GEN-TRIVIA-ENG-L Archives

Archiver > GEN-TRIVIA-ENG > 2002-12 > 1038802544


From: "valerie bower" <>
Subject: [trivvies] Fw: from the sepths of morocco..... out of the slave trade
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2002 15:16:22 +1100


Thought you all might like to read a message from Rebecca from Morocco
Val xx
----- Original Message -----



and you thought i was never coming back......

after 10 completely mad days in this place i have come up for air for a week until my next tour starts.

this country is completely bizarre and fantastic and i love it and want to stay longer - although that may change in 3 weeks time

acuse the typing as the keyboard is in arabic and i am touch typing from memory

a few thoughts

i should have bought a whole bunch of those pens with australia written on them - they are so good for bribing carpet salesmen and small children (for photos not for anything else!!!)

"australia = kangaroo!!!" a phrase alive and well and living in the souks of marrakech

going walking through the cliffs of a berber village at sunrise with an 83 year old local berber man is pretty cool

buying incence made up of ground up hedgehog from a spooky herbally berbally man in the jebel el f'nar is also cool

trying to get around morocco with little or no french or arabic is so not cool i can't even begin to tell you

morocco during ramadan is an amazing experience and i highly recommend it = but probably not in the big cities - the people get a bit narky around 5pm when it is nearly breakfast time

it's nice being called a 'gazelle' but i have no idea what they say after that - i suspect it is very rude

don't pretend you have a good looking sister back home in australia so you don't have to marry the carpet man you just spent a large amount of money with = he seems to then take it as permission to then touch you up

never take a picture of a fruit and vegetable stall in a medina = with someone wanting to be in it- they will invariably drag you off to their stall to give you their address to send them a picture - which just happens to be a jewellery stall which just happens to have a couple of necklaces that you really like - which happens to be at the same time as you are supposed to be leaving Zagora in the 4 wheeled drive and everyone is waiting for you!!

dont walk around marrakech between 5.30 and 6.30pm as this is breakfast time and the streets are deserted and nice girls dont do that kind of thing

always take a taxi from the hotel in marrakech to the main square to buy a map =- dont think that you can walk it really easily without getting lost!!! q half hour walk took us nearly 3 hours on the first day and then we were no better off when we got the map

dont go into a pharmasist for directions expecting them to be able to speak english - they cant - and they'll get you even more lost than you were before = hence the 3 hours

moroccans have really bad teeth and on nearly every corner in marrakech there is a dentists shop - and in the jebel en f'nar there is a stall with an old man who has a tray with a teeth pyramid and rows of dentures. CAn you imagine getting your teeth fixed here?

finally dont spend all your money in the first week so that you cant afford to buy any of the other lovely goodies that are on offer all the time!!!

just a brief one folks to let you know i am still alive and being ripped off at every turn!

such a fantastic experience

love bec

ps

Andrew A - you are the biggest lifesaver that ever there was - this fleece is fantastic!!!!!!!

Snel = send me your address for a postcard

thanks to everyone for the messages= keep them coming = that includes you mum

love b







--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yahoo! Hint Dropper
- Avoid getting hideous gifts this Christmas with Yahoo! Hint Dropper!

This thread: