Serenity for the Hiker's Mom

My 17-year old daughter is doing a three-day hike this weekend. What a great experience for her, but I have to admit it's a bit of a nerve-wracking experience for me.

She and three other girls had to plan their route and must carry everything they will need for the weekend. It is part of the Duke of Edinburgh program which was started by Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh himself, also known as Queen Elizabeth's husband. It is similar to the scouting program in the States. There are three levels you can earn: Bronze, Silver, and Gold. This is her first year to do it and she decided to go straight for the Silver. Bronze seekers do a two-day hike while Silver and Gold do three-day hikes. There are other components to earning the award including service hours, learning a skill, and doing a physical activity. It's a fantastic program but requires quite a commitment. For the skill portion, she is hoping the driving lessons she is taking will count. Physical activity is no problem as she plays soccer almost year round. Still waiting to see what the volunteering will end up being. Then there is the "Expedition". This weekend is actually only the practice run. In three weeks time they will do it all over again for the Final Expedition.

Preparing for this hike has been a lesson in planning skills. The groups start months ahead of time, learning about map and navigation skills, first-aid, meal planning, equipment planning, etc. So why did it come down to practically the night before the hike to get everything ready? I think (and hope) the girls learned the importance of planning ahead. Apparently it didn't sink in to the girls to really pay attention when they were supposed to be learning about planning the route and what are good things to take along. Suddenly the time is upon them and... well, hopefully, lesson learned.

But I shouldn't be so hard on the girls, they did get all their "stuff" together. Imagine having to carry on your back your sleeping bag, tent, cookstove, clothes, water, and food to last for three days. It helps that they shared the load, each girl carrying either a tent, tent poles, or stove. They weren't even able to fit all the food they had bought in their backpacks. The girls showed up to the walk with extra food hoping someone had space left for it but every rucksack was full to the brim.

Lexi's backpack was heavy but somehow the weight gets distributed well so she didn't just topple over under the weight. Here she is looking confident the night before the big hike:

My hiker girl

I really don't know how many miles they will go but they hike all day Friday and Saturday and return Sunday afternoon. There are checkpoints along the way to make sure they are doing okay. They are expected to use maps to find their way to each checkpoint. No GPS allowed! They don't just walk along roads but rather through fields and paths. At night, the groups come together to all set up tents in one area.

Being a mom I can't help but worry about my baby girl. I can't imagine how hard it must be to figure out the right paths to go on while lugging all that weight on her back. If they don't make it to the campsite by nightfall, they still have to find their way there and set up camp in the dark. Another mom told me how her daughter did the walk last year and got lost. What was supposed to be a 5-hour hike turned into 8 hours. They had to set up their tent in the dark. But the daughter still managed to have a great time and is back this year for more!

I've been trying to keep myself busy to keep my mind off how the walk is going. At least my oven is now clean. I find it calming to work on my cross-stitching. I started this particular cross-stitch project 12 years ago but I only pick it up now and then. I think back to Lexi being in Kindergarten when I started it. I remember working on it when I was waiting for her while she tested to see if she could skip 2nd grade. She missed by one point. I remember working on it during many family ski trips. My goal when I moved to England was to finally finish it. I'm getting close. I enjoy the memories I have every time I pick it up. How appropriate it is that it calms me. You see it is the Serenity Prayer that I am stitching against a beautiful nature background.

My cross-stitching

How final product will look

God grant me the

Serenity to accept what I cannot change,

Courage to change the things that I can,

and Wisdom to know the difference.

Agadir, Morocco

Relaxation

The remaining 3 days of our visit to Morocco were spent in the beach resort town of Agadir, located on the shores of the Atlantic ocean. Checking in to the Hotel Sofitel, we were once again given the little glasses of customary Moroccan mint tea. What a nice tradition for welcoming guests.

Agadir is further south than Marrakech so the weather was warmer. It was nice to spend the whole first day relaxing by the pool and soaking in the sunshine. How wonderful to escape the dreariness of February winter in England and work on our suntans by the pool. And what a pool it was. Here is a panoramic shot of the hotel pool area (photo stolen shamelessly from Pam).

