Arrival of the "Befana"

January 6th means nothing to me, but in the Catholic church it's the day when the three kings arrived. 39 years old, and soon to be 40, and I had no idea why it was a major holiday. Even my Mom, who apparently at some point went to Catholic school, knew the story of this holiday. However, here in Italia, it has an additional twist. The date, January 6th, also signifies the arrival of the "Befana", a pagan witch who brings sweets, light and life to this time in the dead of winter when, in ancient times, was a time of little food and struggles in the cold. So, here, in Viterbo, there was a huge gathering to watch the arrival of the "befana."

The arrival of the "befana" occurred down at the end of Via Cavour in the Piazza Plebecito. Before the arrival, a great Viterbo brass band played. Like their hats?

At the end, we all sang "Fratelli d'Italia" to which I know the words. The couple behind me tapped me on the shoulder at the end and said they were impressed I knew the words. I was quite proud!

Where's the "befana?"

Oh.....

....here it comes.

The "befana" wishing all the kids in the crowd a great day.

Essaouira

After a week in the desert, I took a bus to the coastal town of Essaouira.

Essaouira, partially because its harbor is protected by the "iles purpuraires" is considered the best anchorage in Morocco.

The harbor is protected, but the strong winds made it easy to navigate around. The winds, as you see, are now being put to another positive use.






Essaouira is an active fishing port.

I was surprised to see this sign throughout Morocco. I guess now that Quaddafi has taken his country off the "Axis of Evil" list, capitalism has taken hold.

In the center of Essaouira's Medina (A UNESCO World Heritage site) is a small fish market.

Pick your fish and then take it right next door to one of the cafe's to have it cooked up.

I met one of my fellow hikers, Emily, in Essaouira with her friend Fiona. Here we are after having plowed through shrimp, calamari, and two other kinds of fish.

Essaouira at sunset with the remains of the fortress built centuries ago to fend off attackers.

Marrakech Sites

A French artist, Jacques Marjorelle created a beautiful botanical garden when the French occupied Morocco. This is the famous "bleu" house which he used as his studio, but now serves as a museum for Moroccan art.

Alas, the Museum was closed for renovation when I was in Marrakech.

The garden houses plants from around the world. My guess is that it's more colorful in the summertime.

The designer Yves Saint Laurent purchased the property and when he died his ashes were spread throughout the garden. Here is his memorial.

Back inside the Medina (everything from here on is in the Medina), here is the Bahia Palace courtyard. Built in the late 19th century, it is classical Morocco in style and decoration.

The palace covers over 2 acres and is open to the public except when the royal family has a function.

This is the Ben Youssef Madrasa, or Islamic college, built in the 14th century.

The Madrasa is the largest in all of Morocco.

The Madrasa, when it was in use, could house up to 900 students at a time.

On both sides of the central courtyard are these small two story plazas off which are little dormitory rooms.

Some of the lucky students got rooms that had windows with a view of the courtyard.

The Saadian Dynasty ruled Morocco in the 15th and 16th centuries. Many of the kings were buried in a tomb that for some reason were not destroyed and/or looted and discovered in 1917.

In close proximity to the tombs is the Saadian El Badi Palace ruins.

The palace is surrounds a huge courtyard.

Looks like the Saadians were crafty enough to have a basic sewage system.

The holes in the wall are windows onto....

...more tombs




For some reason, the storks around the palace build these gigantic nests atop structures. Basic protection from predators (i.e. humans?) I guess.

My Boyfriend the Lunch Camel

Trekking in the Sahara means camels carry the gear.

Our group had five camels to carry our gear, food and group items, such as the toilet tent.

Here's how you make sure that the camels don't get away at night.

Each day, one camel, the lunch camel, would follow us hikers whereas the other four went directly to that night's camp. Here's the lunch camel, up close and personal.

Camel's are pretty feisty creatures, they don't like to be hugged and tend to kick at people when they come near. Here I am getting near the lunch camel.

The Lunch Camel letting me ride.

Woah there!! The way camels get down into their sitting position is quite awkward.

By the end the trip, the lunch camel would take food from my hand. It got to the point where the camel guides had to inform me which plants NOT to feed the lunch camel because those plants were poisonous or made the camel sick.

Hiking the edge of the Sahara Desert

If you look at a map of Morocco, the hike I went on is South of the town of Zagora on the border of Morocco and Algeria. To get there, we (10 other hikers, myself, our guide Mohammed and our cook Brahim) spent the first day vans first driving over the High Atlas.

Looking north towards the High Atlas Mountains.

The first of four days hiking had us walking through the town of Ouled Driss.

Looking back on the town of Ouled Driss. Most of the hiking was pretty boring and the same sandy, dusty flat scenery with the occasional dust storm. I've included only the pretty parts.

The best scenery occurred in the dunes, but that was also the toughest hiking. Soft sand is tough because for every step up you make, you drop back about 2/3 of the distance you advanced. The best way to get up was to sprint.

Everywhere we walked there were fossil remnants that reminded us that this all used to be underwater.

Every so often we would walk by a random building in the middle of the desert.

The greatest part of the hike was the sky.

Each evening after the days hike, I would just get this amazing sense of peace and happiness looking at the sky. I got this feeling of being proud of my life and being in that place at that time. I didn't want to be anywhere else.

My tent in the foreground. You'll see that I actually slept under the stars each night to the amazement of my fellow hikers. By the end, Mohammed and I compromised that I would be required to put up my tent, but not the rain tarp to sleep outside.

The bathroom tent.

The highlight of the second day was climbing to the top of the Zahar dune seen here in the distance.

The view from the top of the Zahar dune around sunset.

From left, Graham (a British Inspector/Cop), Emily (a British lawyer) and Jane (British as well)

You can see how far down into the sand my legs sink.....walking up the dunes was a challenge.

Even in the desert...

Tea Time!! The Moroccan mint tea was a favorite of mine. From left, Ruth (a British teacher), John (a Norwegian/Canadian shipbuilder), Jane, Philip and Grace (a married couple from Britain), Joanna (an Australian civil engineer) and Dave (a Coloradan teaching English in Spain)

Myself with Brahim, our cook.

To bake bread in the desert, you make the dough and put it into the hot sand.

Cover it with more hot sand and twenty minutes later.....fresh bread.

The last two days we spent walking in the dry Draa river bed or along side it. The Draa is the longest river in Morocco but is dammed and water is only released twice a year.

New Year's Eve 2009 and a full moon in the Sahara Desert. I couldn't ask for a more satisfying place to ring in the new year and decade.