Ron Joseph

Vanessa Performing in Tangier, Morocco

2009-10-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

These photos show Vanessa with the accompanists on oud and percussion. The concert was for a group of young professionals and business people of Jewish Moroccan descent who were in the country to learn about the history and culture of their parents and grandparents. Maurice is also giving a talk to the group on Jewish/Arabic music.
To hear Vanessa performing her recent work, go to Vanessa Paloma on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM1qeR-NV30 That link goes to one song, but in turn it will link to others.
If you will look at the post before this one, you will see the traditional Moroccan ceremonial dress (especially weddings) used by women in the Jewish community.
For further information on what Vanessa is doing see:
http://vanessapaloma.blogspot.com

Traditional Moroccan Dress

2009-10-13T21:20:00.000-07:00

Vanessa, Maurice, and Gloria travelled to Tangier yesterday for a concert of traditional Moroccan Jewish songs that Vanessa gave last night. It was in a palace formerly used by one of the rulers of Morocco and is used now as a cultural center. Maurice took a filming crew to make a video of the concert, and they were filming today in the Casbah. They will also film tomorrow before returning to Casablanca. Vanessa is 8 1/2 months pregnant, feeling well, and enjoying the opportunity to perform the music that she loves so well in traditional Moroccan dress and in the settings where the music would have been sung. In the accompanying photos Gloria is dressed in red. In another photo Vanessa and Maurice are seen together. In a group photo Vanessa and Gloria are seen with Sonia who is the owner/collector of some of the dresses.

Greetings from Ron and Gloria

2009-09-14T10:52:00.001-07:00

L' Shana Tova

2009-09-14T10:49:00.000-07:00

Vanessa the Bride

2009-01-06T07:45:00.000-08:00

After Rosh Hashanah 2007 Vanessa wrote to us that she had met a fellow in Casablanca who was involved in music, and he was interesting. Over the following months we heard more and more about this guy, whose name was Maurice. After January of 2008 we began to hear more and more about him and eventually about his family. Now in December they were married. Although Vanessa has had a packed schedule over the last few months with concerts, conferences, and writing, we were hearing more and more about Maurice and the trust and caring that was growing between them. It has been a wonderful process to see this love grow and see the comfortable relationship that they have developed. Both of them seem to be at home.
As you will see in the accompanying photos, Vanessa was a beautiful bride. She designed the wedding dress herself, and she was truly radiant as she walked to the Chuppah between Gloria and Margo. She was spectacular in the Berberisca dress that she wore for the henna ceremony, which she obviously enjoyed. In the first several days of family Sheva Bracha dinners and lunches, we saw her and Maurice take on their roles as the new husband and wife. Mazal Tov to both of you. May your lives be filled with love, happiness, health, prosperity, and the good things that will make your lives more complete.

Welcome Maurice

2009-01-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

Maurice is a wonderfully complex person. His self-composure and sense of humor make you trust him and like him at the same time. For me as the father, I trust him as the husband for my daughter. He and Vanessa fit together like the pieces of a puzzle. His relaxed and amiable self in the family context seems to belie the strong businessman who is a major music producer among other things. Then, of course, there is that ear massage thing. If Maurice likes you, he will give you an ear massage. Unique.
In the art of his music videos we can see his artistic flair, which also pops up with surprises in his self portraits. FTG Records is his music label, and his videos are widely available on You-Tube by searching: "youtube music Maurice Elbaz".
Maurice is top-notch. He is a warm and accepting person. We welcome him to the family of Vanessa. Enjoy this journey of life that you have started.

Introducing the Elbaz Family

2009-01-05T06:24:00.000-08:00

Maurice Elbaz, Vanessa's husband, has a large extended family that stretches from Morocco to France and Israel. We would like to introduce his immediate family including parents and brothers and sister. In the accompanying photos are the parents, David and Margo Elbaz. David is a builder in Morocco and a businessman active in the community. He is a pillar of his synagogue and a member of the Kashrut Commission for Morocco. He is a leader in the traditional Moroccan singing style in services. He is an ever present father and is involved in the lives of his children, and he shows great love for the grandchildren.
Margo is the mother of the family and organizes Shabat lunches which is a gathering place for the family. She has social skills that make her stand out in group situations. She is a kindred spirit with Tirzah Sowa, Gloria's sister, and Gloria and Margo understood each other well. Margo has a generous spirit, and she likes to be involved. In the photo Margo is wearing traditional dress for the Berberisca ceremony.
Maurice's sister, Jocelyn, is a medical doctor living in Paris. She is married to Pascal, and they have two daughters (Alicia and Odelia) and a son (David). Jocelyn has a wonderful laugh, and she is a warm and supporting sister-in-law for Vanessa. Seeing Jocelyn and Vanessa interact made me and Gloria happy because each seems to be gaining a sister.
The three brothers are Ari, Patrick, and Richard. Ari is married and lives in Strasbourg. At the wedding he had his laptop on Skype so that his wife and children in France could see and interact with the guests. Patrick is not married and divides his time and business between Morocco, Spain, and France. He has the same quick wit that I have seen in Maurice and Jocelyn, and he seems to live with a twinkle in his eye. The youngest brother is Richard, who has a quick smile, and is also unmarried. He lives in Casablanca and owns a cheese factory. He is ready with the cellphone as are his technology savvy brothers.
The accompanying group photo shows the brothers and Jocelyn with her children (plus a friend) as they accompanied Vanessa before the Chuppah. From left to right they are Ari, Jocelyn, Vanessa, Patrick, and Richard and the children from left to right the friend, Alicia, David, and Odelia.

