Essaouira

We left Ait Ben Haddou for a long drive (almost six hours) west to Essaouira. Once again, I was glad not to be driving as we enjoyed the trip in our comfortable van. Essaouira is an old port city that is now a fishing village/beach resort. 

The medina of Essaouira is surrounded by very impressive walls, which were built in the 16th century when the Portuguese fortified the city to control Atlantic trade routes. The views were fabulous:

Now, in addition to tourism, fishing is the main part of the city's economy. For some reason, all of the fishing boats are a uniform color of blue.

Of course, being in a fishing village meant that we ate a lot of good fish including, to my great appreciation, fresh oysters right from the ocean at stands in the port.

The beach in Essaouira is beautiful, and at low tide extremely wide, reminding us a bit of the beach at home in San Sebastian This being Morocco, you can find anything on the beach from kids playing football (soccer) to camels. Yes, you can take a camel ride on the beach in Essaouira (we did not), while watching surfers. Nor did we attempt to kite surf, which is what the people next to the camel below are learning to do. Essaouira is well known for its winds.

One night, we had dinner at a very nice restaurant accross from the beach so we could watch the sunset. The food was really good, and we were especially happy to have a bottle of local wine for one of the few times on the trip as most places do not serve alcohol.

We really enjoyed our few days relaxing near the beach before jumping back into the craziness of Morocco in Casablana.

More soon.

Jeff and Shana

Ait Ben Haddou

We left Marrakech to visit Ait Ben Haddou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known to many from its featured role in many movies, including both Gladiator films (“Are you not entertained?”). We decided not to rent a car in Morocco, but to use a car service instead, which has been the right decision. The mountain roads are windy and not entirely well-maintained. Plus, the Moroccans drive like Italians and there are a lot of scooters and vehicles of all types on the roads. Letting someone else do the driving was a relief and the cost was not exorbitant.

It was a 3.5 hour drive to Ait Ben Haddou, and the driver knew the best places to stop for good, cheap food. Also, to our surprise, he had a Wi-Fi hot spot for our use, which was nice, but we made sure to also enjoy the views of the Atlas Mountains. We stayed overnight at a lovely riad (large traditional house) with a fabulous view from the rooftop.

Aït Ben Haddou is a historic ksar (fortified village) that was established in the 11th century along the caravan trade route between the Sahara and Marrakech. It is considered an iconic example of Moroccan clay architecture, most of which dates to the 17th century. having been rebuilt after various damaging events, including the recent 2023 earthquake.

Spending the night allowed us to enjoy an early morning tour without the hordes of tourists who daytrip from Marrakech. It also meant we were woken up by the early call to prayer as the local mosque was directly behind our riad. While we’ve heard the call to prayer in various places, it is usually more distant. This was startlingly close, but we fell back to sleep quickly.

We had the only female guide and, in some ways, she was more interesting than the site, having been born in the village. She took us to her family home, which her aunt maintains, as the entire family has moved to the new village across the river. Very few people still live within Ait Ben Haddou which reminded us of Civita Di Bagnoregio, Italy and Saint-Emilion, France – places that are well-preserved for their historic value with few residents, but are highly touristed and known for their scene worthy backdrops or wine.

Walking up, down, and around the village with Chatima was like stepping back in time. The largest homes are called kasbahs (fortified homes) and were made with the harsh elements in mind. We climbed all the way to the top, where it was windy and where you could see the start of the Sahara Desert.

For all its history and scenery, ultimately, we’re not sure it was worth the long trip out to Ait Ben Haddou. Like many places, it didn’t quite live up to the hype. Still, we learned a lot and made the most of the opportunity.

