner greeted us with mint tea and cookies. He told us how he met his Moroccan wife a decade ago in Paris. He saw her dancing on a table at a bar and knew she was the one, haha. He explained that his father- in -law also owned hotels and businesses in Fes, so it was convenient for them to live there. He was very passionate about his love for the city and gave us some tips and suggestions. Fatima, the concierge also greeted us and gave us many ideas of what to see and do. We enjoyed a delicious dinner at the riad that night, talking with another couple from the US. We were served a huge assortment of “salads” first to include- pumpkin, peppers, carrots, lentils, cabbage and raisins- all so delicious! That could have been enough for me , but next came the main course of chicken with a very thin type of egg noodle. The dessert was the best- a pastry thing with ice cream in between.

We burned off our dinner walking 12 miles the following day all throughout Fes- new and old. We started by dropping off some laundry at the corner place by our riad (recommended). We both had our dirty bags filled and were out of clean underwear. Our doorman walked with us and translated to us the prices. It would be $65 USD to for all our laundry. Whoa! Seriously? In China and Cambodia we did our laundry for $5. Relatively speaking, compared to other costs in Morocco, this seemed pretty high. For example, huge 1.5 liters of bottled water are 40 cents in Morocco. I got 2 long sleeve shirts in a souk for $3, so $65 for laundry was alot. Oh well. We needed clean clothes.

The medina was definitely no joke! It was a crazy maze with color signs that are supposed to help you figure out where you are. There were so many hagglers in Fes! We couldn’t walk anywhere without someone asking us if we wanted a guide or ,“where are you going”, or “madam, sir, wrong way”. It got a bit annoying. We tried to ignore them. The young boys would follow us. John did a pretty good job navigating, considering the circumstances. You see John is color blind. He thought he was on the “red” route but it was really “blue” or “brown”. I tried to help him out but it wasn’t easy.

We agreed to let a guide take us through a tannery- a one much larger than the one we toured in Marrakech. It was quite an operation! They use sheep, horse, camel, and goat hides. They had different sections for each color dye! They didn’t give us mint this time, and the smell was definitely not pleasant (see previous post in Marrakech- they use pigeon poop- you can think of me when you put on your leather coat or use your leather purse tomorrow) .. 🙂

These guys work really hard in very yucky conditions!!

At the top of the tannery was an amazing view of Fes, where we could see the ancient tombs and overlook the whole city.

After our tour, our guide took us to his “brother’s store” , of course. We politely went in and politely went out. John tipped our guide, who had been so nice, but now demanded more money. Come on, really? We walked to the Royal Palace, through the Jewish Quarter, and even saw the world’s oldest university, which is now a mosque.

Royal Palace

Jewish Quarter

When we couldn’t walk any further- 12 miles later, we caught a petit taxi back to our riad. Petit taxis are quite common in Moroccan cities. They are shared taxis. The concept is pretty clever and works in everyone’s favor. There was already someone in the front seat and we dropped her off on the way to our destination. She paid her fare, which then was subtracted from the total and our fare was lowered.

Since taxis can’t go into the medina, we were dropped off as close to our riad as possible. As we got out a man bombarded us, “ where are you going? Where do you want go? I’ll take you”. John had decided earlier to completely ignore these types of people. I politely said , “no thank you”. He very rudely said to us, “ you are just like the Jewish people! I don’t know how or why they let you in Morocco at the airport”. Ew – jerk! What did that even mean? We were really annoyed with his attitude and comments. (Side note- we have many Jewish friends- so being called Jewish is definitely not an insult- it was the context in which the man meant it).

We went to a terrace near our riad to watch the sunset and have a glass of wine and John a beer.

Back at our riad, Fatima asked how our day was. We vented to her about the hagglers/ hasslers and the rude man. We explained we enjoyed Fes, other that that. She apologized and offered to book us a reservation for dinner but we politely declined saying we would walk around and find something. We didn’t need another fancy multiple course dinner and wanted to try some local street food.

Up in our room as were resting before dinner, Fatima sent up some champagne which was nice.

John found a small street place on trip advisor with good reviews. “Thams”, it was called. We found it and Tham , the owner greeted us. His picture was posted around his establishment. “This is me, “ he said, “I am famous”. He was a funny guy. As we ate dinner (which was just ok), we watched as everyone who walked down the street seemed to know Tham.

We also saw some shady hand exchanges – if you know what I mean. We read there was a lot of hasish in Fes. It is illegal and the fine is 10 years imprisonment but we definitely smelled it a lot.

After dinner we went to a really cool, posh lounge outside the medina for a cocktail. They played really cool music and we just relaxed. Back at our lovely riad we relaxed and slept well in the beautiful cozy room. Since arriving to Morocco, I have been awakened each morning at 5:45am when the Muslim prayer calls are chanted. I am able to fall back asleep though for a bit.

The next morning we explored Fes some more, getting in a good 5 mile walk before noon. We went to see a 14th century school and water clock which was neat. We also enjoyed the winding medina shops- avoiding the hasslers. Some of the mean tried greeting me in multiple languages at once, unsure of what I spoke- “bonjour señorita”, they would say. John enjoyed watching the young local boys play soccer or “futbol” as they call it. These kids are really good! They even play well in sandals!

14th century water clock

local kids playing soccer

medina

confusing signs

so many variations of olives!

In the early afternoon we checked out of of Riad Le Calife and headed to our train for Tangier- our final destination in Morocco, where we will spend a couple nights before heading to Spain!

Tangier, another beautiful coastal city has a very international crowd, due to it’s location at the very North of Morocco. Many people take day trips from Spain to Tangier. When we arrived we hailed a taxi, or I should say- he hailed us. Many of the taxi drivers in Tangier get out of their cars to recruit passengers. Our driver was definitely the worst driver I have ever seen. I had white knuckles the entire ride. He almost hit probably 10 or more pedestrians, including a baby carriage, as well as multiple cats, dogs and other cars. Our riad was in the medina, so he drove us up 1 way, very narrowed roads. He went up the wrong road, so to get back down he backed up at a really fast speed about a mile. So scary! He let us out about a mile away from our riad, but I was just relieved to be out of his car.! As we were walking down the dark street I noticed a man following behind and he said something to me “psst, psst” as he got closer. “John!” I yelled and he turned around and yelled at the guy, “no!”. Oh gosh- where were we?

I was so relieved when we arrived at the riad- another owned by a French man and his wife. Dominick spoke very little English so his greeting was short. The doorman led us to our beautiful room and recommended a place for dinner. El Morocco club was an awesome place with posh couches, a DJ and lights. We both had really delicious risotto and wine.

We set out early again the next morning to explore and make the most of our time in Tangier! What a beautiful city!

We hired a driver to take us to the famous “Hercules cave”. This incredible place dates back to both Greek and Roman mythology. According to legend, Hercules used his incredible strength to create the “Strait of Gibraltar”. Pictures inside the cave were hard to get– but the place was really cool!

We also went to Cape Spartel- the most northern spot in Africa, where the Mediterranean sea meets the Atlantic ocean. Really pretty!

Next, we went on to see the American legation- the only American landmark abroad!

Tangier was a famous city in the 1960’s and 1970’s for artists all around the world. They would travel here for inspiration. Jack Kerouac, a renowned literally icon, wrote a lot in Tangier. Ironically, when John and I first started dating he recommended I read a book by Kerouac, “On the Road”. Paul Bowles is another who spent a great deal of time in Tangier.

We spent the afternoon walking along the gorgeous beach-

After such a fabulous day in Morocco, we were tired and ready to enjoy our last dinner. Michelle (french pronounced Me-shell), the wife of Dominick (our riad owner), referred us to a place. John looked at trip advisor and it had great reviews, so we gave it a go!

