Being the first day out of site in three months, especially in much cooler weather, it was a busy day. After visiting Chellah, Emilio and I took a trip to the Rabat Zoo, better known locally as Jardin Zoologique de Rabat. Despite some reservations I have about zoos in general, it was surprisingly nice. According to…
It’s been nice to have a break and hangout by the seaside in Rabat this week. While I love my town and its people, escaping the heat for a bit is helping to renew my spirit. As volunteers, in order to better assimilate, we were prohibited from leaving our site for three months. Near the…
“Without cafés and newspapers, it would be difficult to travel. A paper printed in our own language, a place to rub shoulders with others in the evenings enable us to imitate the familiar gestures of the man we were at home, who, seen from a distance, seems so much a stranger. For what gives value…
High atop the tallest hill in the Sintra Mountains sits the storybook Pena National Palace. It’s an amazing sight to behold. What used to be the remains of a defunct, simple Hieronymite (followers of Saint Jerome) monastery was severely damaged in the Great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755 and left in disrepair until it was renovated into an elaborately decorated royal palace by…
For those of you back home, here is a VERY brief overview of our trips to an amazing archaeological find. Take this information with a grain of salt, as they say, for I am not an expert. Consider this merely a solicitation for further exploration. It’s an ancient city just outside of the town of Moulay…
Louis C. K. has an insightful comedic bit about being a white, middle-aged, English-speaking, American male. He discusses the uncomfortable intersection of guilt about having all the unearned privilege each of these identifiers offers him while simultaneously being grateful for having them. He admits that, if he was given the choice, he would certainly choose to have…
Though my town is relatively small, it has a serious road safety problem because of a major highway that runs straight through its middle. Traditionally a group of villages spread throughout the oasis that surrounds what used to be a river—but that is now dry most of the year—much of the town has grown to envelope the thoroughfare. “Centre,”…
Oh my, what a lovely little country. While driving through rural Luxembourg, I thought, “This is what suburban America strives to become.” Every village looked like it was straight out of a planned community brochure. Every little village is pristine, spotlessly clean, immaculate. Every little village is picturesque framed by green rolling hills. Every little village…
Our hotel breakfast options are much different than typical American fare. Olives, cucumbers, feta, and Turkish tea are standard. Yet another reminder of how accustomed we become to routine. Below are images of breakfast at Ottoman Hotel Cağaloğlu.