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff

Marrakech

Before our hot-air balloon adventure (see previous post), we had four days in Marrakech. Firstly, we have to say that Marrakech is a bit crazy. Between the drivers on the roads (cars, scooters, buses and horse-drawn carriages (!)), and the people driving scooters and tuk-tuks down the narrow lanes of the Medina, you have to be constantly alert while walking (although the sidewalks are better than Vietnam). Second, while we had mostly good weather (with the exception of some rain a couple of evenings), we cannot imagine being in Marrakech during the summer when the temperature can get as high as 52 degrees Celsius (125.6 degrees Fahrenheit).

We visited a number of sites within the city, some on a half day tour that provided a good amount  of historical information, and some on our own. 

First, the most important mosque in Marrakech, the Kutubiyya Mosque.

A mosque was originally built on this site in 1040 by the Almoravid dynasty. However, when the Almohad dynasty conquered Marrakech in 1147, they destroyed the previous mosque on the basis of the (probably false) claim that it was not properly alligned with Mecca. Unfortunately, as with almost every mosque in Morocco, only Muslims are allowed in the building, so we had to be satisfied from the views outside.

The Saadian Tombs is a historic royal necropolis dating to the late 16th century. Amazingly, after falling out of use in the late 18th century, they were "lost" until "rediscovered" in 1917. Today they provide a fantastic example of Islamic architecture.

Another great example of Islamic architecture is the famous Ben Youssef Madrassa. This famous university was built beginning in 1564-65, and became the largest center of learning in the Maghreb.

Yet another great example of Islamic architecture is the Dar al Bacha, a palace that now houses an art museum. The limited art offered was interesting, but the building itself is beautiful, including columns and fountains.

The other tour we took while in Marrakech was to the Atlas Mountains outside the city. While our tour in Marrakech taught us a lot about the history of Morocco, on this tour we learned a lot about its present.

While showing us the natural beauty of the valleys of the mountains, our tour guide explained a great deal about the difficult relations between the Arab rulers and the Amazigh people of Morocco. The Amazigh people are commonly known as Berbers, but this is a slur based on what the Romans called them because they could not understand their language (the same as calling European tribes barbarians because their languages sounded like "bar-bar-bar" to the Romans). 

The Amazigh people have lived in Morocco for over 5000 years and, like many indigenous people, they have not been treated well by the colonizing Arabs who arrived in the mid-7th century. Unlike European colonizers, the Arabs did not ethnically cleanse the Amazigh people, but they do receive much less from the state than the Arabs and generally live in poverty. They have been forced to adopt Islam, and the state has spent prodigiously to build Mosques in even the smallest villages, while not spending on things such as schools and hospitals. Ironically, the Amazigh officially represent 56% of Morocco's population, while our guide put the number significantly higher, but Morocco is essentially an absolute monarchy run by a king whose dynasty extends back to the 17th century.

All of that being said, the Atlas Mountains are absolutely beautiful, especially right now due to the high levels of rain and snow received this winter.

As part of our tour, we stopped at a traditional shop that makes products ranging from food, to lotions, to make-up from argan oil. In the shop, we were able to see part of the process of making some of the products, as well as try them.

We also stopped for some traditional tea next to a river that is very high this year because for the first time in seven years, there was significant snow in the mountains.

We were able to appreciate the high level of water because we had visited the Water Museum in Marrakech the day before, which gave us a great background in both the use of water in Morocco along with the traditional methods used by the Amazigh to obtain and use water, which we observed in the mountains. The building housing the museum is also very beautiful.

Perhaps the highlight of our Atlas tour was a traditional Moroccan lunch at an Amazigh house in a very small village. The tagine was fantastic, and Shana particularly liked the dessert of oranges with lemon juice and cinnamon.

We definitely did a lot during our time in Marrakech. Fortunately, we would soon get a break in the beach town of Essouira, but more about that soon.

Ciao,

Jeff and Shana

Morocco: Our First Hot Air Balloon Ride

Greetings from Morocco, where we are on a 3-week journey through a large part of the country, which will be fuel for many future posts. This is our second Muslim-majority country, and we already have seen many differences between here and Malaysia. We have little knowledge about Morocco’s history and are learning a lot along the way.

