Canadians Don’t Eat Food

As you may already know, Dan and I have arrived in Morocco, actually, we arrived quite some time ago.  Little did we know that in our final month of travel, we would encounter the hurdles that we have. With the surprising lack of internet access, hot water, heat (yes, it’s winter here, and cold!) and English, we have found ourselves more out of our comfort zone than we would like to be at this point in our journey.  Dan has been forced to use his un-practised French and dare I say, I have finally realized that maybe I should have paid attention in French class.  Oh well, live and learn.  Yes, as with every other country, there are small negatives but the positive surprises always, always outweigh the negatives.

At this point in our journey, with less than one month left ‘til our return, we have begun the process of reminiscing and contemplating what we have learned along the way.  As you can imagine, much of our time and money have been spent eating.  Oh boy have we eaten well, but you already know this as I have posted many, many pictures of food and drink along the way.  At this point, is it even possible to be surprised by food? I mean really, we have been to India- home of my favourite food ;) -  Jordan, Egypt, oh my! :) but the answer, unbelievable, is yes!!  We have found ourselves, with little or no effort, consistently eating home cooked food over the past few weeks here in Morocco.  Surprisingly, coming from a country that is still light years away from western standards, the food here is far, far, far better.  Ugh!!  I had foreseen a problem arising when we eventually return home which Morocco has just cemented into reality- Western food sucks! If you can call it “food” anymore.  I have been a long-time vegetarian and have always tried to make an informed and conscientious effort to understand the processes that bring what I eat to my plate. Little did I know that this trip would only encourage me in that end, and enrage the part of me that has been turning a blind eye to the short comings of my country’s food industry.    I’m not talking cuisine, I’m talking Food.   What have we done to our food?  Our people are educated, right?  We know where our food comes from, correct?  So, why don’t we care to see the problem?   So, before I come home to Canada, with its use of GMO’s and support of factory farming, I will soak in and enjoy the purity of GMO free food, halal meat and home cooked, quality freshness.  Yes, in Morocco I can eat meat.  I know it isn’t full of chemicals and antibiotics, it lived a decent life and died a quick death.  The fruit and veggies are picked only when they are ripe and are consumed locally. The taste is like nothing I have ever encountered in my life, outside of a grandmothers garden!   Flavour?  Oh, that’s what flavour is!  Good to know.  Um….sorry for the rant but really people!!
OK, this post has turned unexpectedly negative, and has also told little of our last few weeks- my bad.  Next post…Desert.  Think camels, sand dunes and camping. And no rants, I promise ;)

Dan and I found ourselves a lovely Riad in the Fes Medina.   The food, oh the food.  Fresh and plentiful and oh, the tomatoes.  Never have tomatoes so rocked my world.  I can see why, aside from obvious reasons, they are considered a fruit.  They were sweet.  This aggravates me because even the tomatoes I grow in my garden will never taste like the ones I have experienced here in Morocco.

Couscous.  I hate the stuff in Canada but here, it is AMAZING.  Buttery, soft, fluffy and hand rolled.  The stuff heaven is made of.  Oh, and the oranges.  Yeah, I like oranges in Canada, in fact I eat one daily but in Morocco the orange trees line the streets.  The oranges are the perfect balance of tangy and sweet and the best part- I can peel them, no problem.

Fresh bulk food.  This is something that my town in Canada is lacking- I don’t know about others.  Daily markets selling fresh fruit, veggies, meat and snacks.  Is there anywhere a person can pick up a tasty, healthy, quick meal in Kelowna.  No, there isn’t.

Sweets.  The pastries and fresh churned ice cream tempt me at every corner.  I can say that I won’t miss this when I get home- either will my waist line.

A lemon chicken, olive and rice tajine.  Just the comfort food we need to warm us up at the end of a chilly day and the beginning of an even chillier evening.

Dan and I just returned from camping in the desert.  Even camp food is tastier, fresher and healthier than our food back home.  Above is a picture of our lunch- In the Desert!