When we arrived we realized it was a house. We literally walked into a family’s living room. Two daughters were on the couch playing on their computers. The mother came from the kitchen, “welcome, welcome, please sit on any floor”. Huh? She showed us the limited menu and said she only took cash. While John went to find an ATM I awkwardly sat on the woman’s couch. Now, I would have been more weirded out if this was a few years ago. Since traveling to different countries we have encountered similar situations. Last year in Vietnam, a family welcomed us onto their porch where they peeled shrimp and basically put it in our mouths for us.

When John returned we ordered and sat quietly in her living room waiting.

Her son brought us the fish and paella we ordered. It was very delicious. We also ordered delicious empanadas and tea. All good! The woman was a very good cook! We could not figure out if she was Spanish, or Moroccan or Italian. All we know is- she was kind, her food was good, and we left happy.

That night we reflected on the amazing time we had in Morocco. What a beautiful, chaotic, and fascinating country! We learned so much about the Muslim religion. Prior to this trip, I found that even my own feelings towards Muslims had been jaded with the recent terror attacks. I found myself feeling slightly nervous when I saw people covered , only showing their eyes, getting on public transportation with me. The media jades us- it makes us judge an entire group of people over just a select few extremists. After just a few days in Morocco, surrounded by Muslims, I got over this irrational judgement. I learned what an amazing and dedicated group of people they are. Their religion and beliefs are very interesting, and the majority have deep values for family and life. I loved learning all about Morocco’s history! Another true testimony- that you learn so much more traveling to places than from a textbook! The architecture, the food, the people– ahh memories for an eternity!

We will miss you Morocco, and perhaps will return one day! But for now our amazing race continues, as we travel on to Spain!!

رجوك إعتن بنفسك حتى ذلك اليوم الذي نلتقي فيه مجدداً (Until we meet again),

Kinz

Here’s Looking at you Kid

by kinsay20December 21, 2015December 21, 2015

After our Sahara adventure and one more night in Marrakech, we were ready to move on to a new city- Casablanca. A coastal city, with one of the largest ports, Casablanca was originally founded by the Portugese and named “Casabranca” meaning “white house”. When the Spanish settled, they renamed it to “Casablanca”. It became world know after the famous Humprehy Bogart classic. Casablanca is the economic city of Morocco.

We took the short, hour long train ride from Marrakech to Casablanca. We paid an extra $2 for first class and window seats (total $14 each). When arriving to our assigned seats, a young man was sitting in one of them. After showing our tickets he moved over. He then said something to another guy in French or Arabic, but the only word I knew was “Americans”. I didn’t think he was happy that he had to move from the window seat. I thought for sure he wasn’t too fond of us until the end of the ride.

John had gone to walk around the train and use the bathroom. He was gone for a bit when the young man said to me in broken English, “ you get off Casablanca?”. “Yes,” I replied. He said, “1 minute next stop”. The trains don’t stop for very long and our bags were high up in compartments above our seats. Oh great, where was John?I walked down the train car halls looking for him. I knew he had his phone because he just played me in a dice game. I texted him through the game app, “where are you??”. No sign of him as the train approached the station. Grr— what to do? The young man tried to help me with our bags and he even looked for John. Finally he was there, right at the very last second. We barely got off in time. That would have been a 3-4 hour detour if we had continued on. I thanked the nice man who ended up really helping us out!

We took a cab from the train station to our hotel on the ocean. It was quite pretty!

We sat outside and lunch while enjoying a nice cold Casablanca beer.

After lunch we headed out to do some exploring. We went to the tallest religious structure in the world-Hassan II, a beautiful mosque overlooking the ocean. We spent at least an hour admiring its beauty and detail. There was a pretty mosque cat with its kitten.We walked all along the shoreline for hours, watching fishermen and surfers.

We joined so many other romantic couples outside the picturesque mosque and ocean

We then walked through the medina a bit. Much smaller than the medina in Marrakech and people didn’t hassle us. After a couple hours of walking we decided to find a bite to eat. John found a sushi place with good reviews on trip advisor. We eventually found it but the place was empty. John was really disappointed to find out they didn’t serve beer. As mentioned in a previous post, alcohol is not so easy to come by in Morocco, even in nice restaurants. The hotels and riads have it but it is much harder to find out in town since Muslims don’t drink. “I just want 1 beer with my dinner while on vacation”, John said. I kind of agreed, as I was wanting a glass of wine.

We walked a bit more not able to find a place that we wanted. We ended up back at our hotel and decided to eat at one of the restaurants connected to it. The manager was really nice and read the entire menu to us in English. John ordered steak medium, and I ordered scallops. Or so I thought. We had some nice wine and olives and then our dinner was served. John’s steak was rare, like bleeding rare, and there was some tough grilled chicken on plate. Chicken? I thought I ordered scallops? Ugh. I can honestly say in 7 years together, I can’t recall any time we sent food back. We felt really bad but we explained the situation to the manager. He cooked John’s steak some more and I told him I’d just have spaghetti.

There are many, many night clubs around the beach in Casablanca. More nightclubs in 1 area than we had ever seen. We were going to check out a place with a cabaret type show but it wasn’t open yet. These places open very late. We were tired and wanted to explore more the next morning before leaving for Rabat.

We slept well and the next morning John was ready before me, so he went to take a walk. About 20 minutes later he came back in the hotel room huffing and puffing out of breath. “Oh my gosh Kins, I almost died!” What?? John explained that as he was walking he suddenly was being chased by guard dogs. He must have trespassed and the dogs were after him. He said he ran as fast as he could and contemplated jumping into the ocean to escape them. He managed to climb through a hole in a fence and the dogs stopped chasing him. Whew- well I was certainly glad he was ok, and glad I missed that experience.

We walked along the beach all morning, checking out the different beach clubs.

Did I mention there are cactus all over Morocco? SO neat seeing cactus next to Palm trees!

The Moroccan King and his family are very well liked and their pictures are everywhere

Love all the pretty kitties everywhere in Morocco!

It was a sunny 75 degrees, but not the “season” for the beach clubs. We couldn’t imagine what it would be like during season. Crazy I’m sure! The beach clubs were all really nice!

On our cab ride to the train station, our driver pointed out some large mansions and told us they belonged to the Moroccan mafia members.

We boarded our train to Rabat without issue and enjoyed the 3 hour ride. The trains are pretty clean with big,comfortable seats. The bathrooms are not so clean however. When traveling these are just things you learn to deal with. When you gotta go,you gotta go. We have learned to always carry tissue/ toilet paper with us, as it is common in other countries to have bathrooms without toiler paper. It is also common to come across squatter toilets. I hated these in China; I hated them in Japan and I still despise them in Morocco. Anatomical speaking it is not as easy for women to use squatters as it is for men. A man definitely invented these. There is often urine on the edges and they smell. I have “held it” many times, for extended lengths of time, due to really yucky squatters. I have an internal rating system for public bathrooms now. If I can manage I will wait until it is at least a 3-4/10. This means I don’t have to hold my breath and there is not visible urine etc around the squatter or toilet. I have gotten really pretty good at squatting though, I must say. If there is indeed a toilet seat, the bathroom gets a rating of 4 or above.

Besides bathrooms, there are other things one learns and must roll with when being a world traveler. You have to step out of your comfort zone. You have to realize things aren’t going to go the way planned and you must be patient. You must also be tolerant and can’t worry about germs. People cough- people sneeze. You can do your best to keep your hands clean with sanitizer ( we always have on us) and washing often, but you can’t avoid germs. It is a fact of life. We take probiotics daily and John takes vitamin c/ airborne each morning. I do think there is something to it. The nurse at the travel clinic before our Asia trip, told us that those who take probiotics are significantly less likely to pick up common colds/ sicknesses.

Another important thing when traveling, (especially for extended periods), choose you travel companion wisely. Just because you like someone does not mean they will be an ideal travel companion. Luckily for me my hubs and are very compatible in that way. It helps that we live together so we already know each others habits, moods etc. John and I are great travel companions. Traveling can be stressful at times, and trust me when I say, we both have our “moments”. Neither of us have “moments” that last too long and we are generally able to laugh it off. I’m definitely a little slower in the AM, so John has learned to go down and get breakfast or coffee, and not rush me. John on the other hand, gets “hangry” when his blood sugar is low. He typically needs to eat every couple hours, whereas I can go for awhile. I try to keep snacks on me so that I am prepared for his hangry moments.

