Spain 2012: Tarifa

After our whirlwind day trip to Morocco we relaxed for the evening back in Spain in Tarifa. There aren't a lot of sights in Tarifa besides a cathedral and the remainder of the old walls and fort, but that was fine by us.  

St. Matthew's

The ceiling in the church

An interesting tidbit from Rick Steves:  

A visit to St. Matthew, the town's main church, offers a glimpse into Tarifa's history. A tiny square of an ancient Christian tombstone embedded in one of the church walls (dated March 30, 674) proves there was a functioning church here during Visigothic times, before the Moorish conquest. Some years later came the church's "door of pardons," dating back to the late 15th century, when Tarifa was on the edge of the Reconquista. During the period when the Spain's Catholic Kings were driving the Moors back to Africa, Tarifa was a dangerous place. To encourage people to live here, the Church offered a huge amount of forgiveness to anyone who stuck it out for a year. One year and one day after moving to Tarifa, they would have the privilege of passing through this special "door of pardons," and a Mass of thanksgiving would be held in that person's honor.

We finally settled in for a dinner of marinated dogfish (much better than it sounds!) and paella

The next morning we strolled through the streets and local markets, snuck into the old fort, and watched a few ships squeeze between Europe and Africa before heading to the beach and the bus station (for Seville!). 

{That's Africa!}

{We were pressed for time so that we didn't miss our bus, but dad insisted on sticking his hand in the water}

Next stop: Seville!

Spain 2012: DETOUR--Tangier, Morocco

When I was planning my parents' trip to Spain I joked in front of my dad that I was thinking of taking them to Morocco for the day. I said it, like many things I say to him, to get a reaction. To my surprise all he said was, That might be ok. 

So there we had it! A trip to Tangier was added to the itinerary. We spent the evening before and after in Tarifa, Spain and took a fast ferry over to Morocco. It's a pretty easy deal, honestly. In an hour you have changed language, religion, currency and continent. The shock wasn't as jarring as when I first went to Moroccow--getting off a plane from Madrid to Casa Blanca--but it was still a fun change. 

I got to dig up a few words I still remembered in French and Arabic, eat a tagine, and got my dad to ride a camel. I'd call that a win. 

{A look at the North African coast}

{Foggy hillsides}

{The lighthouse marking the spot on the coast where the Atlantic and the Mediterranean meet}

{And what's a trip to Morocco without a camel ride?}

{Caves of Hercules--The opening of the cave is in the shape of Africa!} 

{One of the old gates to the city}

{The neighborhood's communal oven}

{At another one of the old gates}

{Mosque}

{Port}

By late afternoon we made our way back to the port. We got a couple stamps in our passports, got back on the ferry, and headed back to Europe. 

Week in Review: Week 5

It's Sunday--you know the drill! Week in Review take 5:

• Friday we took a quick day-trip across the border in France to go to a Flemish tapestry factory. When we got there they told us it had actually been moved...back to Belgium. Oops.
• While we were in France we took the opportunity to eat at KFC. It hit the spot.
• Saturday I went to Morocco. And by that I mean I walked outside of our door. This weekend is our neighborhood's carnival/garage sale/market weekend where they shut down some streets and bring out the market stalls. It smelt, looked and felt just like Morocco.
• There was also a marching band of clowns. That bit was not very Moroccan.
• We sat for a couple of hours on some steps, just eating apple beignets and watching everyone walk by. It was QUALITY people watching.
• Those kilos of chocolate I told you about last week? Yep, a dangerous thing to just have sitting in your room.
• Classes are going well--we finished our third unit this week. One more unit to go until it's midterm.
• My conversation classes are by far my favorite.
• Friday night Janee made a Pakistani dish she learned in Africa. It was pretty tasty.
• Hary is still gone to Syria. He will be back in Brussels early Wednesday morning. I am looking forward to some good stories!
• It has been warm this week--like upper 60s and even into the low 70s. I feel like we had our winter and now we are on to spring. Something tells me that when winter really does get here I will be disappointed.
• I took yesterday to do some class reading and paper writing. I only have 7 more papers to write in my entire graduate school career! Who's excited?!
• I need to get busy on post-grad./pre-tirement/sabbatical/quarter-life crisis trip planning. Who's got ideas?
• There were ponies at our little street fair yesterday.
• In Chocolat fashion I decided to buy some chocolate with chili peppers in it. I know this was a really dumb observation, but it was HOT! And sadly too hot for my weak taste buds.
• When we finally made it to the Flemish tapestry factory, it was right outside of Gent, Belgium. We went into the little town and had a looksy. I was very impressed. It was a bit like Brugges but not as frozen in time.
• Also, this week I figured out Google Talk/Voice. If you get a call from (325) 455-0440, answer! It's me!
• I know this is unbelievable, but just this week I had my very first, real deal, made fresh on the street Belgian waffle. It pretty much lived up to the hype.

OK, some pictures below to enhance the fun! Bonne journée!

Castle in Gent

Moi at the canal in Gent

A very small portion of our carnival/street market

People watching and sneaking a picture

A closer look at the apple beignets. In typical fair fashion there was plenty of fried food all around.

Ponies!

My first real waffle