Thanksgiving in Santa Fe, the Prequel to the Wedding

2009-01-04T20:36:00.000-08:00

During Thanksgiving week Maurice and Vanessa came to Santa Fe, and most of the family in the U.S. came to meet Maurice, have a family Thanksgiving, and give them blessings for their pending marriage in Jerusalem. Pete and Tirzah were here, Nancy and Charley with Nina Tova, and Greta with Izak and Lukas. Everyday we had long leisurely coffee in the morning, as everyone talked and shared opinions and ideas. On Wednesday we went to the Plaza area of Santa Fe and looked in shops. Thursday was dedicated to cooking and having the big meal as we watched the snow fall out of doors. On Friday we went to Taos where we held a special family blessing ceremony in which each member of the family held a ribbon and spoke a blessing to Maurice and Vanessa. Then, the multi-strand ribbons were woven together, making a braid of beautiful colors and textures like a Havdalah braid of blessings. We had lunch at a cantina in Taos before driving back to Santa Fe and starting Shabbat.
It was a wonderful few days in which we all got to know Maurice, and he got to know us. He had a special affinity with the children, and he even composed Nina's Theme for Nina Tova during that time. He shared computer knowledge with Izak and Lukas and talked about adult things with the rest of us. If you like kids, there is a good place in your soul.

The Road Home

2009-01-04T19:44:00.000-08:00

After returning from Jerusalem we stayed talking to Vanessa and Maurice for some time, knowing that we would be leaving early the next morning. We went down to the restaurant to eat, met some others who were at the wedding, and later we were joined by David and Margo. We stayed talking until after midnight before going to our room and finishing packing.
We left at 4:00 am the next morning with Vanessa coming down to see us off. As we said our good-byes and gave hugs that would have to last for months to come, it was a truly bitter sweet experience. It was one of the most difficult times that we have had to leave Vanessa in the years of visits in different parts of the world. It was sweet because we had seen the wonderful family that she was marrying into, just as we were happy knowing that Maurice will be a good husband and father. Vanessa and Maurice will have a good life. They have been very blessed this week by both families, by friends, and by rabbis, and our special blessing goes with them.
After more than a week of non-stop activities from the wedding itself, the preparations, and the celebratory dinners and lunches, we were exhausted as was everyone else.
The 28 hour trip home was a time for resting and thinking about the life we were leaving in Israel and the life they were going to in Casablanca. We are happy to now be a part of the Elbaz family, and we look forward to the reunions to come.

Sheva Bracha lunch with Rabbi Amram Rouah, Dec. 31 and Jerusalem

2009-01-04T19:25:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday, Dec. 31, Rabbi Amram Rouah, who led the Chuppah ceremony, and his wife invited us for lunch at their apartment in Modi'in in the hills between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. As we entered their apartment, the first thing that stood out were the walls lined with books. Rabbi Rouah is a kabbalist and scholar who has written extensively, and he teaches in a yeshiva in the community. He is a gentle man with a soft smile, and he looks deeply into the soul as he talks. He speaks with the spiritual insight from a life of study, contemplation, and prayer, and he is a man to respect. Rabbi Rouah is originally from Morocco, and after he made aliyah to Israel, he was called to France to teach in a yeshiva there and bring traditional learning to that community which was becoming increasinly secularized. After teaching there for twenty years, he and his wife are back in Israel where he spends much of his day in study. After lunch he led the Sheva Brachot, blessing the marriage of Maurice and Vanessa. As we drove out of the complex of apartment buildings that make up this community, we all commented on the deep spirituality of this man and his wife.
Vanessa was driving, and we drove on to Jerusalem through its winding streets from hill to hill until we reached the center of the city and walked to the Western Wall, the kotel. As Vanessa, Margo, and Gloria walked to the women's side, David, Maurice, and I went to the men's side and into the tunnel next to the men's section of the Wall. It was cold and drizzly outside, but in the tunnel section it was warm and dry. Men were scattered along the Wall, each in their own prayers. One group of men were starting a Ma'ariv service, asking men to join them to complete the minyan. Others asked for tzedakah and assistance for poor families. After we came out, Vanessa, Margo, and Gloria entered the part of the tunnels that led under the Temple mount which women can enter at any time. For men and groups to enter the same tunnels, they must make a reservation one to two days ahead of time. So, we were not allowed to enter that section. We stood at the Kotel and felt the particular spirituality of that place.