We arrived in Rabat and decided we could walk to our riad.

As we exited the train station we immediately noticed protests in the near distance. Oh boy! We walked, avoiding the protest area ,and noted many military guards and riot gear/ busses. We also immediately noted the modern dress of many people in Rabat. Girls were wearing jeans and even some had heels. We made it to our beautiful riad Kalaa, and were greeted by the French manager. She said she lived in Morocco due to her husband’s job. She explained not to worry about the protests, as they go on all the time since Rabat is the political capital of Morocco. In each city of Morocco there is military and police presence. They always walk in 3’s- with 2 military officers in camouflage uniforms on either side of a man in a blue uniform,. I tried researching this, but had yet to find anything.

We unpacked and checked into our room and riad. Really beautiful place.

tea time!

We of course were given some tea and cookies. We went out to explore this coastal town. We walked all along the water and through the city.

More beautiful doors!! ( see previous post about Morocco doors)

We saw some beautiful government buildings and officials’ homes, as well as the palace where the tomb of Hassan II lays.

We enjoyed walking the medina here. Although it was not as traditional and chaotic as in Marrakech, it was refreshing to not be harassed by locals.

We walked and walked to get to the ancient Roman ruins, but as we arrived it was 5:30 and they were closing. We didn’t know they closed at that time and were kinda bummed, but decided we would return the next morning.

Thanks to a recommendation from our hotel, we found the most amazing place to have dinner that night. Not knowing what was behind the door, we knocked. It was so incredibly beautiful inside! I felt as though, once again we had gone back in time thousands of years.

the cool all red bathroom

The restaurant was not just Moroccan, but African. We had a delicious meal, starting with pastilla stuffed with pigeon. Yes- pigeon! My dad asked “ like NYC pigeons”? I replied, ‘no dad, Moroccan pigeons”…haha. This was our first time eating pigeon. It was so good! The pastilla is a pastry type dish with meat inside and powdered sugar and cinnamon on the outside.

For our main course we both had veal meatballs- so good!

The next morning we got up early and set out to see the ruins we had missed the day before. We loved walking around and taking pictures. Of course there were sweet kitties everywhere.

Before leaving Rabat we did some shopping in the medina. John and I both got some new clothes- 2 shirts for me for $3. They even made a little dressing room —

Market in Medina

That afternoon we set out for Fes- another huge city of Morocco.

John all packed and ready to go-

Stay tuned as we travel through Fes and the coastal city of Tangier–

As Humphrey Bogart would say- “Here’s looking at you kid”

<3, Kinz

Surviving the Sahara- Conner edition

by kinsay20December 18, 2015December 18, 2015

When going to Morocco it is absolutely essential to do a Sahara desert tour. Whether you are in Morocco for 1 week or 1 month, you must somehow fit this experience into your trip. We knew this when we were planing our trip and decided 3 days was a decent amount of time to spend in the desert. While John does most of our itinerary planning when we travel, he gives me tasks. My task for Morocco was to find the best Sahara tour. I emailed Jane at riad Hikaya and asked for her assistance / recommendation. She highly recommended a guy named Jamal. Jamal and I began emailing months before our trip and he made me feel confident this was the right choice.

We would be returning to riad Hikaya after the 3 days so technically we could have left our backpacks and just taken essentials, but we decided to take all of our stuff- unsure what we would need. We were greeted at 7am in our riad lobby by Mohammed, our tour guide, and Tobie our driver. I was a little confused at first, seeing as Jamal had made it seem like he was going to be our guide. Through all the emails I felt like I knew Jamal. It’s scary thinking you are going in the middle of nowhere with people you don’t know and no connection to the outside world. Who is this guy Mohammed? I didn’t know him. Granted I didn’t really know Jamal either- it’s funny how technology gives you a false sense of knowing someone.

Jamal gave us an overview of our “program” for the first day- giving us some history of Morocco and explanations of where we would be stopping. We would begin our travel for the day to the Dades valley in the High Atlas mountains where we would sleep for the night. On our journey we first stopped at many beautiful mountain viewing points.

For the first 2 hours of the ride I was quite nauseated. The winding roads they call “snake road” around the mountains did not agree with me so well. I remembered feeling the exact same way riding up the catskill mountains of New York as a child and teenager. Oh boy, this was going to be a long day. Each time we stopped and got out to take pictures I felt great- fresh air, gorgeous views. John got to play with a snake and I gladly just took pictures. Back in the car I just tried to take deep breaths.

Once we arrived at Ait Ben Haddou ,where Gladiator, Game of thrones and many other movies and shows were filmed, I was feeling fine again. This place was unbelievable! Absolutely breathtaking!

Ait Ben Haddou is a ksar or historical communal compound and UNESCO world heritage site. Five families still live there and thrive as a functional self sufficient community. There are small and large houses, a mosque, and market all made of clay brick and moulded Earth.We spent an hour or so exploring and learning all about the history of the Kaspahs and village. We couldn’t believe people still actually live there. The people of the mountain villages in Morocco are called “Berber”- they are the indigenous, original settlers, much like Native American Indians of the US. The Berbers have their own language, very different from Arabic. Mohammed and Tobie our driver, are both Berber and speak both languages. The architecture and scenery was really quite remarkable.

We had a nice lunch after our exploring in a beautiful setting. I had lamb kabobs and John had tanjine (North African Berber dish cooked in an earthward/clay pot). They serve bread in Morocco with every meal. Lots and lots of bread everywhere. A person eating low carb would not do well here. With breakfast everywhere we have been thus far -they put at minimum 4 types of breads on the table to include: pastries, crepes, toast, french type bread etc. By this 3rd day I had started refusing the bread. It was good, don’t get me wrong- but I am not used to that much of it , and I wanted to save room for the meat/ main meal. My lamb kabobs were quite tasty- and then we were given fruit for dessert. This is another standard of Morocco. After each meal you are served either a bowl of oranges or mixed fruits. The tangerines and oranges are really good in Morocco! So they have their cookies/ sweets at breakfast or with mid afternoon tea and fruit after dinner.

We set back out on the road going deeper and deeper through the High Atlas mountains. We stopped at another Berber village where we bought some beautiful scarfs to wrap our heads for the desert. This is customary and not just for fashion or looks. The scarves keep your head warm and protect your neck/ ears from sand and cool air. The day and night temperature differences in the desert are quite extreme. In the day with the sun beaming down it is a warm mid 70’s-80 degrees f. At night, as soon as the sun begins to set cool dry air kicks in, dropping the temperatures to the 30’s and 40s.

We had some more lovely landscape viewing stops and eventually arrived at our cave-like hotel for the night. It was set deep in the mountains with the interior of stone/ cave walls.

We were greeted with herbal tea and cookies and then went to our room to rest before dinner. Over a nice dinner, Mohammed shared some more customs, stories, and history with us. In Moroccan culture they often share many plates of food. When the main plate of meat and vegetables is served it is customary to eat all the vegetables first , and once everyone at the table is finished, then the meat is eaten. Moroccan food has strong flavors of cumin and is garnished differently depending on the dish. Some tanjines are lemon based, others garnished with almonds and prunes and some with tomatoes, cheese and red sauce. Moroccans typically don’t use silverware. The bread is used with their hands to scoop up and eat the food. Moroccans also usually eat 5 meals a day- breakfast, brunch, lunch, mid-afternoon tea/ snack and dinner. They vernally eat dinner late in the evening around 10pm. Mohammed said it was an adjustment for him to start eating dinner with his tour groups at 6-7pm. Mohammed has a degree in psychology/ linguistics and tour guiding- as this is required by the government to lead legal tours.

