Ouarzazate: A tour in Morocco always ends up with someone selling you a carpet

In April I was in Morocco with Blondine and we visited Ouarzazate which is located in the eastern part of the country near the Saharan Desert. We hired a tour guide for our visit to Kasbah Tourirt and the medina. It was well worth it.



At the end of the tour, our tour guide brought us to a tapestry shop outside the medina. We witnessed how carpets were weaved the traditional way. Just by using their hands and a wooden frame weaver. We saw 2 women busy on their weaving by hand tasks while 1 was taking a nap. They have shifts here as well =)







The women were on the top floor (open terrace) of the shop.







At the open terrace where the women are weaving one can sight beautiful views of the medina.



We were then led down to the main hall with walls adorned in stunning bright rugs designed with beautiful weave work patterns. At this point, we already knew what’s going to happen – they will sell carpets to our group. It can be pretty annoying but in Morocco, everywhere you go someone will always try to sell you a darn carpet. That is the reality.



Our carpet sales person was dressed like an Arabian Knight, in a silken djellaba complete with the turban gadget and all. He looks more Egyptian to me than Moroccan. To get us settled down a bit he explained some cultural norms in Ouarzazate, the what and the whys. After that he went straight to his agenda, and that is selling carpets. He showed us the beautiful rugs one by one… small carpets, medium sized carpets, big carpets, bigger carpets... it went on for a long time but sadly no one in our group has plans in buying a carpet.



At least this carpet seller was not as aggressive as the one we encountered in Setti Fatma who had serial killer eyes. Thank you anyway!









The animated carpet seller and his hundreds of carpets. I am not really a fan of brightly coloured and busily patterned carpets... so, no thanks.









More views of Ouarzazate medina from the carpet shop terrace.



We left the tapestry shop and outside down the road we saw our ADHD Moroccan driver waiting impatiently. He said we have to leave now so we will be on track with our schedule for the next item on the agenda (a visit to Ait Benhaddou) because he doesn’t want to drive the Tischka Pass on our way back to Marrakech when its dark. OK, at least he has some sense of responsibility even if he is a maniac on the road.



Tip: When taking a tour guide in anywhere else in Morocco, always communicate beforehand the price to avoid misunderstanding and irritations.



I have by the way an awakening for this trip. I found Arab music not that bad after all. I really learned to appreciate its eccentric melody. Thanks to ADHD Moroccan driver who was playing the same Arabic CD during the entire journey. Now I see the beauty behind Arabic songs.

Did Not Wearing a Helmet Save Gene Hackman's Life?

film still via the gothamist

As some may know, 81-year-old actor Gene Hackman was hit by a truck while riding his bicycle in Florida last week. As the media has made a point to note again and again and again, Mr. Hackman was not wearing a helmet during the incident. It is now known that Mr. Hackman has survived the collision.



So... Does this mean that not wearing a helmet saved Gene Hackman's life?



Don't answer that, I know what you are going to say: My God, of course not. That would be absurd. What an insane conclusion. Right? Well, don't worry, I agree. Of course the fact that a helmetless cyclist survived a collision does not mean that this favourable outcome resulted from them not having worn a helmet. An accurate way to describe the situation is that the two facts coincided: He was not wearing a helmet, and he survived the collision. As everyone who has studies the scientific method or statistic knows, correlation does not imply causation.



I am glad we are on the same page now about the absurdity of implying that Gene Hackman's lack of helmet saved his life. Because if you agree about this, then surely you will see the double-standard of finding it entirely logical when helmeted cyclists who survive collisions report that wearing a helmet saved their life. It is a powerful emotional argument, but logically, statistically, and scientifically, it is erroneous for the same reasons it would be erroneous to say that not wearing a helmet saved Gene Hackman's life. If a cyclist wears a helmet and they emerge from a collision alive, that implies correlation, not causation.



Bicycle helmets have some protective properties under some conditions, but these properties are limited and do not extend to colliding with moving motor vehicles. Bicycle helmets also have some drawbacks, including their ability to cause rotational injuries. After reading lots and lots and lots of studies (the studies themselves, and not the media's digested, distorted, misquoted and sensetionalised versions of the studies), I believe that the evidence pertaining to bicycle helmet effectiveness is mixed and inconclusive. And this is talking about effectiveness itself, without even delving to the larger, social implications of the helmet debate. We are all scared of getting hurt while riding our bikes, and we would all like there to be a magic device or talisman that makes cycling safe. But it is erroneous and even dangerous to over-attribute protective qualities to the bicycle helmet. Personal accounts of surviving collisions are tremendously affecting, both for the person recounting their experience and for the listener or reader. And I by no means wish to undermine these accounts. But it is also important to recognise that as human beings, we are "wired" to be more susceptible to affecting narratives. Things that are not in fact logical make sense to us under emotionally charged conditions, and "a helmet saved my life" is a textbook example of that.



Be angry at me if you must for the title of this post and the things I write here. But also try to understand my point. Accepting emotional, subjective beliefs as evidence does not actually contribute to safety. It only contributes to a false sense of security, to hysteria, to witch hunts, and to the media now making it a point to state whether a cyclist hit by a motor vehicle was wearing a helmet or not, thus normalising the "blame the victim" mentality in reports of cyclist deaths and injuries. How did we let this happen? That is something we ought to think about very carefully.

Metropolitan

The weather here has been awful since I've returned from Vienna. So while I've used my bicycle to get where I need to go, the long "welcome home" ride I fantasized about does not seem to be in the cards. Stretches like this remind me to take advantage of good weather whenever possible, and so I offer these photos from one of the nicer cycling days we had at the beginning of the month.