Sofitel Agadir

The guys soon discovered what they called the "bunkers" laid out between the pool area and the beach. They sit low in the ground to help block the wind. We all met there for lunch each day. Waiters brought food and drinks right to the table. When not dining, the benches were great for napping or reading. It was the guys' hideaway, the girls preferred the more comfortable tanning beds at the pool.

The "Bunkers"

Group lunch in the Bunker

How's that for a tanning bed?

Tour Time

The next day the grown-ups were ready to take a tour to explore and learn more about the city of Agadir. The teens were not interested in leaving the paradise of the hotel, so they had another day of lazy tranquility poolside.

The first place the tour guide took us was to the fishing port. Surprisingly, Agadir's main industry is fishing, not tourism. We were driven past several canning factories, mostly canning of sardines. We saw boats being refurbished. It was interesting to see a pile of split tree trunks being transformed into wooden fishing boats right in front of us.

Trees turned into boats

The Kasbah is on hilltop in background

Our next stop was to the top of a hill to see the Kasbah where a fortress from the 16th century used to stand but which was destroyed in a 1960 earthquake. The outer walls were rebuilt but it's quite disappointing to get to the top and nothing is inside the walls except for a huge cell phone tower. My first thought was of the song "Rockin' the Casbah" by the Clash. Similar, but I believe the song is about another kasbah somewhere else.

At the top, you can take a camel ride or just have your picture taken with a camel but it will cost you. We made good use of the Arabic phrase we learned, "La Shokran" which means "No thank you", as the camel owners can be quite pushy about it. Having already taken a camel ride in Egypt next to the pyramids, a ride in a parking lot was not enticing.

Here is a picture of one of the camels waiting for a tourist to take a ride. Our 15-passenger bus is in the background.

Care for a ride? I'll take the bus, thanks!

It was worth it to go up to the top of the hill, however, for the view:

View of Agadir from the Kasbah

This is a view of the Kasbah from the beach. The words on the side of the hill say "God King Country".

Kasbah in background

At night, the words on the side of the hill are lit up:

Kasbah at night

After we rocked the Kasbah, we drove through the old part of Agadir that was destroyed in the 1960 earthquake. Over one-third of the population of Agadir was killed in the earthquake that lasted less than 15 seconds.  It was eerie seeing nothing left but the remains of stair steps. The area is now used for driving tests and driving practice. The city of Agadir has been rebuilt 1 mile south of the earthquake's epicenter.

We made a quick stop to see the mosque where prayers were just finishing. Men were exiting from the men's entrance and putting their shoes back on.

After prayers

Argan Oil

Demo of argan oil production

Our guide then took us into a shop where we learned all about argan oil. Of course the shop had plenty of items made from argan oil available to buy. This was the first time I had even heard of the oil but apparently it's very popular now. The oil is produced from the fruit of the argan tree which grows right there in the Agadir area. We were shown how the oil is extracted from the nut found inside the fruit of the tree. The photo shows the various stages of extracting the oil and the traditional method of grinding the nuts. Today, mechanical presses are used instead of the manual grinding stones.

The oil can be cooked and used as a dip for food, similar to using olive oil. It is supposed to be healthier than olive oil and good for reducing cholesterol. We were told swallowing a teaspoon a day is good for your health. I tried some on a salad but I wasn't sold on the flavor. When the oil is used in cosmetic products it is not cooked.

The shop had 3 entire walls of products displayed for sale. Each product was touted as a cure for some ailment, anything from age spots, dry skin, dry hair, to snoring and wrinkles, depending on what was added to the argan oil. I'm told by others in our group that the snoring has not been cured! I did buy some oil for dry skin and it does make my skin very soft and is easily absorbed.

What is nice about the argan oil industry is that it is produced solely by a women's cooperative that shares the profits among the local women of the Berber tribe. We were told that the shop we were in only employs divorced women who otherwise wouldn't be able to support themselves.

