Sweet Summertime

I thought about going back to my last blog and reading what I wrote so that I could catch the 28 of you up - but that would waste about 20 minutes which is my allotted time for blogging.  And generally I blog with my calendar in front of me so that I can try to remember our comings and goings, but that's not happening either.  But you know what is coming HManifold??? A home tour!!  Sort of...you'll get pictures of the rooms I have taken pictures of.  It is taking a while, because lets be honest, who in the world has a clean house all at one time?? Certainly not us.

But first...confessions.  And bullet lists.  Why not?

• On occasion BML is out of town, or has meetings in the evening that turn into happy hours that go well into the night - and while I miss him... I really love catching up on my liberal talk shows. Oh how I love The Rachel Maddow show.  It's true.  Sorry to disappoint some of you, but I just can't hold it in any longer.  I watched the one with Wendy Davis in Texas and the recent Supreme Court rulings.  I even shed a tear or two.  It was awesome.

• The kids carseats are disgusting.  How do they even get so gross?? What happens back there?  Most of the time I really don't think I want to know, and I know that it's my fault for basically throwing things back there at them so they won't fight each other.  And it doesn't help that everyone brings something into the car and I am the only one that takes anything out.

• Recently, lots of my people have been going on trips.  Which meant a couple weeks ago I headed to and from the airport kind of a lot.  I actually found myself really enjoying the trip - particularly the picking people up part - I love living in Florida for that reason, that I get to be my people's airport pickups instead of them always picking me up.  Plus the cell phone isn't a bad place to spend a quiet 20 minutes.  Once though I drove Aunt T's car and she had an Avett brothers CD in there - I am so rarely in tune with good music these days so P and I enjoyed the new tunes.

• We have been swimming A LOT.  My parents have a salt water pool now which I am pretty thankful for, otherwise my kids would have completely green hair.  And even little L is learning to swim...as in she jumps in by herself or just launches herself off of the steps so you better be ready to catch her - and P since he usually comes barreling in right behind her.  It's the only way to spend the hot hot afternoons this summer.  And popsicles - we eat a lot of popsicles.

• I recently read a book I think titled The Year of Biblical Womanhood - which I thought was pretty funny most of the time but it made several mentioned of another book Radical Homemaking.  This book was on my to-read list on my phone that I never access so I checked it out of the library one time. I returned it without coming even close to finishing it because I quickly realized that since I couldn't sew, didn't have the time, patience, or energy to grow all of my own food and then can it - among other things.  I did however, start making my own laundry detergent which mostly cleans our clothes when I remember to put them in the dryer (or else we walk around all week smelling of mildew...this has happened several times, its disgusting).  But I'm having a stain problem with the kids clothes...back to the drawing board....which means buying stain remover.  No biggie.  Trying to cut down on the budget you know.  

• I think little L would prefer to be raised by her Yay Yay.  She was most distraught when Yay Yay and Granddad were on vacation for a couple of weeks and were no where to be found when we went swimming.  When we picked them up from the airport both kids insisted Yay Yay sit in between their carseats and L hung on for dear life the whole ride home.  For the next several days she was hysterical whenever Yay Yay would leave...Don't go again Yay Yay! She's just getting used to having you back in town!

• I love summer.  Love summer.  I love the 4th of July.  I hope that FTD might blog a little about it - because while I can find the pictures, it'll take me forever but I'll try to include some here.  We are carrying on the neighborhood tradition of a parade - bring your own decorated float which consisted this year of strollers, radio flyers, bikes, & wagons.  We had grandparents, parents, kids, neighbors, aunts, & dogs all stopping traffic around the lake.  We ended the parade with popcorn, popsicles & capri suns - it was awesome.  It also was a looooooong time until fireworks.  Sweet L fell asleep in my arms that night which has never happened in her life.  Good times.