Dinner with the Zvi family, Tuesday, Dec. 30

2009-01-04T18:33:00.000-08:00

Yossi and Dahlia Zvi invited us for dinner on Tuesday night along with their children Yael, Michal, and Ofer. Yael's boyfriend, also Ofer, picked us up at the hotel and took us to their house. He is in the reserves for the IDF, and we asked if he had been called up for the action in Gaza which had started on Saturday. He had not received notice of the call up, but he was aware that it might be coming at any time.
Maurice's parents, David and Margo, had planned to go to a wedding in Ashdod this night, but they canceled at the last minute because of the rockets from Gaza that were raining down on the city. People were having to spend most of their time in bomb shelters. A neighbor and friend of the bride-to-be was killed earlier in the day by one of the rockets as she was running from her car to the bomb shelter. That sadness permeates life in Israel as everyone is aware of the constant potential for violence from Hamas and other terrorist groups.
In spite of these problems Israelis love life, and the Zvis are such a family. Yossi is a sparkplug, true to his sea captain background, and Dahlia is one of the sweetest people alive. Their three children are remarkable, each in their own right. Yael is a singer and performer, Michal a gourmet chef, and Ofer is a specialist in Indian languages, religion and culture. Their house is warm and filled with charm.
Throughout the evening we laughed as Yossi spun the best of his sea yarns. He opened the porthole window in the living room brought from a ship and explained how he wanted to install more and more decorations from his life on ships, while Dahlia protested that it had to remain a house. Dahlia has just recovered from a bout with leukemia, and her return to health has been nothing short of miraculous. She looks great. One of the highlights of the evening came when Ofer, the son, returned from a rehearsal and played his French made long horn, a version of a Tibetan Dung Chen.
As we walked out of that special house, and Yael drove us back to the hotel, we talked about her life, her music, and her teaching in Nazareth with Arab students among other things. Over head helicopter after helicopter passed us heading south toward Gaza.

Sheva Bracha dinner, Monday night Dec. 29th

2009-01-04T18:17:00.000-08:00

On Monday night we were invited to the apartment of Daniel Rouah and his wife in the Bne Brak neighborhood of Tel Aviv. Their ten children enlivened every moment of the visit. Daniel teaches in one of the local yeshivas, and much of the conversation revolved around that. Daniel is also the nephew of Rabbi Amram Rouah who led the Chuppah ceremony. The Rabbi is David's nephew, making Daniel a grandnephew.
Rabbi Yehoshua Landau and his wife joined us for the dinner. Since he speaks English, most of my conversation was with him. He was an important teacher and mentor for Vanessa during the year that she lived in Israel, and he has continued to advise her spiritually since then. He is a kind and generous man.
The children were true sparks of life. They talked with the adults and showed bright curiosity about us. The little boy with the glasses told Vanessa that she had many miracles because her name contains the Hebrew word for miracle, ness. When she replied that she hoped there would be miracles in her life, he replied that she had already had many miracles, and that there would be more. His analysis of her name, and his interpretation of life at the age of 8 or so, struck all of us.

Sheva Bracha dinner, Sunday night, Dec. 28th

2009-01-04T18:05:00.000-08:00

Sunday night 25 members of the family and friends met at the Meatos Restaurant in Tel Aviv to celebrate the marriage of Maurice and Vanessa and give the Sheva Brachot.
It was the last day of Chanukah, and David, Maurice's father, and others lighted the candles. David then led the seven blessings over the new couple.

