I’m taking a break from blogging while my computer is gone. I think I’ll just occasionally post placeholders for where I end up on what days…
***It’s October 2016 now, and I have the time and a working computer to update these old posts. I’d like to go back and update each post- just to go through the exercise of remembering. It’s actually kind of nice to do this after 5 months have passed- it’s different than just blogging in the recent past, ’cause I know the future in a sense. Anyway- I’m going to try and put some limits on myself to make it a little more efficient- (also I think manufacturing some constraints can force you to prioritize and be a little more creative, so that’s good too maybe.) I’m going to give myself 3 bullet points to update each post. Here we go…
- Marrakesh has some of the most visually stunning places I’ve ever seen. In particular the Bahia Palace, and the Majorelle Garden. The Bahia palace is a remarkably well preserved exhibition of the best of Muslim and Moroccan aesthetics from the 19th century. What really sticks in my mind is the beauty of the shapes… the incredibly complex and intricate fractals, the use of symmetry and shapes, and the precision and craftsmanship. The Majorelle Garden left an impression in my mind particularly for the use of space and color- a really unique marriage between North African tradition and more modern French influences- (thanks to Louis Majorelle and Yves St. Laurent.)
- My airbnb stay and host were incredible. I stayed in an ancient Moroccan home in the old part of the city, probably thousands of years old. My host was a wonderful French woman who has made her life in Marrakesh for the past 15 years as a chef and restaurateur. The cooking lessons and shopping in the local markets with her and her young son were some of the highlights of my entire year. I think there’s something really beautiful and courageous about the way she’s living her life and raising her son, even though it definitely entails some unique challenges and risks.
- Religion matters in Morocco. I visited during Ramadan. I spent most evening trying to find out where locals would break the fast at sunset, mostly just ’cause I wanted to eat the good local stuff. It’s high calorie, cheap stuff that’s really good. There’s a special soup served with boiled eggs, honey cakes, and dates that’s pretty awesome. There’s also fresh fish stuffed with herbs and deep fried, served with roasted vegetables. The thing that’s weird is that it’s almost an entirely male experience… apparently it’s not normal or acceptable for women to be out eating in public. Women can be seen buying things for the evening meal before sundown, but as soon as that evening prayer happens, they’re pretty much gone. It’s disorienting. Late in the evening, there are some women sitting in the streets, holding really young children and infants, seeking alms… I gave money but the folks I spoke with generally told me not to, especially as a tourist- also I think because I wasn’t Muslim… which made really start to think about the nature of charity, goodness, intent, and the role of religion… (incidentally some people thought I was Muslim ’cause I haven’t been shaving…weird.)
OK. so that’s the update… on to the next post. I’m also probably not going to proofread this shit so it could be awful, but whatever…
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