Couple on Sofa

July 7, 2024May 14, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Couple On Sofa

Another in the Enamorado Con Amor/In Love with Love series. Part of love is intimacy, but of course not all intimacy denotes love. Here it does, and the couple sparkles in the play of light and shadow and smoke in a turn of century setting based on a scene in Downton Abbey.

Come with me to the Casbah

July 7, 2024May 6, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Street scene Morocco, water color 13.5x 21 cm, 5 x 8"

“Come with me to the Casbah” is the famous pickup line that we all think came from a movue. It was in fact never spoken in a movie– it was in the trailer of the 1937 movie Algiers (Heddie Lamar and Charles Boyer). A casbah is a high walled fortification without windows, and it is here we began our explorations of Morocco. The entire area behind the walls is called the Medina, which is the oldest part of Marrakesh, while the market areas within are called souks.

The Almoravids, a Berber tribe, built the city in the 11th century and ever since there’s been a whirlwind everywhere. Narrow alleys lead to more, not even those born here escape without at least the occasional bout of befuddlement. Small motorcycles and scooters, not to mention the bikes and the principal delivery transport, donkeys pulling carts, wiggle through somehow yet no one is run down nor even has their toes smashed while we were there. The only incident we encounter involves two boys wrestling, one having a choke hold on the other who apparently knocked his load of bread to the ground. A kaftan wearing older male was breaking up the fight with remarkable patience. What a kind soul he seemed.

Delightful aromas abound, coming mostly from the vast mounds of spices and if not from them then the vast quantity of fruit. An exception is the area where they slaughter the chickens. The foul fowl odor stuck to my nose for much too long.

Along the way we came to the university, which claims to be the world’s first (so do universities in Fez and Timbuktu). It had 900 students at one point but is no longer in use. There is exquisite decoration thanks to Unesco although the rising damp from underground waters continues to cause problems. These extensive waters are what gave rise to the city- they giveth, they taketh away.

Peg shoots the University in Marrakeesh

The souks (market) of the Medina make any Walmart tiny by comparison, as its surrounding walls measure 12 kilometers in length. There are shops by the thousands, most run by 1 or two people, and manufacturing zones as well, leather production among them, where workers still use plant dies and pigeon poop in the process.

Souk Semmarine sells everything from brightly colored bejewelled sandals, slippers and leather pouffes, to jewellery and kaftans. Souk Ableuh has lemons, capers, pickles, chili peppers, and olives, as well as mint, which they use in cooking and the sweet tea you find everywhere. Souk Kchacha specializes in dates and other dried fruit and nuts. Rahba Qedima has perfumes, hand-woven baskets, scarves, knitted hats, scarves, and the skins of alligators and iguana. Famous for jewelry is Souk Siyyaghin, while Smata it’s belts and babouches, a slipper with no heel. Cherratine has leather while Belaarif has modern consumer goods. The Haddadine has ironware and lanterns.

The intense activity and I suppose all its newness tired me out and I was glad for the quiet of the lushly appointmented restaurant where we enjoyed the fabulous Moroccan “salads.” More of this anon.

Marrakech- Contrasts, Conflicts

July 7, 2024May 4, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Modernity and tradition coexist in Marrakeesh albeit not without a least the occasional clash. Modern cars and buses abound. On the other hand deliveries in the Souk are sometimes done by mule, sometimes trotting rather swiftly through the narrow streets as scooters weave through even the most narrow of alleys, brushing you at times with whatever hangs out from their carts. Women covered from head to toe, a small percentage here, walk side by side chatting with those in jeans.

Past shops offering cheap Chinese imports you find traditional craft shops by the thousands, dwarfing any shopping zone I’ve ever seen by astronomical amounts (until we went to Fws). Leather. Who’s going to buy those thousands of leather purses? You pass by large piles of skins, prepared in the nearby tanneries, men standing in the dyes as they turn the hides, so you know there are more purses jackets, belts and shoes in the pipeline.

We passed a medical clinic on the way, all shiny and modern like the solar panel monitor displaying the roof panel outputs. Our guide -you need one or you’ll be forever lost in those nameless narrow alleys- took us to what he called a pharmacy. These, he claimed, they had clean pure products, unlike the open air stands he pooh poohed. A woman in a white coat offered a jillion natural products to us, an unsubstantiated health claim for each one.

Men kiss upon greeting but men and women don’t, although swear, I do m that I saw two couples doing just that on a park bench we passed on the way from the airport. In Rivat, the capital, two girls kissed in public and one -why just one or better yet why anyone – was arrested. Lesbian, let alone gay, is just too far into modernity I suppose.

The majority of women are dressed as you see here. Many men where plain full length kaftans though most wear modern dress.

It’s a fascinating beginning to our time in this modern Muslim nation.

The Buck Starts Here- tRump!

July 7, 2024May 2, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

The Buck Starts Here!

The US President Harry Truman is famous for saying, “The Buck Stops Here.” “Passing the buck” means avoiding responsibility and blame others. That’s Trump in a nutshell- it’s never his fault.