Shabat Hatan and the Berberisca

2009-01-04T17:32:00.000-08:00

Less than 24 hours after the wedding Shabbat started, and the family arranged for everyone to be in the same hotel in Tel Aviv where family and friends could easily gather for Shabbat and to begin the seven nights of the Sheva Brachot following the wedding. Maurice was called to the Torah during the morning Shacharit service. There was a synagogue in the hotel, so all of the services could be held there with no problem.
The service included the traditional Moroccan singing style in which men sing Piyutim, the beautiful poetry from the Torah. It must be the most beautiful Jewish service that exists. Although it is being lost in the Moroccan diaspora, it is well preserved in Morocco itself.
In addition to Maurice being called to the Torah, his nine-year-old nephew David, Jocelyn's son, read the long Haftarah portion perfectly as he stood next to the Torah with his grandfather, David. Other children stood around the Torah watching and listening to his expertise in reading Hebrew. Seeing three generations sharing in the service was a special experience.
David, Maurice's father, is a genuinely kind and spiritual man. Throughout the week of wedding events he was called on to be a ritual leader, consulting with the rabbis, talking with family members, and he always kept the serenity that I had already seen in Maurice. David seems to have that serenity from a deeply spiritual place.
On Saturday night a Berberisca ceremony was held in which we dressed in traditional Moroccan dress, and henna was applied to the hands of Maurice and Vanessa and also to others in attendance. Margo brought the traditional dresses from Morocco, and they were spectacular. There are no photos from the service, but the Berberisca ceremony is amply documented.
Margo, Maurice's mother, is an organizer, and she enjoyed putting together the Berberisca ceremony. She laughs and talks, but we did not share a common language with her, making our communciations rudimentary. Although we did not understand the language, her social skills were apparent through her lively conversations with others. She is generous and kind. She and Gloria forged a bond of friendship through gestures, laughter, and conversations translated through others. Just as Maurice shares his father's quality of serenity, Jocelyn, his sister, shares her mother's laughter and sense of joy in life. Jocelyn's laughter added fun to every event of the wedding.
On a more sober side that night the 2008 Gaza war started, and all that night we heard the thump, thump, thump of helicopter motors and other aircraft as they passed our hotel. It was only the next morning that we saw them and realized that they were all heading south. We heard the news that Israel had launched the retaliation for the 10,000 rockets that have fallen on Israeli territory from Gaza in recent years. Only two nights before I had been talking with a distant cousin of the family about this situation. He is a flight engineer for an IAF aircraft, and he had expressed hope that some solution could be found for this situation. His hope was not enough.

Celebration of the Wedding

2009-01-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

The dinner and party that followed the Chuppah ceremony was extraordinary. Maurice is an excellent planner and producer, and he chose the best for the wedding. As we entered the hall for the dinner and dancing, the band began playing, and they continued with only short interruptions until 1:00 am. The band was incredible playing a range of music from Israel, Latin America, North American pop and rhythm and blues, and other parts of the world. The lead singer was an African-American man who was backed up by three Russian women singers and dancers, who were dressed in strikingly revealing evening dresses. This was a major band, not one normally seen at weddings.
The first course was baked sea bream fillet in crisp Mediterranean tapenade on basil mousseline in garden herbs, garlic and olive oil. The second course was roasted fillet of beef and chicken thigh served on jardiniere of vegetables and pommes 'chateau' merlot sauce. The third course was dessert, followed by coffee.
The dancing started in a traditional style with men and women separated by a mehitza. Both Maurice and Vanessa in turn were lifted in their chairs and danced on their side of the mehitza. After 30-40 minutes of traditional dancing the mehitza was removed, and the music and dancing changed to contemporary forms.
We were joined at our table by our friends, Ariel and Yamit Lazarus and Yossi and Yael Zvi. Thank you Ariel for taking the photos of the Chuppah.

The Chuppah

2009-01-04T15:37:00.000-08:00

The central event of the day started as David Elbaz, father, and I walked Maurice down the center aisle to the Chuppah where Rabbi Amran Rouah joined us. One of Maurice's special qualities is being relaxed and at ease with what is going on. As we stood there in front of more than 200 people with rabbis gathered around the Chuppah, I looked at Maurice and saw that tranquility that he has. I said to him, "You must be the calmest person here." To which he replied, "It is a wedding." It was a calm, natural process for him. It was one of the biggest events in his life, if not the biggest, and he had none of the nervousness nor the edgey excitedness that can plague people at that point of changing their lives forever.
Margo Elbaz, his mother, and Gloria were walking Vanessa down the aisle as we stood waiting for them. Once in the Chuppah Vanessa and Maurice were together. Four men, including the witnesses to the Ketubah, were called to hold the corners of the Chuppah. A glass of wine was poured, and Maurice and Vanessa drank from it. Then, Maurice gave the ring to Vanessa. Rabbi Rouah read from the Ketubah, reviewing the commitment that Maurice was making to Vanessa, and both accepted the terms. The second glass of wine was poured, and the blessing of the wine was made, followed by the Sheva Brachot. After the blessings Maurice and Vanessa drank the wine, and Maurice broke the glass under his foot to symbolize that joy will only be complete when the Temple is rebuilt.
Maurice and Vanessa were married with the blessings of the two families, Rabbi Rouah, and the other rabbis, family members, and friends present. As they left the Chuppah, shouts of Mazal Tov and songs rang out in the hall. They left for some time by themselves, and everyone talked.
The doors to the adjoining hall were opened where the dinner and dancing would be held.