After dinner we headed back to our room. We were freezing and having a difficult time getting our cave heater to work. John cursed the cold shower that wouldn’t get warm. I thought about skipping the shower, not wanting to be colder than I already was, but decided to take a quick rinse off. I knew I probably wouldn’t have an opportunity to shower in the desert.With multiple berber blankets on us we were able to get a good night’s sleep.

The next morning we set out to head more towards the Sahara desert. Actually, Sahara means “desert” , so when we say “sahara desert” we are really saying “ desert desert”. On this day’s journey we stopped at the Hollywood of Africa where many movies are filmed, as well as a fossil museum. In this part of Africa they find fossils over 300 million years old. Crazy! We also passed the largest silver mine in all of Africa, a huge underground irrigation system, and the world’s largest solar energy project which is almost complete. Morocco also has many, many date trees and olive trees. Before every meal at every hotel/ riad, or restaurant some platters of olives and dates are placed on the table. There are many different types of olives, and all pretty tasty, but I do think we will be “olived out” for awhile after this trip.

underground irrigation system– pumping well water with my legs- good workout!

As we neared the Sahara the views out the window became like postcards. We arrived at Tombucktoo Spa and hotel that sits on the very edge of the Sahara. We were given only a few minutes to drop our stuff in a secure room and grab only what we needed for our night in the middle of the desert. What do you bring to sleep in the middle of the desert? I packed my small bag with face cleaning wipes, a disposable toothbrush and toothpaste, an extra pair of sweatpants for night time, and extra jacket, scarf, pair of socks, deodorant, camera, call phone ( no idea why- backup camera I suppose), and yes some lipstick.

We went out to meet our camels. They are actually called dromedaries in Morocco because of their 1 hump, not 2. There were so many of them. They were so cute and calm. John got on his camel first and then I got on mine. They kneel for you to get on them and when they rise to stand you have to hold on really tight to the handle like bards and lean back. There are no stirrups like when riding a horse. I asked what my camel’s name was, but Mohammed said they typically don’t name animals in Morocco. Well, I was going to name him. For some reason he looked like an Arthur to me. Arthur the camel- my buddy. When I spoke to him he made some noises in response, so I’m pretty sure we bonded.

We set out on our long ride through the desert. Our camel handler, Hamib led the way. Hamib looked only about 14 -15 years old but seemed like he knew what he was doing. Only the first 5 minutes was I afraid of falling. After that I felt pretty balanced and safe. As we rode deep into the desert the sand dunes got more beautiful and extraordinary. Miles, miles we went and the sun began to set. We stopped to take pictures of the sunset- the most beautiful experience. It truly is even more beautiful in person than pictures or movies show.

I tried to jump and run for action shots in the dunes but it was way harder than it looks! Your feet sink with every step!

We continued on for a long while going further and further into the dunes. Our hips / butt/ inner legs were pretty sore and it was getting chilly. I channeled my inner Virgin Mary and imagined what it was like for her riding through the desert thousands of years ago, before guides, sunglasses and still water bottles ( although she rode a donkey). Yes, these are the things that were going through my mind as I rode a camel through the Sahara.

We finally arrived at our “camp” where we would sleep in a Berber tent for the night. We “parked” our camels along with some others and were greeted by the camp owner “Ali.”. Ali was such a funny, friendly man. He lived in the camp way out in the Sahara rarely going into the towns. Ali had many pet cats at his camp who were friendly and loved people. We were led to a campfire and given some warm tea. There were 2 other tours there- 1 couple from Holland , and 2 students from the US who are studying in London. We sat around the campfire chatting and sharing stories of our travels. After an hour or so we were called under the large berber tent for dinner where we sat with Mohammed. We were served a huge plate of rice, chicken and vegetables and bread. By this time we were starving so we filled our plates with decent portions. “This is not main course you know”, Mohammed explained. Oh, haha- whoops. Looked like a main course to us. Another large plate with beef and more food was brought over, and of course fresh fruit. During dinner Mohammed told us he was envious of us. He said he hoped he would be able to find his “other half” and “love to travel everywhere with”.

We enjoyed our dinner and went back out to the campfire where some Berber men played drums and sang songs. Ali danced for us and tried to get us to dance. He shimmied his shoulders and laughed with such pure joy.The stars were unbelievable.

There were thousands and thousands of them. I have never seen so many stars in my life. John and another guy decided to go up the tall dune in the back. John called for me to come but Mohammed was talking to me so I didn’t want to be rude and leave. After a few minutes I went to find John. It was completely pitch black. You could see nothing in front of you or behind you- only the stars in the sky, I tried using my camera flash to see where John was. I could hear his voice so tried climbing the dune in that direction. He called my name but I couldn’t reach him. It was so hard trying to negotiate the dune. We later learned it was the tallest dune of the desert. I suddenly felt someone grab my hand. Then a voice, “Don’t worry madam, I will take you up”. It was our camel handler Hamib. He helped me go higher and higher up the dune. “Your brother?”, he asked referring to John. “No, my husband”, I replied. “ Oh, no- you have husband! “ he said. “John?” I called, hoping he would come rescue me from this awkward situation. I kept trying to climb without seeing where I was going. I eventually told Hamib I just wanted to sit and rest until John found us. He sat with me and we gazed at the stars. “Do you like?” he asked. “Yes, beautiful”, I said. “Then you stay here”, he replied. Oh jeez, where is my husband when I need him. Hamib asked what I did for work and how many languages I spoke. He was taken aback when I said I really could speak only 1 language. He pointed out that we were only 50 meters away from Algeria. “Dont worry madam, they cant come, there are guards”, Hamib said referring to Algerians I suppose.

Finally John came from behind us. He was barely walking and said he got really dizzy and sick after running fast to the top of the dune. He was light headed and nauseous so I walked back down to the camp with him. I was worried but figured it was the altitude. He went and laid down for about 30 minutes in our Berber sleeping tent. The tents were all connected with blankets as the doors. Mohammed said “This is how you unlock door” and lifted the blanket up. Then “this is how you lock door” and put the blanket down. Oh boy.

Once John was feeling better he joined the group of us out by the fire again. We sat for hours gazing at the stars, telling stories and playing music. We saw shooting star, after shooting star. One of my best friends had messaged me earlier to let me know there was a huge meteor shower that night. We definitely saw it!

As it neared midnight we headed to our tent to sleep. We did have a light bulb in our tent, and I begged John to let us keep it on all night. There was no possible way I could sleep in the pitch dark in the middle of the desert. No way. There was a bathroom at the camp, located about 500 feet away. There was also no way I would be going to that bathroom in the middle of the night alone. My sweet husband gave into my fears and agreed to let the light stay on. We were both freezing as we laid on the “bed”, aka hard wood like platform. We covered ourselves with about 5 Berber blankets both shivering. John of course had to throw in the comment of -“who knows if these blankets are ever washed”. Awesome thought.

I laid there trying to sleep but was so cold! I had on 2 pairs of pants, 2 pairs of socks, an insulated long sleeve shirt, a jacket, multiple blankets and I was still cold. John hugged me tight but I couldn’t seem to get warm. After who knows how long of laying there I realized this was going to be a long night. I tossed and turned. My hips hurt from the firmness of the board, I had to pee but didn’t want to go out into the darkness and was so thirsty but didn’t want to drink water since I already had to pee. How did the most beautiful place that seemed like paradise earlier now turn into a nightmare?

John awoke to my tossing and turning. I tried so hard to stay still and asleep but just couldn’t. I prayed and prayed for morning. Finally it was 6am and we could get up and ride the camels back. I was so relieved. Needless to say hubby was not impressed with my camping skills. I definitely do not consider myself high maintenance- I mean how many girls do you know that can travel 8 weeks with 1 backpack? We have done some pretty crazy things and I can sleep in many conditions, but that was just not for me. Growing up when I went camping with my dad he always let me sleep in the car. Ok, it was actually a van. A conversion van with a tv and backseat that turned into a bed. That’s how I camp.