We discovered that the shop also offered massage therapy using what else, argan oil, at prices cheaper than the hotel. The girls had been wanting to get massages. For a little more than the hour-long massage at the hotel, the girls could get a two-hour massage here. As the parents would be bringing the girls anyway we decided we would all get massages. Seemed like a good idea at the time.

Full Body 2-Hour Massage

Two hours is a long time for a massage. In fact, the ladies doing the massaging had to take a break halfway through. We joked about letting divorced women inflict their pain on the men. Those women were strong, especially when they used their elbows. They were generous with the argan oil all over our bodies, even on our heads. We came out feeling greasy and with wild hair, but relaxed. We were also feeling like another 2-hour full body massage would not be needed ever again.

Time to Leave

We were sad to have our week in Morocco come to an end. I purchased a cute little silver teapot and two little tea glasses to remember the comforting Moroccan mint tea we drank. We also chose a miniature tagine pot like the clay ones that the Moroccan stews are slow-cooked in.

Our souvenirs

At the airport, there were separate lines for men and women when going through security, which I've never seen. Then again I was leaving a country where donkey-pulled carts in the streets exist alongside the wealthy Saudi Arabian King's palace.

More on Morocco (no, not Moron in Morocco!)

On Day 3 of our week in Morocco, we had a guide take us on a cultural tour of Marrakech. He took us through the Bahia Palace with very ornate tile, carvings, and ceilings. It is a sprawling maze put together in piecemeal fashion as land was gradually made available. It was good we had a guide so we didn't get lost going through it!

One room in Bahia Palace

Bahia Palace courtyard

The guide told us that the current king of Morocco, Mohammed VI, was enthroned in 1999 and is 48 years old. He is attempting to reform the country. For example, he outlawed polygamy, gave women more rights, allowed public alcohol consumption, and provided more freedom in general. Muslim citizens are not required to drop everything and pray when called to prayer 5 times a day. The King shares power with a prime minister. I got the feeling the King is trying to make his people happy. Both this guide and one we had later in the week made it a point to tell us about the King's reforms so I guess they are trying to get the word out, or maybe they are just happy with the King. We were told, though, that some of the older generation are not fond of the modern reforms. Can't please everyone!

Our guide keeping an eye on us shopping in the souk

Our guide then took us through the souk which is the market with stalls of handicrafts that go on and on. Negotiation is expected. Chris's friend, Mustapha, was along and he helped make sure we were getting a fair price. He was in fact told that the price for an item for him would be lower than for us, the obvious tourists. Chris got in the bargaining game and purchased a beautiful wooden storage box made from the root of some tree. We also purchased pistachios and sesame seed-covered peanuts.

Dads/Daughters Quad biking

Day 4 was Valentine's Day. We spent the morning splitting up and indulging ourselves. The dads and daughters did a quad bike excursion through dirt fields while the women opted for time at the spa. I have photos of the dads/daughters but thankfully no pictures have emerged of the moms' activities.

A little dirty after the quad biking

The hotel spa offered massage and Hammam which is a traditional Moroccan steaming, scrub, and soak in a bathhouse. It originated when homes lacked indoor plumbing. It is still popular as an exfoliation cleansing. I personally didn't want to be scrubbed clean by someone else, so I went with the massage. My friend Pam wanted to experience the local Hammam tradition and what an experience it was. I will leave it to her to describe in her own blog but I like how she summed it up as an "intimate power-washing".

I have had quite a few massages and this one was not my favorite. I assumed a woman would do the massaging as Morocco is a Muslim country and surely a man wasn't allowed to massage me. What a surprise when a man led me to the massage room and told me to disrobe. Apparently there is a strong French influence in this part of Morocco. Normally, the massage therapist leaves the room while I remove my clothes and scurry under the sheet. Not in this country. The guy just stood there. My friend Beth had the same experience, but at least she had a woman. Luckily I was only having a 45-minute back and neck massage so my jeans were left on. The guy was strong and really worked me over. Beth and I were both sore in our upper backs later that day.