The Reception and the Signing of the Ketubah

2009-01-04T14:54:00.000-08:00

The Chuppah was set up in the large ballroom of the David Citadel, and from early on people were entering to see it. Maurice made the arrangements for the wedding, and they were spectacular. The reception was scheduled for 6:30, but people were arriving early. Both David and Margo Elbaz have extended families in Israel, and soon aunts and uncles and cousins were arriving to fill the reception hall. The conversations flowed through Hebrew, French, Spanish, and English, as people talked about family events and caught up on information of the family and friends scattered from Israel to France, Morocco, the United States and beyond. On Vanessa's side friends came from as far as Los Angeles (Shirley Perlus and Neal Castleman) and as close as Tel Aviv (Ariel and Yamit Lazarus, Yael and Yossi Zvi) and Jerusalem (Yam, Rabbi Yehoshua Landau and his wife, and Rabbi Itzhak Swartz and his wife).
Ari, Maurice's brother from France, walked around the reception with his laptop on Skype showing the events to his wife and children in France, who were unable to come to the wedding. He showed people at the reception and introduced them to his family, and in turn we were able to see them. Teleconferencing the wedding.
During this time Vanessa was waiting in a special room for her and family and friends who wished to visit her, receive blessings, and share wishes. Although Maurice could not enter, his brothers did, as well as Pascal, Jocelyn's husband, her children David, Alicia, and Odelia, Margo, Gloria and I, and Yam among others.
At 7:30 or so the final signing of the Ketubah took place. The Ketubah had been prepared in October in Casablanca, which marked the official engagement, but now Maurice signed it in the presence of Rabbi Amran Rouah and other attending rabbis. The document was reviewed by the rabbis and signed in turn. The marriage commitment was signed, and the public event under the Chuppah followed.

The wedding day. Jerusalem, December 25, 2008, 29 Kislev 5769

2009-01-04T14:20:00.000-08:00

Vanessa woke early, and she wanted to go to the city center to do a couple of errands including getting a gift for Maurice that could only come from Jerusalem. As is frequently the case in December, the hills of Jerusalem were enveloped in fog and a cold drizzle, but the happiness of that day made them relevant. We dropped off Vanessa's bag at the Hotel David Citadel where she and Maurice had a suite for that night. A taxi took us into the center city, and we walked through stone streets busy with students, businesspeople, and shoppers making the last purchases before the wedding.
Shortly after noon Vanessa had to return to the hotel to meet the woman who was going to do her hair and make-up, as well as that of Margo, Jocelyn and her two daughters, Alicia and Odelia. Jocelyn arrived with personal gifts for Vanessa, and Gloria and I took gifts for the children. The celebration of beauty began, as each in turn took the chair in front of the mirror and received the attention of the stylist. It was a happy time of laughter and talking and children playing. The suite was filled with happy preparations.

Jerusalem December 24, 2008

2009-01-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

Gloria and I arrived this afternoon in Israel for Vanessa and Maurice's wedding. This was our first trip to Israel since the opening of the beautiful new Ben Gurion airport. The sweeping lines of its architecture, the vast expanses of windows, and the stone walls are telling of the progress of Israel at its 60th year. This is a world-class airport building.
We traveled to Jerusalem to meet Vanessa, as she prepared to go to the mikveh with Gloria, Margo (mother of Maurice), Jocelyn (Maurice's sister), and Shirley Perlus (a friend from Los Angeles). While the women were at the mikveh, I went to the Kotel where I prayed and left messages for happiness and a good marriage for Maurice and Vanessa and a message for understanding and appreciation between the two families.
In the meantime at the mikveh the women celebrated with songs, chocolates, drinks, and gifts to the bride. Margo gave Vanessa special gifts of jewelry, and Jocelyn brought gifts for the bath. After they came out of the mikveh I went to the hotel with Margo and Jocelyn to meet David, the father, and the rest of the family while Gloria and Vanessa returned to our hotel.
The Elbaz family had arrived on Monday for the wedding of other friends from Casablanca. When we arrived to the hotel, David was gathered downstairs with his two sons Patrick and Richard and Pascal, the husband of Jocelyn. The children of the latter (a son and two daughters) were there devouring hamburgers with gusto. A table of food awaited all of us. Maurice came a bit later, and we talked until the night was late.

