Travels With Kylie -The adventures of a teacher who has taught in London, UK and Marrakech, Morocco.

Travels With Kylie

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

Some sights are found every where in the world. Some, I am certain, are specific to Morocco. We start off in the villle nouvelle, Gueliz, where most of the other teachers live too. Here it is common to see mopeds carrying non-helmet wearing drivers and passengers, speeding on the wrong side of the road and men starting their day with thick black coffee while watching the world wake up. When we exit Gueliz and make our way past the medina, the sights really begin. A poor kitten convulsing in the middle of the road after being hit by a speeding car, a slender stray puppy playing with a waste paper basket while a trendy young man walks his healthy dog by, and aged homeless people taking shelter outside the unkempt graveyard. There are weathered men and women selling their wares – popcorn, colorful baskets, candy and rattan stools.Next to the graveyard is a dried river, and graves sit precariously on the dried banks. On more than one occasion I have seen the banks being used as a toilet for the humiliated homeless. Opposite the graveyard is the ‘chicken souk’ selling live chickens, turkeys and rabbits, jellaba wearing men crouch down over some mint tea. Traveling on the route de Ouarzazate we come across an old large pipe that was made into a rustic see-saw for local children, Moroccan children wearing white coats walking to school and the large gated Jenna community for the wealthy.

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Cafe Clock – A Fez cultural zone, featuring recipes, cultural events, news and everything Fez.

Cafe Clock

http://cafeclock.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/King-Mohammed-IV-300×225.jpg

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

Each year, Moroccans comemmorate the exile of Mohammed V on 20th August and then, on 21st August, the birthday of his Grandson, the current King Mohammed VI.

Ten years and one day after his Grandfather, Sultan (later King) Mohammed V, was sent into exile (only to return triumphant), Mohammed Ben Al-Hassan was born, the eldest son of King Hassan II of Morocco.

Mohammed VI was born on 21st August 1963 and succeeded his father on 23rd July 1999.

On Saturday, 21st August 2010, HM King Mohammed VI celebrates with his people his 47th birthday.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Culture Vultures Fez – The one-stop blog that links artists and performers with Fez’ public at large. With over 50 artists on their database including traditional and modern musicians, performers such as dancers, magicians, acrobats and snake charmers!!

Culture Vultures Fez

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

This oldest Festival in Morocco, Sefrou’s Cherry festival celebrates 90 years since the first festivities to celebrate the once harvest of cherries. This year, the 2010 comeback of the Festival promises to stimulate and entertain Sefrou town and its region’s inhabitants. The four day gala of a festivities include a procession led by this years Cherry Queen, (5 pm Satuyrday)live music in the main square (10 pm Thurs/Fri/Sat), a fantasia every morning, poetry, theatre, clowns for children and a gather of local associations and craftpeople’s creations and activities.
seFest, Sefrou’s Association for the Contemporary Arts, has gathered close to 40 images of visual artist’s works from Sefrou or those who have been inspired by the ancient beber/jewish town. These representations are printed on large-scale supports and placed on the building around the medina and new town; a homage to the visual art that has derived from Sefrou, before and now.
25 kilometres from Fez the streets are being painted, gardens put into place, tents are being erected and the banners are flying high.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

The Magic of My Universe – a decent blog that is a mélange of everyday’s life.

The Magic of My Universe

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

Perhaps the hardest thing for any health care provider to deal with is accepting health complications of himself or his family or any loved one for that matter. Denial depresses the heck out of ya and torments you psychologically and emotionally. Doctors are good at preaching and giving patients hopes whenever they get slammed with poor prognosis for whatever condition they have, yet when they themselves walk though the shoes of sickness, they lose hope in the world and hardly ever seen any light by the end of tunnel. I am not sure why though but it’s true that they can’t handle the distress and they suddenly lose control of the steering wheels. Irony of life!

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Evelyn In Morocco – An expat’s observations and commentary on life in Morocco.

Evelyn In Morocco

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

There’s the heat. It’s been a lot hotter than where I’ve been these past three months and the last few days have been really hot and muggy. But right now I’m waiting for it to rain and there have even been rumbles of thunder and flashes of lightening but no payoff with a downpour. Which is just as well because my little drain on the terrace can’t accommodate a massive amount of water in a short period of time. The water rushes under the gap at the terrace door and cascades down the steps.There was work. Practically the minute I set down my suitcases I had to pick up the school books and start teaching. But that’s all over now and I had a terrific group of students. The two weeks passed, exams were given today and the grades have been handed in.So life here is slowly returning to normal — which feels rather abnormal to me after an entire summer in the U.S. But soon what’s abnormal will feel normal again as the summer quickly becomes a distant memory and life in Fes takes gets back the its own arhythmic beat.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

A Moroccan About the World Around Him – The commentaries of a Drift Generation poet and fiction writer who has left Morocco and has been wandering ever since!!

