FINAL THOUGHTS ON MOROCCO MY FRIENDS

So I'm back in LA (wooo, I can drink the water!), and wanted to give you some observations and thoughts on Morocco. In no particular order, here's what I got for you

1. MOROCCO IS A LAND OF TWO FACES
There is the wonderful, super friendly, generous side. And then there is the touting, in your face, "good price" side that sees you as a walking ATM. Now this happens in many of the developing countries I've visited. After all, on my budget trips (This one averaged about $63 a day), I'm spending 4 times what the average Moroccan makes in a day from work. In some places I've been the gap is even more. In some places less. So I want to say, that I don't think it's wrong that this is the attitude. It is a little unfortunate, as it makes for some rather frustrating encounters (see endless list of touts in the emails) but it also makes for rather cool ones (sleeping Kasbahs, sharing cuss-cuss before a jewelry purchase).

2. "I'VE BEEN HERE FOR THREE WEEKS" is the magical phrase
As I mentioned before. After some polite "no thank yous", "I know where I'm going's", just drop the magic phrase above, and they will smile and walk away "Welcome Morocco."

3. I'd say that Morocco was one of the more challenging places that I've gone. Looking at my "Levels of Travel" from www.craigotravels.com, I'd say it was a 4 (on a scale of 0-5). There were good tourist services...sort of. But the language barrier (for me) and the street smarts required (see touts above) made it quite a challenge. A good challenge. A challenge I'm glad to have had. And one I wouldn't be afraid of taking on again.

4. Moroccan's are good sales people.
Yep, I bought more random souveniers on this trip than any other. A cool geode from a berber guy at the bus stop in the mountains. 80 Dirham. I offered 40. He said sure. 5 bucks. Cool geode. I don't need it. But it's cool. :) You too will buy lots of things. But if something's too expensive, just walk out the door. That's cool too.

5. Hammam's are fun.
So yeah, it's a little weird to us western folks to get a scrub in a Hammam by someone of the same sex. But it's actually fun. And is a normal occurance to Moroccans' (And Turkish folks too). So don't be afraid to try something way outside your comfort zone. It makes for a good story and a better understanding of how the world works.

6. Getting outside the comfort zone is good.
I did it on purpose this time around. I wanted some Culture shock and some comfort zone expanding adventure. I got it. It wasn't always a "good time", but it was always worth it. I think in life it's far to easy to get used to our routines and our comfort zone. The places we eat, the places we drive, the friends we hang out with. And though having a comfort zone can be good, as it gives us the ability to refresh and reenergize. I'm a firm believer that ultimately, the comfort zone is a negative thing. Life is to be experienced, and if you're afraid to go out and see it, encounter it, get a scrub down or get dirty on the streets, you're missing a huge portion of what it is to LIVE.

7. Coming back is always a bit of a downer...
Yep, I got some "back-to-LA-blues". But that's ok. I'm not feeling sorry for myself, but just acknowledging that I was living in the moment much more when I was on my trip. And that's good. Some people find that feeling of being alive by playing sports, or travel, or building something, or making love. These are all good ways. (Drugs, hurting people and blowing stuff up are bad ways.) But there will always be a come down after the ride. That's cool. It's normal. Let's you rev up for the next adventure.

8. Moroccan's are friendly.
Going back to the 2 faces. They really are a nice people. I missed a lot because I didn't speak French or Arabic. But I still encountered great generosity from many people.

9. Morocco is safe.
Yep, I know I had my "F#$K YOU" experience in Fez. And it was a bit scary. But statistically you are more likely to have a violent crime committed against you in a big city in Europe than in Morocco. Sure, keep your street smarts, keep your valuables hidden. Don't walk down dark alleys alone. (Sounds like any big city safety). But in the country...you are cool. Small town Morocco, is like small town America. Safe and friendly (but with Minarets on many corners calling to prayer).

10. Islam is cool.
Yep, I said it. Islam is cool. Just like Christianity is cool. Judaism is cool. Buddhism is cool. Etc etc etc. Islam does not teach people to kill to goto heaven. Islam is not about destroying the west. Yes, there are radical Muslim's who think this. Just as there are radical Christian's who think everyone not white is an abomination. Sometimes people are just stupid.
But Islam is cool. It's respectful. It is amazing to see hundreds of people flood into Mosques 5 times a day when the call echoes out. And pray. To allow themselves to be second to something bigger and more powerful than themselves. This isn't something to be judged, like "hey you're crazy to do that", it's something to be admired. Whether you believe in what they do is irrelevant. But I think it's important to realize that people all over the world are looking for the same sense of purpose and place in the universe, and in Morocco, this is how many find it. My point being, don't judge a religion and a people based upon all the negativity you see on TV. Go experience it first hand and you might learn something good. This doesn't just apply to Islam either...