Thats all I have from here friends!  Just kidding.  I'm pregnant.  Yep, baby #3 is on the way!  Most of the 18 of you knew this already I think.  I'm due Jan. 2nd which makes me 16 weeks today I am pretty sure!  Yikes, its hard to keep track.  So probably the guest room which I will show you in a minute will give way to a new baby room, but for now we'll plan on keeping the little one in with us for a bit and then decide if the kids will share a room or if we'll wait on that for a little while.  I'm feeling pretty good these days, tired, but nothing out of the ordinary.  Everytime I ask P if he wants a brother or a sister he responds with "What's a brother?" and "Two, there's two of them!"  Needless to say, we are also now in the market for a new car....BML can't wait to be a minivan family.  I'm in denial about it - but come December I am sure there will be one in our driveway.

Lastly, pictures...because I am too tired to put them next to their bullet point and some may have nothing to do with this post at all...it is what it is...my babes and our house :)  Until next time...in September :)

The house:

Lovely Lucy's room:

Precious Peter's room:

The kitchen:

Living Room / TV / Playroom:

Desk wall :) :

"Sitting room" --> P calls it the talking place, just inside the front door

Kids bathroom:

Clearly we are missing the laundry room, guest room, master bed and bath.  Whoops.  Thought I took pictures, but I didn't.

And now pictures of what we have been up to the last few months!

L finding it difficult to ride in the grass that P pushed her into

7:15am.  It has been raining for 7 days.

T and P on a toddler walk

L being L

P loves water / sand  toys

P leading L gently through the overpass at the science center

silly face

loving our new sunglasses at yay yay and granddads

The last few are some of my favorites since they are of Uncle RBDIII visiting us in his helicopter!  Awesome adventure.

pictures from my phone:

L and her favorite friend Pax

Mr. Conductor is pumped about his train and the forest he built.

The water is freezing, but L will not be deterred.  We're at the Pancake House at Deleon Springs.

This is not a bad way to spend your afternoon.  

This, on the otherhand, is more strenuous.

and here, I've have basically given up for the day.  Look at how much fun they are having!

Some friends invited us to the beach for the day - it was overcast the whole time, but the kids didn't care a bit.

Pool time at the beach.

She does whatever he does - no matter what it is.

Hooray for the 4th of July!

Until next time!  But I promise, at least 2 more times before the baby arrives! :)  Side note: This actually did take me all day to write - so like all of my posts, I am not editing.  At all.  So there.

Here's Looking at You, Morocco

In March twenty-one schoolmates from Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) and I left the Cambridge cold for the North Africa gateway to the West: Morocco.

We were led by two classmates, one a native Moroccan and one a French-Moroccan. Our group represented 15 countries (Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Chile, China, Cuba, India, France, Germany, Morocco, Peru, Singapore, Thailand, Peru, United States) and spoke 11 languages (Arabic, English, French, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish, Tamil, Thai).

Short History of Morocco

Native Moroccans are known as Amazigh, or as the Romans called them, Berber, meaning barbarian. Natives are most commonly known as Berber, and their language is also called Berber which has five major dialects. The official and most common language is an Arabic dialect called Darija. Almost all government officials and major businesses speak French as well. It was not uncommon in the souks (traditional Berber market) to hear Arabic, French, Spanish, Italian, and English all from the locals.

Originally Morocco was known as Mauritania. The Amizagh traded with Phoenicians via the Mediterranean to the north and Carthaginians via the Saharan interior to the east before being occupied by the Romans. The Romans called the western end of their empire Mauritania Tingitana with its capital in Volubilis, which eventually lost importance leading to Tangiers becoming the capital. Religions were Christianity and Judaism, though the majority of Berbers maintained cultural paganism, until the Arabic conquests in the 7^th century when the major organized religion became Islam.

The Arabs called Morocco al-magrib (the West). Incidentally, inhabitants of the Maghreb (the great Arab West, at one time encompassing all of North Africa) were known as Moors. Arab occupied Spain was included in the Maghreb which is why Spanish Muslims were called Moors by Christians during the Crusades.

The Berbers revolted and Morocco devolved into statelets led by local rulers following locally defined versions of Islam. Local rulers were replaced and consolidated as major dynasties gained and lost power, until the Alaouite dynasty gained power in 1631, claiming to be descendant from the prophet Mohammed. The Arab Alaouite sultans attempted to foster trade especially with Europe, but got entangled with continental conflicts which eventually resulted in Morocco becoming a French protectorate from 1912-1953. Mohammed V was the exiled sultan during French occupation and established the Kingdom of Morocco upon gaining independence.