Morocco, a doorway to another world

2008-01-10T11:27:00.000-08:00

I am writing this in a house that is a tower by the sea in Morocco. It overlooks the bay of Tangier and the Strait of Gibraltar with Spain as a hint of a presence in the distance. The muffled voice of the muezzin sounds in the background, and the cacophony of sounds from the taxis and people buying and selling in the market create a music of life. Jew, Muslim, and Christian live side by side buying the same milk and riding in the same taxis. Life goes on.

Of the many experiences in Morocco the hospitality of everyone stands out to me dramatically. People are so open and welcoming. Another dominant impression is the busyness and congestion of life in the cities. The streets are filled with people, vendors, lights, and more. There are so many stimulae all together. Sometimes the sights, sounds, tactical experiences were overwhelming, but being back in the US I miss this rich human experience. The evening of conversation with Saadia was a highlight of our trip. Thank you. What hospitality!

Seeing the various cities and regions of Morocco was fabulous. I am so happy that we traveled by train to be able to see the landscape, towns, country work, and people from region to region. The north, central, and southern regions of the country are so different from each other. Tangier, Asilah, Fez, Rabat, Casablanca, and Marrakesh are each so different from the other that visiting them was the only way to get a feel for them. The other great part of the experience was visiting people in their houses, which gives a more complete feeling about a place.

The various Shabbats that we had in Tangier and the one in Marrakesh gave me some insight into the different practices of Judaism in the Moroccan north and south. Alia, the Azancots, the Levys, Rachel, and Victoria and Levy in Tangier and Mike Abitbol in Marrakesh gave us a chance to see Jewish life as it is lived in Morocco. In Tangier the importance of the Spanish tradition is so important, and in the south the importance of tzadiks and holy men and the reverence paid to them. The emphasis on law and its observance, but at the same time there is a flexibility in its practice.

The conference in Tetouan gave us the opportunity to hear the views of people dedicated to the Islamic path for a social and political design for the future of the country. Abdullah and Jimo showed the openness and hospitality of genuine humanness.

What a pleasure to experience Morocco. Vanessa, you have such an incredible network of friends and colleagues. Thank you for bringing us into it.

Eid al-Kbir (Feast of the Sheep)

2008-01-10T10:30:00.000-08:00

The Feast of the Sheep (Eid al-Kbir) is important across the Muslim world, and it is in memory of the experience of Abraham going to Mt. Moriah with Ishmael to make a sacrifice to G_d. As in Judaism after Abraham has bound his son to show his willingness to sacrifice his only son, a sheep is shown to him in the bushes, and that is the sacrifice. This event is memorialized in the Muslim world each year, and every family head is expected to buy a sheep and sacrifice it on this special day.

In 2007 this feast fell on Dec.21 Friday, starting in the morning and continuing through the next day, the 22nd. In the morning the father should go to the mosque to pray and then return to the house to kill the sheep.

The killing has to follow Muslim kosher standards. It must be killed quickly with an especially sharp knife cutting the throat and hanging it to allow all the blood to drain out. It is left hanging all day for that purpose. The head and feet are cut off, and the carcass is skinned. We also saw bails of hay being separated into smallish plastic bags, being sold a sheep food for those who were holding their sheep for the sacrifice. So, a mini industry appeared overnight to meet this need.

We saw sheep everywhere in the days leading up to the Feast. They were in pushcarts in the medinas, being taken from seller to buyer. Many were being led from place to place by tethers, and everywhere children were delighted to see them and enjoyed playing with them. We saw them in the backs of cars being taken home, and a friend encountered one in the elevator of his apartment building.

On the first day of the Feast, December 21, adolescent boys were in the streets with fires burning the wool off the heads and feet of the animals. This created a smell that penetrated the streets of burned wool and singed flesh. Almost all commerce closed down for the first day, and much of it was closed the second day. Finally, Marrakesh began to come back to life on the evening of the second day of the Feast. It is a religious holiday, family gathering, and feast, one of the most important holidays in Morocco, perhaps the most important.

Hillula in Marrakesh

2008-01-10T10:22:00.000-08:00

We were in Marrakesh for Shabbat which we spent with the Abitbol family, Mike and his mother. Mike invited us to Shabbat services with him, and we were at his house for Friday night dinner and Saturday lunch. Saturday night there was a Hillula for Rabbi Pinhas HaCohen, which we attended. Vanessa has described in on her blog with photos. We do not have any more photos of the trip from this point on because our camera was accidentally left on a train on the return from Marrakesh. Vanessa gives a good description of the Hillula. The link is:
http://vanessapaloma.blogspot.com/2008/01/rbi-pinhas-hacohens-hillula-in.html
Enjoy it.