These photos were taken in front of the Metropolitan Storage Warehouse in Cambridge, Mass., which is a local landmark of sorts and has been functioning since 1917.



We do not usually have a good reason to visit this area, but I was intrigued by the Vassar Street bike path controversy that I had read about on Chic Cyclist and I wanted to show it to the Co-Habitant. To summarise, the Vassar Street path is criticised because it is "European style" - running mostly on the sidewalk and therefore conflicting with both pedestrian traffic and with the cars that frequently pull in and out of the various parking lots that cross the path. Compared to what I had been expecting, the path is actually not so bad in person. In fact, it is set up like a typical bike path in Vienna. The main issue is that cyclists must keep to a fairly low speed in order to ride on the path safely during peak traffic times - and Americans are simply not used to cycling at such low speeds and continue to ride at a brisk pace.



I am not certain what my stance is on the Vassar Street critique; it is a complicated issue. But I do enjoy cycling through the MIT/ Cambridgeport neighborhood during non-traffic hours. When these streets are empty, I feel that the personalities of all the warehouses and industrial sites and contemporary constructions really come out, and the abandoned urban landscape becomes "communicative". Is it all in my head? Maybe so. But that does not make the experience any less interesting.

Ashley circular via Stoke Albany

Led by Barry. With Chris and Marion, Vera and Barrie, Gordon and me. Some dry ploughed fields made paths unclear. About 6 miles.





From Ashley opposite the George - the route is the same as the walk we did on July 8 , but without the diversion round Stoke Albany, and without the wrong turning after "John" Tugwell's grave. He has a fine new slate stone since our last visit. I didn't snap it, but from memory it finishes with "Right. I must be doing."




The paths are not so clear at this time as the rapeseed has been harvested, so we had a few dry ploughed fields to negotiate.










Fine views, and a good six-mile walk in great weather.



We did spot masses of tiny frogs heading across dry soil - towards the stream?

Sadness

On an incredibly somber note, the Seattle climbing community and Mount Rainier climbing program were rocked this week with the loss of a very close friend. While warming up for larger climbs in the Alaska Range, our friend fell to her death descending Mount Wake. At this time, we're withholding many of details until her husband can be notified. The press has picked up on the accident, as have many of the chat rooms (ST, CC); all are honoring the request for privacy until proper notification can be made. I'll post more information about the incident and this incredible person when the time is right. Here is picture of Mt. Wake provided by Mark Westman.

Hardee County Animal Rescue

Before we ever visited the TT's here, Barb and Dennis told us we had to visit this place when we did stay for the winter. Barb described how the boardwalk elevates you so you can see the animals clearly. I'm so glad she did tell us about it, because we might have missed it otherwise.



I love visiting this very small rescue and I love that we are usually in for a treat with the animals that are here. I also love that we can get pretty close to some of the animals.

Ok, so that animal doesn't count in an official rescue way, because they are not part of the rescued animals. They are part of the experience though, because they are everywhere. There are some animals that I am a bit more fond of here too.This guy was not very big last year. If it is the same guy. He's huge now.

These were not so close, but that's ok...I'd rather not be too close to the green gunk.This guy was annoyed that I woke him up from his nap. He was not amused. I was talking baby talk to him because I thought he was so handsome. Apparently panthers are not fond of baby talk. Who knew? I apologized and moved on quickly. I'm not sure what would posses me to talk baby talk to a wild animal anyways. Besides, I can relate because this is how I feel each and every morning. This was my favorite close encounter. This sweet guy was hanging in his rope hammock and peeked out to see me. I guess baby talk works on raccoons.Aric asked why someone would rescue raccoons. Good question. After seeing this sweet face though, I'd be tempted to. Well, if I didn't live in an RV with three cats, one dog and two teenage boys I would be tempted to. Glad I can visit them this way so I don't have to. Living the life in warmer Florida.

3 Months Gratis Public Transport!

I just knew it. When I received the letter from Rijkwaterstaat, the government agency responsible for the road infrastructure of the country, including dikes and waterways, I knew it would be the letter offering me free public transport.

The agency has been busy with one of their big projects in the country, the expansion of the A2, one of the oldest, busiest, and very important highway in the Netherlands, which unfortunately is the same highway I drive to work daily.

The letter is an invitation to the new program called – A2 Minder Hinder, which is a 3 Months free public transport invitation (a combi of train, tram, and bus with the A2 Minder Hinder Proefpas) to car owners using the A2 highway during rush hours with the goal of easing traffic while ongoing highway expansion works are being carried out. In lieu of traveling with the car to the workplace during rush hours, a free transportation card will be given valid for 3 months traveling to and fro home and work, however special conditions apply of course to make sure freeloaders do not have a chance.

Rush hours are usually between 07:15 to 08:45. It usually takes me 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes to get to work. However, this was my schedule with my previous employer where we were expected to be in the office at 09:00 sharp. With my new employer, we have flexi-time implemented, meaning we can come in on or before 10:00 as long as we make our 8 hours a day work schedule.

So now I usually leave home between 08:45 to 09:10 (this is such a huge sigh of relief as I always have problems waking up early!) which gets me to work between 09:20 to 09:40, and take note, this is even farther than my previous employer (well 5 kilometers only, he-he).

At any rate, I did a quick calculation. A monthly train-tram-bus card for me – Utrecht to Amsterdam would be around +-€200. Now, lets try multiplying this to tens, maybe hundreds of car owners who would be willing to take the Rijkwaterstaats program and this clearly translates to lots of serious €€€. Big budget I reckon.

I’ve been thinking about the offer but I might have to turn this down even if it meant savings on benzene which is ridiculously high in NL, as well as savings on car wear and tear. Let us put this in another way -- I prefer convenience.