What used to be a blog about experiencing the places and cultures of the world has morphed into one of living in my adopted home of Wyoming.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Marrakech to Essouira - some R&R
Eventually we hit the road from Marrakech to Essouira, about 3 hours eastward. Driving out of Marrakech was a bit hectic - it was good to have a co-pilot along for the ride. Morocco's roads are well signposted, even in the cities. But in Marrakesh, the traffic is horrendous, and any 6 square inches in front of your vehicle could at any time be immediately squeezed into by a biker, a mule cart, a horse-drawn caleche (well, you'd have to be a bit slow for that), a motorcycle - you get the idea.
Just outside of town, I experienced my first police shakedown. As with any town's outskirts, I suppose, the speed limits drop coming into the city, and gradually increase when leaving. Unfortunately, I probably really was doing 70k in the 60k zone, just feet in front of the 80k zone. As I was pulled over, I was excited to see how this would pan out. Fortunately, I had Tony's linquistic and bargaining skills onboard. When the officer approached and I handed him the paperwork, I'm not sure he quite knew what to do with me. He took the paperwork and my license over to the other waiting patrolmen, while Tony and I watched in the rear view mirror.
They way it goes, apparently, on Moroccan speed traps, is that once the officer begins writing in his Big Official Book with Carbon Paper, you get an Official Ticket, and have to pay 400 dirham (a little more than $40 USD). OR - you can offer the officer 100 dirham, for his troubles, for the heat, for the inconvenience, etc. - and be sent on your way. Tony suggested going the 100 dh route.
Problem was, I kind of wanted the official ticket. I could add it to my collection from Norway, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the 'ticket' from the Maoists in Nepal to walk through the countryside. But, Tony took it upon himself to go out and have a word with the officer. He brought a candybar along (it was on the verge of melting) and a 50 dirham note. With the ease of a graceful, hidden handshake, and the handover of the candybar, the deal was done - my paperwork was returned (to Tony) and I was free to proceed. Without a ticket.
Essaouira - At Last!
But it's much more. It's been the seat of a number of films, including Orson Welles' Othello there, and last year, Ridley Scott's Kingdom of Heaven, which I might have to rent. Besides facing due west and enjoying a daily sunset extravaganza, the city is built on old Portuguese ramparts (Skala de la Ville or du Port), still lined with branss cannons. The city has also realized it's beach potential, and cleared a wide swath of beach for tourism. The beach plaza has soccer fields, basketball courts, a few food stalls, and of course, wind- and kite-surfing rental shops.
Just a bit further south, there are remains of an old Portuguese castle that are reachable during the morning's low tide. Just south of that are windswept sand dunes, hills, and scrub brush leading down the coast to rocky cliffs and some rubble-and beach coastline. It is one of my favorite cities in Morocco. Even still.
Last Full Day in Morocco
This trip was exceptional in that I got to do so much on my time away, and often, would break out the camera as an afterthought. But, for my last day in Morocco - specifically, Essaouira - I wanted to relax and play with my camera. It was also Tony's 40th birthday. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do. I suggested ushering in a new decade by trying something that he'd never done before, so we opted to go find some horses.
Just down the coast, in Diabat, there is a ranch - really the back of an old crumbling mosque - with a stable of horses. It's only recently begun attracting tourists, so is fantastically still authentic - a run-down, functioning stable as opposed to a flash tourist destination. We opted for a few hours' ride to fill the morning, and were quickly fitted out with knee-high chaps. As someone who's ridden in Australia and once for an hour in Texas, I've never worn chaps - contrary to common Texas stereotype (as held through much of the world). We started off following Hassan, the guide from the stable - though why we really needed a guide in this beachside nestle of dune-hills, I'm not sure.
At any rate, we started off, and the horse I was on really didn't like the other two. He would, despite my best pull of the reigns, try to bite the other two horses' faces. Once we emerged into more open riding area, I thought this would stop, but it didn't. So, Hassan, the guide, and I swapped animals. Now, I was on the best looking horse from the stables. A tall, majestic sable brown horse that somehow exhibited a leadership air about him, if that's possible - probably from being used to leading the riders. Since Hassan was leading, and it was Tony's birthday, I opted to hang back and ride last. This also gave me the opportunity to sometimes wander a bit, since I had my camera with me.