Woman Climbs From Water

July 7, 2024April 30, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

At the Cafe

July 7, 2024April 23, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Palma is a major tourist destination for beach goers in the millions. Germans, Russians, even the Spanish come here to luxuriate in the the beach resorts that line vast sections of the island’s coast. But for a more serious tourist there is art, architecture and history, plus a neat one hour train to Sóller, a small, charming and tourist-overrun village in the mountains, in vintage wooden cars. There are galleries for the upscale buyer and for Miró fans there’s his museum and studio on high with fine views of the coast. (continued below the paintings)

After the the Iberians came the Phoenicians and Greeks. The island was ruled from Rome no later than 123 BCE. Then the Arabs arrived, whose fleet moored in the harbor and convinced the islanders to submit to Islamic rule while allowing residents to maintain their religious preferences. Piracy was a significant source of wealth in the Islamic era, most likely largely due to the strategic location of the island. The city was reconquered in 1229 by Jaume (James) I of Aragon. His son built Bellver Castle and started the Cathedral. In 1391 anti-Jewish killings were widespread. Those who did not leave the island and survived were forced to convert. Two gangs ruled the island in the 17th century, when piracy was again widespread, while the Jews suffered tremendously thanks to that lovely chapter of Spanish history, the Inquisition.

The Cathedral, called La Seu, was started in the 13th but not finished until the early 17th century. It is a Gothic structure and by no means is its exterior among the most attractive of that style.

The view of the Seu was from the roof of our hotel in the old center.

Couple Snuggling in Bed

July 7, 2024April 22, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

The pigments used in pastels are the same as those used to produce all colored art media, including oil paints. The binder has a neutral hue and low intensity.

Pastel is challenging because it is mixed and blended on the paper or other surface. Colors cannot be tested on a palette although with the new powder pastels you can. This work was done with sticks. Changes are not easy to make, as you can not just paint over things.

In use since the Renaissance, they were very popular in the 18th century. My favorite pastel painter is Renoir.

The Buck Starts Here (anti-Trump)

July 7, 2024April 17, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Available as Limited Edition Prints (100) signed, or in an unlimited version

Woman in Boudoir

July 7, 2024April 15, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Palma de Mallorca

July 7, 2024April 8, 2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Palma de Mallorca is a major tourist destination for beach goers in the millions. Germans, Russians, even the Spanish come here to luxuriate in the the beach resorts that line vast sections of the island’s coast. But for a more serious tourist there is art, architecture and history, plus a neat one hour train to Sóller, a small, charming and tourist-overrun village in the mountains, in vintage wooden cars. There are galleries for the upscale buyer and for Miró fans there’s his museum and studio on high with fine views of the coast.

Bellver Castle in the foreground, the Cathedral in the background

The city became a tourist destination in the 1950’s. In 1960 there were 500,000 visitors, in 1997 more than 6,739,700, in 2001 more than 19,200,000 came by air and 1.5 million more by sea. This is an amazing number given how tiny the island is, and the small permanent population: Palma is the largest city with a population of a mere 400,000.

The Cathedral, called La Seu, was started in the 13th but not finished until the early 17th century. It is a Gothic structure and by no means is its exterior among the most attractive of that style. From the sea it features plain bulky buttresses, just small ‘flying’ ones reaching out to support it’s magnificent height. Inside is another matter, is sprinkled with light from the magnificent stained glass windows. The rose window is the largest of the Gothic world. The graceful interior lines make for an amazing visit.

For a resume of Gaudi’s work on the Cathedral, see http://www.gaudiclub.com/esp/e_vida/mallorca.asp In Spanish.

There are some Modernismo buildings in Palma. Modernism is the term given to the version of Art Nouveau in Spain exemplified by Gaudi.

Fundacion Caixa,originally El Gran Hotel

For a change from the narrow streets of the old town and the Gaudi architecture, a common destination is the town of Sóller. It is just 30 or so kilometers from Palma by car. We took the train. The hour long journey takes you through some lovely mountain scenery, passes above and around the town then descends practically to the center.

But what’s there to eat and drink?

This was a rather tasty dish, which we had at La Botana, Career de Can Brodo (see photo below). That’s an alioli (garlic mayo) sauce on top. It covers layers of thin pork and potatoes. We had some excellent local wine, Tentacion Tempranillo 2015, a reasonable 12.50 euros a bottle. It’s a strong wine, at 14.5% (the max you can get in wine is 15%, after which the alcohol kills the yeast). Strong cherry notes after 4 months in the oak.

Alioli (garlic mao) sauce over slices of pork and potato

Want a quick bite? There’s always these empanadas, beef, chicken, veggies, sometimes with peas. They seem to like peas on the island. I’m so glad!

Then there’s “arros brut,’ their rice dish, which we did not try. And tumbet, which we really liked

Here’s a link to a much longer list, and far more than we could try in a few days.

https://www.seemallorca.com/cuisine/guide

Mallorca is much more rainy than Valencia. Winter is a good time to visit unless you want to swim. Summer is often hot and humid, depending on the direction of the wind. If from the east it is cooler.

I would not put this island on the top of places to visit. If you are down to second or third tier locations, however, it has enough charms to make it worthwhile. It is a short 45 minutes by air from Valencia, and a 20 minute ride to town from the large airport.

Enjoy!