Saturday, January 31, 2015

Weekly Links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Morocco: Chefchaouen, Tangier, and Asilah

Part 3: If you want to start from the beginning, start at Part 1

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From Fes we drove through the Rif mountains on secondary roads through Ouezzane to the lovely town of Chefchaouen. Founded in 1471, this little town is full of white buildings painted all kinds of shades of blue. The doors and buildings are just delightful! The blues makes it very soothing to walk around the alleys. One of  favorite parts was seeing the bags of paint and the lovely colors to choose from. This town is known for it's weavers. Each weaving was made from the loveliest color color and textures and were hard to choose from. It really struck me was how important color was and how it was used everywhere in this village. I love color and how colors go together so it was very special experience. The kasbah is located in the center of town and has a interesting garden. We met one of the caretakers who was 90. The hotel we stayed in was charming and reminiscent of a chalet in Bavaria. The ceilings and furniture were all painted with designs. I think this village is a little hidden treasure and reminded me a bit of Khatmandu many years ago. 

After 2 nights in Chefchaouen we drove north towards Tangier. It was spectacular following the coastline of the Mediterranean then going up over the hills, seeing Cap Spartel which is across from Gibralter and then coming down on the other side to the Atlantic. We spent two days at Le Mirage Hotel with one of the most spectacular beaches I have ever seen with absolutely no one on it. We walked and walked and never saw one person. We also had a fabulous lunch at L'Ocean with fish probably caught right off that beach. 

From Tangier we started our drive back to Rabat. We made a stop in Asilah which is heavily Spanish influenced and seems to be an artists' colony. The walls and doors in the medina are covered with paintings. This is another hidden jewel - so clean and fun to poke around. 

We ended our trip back in Rabat celebrating New Year's Eve at a spectacular restaurant with an amazing 7 course meal and great music by this flamenco group. They must have been famous because everyone was getting their picture taken with them.


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This was such a fabulous trip! Thank you to my hosts Lyne and Drew who did an amazing job organizing everything and traveling with me all over! You guys are THE BEST! 

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Weekly Links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Saturday, January 17, 2015

Weekly Links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Morocco: Fes to Volubilis


We drove from Fes through fertile countryside to the Roman Ruins of Volubilis, a city that began in the 3rd century BC. Most notable are the mosaics which are intact in the ancient baths of the residences.


I'll be posting the rest of the trip as I upload more pictures.


Saturday, January 10, 2015

Weekly Links (weekly)

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Tuesday, January 06, 2015

Morocco: Rabat to Fes

This past December I visited Lyne and Drew Sayles in Morocco. It's been on my bucket list and I am happy to say it was a fabulous place to visit.

Lyne came up with suggested places to go. And she did not disappoint. Morocco is a wonderful mix of culture, both first and their world. The food is amazing and oh yes, there are LOTS of stairs! A few people asked for the itinerary after seeing my pictures on Facebook, so here's a start.

I flew Boston > Paris > Rabat. Morocco is only 5 hours ahead of EST so the trip was easy. After a lovely evening and meeting some friends, we headed out to Fes. The medina in Fes is made up of 9,000 alleys, twisting and turning every direction! There are no vehicles inside. You go down, down, down, in to the center of the medina where there are souks of every kind. I had fun looking at carpets and had to turn my nose up in the tannery. Then up, up, up to come back out. There are so many doors and mosques to look at along the way. Stairs are everywhere, most of them narrow. It seems as though everything is built on top of something else.

Hotel: Riad Rempart de Fez
Special Spots:


I'll be posting the rest of the trip as I upload more pictures.

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Weekly Links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.