One of the greatest surprises of our trip was our affinity for the cuisine of Morocco. Upon arrival, we had dinner at our riad in Marrakesh and were floored by the flavors we encountered. Morocco is probably best known for its tagine. Tagine technically is a ceramic dish used to slow cook a stew over open fire (historically). While the two-piece ceramic cookware is still used today, the open fire has mostly been replaced with electric or gas ovens.
What makes tagine so delectable is the super tender meat and/or veggies, slow cooked for hours at low temperatures as well as a spice blend that can include turmeric, cumin, coriander, cloves, paprika, cinnamon, cardamom and saffron. It’s a simple but very satisfying dish that comes in many iterations – lamb, kefta (meatballs), chicken, beef – even camel and goat. Tagine is on EVERY menu in Morocco. In fact, a menu will normally include 3-4 different types of tagine, a couscous dish and kebabs.
What isn’t on many menus in Morocco? Alcohol. Especially in restaurants inside the medina, beer and wine are hard to come by. That’s because the medinas are the more culturally conservative parts of the cities. Outside the medina walls, you’ll find more restaurants serving beer and wine. We had good luck being served wine with dinner at our riads, but it was understood that this was a bit hush-hush.
What I found particularly interesting is that Morocco produces some excellent wines. I would have loved to taste more of them, but they are hard to find without expressly seeking them out. The ones we were lucky enough to encounter were fantastic. I have dreams now of leading wine tours in Morocco or starting a business to import Moroccan wines to the US. A relatively untapped market, in my mind.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.