Why this long history? Morocco is a very diverse country. Berbers, roman descendants, Arabs, European expatriates and Jewish refugees all make up multiple groups of “natives.” Though the truthful locals make it known that inter-religious violence is not tolerated by order of the king, it is interesting to see multiple forms of Islam coexisting with multiple forms of Judaism alongside Christianity. Despite having many political rulers, the Berbers are fiercely independent and proud that they have never been “conquered." Even during the French protectorate, Morocco has acted very independently, sort of just allowing these outsiders to believe they are in charge.

Moroccans are very proud of their social and religious diversity (part of their national anthem includes “land of tolerance”) which they feel was most embodied historically by their ability to remain resilient and defiant of the Vichy French and Axis powers during World War II. As made famous in the movie (though the movie was shot in Tangier) Moroccan port cities, especially Casablanca, became the last available point of debarkation for continental European refugees. Gaining independence from France was the last effort in expelling the remnants of the Vichy influence. All this aside, the fact that Moroccans are most proud of telling is that in 1777 Morocco was the very first country to recognize the independence and establishment of the United States of America.

Okay, on to the fun stuff. I included this background because everything we saw, whether it was a souk, a garden, a mosque, a palace or a casbah, has multiple layers of stories and it is impossible to tell them all.

Marrakech

We landed in Casablanca and immediately boarded a bus to start our trek to Marrakech. Marrakech is home to Jamma el Fna, one of the largest Berber souks (market), the Saadian dynasty royal tombs, the Ben Youssef Mederesa (religious school), El Bahia Palace and is one of the most important of the four former imperial cities. We also saw the Koutoubia Mosque, the Mellah (an old Jewish quarter) and Jardin Marjorelle, a global garden created by a French artist Jacques Marjorelle. We also scooter toured the city including the medina (old city) and were treated to some amazing dinners with entertainment!

The only Arabic word I can read. I think its "Share canoe in case of flood"

Prepping for our Berber horseman show dinner

Berber "medieval times"

Amazing what a few dirham will buy

Fist pumping at the Euro-style clubs

Mugging at Jardin Marjorelle

Best way to tour the city

Monkeying around in Jamma el Fna 

Koutboubia Mosque

Berber Whiskey - warm sweet tea with mint (no actual whiskey) 

Gate to the Medina

 Ouarzazate

We drove from Marrakech over the High Atlas Mountains at its highest peak, Tizin Tichka. The land went from urban to arable flatland to mountainous in the course of a couple hours driving. After the High Atlas we descended into the Valley of the Casbahs. Casbahs are forts, and this valley was known to be especially lawless, requiring each locality to have its own protected area. we then entered Ouarzazate, known as the door of the desert, but also as the film capital of Morocco. Many movies were filmed in and around the town, especially as the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the fortified village (ksar) of Ait Benhaddou. Lawrence of Arabia, The Living Daylights, The Last Temptation of Christ, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, Gladiator, and even some scenes of the current show Game of Thrones were all filmed here.

Chivin' on St Paddy's on top of the Atlas Mountains

Looking over Ait Benhaddou

One picture of all the males. The ladies were hogging the pics.

Contemplating the best way to ford the river.

Partial Film List

Simba was unavailable

Might have actually been sleeping while this was taken

Two man integrity on all weapons

Merzouga

More driving from Ourzazate to Merzouga, a town on the edge of the Sahara desert. A lot of the trip was seen "along the way" in a style LTD would much appreciate. We saw the Berber town of Azrou, famously known for its carpets on our way to camel rides in the Sahara dunes. One of the best night sof the trip was spent sleeping in tents under the Saharan stars. It was romantic enough that two of our trekkers got engaged that evening. Much wine was had, many stories were told. The highlight of the night, at least for my travel mates, was me trying to communicate with our Berber guides through a mix of Arabic, Spanish and Italian. I was actually amazed at how successful we were, though I'm pretty sure they just thought I was crazy.