Atlas Mountains

The families all merged back together and we boarded our bus for a trip to the Atlas Mountains. It was a different view of the country as we got out of the city scene and drove through beautiful countryside and through small villages. Within an hour or so we could see snow-topped mountains in the distance. The road followed alongside a small stream, probably melted snow flowing from the mountains. It reminded me of driving in the mountains of Colorado.

Numerous wooden footbridges were suspended above the stream. All along the road there were riverside restaurants that had outdoor seating along the far bank. The only way to cross the stream were these footbridges. We saw a waiter carrying food across a rickety bridge to tables on the other side.

Village in the Atlas Mountains

Riverside restaurant

Yikes, is this safe?

We stopped for lunch at a restaurant with a lovely view from a terrace and thankfully, no bridge to be crossed.

We started with a nice soup flavored with saffron, widely grown in Morocco. Mike was disappointed that they were out of the rabbit he saw on the menu. Later, he learned our driver had a dish of the rabbit, guess he beat Mike to it. We had to settle for beef and chicken. Dessert was again the typical platter of oranges with mint tea.

After our late lunch, we headed for our next destination, the beach resort of Agadir. Along the way, we stopped for a break at a gas station with convenience store. We each picked out a treat for ourselves as it was Valentine's Day after all. We were excited to see American candy and cookies and even Cheetos, hard to find in England.

We finished out our week in Agadir and now I will finish out this posting and save Agadir for another entry.

Getting Some Culture in Casablanca

Day 2 in Morocco, we head to Casablanca for the day. Casablanca is more of a commercial city than a touristy spot. I always assumed the movie Casablanca was filmed there but it wasn't. We did go by Rick's Cafe, which was designed to recreate Rick's Bar from the movie. Unfortunately the cafe was closed for the afternoon break when we stopped by so we couldn't go in. Of all the gin joints in all the world, this one had to be closed!

The highlight of the Casablanca visit for me was a tour of the Hassan II Mosque, completed in 1993 after only 6 years of construction. King Hassan II commissioned it to be built to provide a landmark monument for Casablanca. It is one of the largest mosques in the world and has the highest religious minaret in the world. The minaret is the tower from which Muslims are called to prayer. The mosque is partly built over the waters of the Atlantic ocean.

Our group in front of Hassan II Mosque

Top of the minaret

Mosques are not typically open to non-Muslim visitors but this mosque seems to encourage visits by offering guided tours. It is a truly spectacular work of art and engineering. It is built from local materials such as marble, granite, and cedar from Morocco. Copper, titanium, and ornate mosaic tile are also used. It is a mixture of traditional and modern. The only imported materials are white marble for the columns and glass for the beautiful chandeliers from Venice, Italy. 10,000 artisans and craftsmen labored to produce the intricate embellishments of the building.

The mosque can accommodate 25,000 worshippers but it has never been completely filled. I am reminded of the saying: "If you build it they will come". But is "they" the worshippers or the tourists??

Interior of mosque

Detail of the beautiful tile

We watched the huge electronically-controlled doors silently close for prayer while we were there.

Large doors

The automated retractable roof slides open in 2 to 3 minutes when the weather is nice. The elaborate ceiling is made of cedar to withstand the damp salty air from the ocean.

Looking up at sliding ceiling

There are separate entrances and prayer areas for men and women. Muslims are called to prayer 5 times a day. Before praying, they must wash themselves. Abundant fountains are provided both outside and inside below the ground floor with water for cleansing.

Fountains for washing before prayer

I learned from our guide why shoes must be removed before entering a mosque. It is simply to keep the carpets clean, that's it. We were provided plastic bags to carry our shoes with us on the tour. If you ever go, wear socks as our bare feet were quite cold on the marble floor.