A Moroccan About The World Around Him

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

It seems evident now that to nudge the Moroccan collective psyche out of its narcosis and get a goading message through to the lower stratum of society, one has to use toons or Middle Eastern soap operas and stream them through satellite television feed to circumvent Naceri’s censorship. The forceful indignant reaction and public clamoring for a tough governmental action in response to what is perceived as a gross affront to Morocco’s honor by the “Bu Qatada and Bu Nabeel” animated series, Egyptian television drama, and Saudi Arabia’s age restriction on Moroccan women traveling for ‘umra so incensed me. It is not as though, all of a sudden, the Moroccan public realized that the reputation of Moroccan women in the Gulf countries has putrefied. The public and the government both have known about it for decades, but they’ve always opted to look the other way.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Morocco Travel Blog – A Sensual Journey Into Morocco: The Perfect Morocco Travel Guide.

Morocco Travel Blog

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

“Ouarzazate has one main street, about fifty yards long, and two thousand people, of whom two hundred are French. The temperature can reach 110 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. “ So says world-renowned journalist John Gunther in 1952, of his visit to Ouarzazate, during the reign of the Pasha Glaoui, whose honored guest he was.

“The sight I enjoyed most,” he says, “next to the kasbahs, was the general store, run by a Greek. It resembles closely the general store in Twin Corners, Montana, or Greensboro, Vermont. The frigidaire has cold beer, ham is sliced by a machine made in Toledo, and you can buy anything from a can of sardines to a monkey wrench.”Ouarzazate today has grown into a city of over 60,000. One of the most popular places to go at dusk is Place Al Mohadine which is home to Ouarzazate’s largest, local outdoor market that sells everything from spices to rose water and a charming cafe named Habous.Inhabited by Berbers, in the past Ouarzazate was a point for African traders passing in and out of Morocco. During the French era, it was a garrison town. Ouarzazate today is the center of the Moroccan film industry, and the starting point for most Sahara Desert tours, as well as being the closest city to the kasbah Ait Benhaddou.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Ben @ Morocco, Peace Corps, Round 2 – the journal of a peace corps volunteer from USA, who loves Morocco as much as his own country.

Ben @ Morocco

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

My team won!Spent a nice day after a deluge this morning cheering my homeboys on. Walking back, a guy asked me all about American sports. He knew a lot, and I told him how I played american football in high school (really, middle school but noone’s counting). He’s Mimoun, a guy from my town that really cares and loves American culture and movies. He later asked what a Yankee means, so this turned into a conversation about the civil war, the North/South divide and the racial makeup of the US. He was surprised to learn that 80 percent of my high school was black and that Latinos are the second biggest group in the US after white people. It’s nice when you can immediately get into a more meaningful conversation about US culture, but the people here able to do that are rare.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Hey Morocco:Morocco Travel Guide – Travel Guide and Information about Travel to Morocco.

Hey Morocco!

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

Municipal Amazigh Museum is a small two level museum in heart of downtown of Agadir which exhibits a small collection of old Berber items from 18th and 19th centuries. It was opened in February of 2000 by a joint effort between a French team and the city of Agadir with idea of preserving the Berber heritage and culture. The museum displays carpets, pottery, old Berber architecture and construction materials, and information about how the construction was completed. In addition, you can find old Berber music instruments, Berber jewelry, traditional clothing, old manuscripts and local handicrafts from all over the southern region of Morocco. It also hosts an art gallery in the lower level of the museum which generally displays collections from local artists. Check museum schedule for upcoming live Berber music events.
Municipal Amazigh Museum is a good place to experience Moroccan and Berber art history.

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!

Eatbees Blog – A take on various things about Morocco and beyond by a about-to-be-published author, who has seen much of the world, having stayed at Ohio, New Mexico, North Carolina, San Francisco, New York, Paris and Morocco.

Eatbees Blog

Here is a look at why this blog was nominated for the 2011 Bombies.

As a developing country in a troubled world, Morocco has its share of problems. However, when I look around me, I see a diverse population, a growing economy, and young people with a lively creative imagination. It pains me a bit to see reports of Morocco slipping back into a dark age of heavy-handed repression, because that doesn’t jibe with what I see around me every day. So let’s assume for a moment that Morocco is moving forward, but in a two-steps-forward, one-step-back kind of way. Sometimes we’re made painfully aware of the limits on progress — and yet progress is being made. What is the best way to promote self-expression in such a context? Where will it do the most good?
Granted that 2010 wasn’t a great year for freedom of expression in Morocco. I could list the cases here, but others have done that. Said Benjebli isn’t alone in fearing that the Moroccan authorities are turning away from their earlier promise of greater freedoms. But is it possible that the recent wave of criminal prosecutions is, paradoxically, a result of those greater freedoms? Perhaps they are growing pains as journalists and bloggers test the limits, and the state struggles to define its new boundaries?

To nominate a blog for the Best of Morocco Blogs, just make sure it fits the criteria at this post and then let us know about it!