Asilah: The Glamor of Morocco

Asilah, a small port town in Morocco is an artisan wonder. Artists flock into this small town annually for with fresh paint to revive the innovative getaway. Read more below from, Shedding What's Shabby at a Moroccan Port.

"It was a crisp Sunday afternoon, and the narrow terrace of Casa Garcia, a small seafood restaurant in the Moroccan port town of Asilah, exuded a rarefied air. Fashionable Moroccans in big designer sunglasses feasted on grilled fish, while a party of British women exchanged air kisses. All around, waiters in white jackets and skinny black bow ties weaved between the white-tableclothed tables, serving bottles of chilled white wine and luscious bowls of fresh clams.

While such scenes of glamour have burnished Asilah’s reputation as a stylish playground for North Africa’s elite, it wasn’t long ago that this ancient fortified port, about 30 miles south of Tangier along the balmy Atlantic Ocean, suffered from obscurity.

Moroccan guidebooks written before the late 1970s only mentioned Asilah in passing, usually as a curiosity. But in the last few years, Asilah’s medina has become a clandestine getaway for Moroccan and European jet-setters who hide behind the thick carved doors of their exotic holiday homes, lounging on electric-blue roof terraces with a book in one hand and a cocktail in the other.

Much of the turnaround can be traced to 1978, when two local friends — Mohammed Benaissa, a photographer and diplomat, and Mohammed Melehi, an artist and curator — came up with the idea of inviting artists to paint murals on the town’s peeling walls. That grew into a summer-long arts festival, with flamenco concerts, design exhibitions and poetry readings, that attracts artists and fans from throughout the Middle East and the West."

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Warsaw's Rise

Warsaw, Poland has had a little remodeling. With the same old town feel it has overcome the devastation of the WWII era, and is now a great travel destination. Read more below from, Warsaw: A City on the Rise.

"Warsaw is gearing up and doing it in the right way. It’s a beguiling city with a sense of humor, and after all of the trials and tribulations of the last world war it is also a miracle.

Warsaw’s old city was completely devastated during WWII but has been carefully rebuilt exactly as it was. Unlike many cities that have been rebuilt, there is no Disneyland feel, it seems as it should, real.

On my arrival on a Sunday I couldn’t help but notice the throngs entering the many churches in the city. Polish traditions were an enigma to party higher-ups in the Soviet Union. Stalin claimed that getting Poland to go communist was like saddling a cow.

It is perhaps tradition that makes Warsaw a wonderful place to visit. Sunday afternoon concerts are invariably focused on Chopin, and ice cream is a must on a sunny afternoon.

Vodka is the drink of the masses and still made the traditional way, clean and crisp. Warsaw just may make visiting the city a tradition in itself."

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Champagne's French Origins

Just north of Paris the wines are overflowing and the bubblys rise. When touring this region you will be frequently offered champagne. Read more below from, Tasting French Champagne: A Transcendent Experience.

"The original wine made in the Champagne region of France was a still wine. The origin of champagne with bubbles is murky.

It is presumed that because of the fluctuating storage temperatures and the nature of yeast, some of the still wines were eventually converted into sparkling wines on their own. Subsequent tinkering and careful trial and error led to the process in use today.

Dom Perignon, who was the cellarmaster at the Benedictine Abbey in Hautvillers in the late 1600s, is credited with creating the first champagne. Actually the process of making sparkling wine had been around a long time before he came on the scene. But, it was he who had the idea to use cork as a stopper for the wine they called champagne, instead of the wooden stoppers previously used.

He also perfected the riddling process and the second fermentation. That, and the use of stronger glass bottles to contain the bubbly, are the signature of the Benedictine Abby’s wine - the first modern champagne.

Today, Dom Perignon Champagne is recognized for such high quality that it is a valuable long term investment for the world's most distinguished champagne collectors. It is the most expensive champagne in the world, with a recent auction of two bottles of the “rarer than rare” 1959 vintage of Dom Perignon Rose bringing a record $84,700!

According to Richard Geoffroy, Dom Perignon Chef de Cave: "Dom Perignon Rose Vintage 1959 is a rare, superlative, mythical vintage. Powerful and solar, its light will inspire the creation of Dom Perignon Rose forever." Wow! I wish I could have tasted one of those."

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France's Tribal Markets

Vibrant food Markets, tribal clothes and a wide range of diversity and culture flow through the streets of Cours Julien, France. Read more below from, A Spinning Globe Stops Here.

"On hot days, a proliferation of terraces unfold onto the Cours Julien main square. At La Baleine qui dit Vagues (59, cours Julien; 33-491-48-95-60, www.labaleinequiditvagues.org), students and grandmothers sip coffees side by side as the district’s colorful cast of characters emerges. A busker dances around, guitar in hand, singing in smooth French patois. Amateur jugglers practice their routines, as punks gyrate with diabolo sticks. And when school lets out, scores of children dangle from the cypress and olive trees.