Proving that it is indeed a small world, the girls reunited with a local Moroccan boy that Monica had met when he was a foreign exchange student in her American high school two years ago. They had kept up through Facebook and it was one of those "if you're ever in Casablanca, look me up...." promises that actually got fulfilled. We also had lunch with Mustapha, Chris's Moroccan former work buddy who now lives in Casablanca. We all enjoyed hearing his insights into the local culture and customs.

Our day trip ended happily with a pleasant drive back to Marrakech. It wasn't the "Marrakesh Express" but our driver did a good job getting us back safely. Always pleasant when you leave the driving to someone else!

Morocco - Day 1, Arrival in Marrakech

February in England is cold and dark with short days. But the schools give a week off for what they call half-term. Time to head somewhere reasonably warm for the break. We looked at Sicily, Turkey, Greek islands, and Morocco and were told that Morocco in northeast Africa would be the warmest of those destinations in February. We didn't want to fly further than a few hours after just traveling eleven hours over Christmas to South Africa. The flight to Marrakech, Morocco was only 4 hours long.

Chris has a Moroccan friend he used to work with, Mustapha, who was eager to have us visit his country. Mustapha recommended an English-speaking guide to make things easier for us. We joined up with two other families from Lexi's school who also have 11th-grade daughters. The kids were happy to have buddies and the grown-ups were happy too. Our party of nine did not fit into a normal-size vehicle, however, and we did not want to split up into two cars. A 15-passenger bus with driver, Ahmed, was provided for us. He was on duty for us the entire time, from the pick-up at the airport, throughout the week, and then back to the airport. It was comforting to have a local contact to watch out for us and who spoke Arabic. With the "Arab Spring" uprisings going on in African countries such as Egypt and Libya, we wanted to feel safe and not be on our own. Another benefit was that the guide got us really good discounts on the hotels.

Upon arrival at our hotel, the Palmeraie Golf Palace, we were seated and given the traditional welcome of Moroccan mint tea. The tea was sweet and refreshing with fresh mint in the little glasses.

Our group arriving at hotel

 There was a photo-op area set up in the lobby which of course I couldn't resist:

Enjoying my Moroccan mint tea welcome

After getting settled in our luxurious rooms, we lunched poolside in the warm sun and marveled at how we had left 16 F degree weather at the airport that morning.

We made the obligatory trip to the square and market place in the old city portion of Marrakech. It is popular with both the locals and the tourists. There were snake charmers and men with monkeys available for photos. Even if you don't ask for a monkey on your head, the men will just plop one on you and of course photos must be taken and then the men expect money. We were told to pay 20 Dirhams, (about $2) no more. The monkey men weren't having any of that and started demanding 200 Dirhams! Unfortunately, Chris had pulled all his cash from his pocket and the men could see what he had. Here is Chris enjoying the up-close encounter with the monkeys while I am not so thrilled to have the creature thrust upon my head!

At Chez Ali, warming up at a fire pit. Got cold when sun went down.

Dinner and a show that night was at Chez Ali, a touristy place, but well worth the visit to experience the traditional vibes of Morocco. Chez Ali is a huge compound with tents and buildings set around an open air arena. Our bus dropped us off in the parking lot which was dominated by other tour buses. That set the tourist tone right away. Oh well. As you walk in, you are taken past various groups in traditional garb representing the different tribes of the area. Many were playing music. We were seated in a large tent and typical Moroccan food was brought out, no need to try to figure out what to order from a menu! The soup was good, next was a huge platter of couscous with vegetables for the table to share. Then a roasted lamb on a platter with body parts still attached was presented. That raised some eyebrows from us Westerners. The table next to us was digging in with their hands, which we were told is common. We did the best we could to find the meat with our knives and forks. Dessert was a platter of fresh fruit. The tangerines were delicious!

What remained of our lamb on a platter

Dessert

During dinner, various musical groups rotated past our table to perform their chant or dance or whatever their tribe does best. In an effort to get us to participate (I suppose) one woman leaned right in Chris's ear and made a tongue-clicking noise. I guess we didn't look interested enough because after a while the groups just barely stopped at our table then quickly moved on along. Fine with us!