Rather than our usual “introductory” post, we are starting with something special – our first hot air balloon ride. When we were in Cappadocia, Turkey in 1994, we had just finished law school and didn’t have the money for such an adventure. We booked a balloon excursion in 2004 while in Stockholm, but the weather didn’t cooperate and it was cancelled. It turns out that Marrakech, where we started this trip, is one of the best places in the world for hot air ballooning. So, after wanting to float for more than 20 years, we finally did so this week.

We were glad the weather cooperated and that we didn’t book the 6 am pick-up, opting for 7 am, as the morning was gray and cloudy obscuring the sunrise. The balloon site was about 35 minutes north of the city and coffee/tea and croissants were available upon arrival. The company flew 12 balloons twice that morning and had quite a professional operation.

We climbed aboard our balloon and met our pilot, Elias, who was super friendly and kindly answered all our questions, in between firing and steering the balloon.

There were 16 total passengers in the basket, and it was exciting to see all the other balloons.

We slowly started ascending skyward. Considering the hazy morning, we didn’t know what to expect. We entered the cloud cover, no longer able to see the ground, and then rose above the clouds where the sun was shining brightly. The quiet beauty took our breath and fear away. It was extraordinary, especially seeing the other balloons emerging out of the clouds. We even saw the shadow of our balloon below.

We enjoyed the views as we rotated 360 degrees and as we drifted toward the snow-covered Atlas Mountains.

The landing process was interesting. The ground below is mostly farm and grazing land, so the landowners prefer the balloons avoid their crops. A farmer was grazing his sheep and goats as we came in and Elias had to work with the changing winds to try to land close to the road and in an uncultivated spot, which he achieved, and we didn’t even feel the landing. As we were on the second and last ride, we were able to watch them pack everything up before heading back for a full breakfast.

We highly recommend taking a float if you get the opportunity. Albuquerque, NM is the best spot in the US. We truly enjoyed the experience.

More from Morocco soon,

Shana & Jeff

In the Name of Science: My Second Experience as a Figurative Guinea Pig

For the past three weeks or so I have been participating in a scientific study at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language. A friend who also participated told me about the BCBL’s need for native English speakers who could competently type, and I figured “why not?” After a quick typing test, which I passed, and confirming that my dental fillings would not interfere with the technology being used, I became the last needed participant (so far). (Jeff figured he wouldn’t pass the typing test, and his permanent retainer probably would have ruled him out anyway.)

So, what did I get myself into with my decision to volunteer? Spending about 20-30 minutes getting wired up to be analyzed by a MEG (magnetoencephalography) device. Then spending a bit more than an hour attached to and in the machine typing 256 mundane sentences while unable to see what I was typing and not looking at the keyboard. Here’s what that looked like:

During each of 10 sessions, I would listen to the sentences but would not start typing them until I was prompted to do so, which required memorization. While the sentences generally made sense, they were often oddly stated or had unusual syntax (e.g., The girl standing behind you is not my sister). I did several double sessions to avoid having to repeat the setup process so many times, which was more efficient, but also tiring. After my tenth session, they also performed an MRI, which was far more tolerable than I had imagined.

The study is part of an effort to evaluate how the brain decodes language and is an example of a promising scientific use of AI. Here’s an excerpt from a summary of the study so far:

To explore how the brain transforms thoughts into intricate sequences of motor actions, we used AI to help interpret the MEG signals while participants typed sentences. By taking 1,000 snapshots of the brain every second, we can pinpoint the precise moment where thoughts are turned into words, syllables, and even individual letters. Our study shows that the brain generates a sequence of representations that start from the most abstract level of representations—the meaning of a sentence—and progressively transform them into a myriad of actions, such as the actual finger movement on the keyboard.

Here’s a link to the quoted article, in case you are interested: https://ai.meta.com/blog/brain-ai-research-human-communication/  I’m told they can see my typing mistakes in my brain before the finger hits the keyboard!