We climbed back onto our camels and headed out on our long sunrise journey back toward town. This time I rode the camel in the back and John rode Arthur. The scenery again was breathtaking and the ride absolutely amazing!We enjoyed the sunrise and took some last longing looks at the surrounding dunes.

A couple hours later we arrived back at the spa hungry, dirty and tired. We were able to take showers in the spa and had a nice breakfast of crepes and omelets.

As we departed the Sahara I couldn’t help but think what a magnificent experience. I feel so incredibly fortunate to have been able to see what many only see in movies.

We now had a long travel day to get back to Marrakech. We were able to make some more gorgeous scenery stops to see gorges, oasis and the longest strait of Africa.

We had another nice terrace lunch of tanjine overlooking 1000’s of palm trees surrounding a casbah.

Throughout the long rides we learned more from Mohammed about culture and history , and he asked us many questions about the US. Although Mohammed speaks multiple languages and dreams to travel the world, he has yet to leave Morocco. Apparently it is not easy to get approved visas. He could travel to Turkey and a few other countries without a visa, but his dream destination is San Francisco. He mentioned multiple times how much he wanted to get to California and drive a Ferrari.

Our driver got pulled over by the police twice that day. They have many checkpoints in Morocco where they ask drivers for paperwork and who their passengers are. Poor Tobie got a ticket equal to $70 for going over a street line. There really was no line, as the paint was faded but he still had to pay the fine.

I loved listening to the Moroccan music on the drive as we looked at the beautiful countryside. Mohammed and Tobie also like American music to include: Bob Marley, Kenny Chesney, Bryan Adams, Alan Jackson, and Backstreet boys.

We made it back to Marrakech and said our goodbyes to Mohammed and Tobie. I told Mohammed I was sure he would find his true love. He had seen some pictures on my camera and was in awe of my little sister’s beautiful blue eyes. Nobody in Morocco has blue eyes. “Can I say she is cute?” he said. I had to explain she was already spoken for. He said when he meets his wife we had an invitation to his future wedding. He and John exchanged emails and promised to stay in touch. We enjoyed our last night there with pizza (yes pizza) and walking around the medina. We had a lot of Moroccan food (all delicious) over the last few days, but pizza was a nice change. We got a good 8 hours of sleep, (to make up for the night before) and prepare for our next stop—— Casablanca!!!

'iilaa almarrat alqadima ( Until next time),
 Kinz

Marrakech- Charming, Intimidating, and Fascinating! A new adventure begins….

by kinsay20December 17, 2015December 18, 2015

“Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” – Miriam Beard

Almost seven years ago I met my husband John (who I sometimes refer to as Conner- so don’t get confused-I have only one husband). I was smitten after our very first date and something told me we were going to be together forever. Little did I know that it would mean traveling the world together- going places I had only heard about or seen in movies.I had always loved seeing new places and meeting new people. Growing up my family took some amazing vacations, and although I never considered myself adventurous in any way, I had this idea: I thought, “I want to see every person on this Earth in my lifetime”. Impossible, yes- but a dream, a goal.

In our seven years together, John and I have been to some really amazing places and experienced things I never would have imagined! Last year we took a 2 month honeymoon through Asia. Yes, your read correctly, 2 months! Who does that? We do! It was unbelievable! We went to 5 countries and more than 14 cities.

I blogged throughout our adventures and you can explore those stories at https://connerhoneymoonadventure.wordpress.com

We knew as soon as our last trip was over that we would be taking another big adventure this year. We hope and plan to do one every year! We went back and forth on where we should explore next. We thought about South Africa, India, and were even tempted to do some new places in Southeast Asia again. We loved Asia so much we definitely will go back one day and plan to see Myanmar, Philippines, Malaysia and Laos. After much debate and indecisiveness I told John to surprise me. One random night he did surprise me and booked our flights- Morocco and Spain it is!

With saved hotel points and airline miles we started planning and booking! I should mention that is how we were able to take a 2 month honeymoon- lots of miles and points!

As the trip approached we got more and more excited! A few weeks before our trip the Paris terrorist attacks happened. I felt heart broken for the victims and their families- as with all such tragic events. With all the media and societal views some anxiety kicked in. Actually a lot of anxiety- but it lasted only briefly. To not travel the world because one is scared would be a tragedy in itself. I believe that most people are good natured and truly kind. I believe learning about others and their cultures is one of the best ways to try to understand the world. I believe the world is meant to be explored and I believe in prayer.

With that said I began packing- 4 days earlier. Like any typical woman, it takes some planning. But of me..a different kind of planning. My husband has taught me it is best to travel with a backpack rather than a suitcase for these types of trips. Last year I thought he was nuts! How could I possibly pack for 8 weeks in 1 pack? Well, needless to say I did it. And while I was sick of everything in that pack by mid trip, it still made travel way easier.It is much easier negotiating large crowds, airports, etc. without a rolling suitcase. Also, nice to not have to check bags at airports. And when you get tired of stuff or it gets worn out (like my Nikes last year) you just toss it and convince the husband to buy you something new.

So here is my pack and how I packed it.

This was interesting because I wanted to make sure I had super conservative, loose clothes for Morocco, and more fitted, modern clothes for Spain. I read blogs about being respectful in Morocco and not having form -fitted clothes. I made sure to pack flowing long skirts and long sleeved tops and scarves, as well as skinny jeans and halter tops/ crop jackets for Spain. Side note, my kitties were not happy to see me packing- they hate when I leave. However, I am so fortunate to have amazing family and friends who watch my kitties and apartment when we travel.

Well the day finally arrived- we were all packed and ready to begin our adventure. Morocco here we come!

12348097_10104704023770502_2397516692162010286_n

Our travel day was a bit crazy! Since we used points we went from DCA- LGA- JFK- Dusseldorf, Germany- Marrakech, Morocco. Our first flight was short and sweet. Once in NYC we took a NYC transporter bus to the next airport. We found Air berlin and checked in. We were really disappointed when they informed us that we had to check our bags. Huh? We have traveled multiple airlines on the other side of the world without having to check these. This was the reason we take backpacks, so we don’t have to check them. We debated with them for a bit but had no luck. They explained that due to recent threat awareness TSA and airlines were being stricter.John was a little upset, but we gave up and checked our bags. Security was quite intense. There were US army soldiers all around. I actually really liked that and felt very safe in their presence.

After through security we had lounge access which was really nice! Free wine for us:) Once aboard the long flight to Germany, aboard Air Berlin, we were treated pretty quickly with more wine and dinner. The seats were pretty small, but they had many media choices. Of course I picked a sappy, depressing drama called “Me, Earl and the dying girl”. It was listed under ” Romantic comedies”. Um– let’s just say there was nothing romantic or funny about this movie. I cried 8 times in 2 hours, while John watched an action movie. After that, since I was already semi – depressed, I figured why not watch one of my all time favorites, “The Notebook”. Thank goodness I fell asleep before it got super sappy.

We slept most of the remaining long flight. Once in Dusseldorf we followed the signs at the airport for passports. Everything was in German and there were no instructions. The German guards were so tall and slightly intimidating. After waiting in a long line we arrived to the passport desk only to be told in German ” no. no” and shoed away. ” Well where do we go? We saw another from our flight and we somehow figured out the right line to be in. At Dusseldorf airport we again enjoyed the lounge and some snacks. I tried some German liver pate and cheeses while John had bowls of some strange looking gummy bears.