Marrakesh

2008-01-10T10:12:00.000-08:00

We arrived by train to Marrakesh in late afternoon and took a taxi to the Medina. A man with a pushcart took our luggage and led the way through the winding streets to the Riad Hamza (i.e. house hotel). This was similar to the one in which we stayed in Fez in that it was an old house with an interior courtyard. This one had two rooms on each of four floors and a terrace on top. This was beautifully finished with elaborate tile work everywhere.

We went out walking through the plaza, which is a large open rectangular space probably of seven to eight acres in size. It was crowded with snake charmers, fortune-tellers, contortionists, and other street entertainment. We took a horse carriage ride, which took us into the new section of Marrakesh passed five star hotels. At one point as we stopped at a stop light, a small station wagon pulled up beside us with a sheep sitting comfortably in the back compartment of the car. For days now we have seen sheep being led by a tether through the various medinas, and we have seen them being carried in hand pushcarts. This is the first that I saw in a car.

Back at the plaza, we stopped for freshly squeezed orange juice at one of the many stands in the plaza. Others sold hot meals, others nuts and fruits. As it got darker more and more stalls opened in the plaza, bringing it to life at night. The plaza is surrounded by shops on three sides, and the lights from the shops plus those in the plaza itself make it brightly lighted at night.

We went into the medina passing the rows and rows of small shops with bags, shoes, textiles, clothing, jewelry, and the endless variety of other things. We stopped in antique shops looking at the incredible pieces that they had, especially elaborate work in leather and metal pieces. A couple of stores had Judaica pieces, ranging from yads and candlesticks to Torah finials and even Torah scrolls. We entered one store that had photos and signed statements from Andres Pastrana and Hilliary Clinton among other celebrities who had visited it.

Prices in Marrakesh are much higher that we have found either in Tangier or Fez. Marrakesh is also filled with tourists, which we had not seen in the other cities. This seems to be the tourist destination, and most tourists seem to be French and German. In contrast, tourists in Tangier are mostly Spanish. We met almost no U.S. tourists anywhere.

The Jewish Cemetery in Fez

2008-01-10T09:45:00.000-08:00

From the Blue Gate entering the Medina of Fez, we took a taxi to the Jewish Cemetery, which is located one block from the Royal Palace. It must be ten to fifteen acres in size and is surrounded by a wall. The entrance is through an iron gate.

Although the burial is in the ground, arched tomb structures are built above the grave. Plaques identify important rabbis and community people. These tombs are painted white, so that the the cemetery is a resplendent white expanse.

Gloria did still photos while I took video shots. We photographed and taped images of the various tombs including those of the Tzediks Yehuda ben Atar and Sol the Just. We also documented the tombs of Rabbis Avner Hatsarfati, Haim Cohen, and others.

There is a practice of burning candles at the tombs of the most holy people, and some have small chimneys for the smoke from the candles. Small candle chambers are built, usually at one end of these tombs, and they are black inside from the candle burning. This practice of burning candles for tsadiks exists only in the central and southern regions of Morocco from Fez to Marrakesh.

The largest tomb, which can be seen above with three onion-like spires, is of a young woman, Sulika, who had a dramatic but short life. Her tomb has the most candles, and it is totally blackened inside from so many. She was a beautiful young woman born to a Jewish family in Tangier. When she was fourteen, she was taken to Fez and came to the attention of the Sultan because of her beauty. He wanted to marry her, but since she would have to convert to marry him, she refused. Although she was threatened if she did not marry the Sultan, she still refused. At that point she was killed and buried in this cemetery. Everyone knows the story of Sulika and her steadfast Jewishness. She is greatly admired among Jews, and her tomb is the most visited one.

Aben Danan Synagogue in Fez

2008-01-10T08:55:00.000-08:00

In the mellah we went to visit the Aben Danan Synagogue, one of the best ones preserved here. It was a non-descript door off a small plaza. Passing through the entrance way the sanctuary opened up into a beautiful ample room that is well preserved.

The ark for the Torah was on the eastern wall with the Bima on the west facing the Torah ark. There are still two Torahs in the ark. The downstairs seats for the men faced inward toward the center. The women’s section upstairs was very small, and it was almost impossible to observe the services downstairs. Obviously, the women were not expected to participate much. The keeper told us to go out on the roof where we could see the cemetery, which we did, and we took photos and video from that perspective.

The mikvah is under the Torah ark, and we also went down to see it and photograph it. It is small. The large metal pot used to boil water and warm up the place is still there. The mikvah still has water. There is a hole in the floor of the men’s section that opens to the mikvah.