Post-lunch soccer in the gorge

Kheterra system of wells bringing water from the mountains to the desert

Riding out to the campsite

Saharan sunset

Newly engaged (after some help from us)

Storytelling

We replaced Berber whiskey with real wine

The sunrise was awesome...

But was the hangover worth it?

Our campsite  

Best pic of the trek

Errachidia, Midelt, Middle Atlas Mountains, Ifrane

We left the Sahara for the long drive to Fes. We broke it up by spending the night in Midelt. Along the way we learned about the kheterra well system, preventing desertification of arable land, and the life of a date palm and its delicious fruit, dates. By the way, if you eat a date in the U.S. 8 times of of 10 its from Morocco. The big delicious ones CMD finds in California? Moroccan. This region is called Tafilalet, and its main town, Errachidia, was once an obligatory stop for gold and salt caravans - the last stop before trekking the Sahara east and southward. I like Midelt a lot, it had the feel of a frontier town, and the Berber inhabitants were very gracious to the two of us that ventured out on our own after dark. Our interactions with these locals was a highlight of the trip. We also passed through Ifrane, a ski town in the Middle Atlas mountains after spending the night in Midelt and before arriving in Fez.

There are male palms and female palms. Believe it or not, natural wind pollination required to produce dates is rare. Pollination is done by hand in order to create a profitable yield.

In Florida we want to keep the sand on the beach to prevent erosion. The same  "technology" is used to keep the desert away from arable land in an attempt to prevent desertification.

This women's cooperative was learning how to better package and market the date yield rather than selling raw fruit at cheaper prices.

High on life. And dates. And Berber whiskey. Sugar overload.

Signing the guest book with a Harvard stamp.

Lions used to range the Middle Atlas Mountains. Petting this one brings you luck  they say.

Fes

Fes is the spiritual heart of Morocco. It is hard to describe this city, you just sort of get surrounded by it. Bustling urban areas in the new city, souks in the old city, and the smallest alleys I've ever seen in the oldest part of the city. Fez el Bali, the world's largest living Islamic medieval city, is Morocco's first World Heritage Site and the largest car-free urban environment on the planet. We saw the Kairouine Mosque and University,  the Chouwara Tannery, the Bou Inania Medersa: Bou Inania Medersa. The pictures barely capture our experience there.

Fez looking North

Fez looking South

King Mohammad VI's palace gates

Jewish Quarter

School let out as we walked through the old city

Gate to the Medina

Outdoor Mosque

The Tannery

Making tajins

Hand hammering out tiles

Pickup futbol after school

Rabat

Rabat is the administration capital, very cosmopolitan and European. We met with administration officials and private sector innovators here and in Casablanca, and they were very informative on how to continue Morocco's peaceful growth, continuing democratization, and focusing on their African neighbors for the future versus Europe. We saw Chellah, and ancient Roman site, the remains of the Hassan mosque, and the Alaouite kings mausoleum in between our meetings.

Hassan unfinished mosque minaret

Mausoleum

The kings are well taken care of

Old mosque wall framing the Hassan minaret

Sort of the Arlington for the Alaouite kings

Rabat would have been LTD's favorite, as it is the Blue City

Joking on the port fort wall

Gate to the King's Rabat palace, where the administration works. No pictures inside. We're VIP.

 Casablanca

Now we've come full circle back to the White City of Casablanca. A old pirate lair, Casablanca is now the economic capital of Morocco. Unfortunately we experienced our only bad weather here, but we were still able to see the Hassan II mosque, and we had a cocktail at Rick's (even though its the fake Rick's, the real one is in Tangiers - remember, from about 2000 words ago?) We rounded the trip off with a raucous night in a lounge which seemed to love our business. As we departed we were told that is was a laid back place, and no one else had ever shouted songs or house-danced like maniacs. Our international group departed just as we left: in style.

Mohammed V Square clock tower

The Hassan II Mosque

The roof of the mosque is retractable like a stadium  - seriously.

Washroom for cleansing before prayer 

Casablanca Light

My Arabic, Hindi, and Portuguese teachers (I received an F in each)

Our guide, driver, and helper stuck with us through it all.

The crew looked good in our business wear

Papers secured, gin in hand, ready to depart via Lisbon