12313685_10104705523734562_8380312400329351029_n

A couple hours later we boarded our flight to Marrakech. The plane was only 25% full so there was plenty of room. German stewardesses, much like on the Asian airlines, were very pretty and so ,”put together”. We had now been traveling over 15 hours so we were pretty exhausted. We both slept most of the flight and awoke to amazing views of dessert as we approached Morocco. I have never had such a beautiful landing view as this- it was absolutely breath taking. All you could see in the distance was desert and more desert. Pictures do not do it justice– 20151211_070356_resized

Arriving to Marrakech

We had no idea what to expect as we got off the plane. All we knew was an exciting, new adventure awaited! There were guards and soldiers everywhere but our flight was the only one arriving. There was nobody else in the entire airport besides those on our flight. Thank goodness our packs made it! We then set out to find our driver. We had booked our riad (hotel in Marrakech) months in advance. A riad is defined as “a traditional Moroccan house or palace with an interior garden or courtyard. The word riad comes from the Arabian term for garden, “ryad”.

An English couple owns the Riad Hikaya, and we had been emailing back and forth since booking.We found it through reviews and trip advisor. The owners, John and Jane, fell in love with Morocco and decided to stay.Jane arranged for a driver to pick us up from the airport, and she helped us a book a 3 day Sahara desert tour. Yes, 3 days in the middle of the desert- sounds crazy right?! But adventurous none the less.

Sure enough our driver was waiting for us holding up a sign.He led us out to his car and upon stepping outside I immediately noticed the fresh, crisp air. It was a perfect 75 degrees and sunny with no humidity. We began our drive through Marrakech and into the medina. A medina meaning “old city” is a distinct section found in North African cities. It is clearly defined with big walls, reminding me of medieval fortresses. We chose to stay at a riad inside the medina to get the full, authentic experience. Our driver pointed out the King’s palace and some other interesting points along the way. Inside the medina you feel like you have gone back in time by thousands of years-(that is until a motor bike or 10 rush by).

Through curvy, maze- like narrow roads we passed by the amazing architecture, all mostly pinkish in color. The whole medina is a huge continuation of stone building all connected. It is really quite remarkable. Each place, whether a restaurant, riad, individual home- is only distinguishable by it’s door. The doors are absolutely amazing. I love that they are all different! I have decided to have photograph collection of doors from my time in Morocco.

We arrived at the door for our riad and were greeted by a lovely hostess who led us into a sitting room, where we were then greeted by the owner John. The detail in the sitting room was absolutely stunning! From the walls, to the furniture, to the teapot and carpets- and well everything in between. We were served the staple Moroccan mint tea (so delicious) and treats while John introduced himself and told us a lot about Marrakech. John, although British, had been living in Africa/ the middle east for over 20 years now. He had businesses throughout the years in many different countries but chose to settle in Morocco. He explained that the people are generally kind, and violent crimes were not an issue. We learned that Moroccans typically enjoy life more , and work just to work- but work is not a main priority. They indeed are hard workers, but family , pleasure comes first. He gave us some general tips and a map with “must see” things.

John then told us we could upgrade to a larger available room than the one we originally booked at no extra cost. The hostess gave us a tour, and we were mesmerized by the authentic feel and detail. John had everything in the Riad handmade- EVERYTHING! Robes, carpets, teapots, light fixtures, chairs- you name it! It took him 5 years to renovate the property to his liking. I felt like I was in Aladdin!

After some washing up we headed out to explore. We started by grabbing some lunch at a place John recommended called ” Clock”. Terraces are very popular in Marrakech and since the warm sun was calling to us we sat up on the terrace. Of course we had to try their famous Camel burger as our first meal. It was pretty tasty, similar to beef. During our lunch we heard the first muslim prayer throughout the city. At set times during the day many stop and pray. It was quite fascinating.

Once through with lunch we walked the winding streets, trying our best to follow the map were given. You see, although there are street names, nobody seems to know them or follow them. People go by landmarks rather than names.

We somehow made it to the very renowned “square” of the medina where there are snake charmers, story tellers, monkeys and acrobats. It can get very crowded and quite intense at times, but so interesting. We were warned of the women who would try to grab my hand and put henna without my asking. Apparently many have allergic reactions to the chemicals used. I stayed away from those ladies the best I could. I have nothing against henna and think it looks pretty neat, but I am not in favor of any skin reactions while on my trip.

As we walked the streets we definitely got a lot of stares. We got some in China and Vietnam- but nothing like this. The women didn’t seem to really notice us, but the men- oh boy, we got some looks! John admitted it was intimidating at times- and this is guy who is not intimidated easily. I stayed very close to him and felt I had to constantly watch my surroundings.

Through the hustle of Bangkok, Beijing, Tokyo, Saigon, we are pretty good at negotiating through large crowds, but this was new and different for us. As with any large city it takes some getting used to and feeling out. Many younger men and boys offered to help us to where we wanted to go – we had been warned of these scams and knew to politely deny. They often will lead tourists the wrong way or a long way then demand money. Many did not like or denial of their help and would follow us. After awhile we realized they assumed we were British or French, so we decided to pretend like we were spanish and say “gracias”. We quickly learned many Moroccans know multiple languages to include: English, Arabic, Berber, French, and yes even Spanish. Our ” gracias” did not deter them.

Determined to find our own way we got lost in the narrow mazes a couple times. I only got a bit nervous when it started getting dim outside. We went in a couple circles and some local boys laughed at us. We eventually found a rooftop terrace that the riad had recommended where we could watch the sunset and have a glass of wine. The view was nice and we enjoyed relaxing after walking almost 12 miles. Not many places in Marrakech serve alcohol – especially in the medina. Since it is almost all muslim population, they do not drink alcohol. The Moroccan wine was quite good though!

After our drink and sunset we wandered back out into town. A nice young guy grabbed our attention showing us his spices and minerals. He was quite a salesman and convinced us to buy some tea. He even gave me some clay poppyseed bowl that creates lipstick- sounds weird but it’s really pretty cool! He also gave us some authentic toothpicks and complimentary tea and clay mask for my hands. He then said his “brother” would show us a good spot for dinner. We did not have to pay him, he would just take us their since we were now his ” friends”. Right– John at the riad had told us that while the locals were nice and good hearted , they also all wanted to make money. They all had stories- he told us “trust no one”.

Well we followed the “brother” who led us to a very beautiful restaurant. Absolutely stunning and posh- and also empty! The only other customers in the 2 level huge place were 2 british girls. They seemed to be enjoying their food. We looked at the menu and prices and decided to just have another glass of wine and venture out again for food.

I guess that 2nd glass of wine had us feeling pretty adventurous. We decided on street food. Now the Kinsay 3 years ago would probably not have been so inclined to delve into trying street food so quickly- or at all. But found in southeast Asia, some of the best things were from vendors on the street. Don’t think NYC hotdog stands. In other countries street food is how locals eat. The recipes are handed down from generations. If you watch Anthony Bordain, you would see the appeal of these street foods I speak of.

We chose a random little spot with chairs and tables and sat next to a couple local families. Their food looked tasty, so I asked what it was and ordered the same. Tanjine- it was really good! We then decided to try another street booth and went for snail soup! A bowl of snails with broth! Yum! Pretty good if you can get past their eyes and antennas as you bite into it.

We walked around some more and eventually decided to walk back to our riad and get some rest. We really had only slept a few hours in the last 2 days. As we were walking we passed another food stand with a guy selling sausages. My hubby loves sausage so he wanted to try some. As the guy cooked our little sausage and pita he wanted us to taste his fish too. He literally peeled the fish meat with his bare fingers off the bone and offered it to us. “Please try,try”. With his fingernails obviously filled with dirt, John accepted and took his offering. I didnt want to be rude so I did too. We went through this in Thailand and survived so I guess we were trying to be polite. In other cultures it is customary to take food when someone offers you in such a way.

The whole walk home I prayed we weren’t going to get sick. Back at the riad we took an extra probiotic. Luckily we didn’t get sick but John’s stomach made some very loud grumbling noises all night long.

After a great night’s sleep we awoke feeling rested and ready to explore Marrakech some more. We were served a lovely breakfast on the riad terrace and met a nice couple from the Netherlands. Moroccan coffee is quite tasty and Morocco has some of the best fresh squeezed orange juice I have ever had! It may even give Florida orange juice a run for it’s money.

