We had a great sleep! And no ill effects from the jet lag…yet!
The first thing we needed to do is change our Travelers cheques to cash. Both trip advisor and a recently published book on Morocco said ‘everyone’ does this ‘everywhere’. You must see where I am going with this? Read NO ONE, NO WHERE. No bank, no exchange bureau, no where! They LIED! One more spot, the last one, a credit bureau; no the girl clerk does NOT do this, but that hotel on the corner does! So we go there, and low and behold, they DO! And it was not a rip-off, they were quite pleasant and reasonable. We met our Berber Souk tour guide there; a nice gentleman about my age born to a Berber Mom and an Arab Dad. He generously guided us through the souk highlighting areas we might have interest in, of course stopping at the ‘non-touristy’ honest shops (likely where he gets commission). Non-the-less a good experience. The shops expect bartering, which I love! And we did end up buying some Morrican saffron, cinnamon, cumin and a Moroccan spice mix.
This is our lunch place.
He took us through the mazes of the souks for about two and a half hours. So nice. I did end up also buying a leather purse and a very cool fossil for my nephew (a disgusting bug, he will love it!).
The afternoon we booked a cooking course with our Riad; we were to be guided through the market to buy the food we will cook. Sadly the weather turned viscous and the winds were atrocious, so we turned back, but the cooking lesson prevailed! Our gracious translator Said Hayat and our wonderful Chef took us through the next two hours of traditional Moroccan cooking. Forget about that instant couscous, we made real couscous that took an hour, with our hands! So cool (actually, it was pretty hot!). We made Shrimp Briouat, (we will biy their actual cookbook and will remake the entire dinner in Toronto on our return for Barb and Kevin!) Chicken Tangine and Stewed Lamb (minus the lamb for Kevin!). We made grapefruit brûlée and apple tart tatin. And then we had it ALL for dinner! Our hosts were amazing! We had such a great time. It’s a must do in Marrakech! Here are some photos of our first culinary adventure!
A traditional flavour base in Moroccan cooking is called smen it’s a very pungent, cheesy smelling butter. Think fish sauce in Thai cooking – its a flavour base!
Tomorrow we have hired a guide to takes us to the Atlas mountains! Bon nuits mes amis! (it’s all coming back to me now!)
[…] blog I strongly urge you to. She has been to Morocco recently and shared wonderful pictures and travel experiences. She also shares wonderful recipes with beautiful pictures that will feed your eyes but will make […]
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Thanks for the ping back Sawsan.
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I love the fact that you took a cooking class! sounds like an amazing experience
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That tajine looks amazing – so glad you enjoyed the cookery course. Must have been so much fun… I’d love to do something like that! I’m off to read about “smen” now – I’ve never heard of it before… sounds very interesting 😀
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Smen has a very strong odor; an acquired taste, I’m guessing.
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I’m terrible at bartering. I’ve never gotten the hang of it. Your cooking class sounds like so much fun! I can’t wait to see all of the recipes – especially the couscous. It sounds a far cry from the instant variety we use! I hope you’re having a great day today!!!
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Thanks Kristy, as for the Souks, I think we got caught up with a ‘homeless’ person, they are very aggressive for obvious reasons, the bartering is cool, and the cooking class totally ROCKED! Thanks for your comments.
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What fun. I admire you for blogging on your trip too.
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Thanks Greg, the iPhone is an amazing tool and I am truly grateful to have it, but it’s a bear to type an entire essay on! And the wifi can be painfully slow (but it’s a great way to document our journey). I know I will refer to it when I am building our photo album in Shutterfly!
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What a wonderful time you’re having Eva! I’d love to visit there one day-the food and the culture sound amazing 🙂
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Wow – that is SO amazing that you got to take a cooking class….I know you were having a great time with that one!
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Thanks Ann, I’m just about to tell you all about it.
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Sounds like a wonderful time! Taking a cooking class was an inspired idea, one that I might borrow if I find myself in similar circumstances. Thanks for taking us along and I’m looking forward to the next stop of our holiday together, the Atlas Mountains.
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Thanks John. It’s an entirely different culture, that’s for sure.
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Cooking with the people who actually live in a country is the ultimate experience. And then sharing it with us … what a treat. 🙂
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It truly was an ultimate experience, Maria.
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It sounds like you’re having an incredible and very interesting time. Obviously no issues with technology as you’re able to keep blogging! The photos look very foreign except for that coca cola sign in the background!
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Hey Charlie-Louie, the wifi is a bit spotty, last might we had no service yet tonight we have full service. I suspect that when we leave the big city on Monday and head out to the Sahara, it will be even less reliable! Not withstanding, I can still type my posts into my notes on my iPhone and copy them into WordPress when I have service! 4,000 miles from home, cool huh?
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