Bobos, meanwhile, graze the clothing racks at Madame Zaza of Marseille (73, cours Julien; 33-491-59-28-48; www.zazaofmarseille.com), a fashionable boutique where the florid and flowing dresses suggest the swaying colors of North Africa (from 45 euros, or about $73 at $1.62 to the euro).

East of the square, dozens of cafes, secondhand stores and boutiques are blanketed in a burst of graffiti. Among the trendiest is Be Myself (22, rue Bussy l’Indien; 33-491-88-01-35-53; www.be-myself.net), a tiny boutique where the designer, Marie-Christine Roura, hand paints sensual faces and loopy graphics onto T-shirts (29 euros).

In the evening, Cours Julien takes its place among the city’s coolest night spots, as young and old alike are drawn to the thick, aromatic waft of grilled meat that drifts from restaurants. Picking a cuisine is like spinning a globe and prodding a finger at it."

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Morel Hikers

Idaho is the hiking capital. I have never been on a mushroom hike, but it sounds like quite the adventure. Morel Mushrooms are found among the ashy soil and lavender Trillium flowers. Read more below from, The Hunt for Morels in Idaho.

"So I knew what morels looked and tasted like but why couldn’t I find any? About three quarters of the way through our hike, Nancy hit pay dirt. She literally found $40 in the dirt. She thought it was trash and being a conscientious Idaho native, she picked it up. It was two wadded up $20’s. We kidded her, saying she should just buy 40 bucks worth of morels and give up the hunt!

Selling at about $14 per pound in stores, she’d get several dozen. Later, Nancy and I were talking about taking our kids to a concert. We were patting ourselves on the back for being cool moms while sharing a priceless experience with our kids and then Nancy’s search bore real fruit. She yelled, “I found one!” and pinched it up quicker than a four year old can play leapfrog.

A small part of me wanted to tackle her for her mushroom. When she showed me where she had found it, I couldn’t believe the Darwinian magic of how it blended in with its environment. How does anyone find these things? According to Idaho’s leading newspaper The Idaho Statesman, this year 1000 full-time mushroom pickers, mostly from Cambodia, Laos and Mexico have pitched tents in the Payette and Boise National Forests. Two million acres of this land had burned in 2007 producing prime picking spots for commercial mushroom hunters.

By the end of our hike, our group of about 16 had harvested a little over a half dozen. Like me, the men had struck out. I explained that relying on caveman theory, that is as it should be. After all, women are gatherers, men hunters. (But what did that say about me?) Chef Kucy said he occasionally cooks bounty caught and/or gathered by Tamarak guests. "

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Culinary Capital

Fresh meat, flowers, cheese, and vegetables are sold all over the markets of Lyon. France is a city of passion and culinary ardor. Read more below from Studying Gastronomy in Lyon, France’s Culinary Capital.

"It was 8:30 in the morning and I was standing in an overflow of sounds, smells, and sights, flanked by bouquets of daisies on my right and ox tongues on my left.

The public market in Lyon, France is a staple of everyday life for its residents, and an increasingly popular draw for visitors who want to see where Lyon’s rich culinary traditions truly begin.

Stretching along the banks of the Saone, the so-called 'other river' in Lyon that runs parallel to the Rhone, the market offers fresh produce, meats, flowers, cheese, honey, oils, and other foods, as well as books and arts and crafts.

It's also one of the most congested areas of Lyon on a Sunday, as I discovered. People from all walks of life pack onto the sidewalks to view or sell wares, and the spectacle is something to behold.

Sellers try to outdo their counterparts with shouts regarding their succulent chickens roasting on spits and soft cheeses mellowing in the summer sun. Canvas bags filled with purchases seem to fly from one hand to another, and baskets of fruits and vegetables overflow onto small, folding tables.

Still, despite the frenzy, it’s likely that the real stars of the show – Lyon’s renowned cadre of chefs, restaurateurs, and gourmet shop owners – have already come and gone, arriving at dawn to take their pick of the freshest ingredients and cart them back to some of the finest restaurants in Europe."

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The Valleys of Cuba

By most travelers the Valley of Vinales is considered the most beautiful region of Cuba. The flush valleys and rolling green hills are breathtaking. Read more below from The Valley of Vinales: Cuba's Hidden Shangri-La.

"Continuing our journey, a short distance away we stopped at the Mirador de los Jazmines on a high point, 160 km (100 mi) from Havana, overlooking the Valle de Viñales below. Standing on an observation point edged by the Hotels Los Jazmines, I gazed on the enchanting valley, all green with a mystic-like aura.

The scenery across the valley floor had a dreamlike character. High, mostly green-clad cliffs enclosed a valley of green farmland with a sprinkling of palms, here and there an outcropping of rock, seemingly planted to break up the all-encompassing greenery.

It was a wistful scene of how nature without a brush can bring out beauty, even without a painter, to create a Shangri-la.

As I pulled myself away from this stunning scene, I heard a woman say, “Oh for the life of a dog!” Looking down, I saw a dog curled up and lazing in the sun, oblivious to the world around it.

Travelling in Cuba I have always been amazed at how often one sees dogs sleeping under the blazing sun, disregarding human traffic and the searing heat."

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