After breakfast we headed out and made our way through the maze streets of the medina once again.

John was eager to find a SIM card that would work in his phone and iPad so we set out to find one. We found a legit cell phone store- (when I say legit I mean it had a door and displayed 4 phones). John asked for some SIM cards that would work and they guy said he needed a passport. Apparently it is a law to scan passports and keep records of anyone buying SIMs/ data. This is part of security to keep track of what people are doing while in Morocco. Not a bad idea but I still felt weird handing over my passport to this stranger. You see John didn’t have his on him, so I had to give mine. I watched as this man made copies of my passport. Awesome. Then John realized he didn’t have enough cash to pay the guy. The man pointed and said “ ATM” down the street. John told me to wait in the store while he went to get more cash. So I waited. And waited. And waited some more. It seemed like an eternity. I started thinking, “what if he doesn’t come back? Do I know how to get back to the hotel? What if something happened to him? Would I call the embassy?”. You think all these irrational thoughts when you are in a place where you know nobody and have no idea where you are.

He eventually returned and after another 30 minutes the guy was able to get the SIM working in his phone. Now we could really begin our day.

We explored a museum that is an old Jewish school. In Morocco up until the 1950’s, Muslims and Jews lived in neighboring communities, even intertwined communities without any problem. Even with such differing beliefs, they could co-exist and be friends. With World War 2, and much uncertainty for the future, the Jewish feld to Israel. The Jewish quarter of Marrakech was left abandoned for many years. In the 1980’s the king of Morocco sent out international public notices to encourage the Jewish to return to their homes. Many of them did return to Marrakech and other large cities, although the rural areas of Morocco never were resettled by the Jewish and are now mostly (if not all) Muslim.

After the museum we took a tour of the tanneries. It was crazy to see how leather is made and how much time and hard work goes into it. Pigeon poop is used to soften the leather, whether it is goat, sheep, cow or snake. Talk about one of the dirtiest jobs in the world! The tannery workers stand in chest -deep pigeon poop for hours on end. As we explored the tannery they gave us mint to hold under our nose so we could tolerate the smell.

After our tour we were guided to a 3 level store with beautiful handmade leather products from the tannery. There were the most beautiful couches, leather jackets, suitcases. John had mentioned earlier that he wanted a leather jacket, so he tried on a few. The owner of the store was so welcoming and friendly as we explored his store and tried things on. He wanted $300 for the jacket John liked, but we knew we could negotiate. John told the guy he would think about it and we would come back. That’s when the owner’s whole demeanor changed. He got very uptight and aggressive insisting the store was closing for the season and today was the last day (we knew this wasn’t true). John said, “ I need to go back to the hotel and check my accounts/ money”. The owner then said very sternly “oh please, don’t lie to me. You are lying. You know what money you have. You know -“ and he went on and on. I was thinking “great, we are on the 3rd floor of some mean man’s store in a foreign county with nobody else around. “ I felt very uncomfortable and threatened. We quickly got out of the store and walked as fast as we could away. I kept looking behind to see if anyone was following us.

We made it to the crazy medina square again where John got groped by monkeys without his consent. We had a nice terrace lunch where we had some cat company. There are cats everywhere in Morocco. Many of them are neighborhood/ community cats. They are fed by everyone and just live all around. They are very friendly and definitely used to people. When I finished my lunch I insisted the waiter give out remaining food to the kitties. I am a cat person after all.

We walked outside the medina to see the commercial hotels – one where “Sex and the City” was filmed. These hotels were Western standard 5 star and very glamorous. I am still glad we chose the riad for Marrakech. We got a much more authentic, Moroccan experience. We travel to explore other cultures and staying in Westernized hotels would not have provided the same experience.

That night we had a delicious dinner at a restaurant in the medina near our hotel. I had sea bass perfectly complimented with Moroccan red wine.

Following dinner we walked around the crazy, chaotic streets of Marrakech some more.Words can’t describe the feeling and energy you get walking through this town. John had to use the bathroom so we stopped at a decent looking restaurant and bought some water. As I waited for John a young man who worked at the restaurant offered me an almond. “No thank you,” I said. “No, please have”, he replied. Since we had been in Marrakech I had learned it was customary for people to offer you nuts, tea and/or cookies when you enter their establishment. I didn’t want to be rude so I ate the single almond. The guy then said something to his co-workers/ buddies in Arabic with a laugh and all I could understand was “haha hotel California”. What did that mean? After John returned and we set off down the street I told him about my nut offering and “hotel California”. John was convinced that maybe my almond was drugged or something. He didn’t understand why I would accept it. Umm, because we had been accepting nuts, tea and treats from everyone who offered us since we had arrived. Great- well too late now. He kept a close eye on me. I felt fine and made it through the night without an issue.

After some more exploring and craziness we headed back to our riad to get a good night’s sleep. We had to be up early the next morning to begin our 3 days Sahara desert tour! Stay tuned for our Sahara adventures- definitely a check on my bucket list. One of the coolest thing we have ever done- but not all 3 days was paradise!

wadaeaan al'an (goodbye for now),
 Kinz

Stages of Life or Life is your Stage

by kinsay20February 6, 2015

Recently I have been thinking about how life is divided into stages. Societal and cultural stereotypes create certain “expectations” at these “stages”. In high school we are bombarded with, “What colleges are you applying to?”. Then in college we are immediately expected to know what we are going to do for the rest of our lives- “What are you majoring in?”, “What are you going to do when you graduate?”. And God forbid you, “Don’t know”.

Right after college we are expected to be dating and in serious relationships, and if we aren’t the questions are, “Why are you single?”,and “Who are you dating?”. And then as soon as you have been dating someone for any length of time it becomes, “When do you think you will get engaged?”. Then comes the engagement and the ring. Before you can even have your ring sized the world wants to know , “When is the wedding?”. Literally the day after you get married the question then becomes, ” When will you have kids?” and “Are you trying for a baby?”. Um huh? I just worked my butt off to get super fit for my wedding- no I’m not ready to have a baby yet! Plus, I want to travel and enjoy time being a newlywed! I personally have experienced this every day for the past year. Now, I don’t mind when close friends or family inquire, but when the random CVS clerk inquires or the guy installing the new cable system asks, then it’s just weird. The best is when people ask your age and then give you that “look”. You know- the “look”- the eek you are getting older, you might want to hit that next “stage”. I’m still 31 and I have had people tell me I better “hurry”. Hurry?! I thought I was doing pretty well, but it seems there is a rush to hit the next stage.

It is interesting too how societal expectations and trends differ according to location. Many of our friends in DC and NYC are single, whereas most of our friends in FL are married and have children. I love seeing my friends having children. It is the most amazing thing! And even more fun, is seeing friends be parents. The girls who danced every Thursday and Friday nights with you- the girls who took shots with you and stayed up until 4am talking. I still see my friends as those “girls” but now they are moms & wives! Pretty weird and cool, all at the same time! And seeing friends as career women and men. The same friends who you went to drama camp with and swore you would all be famous actresses/actors one day.

Even crazier is seeing younger siblings grow up. My younger brother is getting married next month and he’s a lawyer! But to me he is still my “younger” brother- and how can this be? How can it be that my little sister and brother are almost done with undergraduate degrees? I feel as though I just got my undergraduate degree. How did the last 8 years go by so fast?

I feel as though these milestones and stages are coming so quickly. I vividly remember so many things that took place over 10 years ago, that somehow seem like yesterday in a way. Working PRN at the nursing home some weekends, also makes me truly ponder life and how quickly time goes by. A stage of life I don’t think anyone looks forward to, is that stage where everyone you know is dying. Can you imagine how weird that must be? You think it’s weird when all your friends are getting married– imagine this. My 90 year old patients make comments such as, ” Oh well I had 5 children, but 3 have passed” and ” most of my friends are gone”. Sorry, I don’t mean to be a debbie downer, however this is real life and it happens! It is one of the “stages” I am referring to.