The experience overall was a positive one as the lab specialist I worked with was super nice and it confirmed I still have an ability to focus when required to do so. Because the study is being conducted in English, I spoke English while at the BCBL, which was a bit odd as we almost always speak Spanish outside of our apartment. And it was likely more constructive than my prior experience participating in a vaccine trial during COVID (https://vinoconvino.blogspot.com/search?q=vaccine+trial).

Other than that, we have been back to our routine here after our unexpected trip to the US in January. Our efforts to help Jeff’s Mom adjust to her new life continue as well. We are looking forward to a three-week trip to Morocco that starts soon.

Before I go, here’s a photo from another fun local experience, Lilaton 2026 – San Sebastian’s women’s 5K race, which I did with my friend Connie on March 1:

Happy trails,

Shana

Managing and Getting Through a Family Crisis While Living Abroad

2026 did not start out the way we wanted nor expected. We were excited to return and experience Granada as Spanish speakers and quasi-locals. Our previous visit was in 2007, as part of our first trip to Spain, and we looked forward to a different type of visit based on the knowledge we have gained.

The night before we left (Jan. 13), we got a call that Jeff’s Dad had fallen and been admitted to the hospital. Everything seemed alright though and we decided to take the trip as we would be celebrating Jeff’s birthday and we could monitor his condition regularly. The only change we made was to take our passports with us. (We can travel within Spain and parts of Europe with our national identification cards, but we generally bring our passports if we are flying. This time we were traveling by train.)

We left early on Wednesday and arrived in Madrid in the early afternoon where we went to the Royal Collections Gallery, a museum that opened in 2023 to showcase the royal family’s extensive compilation of art, artifacts, and cultural history – all of which is now managed as part of the country’s heritage.

The visit was a fabulous way to connect with Spain’s history – royal, colonial, and political – over centuries, starting in the 1400’s. From Carlos V’s armor, rich tapestries, a very ornate table centerpiece, and many classical paintings, we saw how the kings and queens sponsored the arts and used them for influence and power.

We enjoyed dinner with our friends Carlos and Ploy, and their son Alex, and the next morning took the train to Granada. Stopping and spending the night in Madrid was the perfect break.

Granada’s Moorish past is ever present, in the architecture and food, especially. We enjoyed an evening stroll on our way to dinner, marvelling at the various nooks and crannies of the old city center.

The next morning, we savored a long soak at Hammam al Andalus, a traditional Arab bathhouse, which is beautifully decorated. That evening we visited the Nasrid Palaces, one of the highlights of the Alhambra complex. The lighting, shadows, and reflections are a photographer's dream.

While we had been to the Alhambra once before, the night visit gave us a new perspective.

We had tickets to return the next day to visit the rest of the grounds, but we learned when we woke up that Jeff’s Dad had been transferred to the ICU, a surprising and unsettling update. We dropped everything and arranged transportation to Northern California. We left Granada on the morning of the 17th via train to Madrid, caught a flight to Paris, and spent the night, before flying to San Francisco. Although we arrived by midday on the 18th, we were too late as Don died early on the 17th (PT).

When we moved overseas, we knew we would face a family emergency at some point and that we would be at the whims of time zones and airline schedules. Fortunately, we have resources to manage the challenge as well as can be expected. And we made it halfway across the globe in less than 24 hours. But it wasn’t quick enough.

Our time in the Bay Area was spent mourning, reminiscing, organizing Don’s memorial service, and helping Jeff’s Mom begin to adapt to her new life. The outpouring of love and support from family, friends, and the community was tremendous, for which we are grateful.

Grief doesn’t stop when you return home to your “normal” life. And nothing will fill the hole left by this loss. Still, Don had a long and very good life. And we know the memories of so many good times will be a comfort. Here’s a favorite photo from our trip with Don to Normandy, France:

Hugs,

Shana & Jeff