After dinner, we sat outside on stands around the arena for the show. Riders on Arabian horses performed tricks. A lone belly dancer performed on a stage in the center so far away we could hardly see her. We kept imagining how cold she must have been in her skimpy outfit. Once the sun went down, it got cold. It was February after all. In a sort of war ceremony, riders on horses charged out and shot off their rifles, several times. All the tribal performers processed out in a final parade. The finale was fireworks and a "floating" magic carpet pulled across a cable between two buildings. All in all, fun stuff.

At the end of the day we marveled at how much we did in just our first day in Morocco.

South Africa

We took a 2-week trip to South Africa over the Christmas holidays. We've been on a lot of trips but I would say this rates as one of the really special ones. For one thing, we travelled from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere, a first for me. We went from the dead of winter to sunny summertime in just the eleven hours it took to fly from London to Johannesburg.

It was the first time we were not at home on Christmas Day. We had a very simple gift exchange around a very small fake Christmas tree in our rented house with gifts we had purchased just the day before in Cape Town. We were able to walk to a Catholic church on Christmas morning and celebrate Christmas Mass and sing carols while wearing sundresses and short sleeves. Later we soaked up some sun on the beach. It was a mixture of tradition and new experiences.

Our self-lighted mini Christmas tree

We  had a lovely Christmas dinner at a nice restaurant called Salt. Our table overlooked the ocean and we dined alongside an awesome sunset view.

Usually we are gone about a week on our trips. So to be gone a solid two weeks was special. Europeans generally go "on holiday" for at least two weeks at a time, often longer. Only the Americans feel the need to take fast trips as opposed to the leisurely European way. Even the passport control officer checking us back into England said something about how unusual that we Americans had been away for two whole weeks.

Sunset on Christmas Day

It was also special that Ryan got to travel with us. As he is at University back in the States, he doesn't get to accompany us on many of our trips over on this side of the pond. The days of all four of us taking a vacation together will at some point draw to a close when he starts a career and Lexi starts college. We cherish our time together as a family.

Christmas in summer at the V&A Waterfront,  Cape Town

The highlight of the trip was the 3-day safari adventure. Again, it was like nothing I had ever experienced or probably ever will again. I'll save the details of that for another posting.

Modern Old England Houses

England is a mixture of the old and new.  I like how, rather than tearing down an old house, they will often keep the shell intact and completely refurbish the inside.

We visited some neighbors that live in such a house. The exterior is something similar to the house in this photo. As soon as you step inside, the house has a completely modern feel.

Old Exterior

I grabbed these pictures from an Internet site of houses for sale in the area. They show a typical refurbished kitchen and bathroom in older houses.

Modernized kitchen

Updated bathroom

Our neighbor friends are Ex-Pat Americans who are renting. They gave us a tour of their updated older house. The inside was completely gutted and redone. So you would think it would have all the modern conveniences. Not so. 

Oddly enough, the bedrooms have no closets. Wardrobe furniture is required to store clothes.

The kitchen was equipped with a modern American-style refrigerator, as opposed to a smaller European model. However, it had no ice-maker. That's pretty un-American.

The bathroom was sleek and modern but modern bathrooms in America have a separate room for the toilet. Not here. The "throne" sits right out for all to see. There is also hardly any storage in the bathroom. No linen closets. Very few cabinets.

The washer and dryer were the smaller European models even though larger American-style ones are available here.

The house was wired with an intricate security camera system with monitors to view the interior and exterior of the house.

I was left with the feeling that the house is a meshing of the old and new. Yet the interior is all new, just not all American-style new.  So what if there is no ice-maker, no closets, no separate toilet-room?

I wonder if the refurbishing attempted to keep some of the old English charm and character while adding modern conveniences. Or maybe the American in me has trouble seeing that some people are quite happy living without what I consider to be modern necessities. It has made me think about "new" versus "American".