I feel this is why it is important to truly live every day to its fullest and enjoy every moment. Time goes by so fast. We go through the “stages” so quickly, and before we know it life has passed us. I try so hard to not think, ” I can’t wait until the weekend”. I want to enjoy Monday and Tuesday just as much as Saturday and Sunday. I mean if we only live for weekends we are ignoring a huge portion of our life.

I recently read a fabulous book which I highly recommend ( especially to my fellow therapy friends). The book “Still Alice”, of which the movie with Julianne Moore is based on- tells the story of a woman with early onset Alzheimer’s disease. It is fascinating, and truly makes you feel what it would be like to start losing all memory. Memories are my most treasured thing. I can’t imagine losing them and how frustrating that would be. It is how we cope with those who aren’t here anymore. It is how we make decisions and reflect on our lives. Without our memory and the amazing moments stored deep in us, how can one be who they truly are?

I also have to recommend the movie ” The Good Lie” with Reese Witherspoon. We watched it last weekend after a fabulous surprise anniversary trip to NYC and seeing “Phantom of the Opera” on broadway! Amazing!! But yes, great movie and a “must see”. Based on a true story and very uplifting.

And just one more recommendation for this post– I made this delicious recipe. The link is below for details. The roasted vegetables were super yummy!

http://http://www.blueapron.com/recipes/chicken-charlemagne-with-roasted-root-vegetables-parsnip-potato-mash–2

And until next time— don’t worry about your “stage” or if you are doing what everyone thinks you should be doing. It is your life. Live it how you want to- because you only got 1 shot at it 🙂

<3, Kinz

There’s no Place Like Home…

by kinsay20January 10, 2015January 10, 2015

Home. What is home? Is it a place? A feeling? A word? I found myself thinking a few times this week, “I need to get home!” In this sense I am referring to “home” as in, “where I grew up”. My dad underwent knee surgery, tomorrow is my mom’s birthday, and I haven’t been “home” since August. Did I mention it has been under ZERO degrees “feel like” temperature in DC this week. Yeah, I am dreaming of warmer weather too for sure!

This “home” (where I grew up), is a place that I haven’t lived since I was 18– that is over 13 years ago. As an adult, will I always refer to it as “home”? What if my parents move, will it still be home? I hear people all the time say, “I’m going home for the holidays”, or “I can’t wait to go home to see my family”. These are all adults, people with their own “homes” and their own families. Which makes me wonder- where is “home” for people who traveled their whole life? Or my friends from other countries who are now US citizens. Do they consider both their home country and the US their home?

While traveling on our honeymoon adventure for 2 months through Asia, I had many people ask me if I got homesick. The answer is easily- no. I never once got homesick. I enjoyed every minute and was so enthralled with what we were doing and experiencing.

I also feel very “at home” whenever and wherever I am with my husband. Moving to DC from FL made us find a new “home” together. I love where we live, the friends we have made, and I do indeed consider it “home” also. I can also find the feeling of “home” in a phone call, emailing convo, or dinner date with one of my best friends.

There is something comforting about the word and the feeling “home”. When I work PRN at the nursing home, all the patients want to do is “get home”. People in their 80’s , 90’s who could care less about current events or the latest fashions- they just want to go home! My active duty patients who are going to be deployed, just want to return home!

So I suppose “home” has many meanings- a place, a time, a person or people. I suppose one can have many “homes” at once. Perhaps home really is “where the heart is”.

Okay, that is enough of my philosophical side for this blog post. Speaking of home though, I made a delicious and “homey” recipe this week- perfect for cold winter days. Hubby loved it! Link to recipe below. Yum!! Tip: make sure to really let the grits cook for awhile and simmer so they aren’t clumpy.

http://www.blueapron.com/recipes/seared-hanger-steak-with-black-eyed-pea-collard-green-stew-cheddar-serrano-grits

Looking forward to the weekend and seeing our friends’ new “home”. Also, looking forward to seeing my family at my other “home” in FL next week. That means warm weather- which means bathing suits and shorts! Definitely working out tomorrow 🙂 Here is another workout I love- great 10 minute shoulder routine!

And now I am going to enjoy staying ” home” with hubs and the cats tonight, enjoying some wine and dateline 🙂

-<3 Kinz

New Year, New Adventures!!

by kinsay20January 1, 2015January 2, 2015

Happy New Year!! Welcome to my new blog! This is my second blog and I am super excited about it! After our “Honeymoon Adventures” blog I had many requests to keep blogging! I am flattered that people like to read what I have to say! So here I am again! 2014 was the most amazing year- I married my love, we traveled to 5 countries and many cities in Asia, and made great memories with family and friends! I feel very fortunate, and I am so excited to see what this year has in store! We already have many fun and exciting things planned!!

I spent hours and hours in the year leading up to our wedding planning everything. I was so incredibly happy with the way things turned out! After the wedding though I experienced what many girls do- ” wedding withdrawals”. Of course I was so happy to be a newlywed, but I felt sad that my dream day , and all the planning was over. I decided to really delve into my hobbies! I have always loved cooking, working out/ fitness, traveling, playing with cosmetics, reading and wine! I also love helping people, and I am fortunate to have a career where I can do so daily!

On this blog I will talk about some of my favorite things- review recipes, workouts, cosmetics and beauty products etc. About 2 years ago a friend in DC referred me to Blue Apron. If you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend it! It is ingredients for 3 healthy meals a week delivered to your home with recipe cards. It is really fun to try new ingredients and recipes that I would have never even thought to try! Plus, it’s nice to have fresh products delivered, so you don’t have to think about what to make, or go to the store as often! When I find something I like, I tend to tell the whole world. They give me multiple free weeks to give people to try it out, and I am not exaggerating when I say I probably got over 100 people to join! They should be giving me some sort of kickback! I will have to look more into that…

Anyways, last week I made this delicious recipe- ” Acorn squash tacos”. They were absolutely delicious!!! The squash just melted in my mouth, and avocado only makes things better!

Here is the link to the recipe- www.blueapron.com/recipes/acorn-squash-tempura-tacos-with-spanish-paprika (copy & paste into browser)

I definitely recommend trying these!! They took under 30 minutes to make and they go really nicely with this delish wine we got at Trader Joe’s for under $8 (I think it was $5.99)

Speaking of Trader Joe’s wine selection, let’s just say WOW! I was talking to a cashier there the other day and she said that many of their imported wines from Italy & France are super expensive over there! She gets Italian customers who can’t believe how inexpensive they are here! Trader Joe’s is one of those places you have to get used to. I am from Florida and there is no place like Publix! However, Trader Joe’s cheese, wine, nuts, speciality foods are unmatched!

I’m all about nice and good quality things, but I am also all about BARGAINS! I will probably talk a lot about “good finds” and bargains on this blog as well! Speaking of which, everyone should know there is a day of the week that is better to book plane tickets. NEVER book a ticket on Friday or Saturday. Also, check out bing flight predictions. They can actually tell you if the prices will go up or down based on statistics! How cool is that??

As I’m typing this I must admit my triceps are pretty sore.. so here is my fitness tip for today. Don’t use the “I don’t have time to workout” as an excuse. There is always time. If you are reading this blog, you have time! Even a 10 or 20 minute workout is better than nothing! Even on days when I don’t feel like it, or I’m tired I will put on a couple 10 minute quick workouts to do. Ladies ( & gents ), I LOVE this one for a quick biceps/ triceps toning workout…and increase your weights based on your level.

Well, as you can see I tend to go off on tangents…I promise I will try to be focussed on my topics as I move on with this blog. As an introduction though, you get an idea 🙂

With all this talk of food I got hungry …hubby is watching the FSU game with some friends, so I think I will pop this guy in the oven..looks semi- healthy with all the veggies…I’ll give you my review next time 🙂

Until then– have a fabulous beginning to 2015 :)) #YOLO

Keeping up with Kinz

These are a few of my favorite things….Live, Love, Travel

Author: kinsay20