11. Some women are covered in Morocco. Some are not. Very rarely did I see any cleavage or skin, but there were many tight jeans and stylish tops, and tons of adds for hair product. TONS. The more rural you get, the more conservative it gets. The more covered up. Though, it wasn't that common to see the style where you only see the slit for the eyes to peak out. Usually entire faces were exposed. And often, someone dressed like that was next to someone with their hair out, and they were talking. I wish I could have spoken to more Moroccan women to find out what they thought, how they felt, and all. But it's very uncommon for men and women to intermingle at length. And I don't speak French. I always find gender roles fascinating.

12. Morocco isn't all desert.
Go figure! From every picture you see, it's all desert and hot as balls.
Well, not in November, not to hot at all. In the 70's or 60's or colder during the day. (My Centegrade friends will have to translate that one themselves. :). And it's not all desert. Sure, everything south and east of the Atlas mountains is desert. Either rock, barren, or sand dunes. But the mountains have evergreen forests. And the north west, though some desert, has a lot of fertile plains. Who knew?

I just finished editing the footage I shot on 11-11-11, for the film the world day. It was the great waterfall hike in Azrou with Youness, Rachid and Mike. It's strange, it feels like a million years ago already. I look at the footage, and see the town and the falls and the people and it's almost like it went past in a blur. I think "was I even really there?" But the memories come back strong with photos and video. I guess that's the forever balance of capturing the memories, so that you can relive them vs. living them fully in the first place. As always, I probably took too darn many pictures. But hopefully I will get some up on the blog before too long.

And so it really ends.
There isn't much left to say.
Go to Morocco.
You'll push yourself, and it'll be worth every step.

This is Craig Ouellette,
last surviving member of the Nostromo
Signing off.

A DETOUR WORTH TAKING

Hey Team,

Wow, I'm really typing a lot of updates for this trip! I guess it's because after dinner there is NOTHING else to do. Sure, I write my journal, or read, or have more than once had solo dance parties in my room. But other than sitting in cafe's drinking mint tea or coffee, nothing goes on. And that doesn't even go on very late. (Though now that I'm FINALLY feeling much more comfortable because I'm outside of the big cities, I think I'm going to join them some night to watch a football game (the cafe is packed right now)).

So Azrou...stands for "Awesome".

Not really, but it is. I got here last night and bumped into Youness and Rachid. Two guides who offered the hiking proposal (I think I mentioned in the last email). I thought about it and figured, "why am I in a hurry?", so I said "let's do it". And on top of that, I met a cool New Yorker named Mike, and he joined me.




So today we four went by grand taxi, and then small car to this mountain town of Zouiara Idris (?) in the Middle Atlas, and had a wonderful day. It's a tiny Berber town, with a charming home we could have stayed at. And above and behind the town was a volcanic rock face overgrown with green and sporting 6 waterfalls falling down it's multi-hundred foot face.

Awesome.

Youness and Rachid were great guides. (I'm so glad I met some in Morocco. They are legit. They knew there stuff. Were fun to talk with and very enthusiastic. And not pushy at all. They let us go at the pace we wanted. They rock... if you are coming to the middle Atlas of Morocco, let me know and I'll give you there emails. ).

We hiked, took pictures, explored small caves, drank super fresh spring water pouring out of the mountains, took to darn many photos of the mountains and animals and falls. Enjoyed a snack with our feet dangling over the edge of a cliff as the Mosque's prayers echoed over the valley.

A darn good day. Great conversation.

When we got back to the Berber village, we had an AMAZING Tagine (traditional Moroccan dish) of chicken and vegatables and honey and man it ruled. SOOOOO Good.

Being out in nature, fresh air, lots of friendly people around.

I'm so glad I ended up here, and it was just by chance. And sticking around an extra day wasn't part of the original plan (which was to leave today and head to the desert, which I will do tomorrow). But I trusted my instincts and finally am starting to feel more comfortable here. Which is good. Learning some Arabic from Rachid and Youness. Getting to hear about cool other countries Mike's traveled too. (he's been to 48, and most different from my 30 which is cool.). I even talked to the hotel desk guy for 30 minutes last night.

I tought Rachid "Awesome".

I'm just rambling.
Things are good.
Tomorrow it's off to the desert and camel's and camping in the dunes, so it will likely be a few days until the next update.
After all, I must find the Fremen and the Spice and avoid the Sandworms.

CraigO