Morocco

I guess the first word to describe this should be 'finally'! I have been back for two months and I have barely looked at the pictures. I guess that is what happens when your family keeps you busy!

In February, I headed to Marrakesh Morocco with pit stops in Brussels Belgium and Paris France (woo hoo!). It was a work trip, but it wasn't work and no play. Thankfully, the weather was fabulous and Moroccoo is a realatively safe place to explore (considering what was and is still happening in the Middle East and North Africa). First, in case you don't know, Morocco is in North East Africa. It is so fun to be able to say 'yep, I've been to Africa!'. It wasn't the Africa I thought I would get to (I think an African Safari would be awesome), but it was still an incredible place to visit!

Below are many pics of our trip - yes, this is a long post! I didn't take my nice camera (only my purse camera) so the picture quality varies.

The sunrise over Europe as we were flying to Belgium - gorgeous!

The Atlas Mountains in the background while flying in to Marrakesh

Ohhh, the food. Being 'public health minded' I had a hard time enjoying the food as I was worried I was going to see it later (if you know what I mean). Thankfully, I didn't get sick while I was there (I saved getting sick until I was back home) and tried to enjoy the local cuisine.

I think this was eggplant, french fries, and many other vegetables. You are served french fries almost everywhere (a little touch of home!). You can also see my new favorite drink - Orangina. Thankfully, you can find it in the States!

One of the first sites in Morocco after leaving the airport - CAMELS!

The view at my hotel pool - didn't spend much time there, but I did enjoy some R&R by the pool with my iPad. Gotta love technology.
View from my hotel

We enjoyed a lot of Tangine. And when I say a lot, I really mean a lot.

Colleagues and Meeting Participants

One evening, we went to watch a Moroccan cultural horse show - Fantasia. Basically, it is a lot of singing/dancing, food, and horses. Quite the touristy thing to do while you are there.

While we were there, I got to actually ride a camel. I brought a duplicate of Matthew's 'Tucky' (AKA Lovey) on my trip. I took several pictures of monkey throughout my trip so I can make a special book for Matthew and his monkey. A camel ride is one of monkey's adventures.

More food - Couscous

At Fantasia, we had group after group after group of people come to your table to sing and dance. Lucky for me I was on the edge so I was able to dance with them. And, I got to tip each dancer for the opportunity :)

The actual horse show after dinner

This was right outside Club Med on the edge of the Djemaa Fna (see link for more info). This is an AMAZING outdoor market that we visited a few times while we were there. A true culture experience.

A man with a monkey with who knows what type of diseases

Moroccan spices were everywhere

There weren't very many dogs, but we saw a lot of kitties walking around.

Reptiles and freshly slaughtered meat

tPlenty of fruit. At meals, plates of oranges were your dessert

I wish my camera captured the true size of this nest - it looked like the size of a mini cooper. HUGE nests were everywhere near the market!

Lunchtime at the market

BEAUTIFUL LIGHTS!

The market came alive at night with food vendors everywhere and all sorts of mini shows (like snake charmers, etc.). It is a great place to be once the sun goes down.

At the end of the week, we found ourselves with 'Tangine' fatigue. We needed a sense of normalcy so we found a great pizza place. The next night - we found a restaurant right outside our hotel that had Capresee Salad (which is one of my favs!) It was a delightful break from Morocco Cuisine!

On the way home we had a short visit in Paris - it is hard to take a pic of the Eiffel Tower at night with a crappy camera, but here it is. And I can say I have been there!