Vamos a España!
Yesterday
was our last day in Morocco, which was weird because it hasn't hit me yet that
we're gone. I spent my last dirhams, ate my last tagine, and packed my bag. These past two days
have been spent in Tangier, a city on the very northern tip of Morocco where
the Mediterranean meets the ocean. Before independence it was an international
zone, and there are remnants of the French, the Spanish, and the Americans. But
for me, the highlight was its Moroccan atmosphere. I was glad to have some more
time walking around the souqs, which I will definitely miss when I leave. We
also visited a farm association on the outskirts of the city that had the
cutest gardens and a pond with ducks, which inspired me to start a garden! Even
though I already have a garden. Looking
out across the water I could see Spain. It's like how I can see Long Island
from my house except for it's a whole different continent with a whole
different lifestyle. There's an immigration problem with Moroccans trying to
cross illegally in small boats or even swimming--it's 17 kilometers. Today we
took the ferry across the Strait of Gibraltar. Now we're in Spain
and everything is so different from Morocco; there's much more a modern feel.
We walked around in the rain our first night and soaked in the new culture, and
today we toured the sights of Córdoba. We saw the Mesquita, which was a mosque
in the Muslim days of Andalucía but was turned into a cathedral, a synagogue
(we're staying in the Jewish quarter), and two museums, one of which was a
"living museum" meaning we walked around to different displays and dioramas
wearing headsets that played music and explained things to us. A very wonderful
part of Spain is the food--so delicious after almost three months of the same
dishes. I had my first salad tonight after so long of not being able to eat
lettuce!