I spent last week with my boys in Marrakech and Fez. It was my first time in Morocco and I loved it. My main impressions include being in awe of the discipline of Ramadan, humbled by the silence and openness of the desert, the way people share common city spaces, the camouflaged strength of women, the meaning of true hospitality, and the everyday greatness of making a living with a chisel or with the help of a mule.
During Ramadan, muslim Moroccans do not eat or drink between sunrise and sunset. Not even in the scorching 40 degree heat can devout muslims drink water. That, my friends, is devotion. That, as my Moroccan friend said, is will.
Everywhere we visited, there seemed to be strong will. A will to work, a will to help, a will to speak, a will to play, a will to create, a will to share, and, lucky enough for me and my healthy obsession with food, a will to prepare food.
I'm sure it must have taken a lot of will to abstain from drinking Moroccan mint tea, which has been added to my list of new favorite things. It is sublime. It's prepared in a tea kettle like the one pictured below, and served like this in order to aerate the tea:
The secret to making this delicious tea is to use a lot of fresh mint - literally fill the content of the tea pot with fresh mint stems and leaves. Also use green tea, and a couple of cubes of sugar. The other important step to making this tea is to let the water heat gently for about 7 minutes, as opposed to taking the water to the boil and then submerging the tea and mint leaves.
Next entry will be about my experience cooking a tagine and couscous with a Moroccan chef.
During Ramadan, muslim Moroccans do not eat or drink between sunrise and sunset. Not even in the scorching 40 degree heat can devout muslims drink water. That, my friends, is devotion. That, as my Moroccan friend said, is will.
Everywhere we visited, there seemed to be strong will. A will to work, a will to help, a will to speak, a will to play, a will to create, a will to share, and, lucky enough for me and my healthy obsession with food, a will to prepare food.
I'm sure it must have taken a lot of will to abstain from drinking Moroccan mint tea, which has been added to my list of new favorite things. It is sublime. It's prepared in a tea kettle like the one pictured below, and served like this in order to aerate the tea:
Next entry will be about my experience cooking a tagine and couscous with a Moroccan chef.
No comments:
Post a Comment