Leaving the glorious desert vistas, we again crossed mountain passes and valleys on the way west towards Quarzazate, the movie capital of Morocco. It is also known colloquially as Mollywood. With a variety of terrain close by and an ethnically diverse population (handy for extras), there have been a variety of big-name projects where parts were filmed here (e.g., Gladiator, Game of Thrones).

As we discussed such things with our local guide outside of town, I was drawn to a painter who had set up shop nearby, painting and selling his watercolors. They are simple three or four color paintings but he also uses lemon juice that, when heated over a propane fire, causes the sugars in the juice to caramelize and turns the clear solution into a lovely brown color, as if by magic. (It’s how the invisible ink of yesteryear was done…) I was so taken by the simplicity of his work, the desert themes and, of course, that chemistry is involved, that I bought the piece he was working on and it is already framed and up at home.

On a hill overlooking the ksar of Ait Ben Haddou lies its ancient granary. Devised as a safe place to store one’s grain harvest for the season, granaries evolved over the centuries to what we would consider a bank, where the community could store valuables of any sort, and as a place of peace or sanctuary, where treaties were signed and on which ground the granary would be inviolate.

A bit further out of town in a small village we met a local family to help us understand what daily life is like for the locals. This is the family I mentioned previously where the eldest daughter is going to study architecture this fall.  Their single story adobe house has two bedrooms, a family room and an interior kitchen, along with a large room (maybe a third of the enclosed area of the house) for entertaining guests, which happens a couple of times a week. It was here where we later shared the couscous that the aunties had cooked and here that we sang and danced and generally had a fine time.  

Before lunch, we shared some other typical tasks: I helped out making the flat bread we would have for lunch at the clay oven in the back yard and Tim got to make some of the ubiquitous adobe bricks using a standardized metal form. We also took a walk to their olive orchard where we sat sipping tea and discussing their life in a small village and the challenges that come with raising kids in this modern age. The universality of the common issues families face (health, education, financial security, social media influences, etc.) continues to be a notable theme of my travels.

Before leaving the village we stopped in a women’s cooperative that receives some support from our travel company’s philanthropic arm.  They make cookies and pastries for sale, teach sewing and henna art to women so they can supplement their family’s disposable income, and provide financial literacy education for the women. Some of us helped out making cookies and some also had some henna applied.  While often associated with women and with marriage, I figured why not? and became the proud wearer of a henna tattoo with a traditional Amazigh design — until a couple of weeks rendered the henna its own degree of invisibility…

As we made our way through and over more mountain passes on our way to Marrakech, we stopped at an argan oil workshop to learn more about this product and its uses. Produced from the raw or roasted seeds of the argan tree (found only around these parts), the oil is a significant ingredient in cosmetics (often seen as a marquee ingredient in hair shampoo), as well as being a healthy edible oil. And it was just plain fun to play in the snow, too.

Our hotel in Marrakech was right on the main square, Jemaa el-Fnaa, and thus we were perfectly suited for lots of wandering about. Some favorite moments included discovering briouate, a palm-sized triangular filo wrap stuffed with meats, fish or vegetables, commonly found in street stalls.  One afternoon, while wandering around eating a briouate, I came upon a group of gentlemen making something similar to how Indian dosas are made. With a bit of pantomime, the guys let me know it is where the briouat wrappers come from — how symmetrical and informative.

Another fun occasion was one evening when we had dinner time free, so I headed to the bustling night market at the square. Although there is little in the way of variety in the market (it is mostly grilled skewers, sheep’s head stew, escargot or fruit smoothies) it was grilled skewers on my mind and they were yum. A fun aspect of this particular spot was their animated way of welcoming guests to their stall — it reminded me of the way sushi chefs greet patrons to their shops. And, of course, all of this occurring in the cacophonous jumble of humanity that is evening in the Medina.

Rug weaving is popular in Morocco, where each tribe has its own unique designs and weaving is a way of propagating culture as well, particularly since the Arabs burned many Amazigh and Jewish scrolls centuries ago, people took to weaving as a recording method. Weaving is also an opportunity for many women to supplement their family income and allows them work that can be done at home. One day while wandering some artisanal workshops I was watching a woman weaving a rug when she called me over and had me sit next to her while she taught me the yarn tying trick for this particular rug. After a while I developed a rhythm for tying the yarns and felt kinda comfortable then she showed me how fast she can tie and it was zoom-zoom! Such a fun encounter!

As international departures to the US depart from Casablanca, that was our last stop before heading home.  The business capital of the country since the French relocated industry from Fez (similar to how they relocated the political power base from Fez to Rabat), also in a move to disrupt the existing power structures and make colonization easier. Besides being home for all the multinationals in the country and a lovely seaside town, Casablanca is also home to Hassan II mosque, the second largest on the continent and the only active mosque in Morocco that non-Muslims may enter (per a colonial era agreement where the French sought to protect Islam from western influences.)

This brief time in Morocco was really great for my inner wanderer; it is a safe and unique place to explore. It is also a place to learn how social changes are happening quickly, with old ways evaporating in real time.  It’s one thing to read about in articles and journals, but quite another to witness specific instances of change as I have seen with the architecture student or the nomads, or the Hmong women in northern Vietnam. And it is a place where family is paramount, but even that is under pressure from the realities of this modern world. Yet it is also a further, welcome reminder that, no matter where we may live, we all tend to share the same goals in life: loving connections amongst family & friends, access to health, education, play and rewarding work, and an ability to make our own choices in life. Always grateful for such perspective…