Morocco Adventures

Well, I have finished my time in Morocco. Its been a wild ride and I definitely saw and did things I would never have forseen. But, I am thankful for my time there and have grown from all the challenges. My time in Scotland will be a little more “cush”, thankfully, but more expensive too. And while I don’t forsee having lots to write about, I will be keeping a blog if for no other reason than to have a way to show you all the photos of this gorgeous country. Check it out: http://scotland.kylebrekke.com

But thank you for all of your support during my adventures in Morocco, and I look forward to seeing you all very soon.
-Kyle

The five hour drive from Lyon to Cannes wasn’t difficult, but maybe a bit expensive. Toll roads are not something I am use to, and a 22 Euro bill for a 100km stretch seems a little outrageous. But, at the same time, with a solid transportation infrastructure, the French people are not nearly as dependent on cars as Americans. By having a toll they are able to maintain high quality roads and push the cost of such a luxury to those who use it rather than forcing the burden on the entire nation (the entire nation does NOT use the highway system in France). Continue Reading »

Marseille

Mixed reviews had preceded my initial visit to this port city. I had heard that it was beautiful and I had heard that it contained a large population of problematic Maghrebin immigrants. To be honest, the later is probably true of plenty areas of Marseille that I didn’t have a chance to visit. However, the areas that I did see were absolutely beautiful. Crystal clear water, views of Isle d’If (the prison made famous by residents including The Man in the Iron Mask and The Count of Monte Cristo), clean streets, and a beautiful old port that would make anyone wish they had floated in midway through a sail around the world. Continue Reading »

Well, I know its been AGES since Ive posted on the blog, but I figured since I added some new photos I might as well write something to go along with it. In a few days Ill be heading over to France to meet the parents, but not after spending a couple days couchsurfing in Marseille and Lyon. Ill be sure to take photos and maybe even write a bit about it…

So now, for Ramadan…. Well for those of you that dont know, Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting. It apparently takes places in the 9th month but because traditionally the Arabic culture followed a different calendar, Ramadan appears to happen at different times of the year and in different seasons. More info can be found here. Continue Reading »

http://thetravelersnotebook.com/photography-q-a/10-words-and-phrases-we-never-want-to-see-in-travel-writing-again/

I wont replicate the article here, just click above to read it. Its a hilarious article about words people really ought to eschew when recounting their adventures. I must say, if I have used any of these words in the past I apologize! I am now removing them from my writing vocabulary

This also reminds me of something of an inside joke my family and I have about a few words: “cute” and “amazing”. Neither of these words are particularly descriptive and are just replacement words for our lazy minds. Cute represents some hazy notion of interest between “i could care less” and “possibly adorable”. Its the default fallback word we use to lie to our friends and family. “Isnt my baby adorable?” “Ya, sure, it’s cute…” As for amazing, I just received an email from paypal describing the “amazing back to school deals”, yet none of these deals actually bewildered or even astonished me. Like the article says about “breathtaking” : “Was your breath literally taken away by the beauty of that sunset? Probably not, so this word is overkill. Unless you’re blue in the face and suffering from awe-induced oxygen deprivation, look for another word.”

So a few nights ago I had horse meat for dinner. Im not sure if you’ve ever tried this, but it is REALLY good! Surprisingly so. I bit into it expecting something quite the opposite but I must say I think I prefer it to cow.

Also, I went to the main beach yesterday for a swim and they have there a stage for different sorts of promotional activities (sponsored by Maroc Telecom undoubtedly, they seem to own everything here) and saw something typical and hilarious. This is something of an inside joke with those who have been to Morocco and seen the machismo atmosphere and have seen the men doing pushups at the beach in the sand for no apparent reason. Anyway, one of the promotional activities was definitely a pushup contest between about 10 guys. Unfortunately I was by myself at the time so I am sharing it now hoping some of you are chuckling on the other side with me…

Moroccans LOVE to talk about the weather. I mean, I know we do too, but its almost comical the number of times a day i say the phrase ‘ljoe sxoon bzef!’ (the weather is really hot!).

Anyway, just a couple of random thoughts…