Just over the Portuguese border from Spain is a little village with a big castle called Castro Marim. Tourist season was over, so we missed the shows that they apparently put on, which include dramatizations of medieval life and fighting knights. Unlike other castles we have visited, this one does well to show what life might…
Reason 410 Why I Love Morocco: An hour-long session with the barber for a trim and a straight-razor shave, where the most extreme care is taken about even the smallest detail, runs me $1.50. Plus, as an added bonus, I come out looking über-handsome.
On our way north to Spain, we stopped over briefly in Fes. Below are photos of some of the endless beauty Fes has to offer.
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,”…
Sometimes, it’s nice to just get in a car and take a mountain drive. There’s nothing like the freedom to explore an area at one’s own pace, stopping at scenic viewpoints, lunching at an out of the way café, eating pomegranates while watching the sunset, or hanging out with shepherds watering their sheep. Unfortunately, Peace Corps…
Glamour shot
Reason 595 Why I Love Morocco: New photographs for the carte de sejour come with a free glamour shot.
Reason 3,333 Why I Love Morocco: Previously neglected foods are now main staples. i have eaten, or drank, more dates, olives, watermelon, oranges, eggs, fish, okra, tea, wine, couscous, honey, mint, and mutton in the last 5 years here than I did the whole 45 years before coming.
We stayed in a most lovely seaside town when we went to Portugal, called Albufeira! Although the town center was quite touristic (catering to mainly British tourists from what we saw), outside of this area the town was charming and picturesque. The beach was incredible, too–the sand is actually finely crushed shells which make it a lovely color and…
Ubiquitous and endlessly useful.
Reason 1,233 Why I Love Morocco: Everything is possible with WhatsApp—doctor’s appointments, car repair, hotel reservations, fish mongers, taxi pick-ups, you name it. Of course, one must obtain the numbers first, but there’s always a friend of a friend of a friend whose brother knows just the man you need.
First, let’s be clear, since I don’t want there to be any misunderstanding. There is an extensive coastline along Morocco’s most southern coast that, as of yet, I am not allowed to enter as a current Peace Corps volunteer. I want to visit Dakhla and Laayoune, insha’Allah, but I can’t. Not yet. So, this is…