We meandered initially on a closely wound trail through scrubby dunes, emerging onto pure sand dunes. When I was last here 8 years ago, this stretch of dunes had a string of Atlantic-washup trash almost a kilometer long. It was heart-wrenching - there were recyclables of all imaginable types washed up along the tide line. Now, however - likely as a result of its continued 'destination' status - Essaouira has really cleaned up its act, and this has been adopted by the surrounding communities as a means to attract more tourism. The benefit is an improved environment; the downside is the wave of new, perhaps unsustainable development on a delicate seaside ecosystem that has occured in the interim. Of course I'm glad to see that this has been cleaned up, but it is a bit disheartening to see that the reason - rather than pride in one's own environment - was instead to attract what is slightly less ugly concrete block condo development.
At any rate, we rode toward the beach and then along the old Portuguese fortress ruins. It was there that I remembered, on my last trip, I also had short hair. I was traveling with a friend from Australia (Adam) and he snapped a photo of me climbing the ruins, and then perched on top of the highest point, thinking. Which my mom then painted in a portrait. Small world. At any rate, it was a wonderful and novel way to see the scenery. The wind was strong, but so was the sun. I had a tank top on but wore a button-down shirt over it, and at the end of the day, was rewarded with a weird take on a farmer's tan (burn): red arms up to the sleeve point, but with a scoop-neck front. And my ears!
As we slowly made our way via a grand loop back to the ranch, the horse I was riding decided he wanted to have some fun. Who could blame him? He's on the beach, got the wind in his hair, has been tracking kind of slow but normally was used to leading. So he popped a horse-wheelie.
He reared up in that classic horse pose - both front paws reaching skyward - and let out a fantastic whinnie. When all fours were again on the ground, he took off on a run. Didn't matter that I was indicating a slow, and then a force-stop on the reigns. He slowed when he was damn good an ready, just a few moments longer. I didn't notice at the time but after the excitement, I somehow had the werewithal to protect my camera by rolling it into my button down shirt and covering it with my left arm (from the saddle horn). It was all quite exciting.
Afterward, the day was filled with remaining R&R activities...a few celebratory beers, lunch, strolling along the medina, snapping photos....and then meeting up with friends to celebrate Tony's birthday.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Treed
Today, my co-worker's friend, attorney, and spare-time tree-trimmer, old-school style, came by to trim the giant maple in the back yard. It's around a century old, and unfortunately, is nearing the end of its life - tho she does have a few good years left in her yet (the TREE....). Two old branch-holes near the top of the trunk have filled with soil (better that than rot) tho sound a bit hollow, so it's only a matter of time before the core rots out with age. But, we'll fill the missing branch-holes with expansion foam to keep them from filling with water and rotting more quickly. At any rate, I think I've found the perfect platform for a good backyard tree-stand.
....and the aftermath......
Saturday, August 26, 2006
New Hammock
Kathman taking a drink
This is not really a spectacular shot - many cats like to drink from running water. What is surprising about this shot is that, moments before, I just learned - completely by accident - that my camera had a built-in flash. My excuse for not knowing was that my owner's manual for this relatively new camera was lost in one of my international relocations. So, thanks to a new download and 147 page print job, I learned the happy secret of the hidden flash.
Friday, August 18, 2006
Friday Surprise
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Saturdy Wandering
Saturday, August 05, 2006
A Taste of Culture
This photo is of a Guatama Buddha statue. Yes, Buddha.
“But I thought this was a Hindu festival…!?”
Well, you’re right. This used to confuse me when visiting Hindu temples as well. A Nepali friend explained it for me though. When Siddhārtha Gautama was an insulated prince in Kathmandu, he was a Hindu of the Brahmin caste, as was his family. Suspecting that there was a lot more going on in the world than he was able to see and experience isolated within the palace walls and princely life, Gautama struck out to experience the real world as a monk. In doing so he came face to face with the harsh realities of caste life, poverty, and injustice, which set him upon a course of wandering and meditation to make sense of it all, prior to reaching enlightenment in India after a series of challenges. At that point he opted to return to the world at large and teach meditation skills so that others could attain enlightenment. There are some later Hindu teachings that indicate Buddha was an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu in an attempt to trick demons, so it's not as simple as I've laid out here, but you get the gist.
At any rate, my Nepali friend Sushil explained that Hinduism and Buddhism are intricately intertwined as a result. I don’t think that’s as obvious anywhere in the world as it is in
It was great to see the festival, the wares, sample the food, visit the temple, and enjoy several performances. For a few more photos of the day's activities, click here.