The Mellah in Fez

2008-01-10T08:14:00.000-08:00

Azziz arrived, and we left for the Mellah (the old Jewish Quarter). We left through a gate by the Casbah and crossed a wide open plaza to the outer gate of the Medina. We walked along the outer wall until we came to the back gate (worker’s gate) of the Royal Palace. Vanessa started to take a photo, and the military guards immediately stopped her and shouted at Azziz for not having warned her. No photos can be taken here, but the front ceremonial gates, which are rarely used can be photographed. Azizz quietly moved off to one side. He did not want to confront the guards. The business section of the Mellah ran alongside the wall of the Palace on the opposite side of the street. The Jews were always protected by the King, and their location literally alongside the Palace is a dramatic evidence of that. There are no Jews there today, and all of the shops are now owned by Muslims.

The houses and shops are still there, and Azziz pointed out that all of the houses in the Mellah have balconies facing the street and windows that open onto the street. In the Muslim areas the windows and balconies face the interior patio of the house, but none to the street outside. This is a dramatic difference in architecture, and it is readily apparent. We walked through the narrow walkways like in the Medina where two people can barely pass each other, and sometimes you have to turn sideways. House tower above these narrow walkways up to three and four stories high, so that the sun rarely penetrates them. We passed house after house where the hollow of the mezuzah was on the right side of the door. I stopped to put my fingers in many of them to remember the people who had lived there and who had felt that they had to abandon their lives there. To me there is a nostalgia and sadness to see the lives that could not be lived out fully in their place of origin and settled community because of the push and pull of cultural and politics. It is the human condition, but not a part of it for which we can be proud.

Mike's Cafe and the Hotel in Fez

2008-01-09T16:48:00.000-08:00

We arrived to Fez in the late afternoon, Monday, Dec. 17. Vanessa had called ahead and made a reservation in a “Dar”, a house hotel in the Medina. Abdul Azziz met us at the taxi stand and took our bags leading us into the Medina, which was crowded, and we had to push our way through trying to keep him in sight. He took us through a couple of small L shaped streets into a larger one and then turned off into another small one, leading up to the hotel. It had a small open courtyard covered by Moroccan tiles. Beautifully done. They led us up three flights of stairs to a terrace top room. It was cold, and we were freezing. After we left our bags we went down to the courtyard where Azziz waited for us.

He took us over to Mike’s Cafe Clock. On the street into the restaurant we passed a sign labeling the house as the one where Maimonides had lived in Fez. Mike is an English fellow who has recently opened this restaurant in a remodeled house, and it is beautifully done. He took us to the rooftop terrace where we could see the medrassa just across the street, which is the famous old one. The tower of the adjacent mosque towers above the rooftop terrace. We met Sara Kramer, a Fulbright student and friend of Vanessa, and we asked her to eat with us. Ricky, another friend came bay, so Mike's Cafe is a popular place with English speakers. Azziz came by to pick us up afterwards.

We walked down the long main walkway of the Medina passing the hundreds of shops along the way with everything from clothes and shoes to fruits, tools, etc. The shops are open until 8:00 or even 9:00 pm, and they open in the morning by 9:00 am or so. The medina was bustling with thousands of people. Men sell in the stalls, and they were either selling or sitting and talking with friends while they waited for customers. Others occupied themselves rearranging merchandise. Mothers and daughters examined fruits to buy or shoes or clothes. Other men walked from place to place taking merchandise. Men and women are rarely seen together. Men are in mens groups and women in womens groups.

Tetouan Center of Arts

2008-01-09T13:01:00.000-08:00

Tetouan is not only a beautiful city, but it is a center of arts and arts education. Tetouan is a white city with the nearby Rif Mountains towering above it. It is on the Mediterranean Sea, and the combination of the sea and the mountains makes it a striking city. In December it was cool and the wind was blowing every day we were there.

The School of Arts has a beautiful building, and we visited various studios, ranging from wood carving to leather working, embroidery, plaster carving, and metal working. The boys usually did not look at us and continued with their work. All of the girls were in the embroidery studio, and they were talkative. They were modestly dressed, and some even wore gloves, which amazed us that they could embroider with gloves, but their modest dress did not hamper the enthusiasm of their conversation and the joy of their laughter.

Gloria and Vanessa talked at length with the girls. One of them spoke Spanish, and she translated for the others who spoke mostly Arabic.

Tetouan synagogue and cemetery

2008-01-08T14:24:00.000-08:00

At noon we met Momo, the Director of Jewish affairs in Tetouan to go to the Bengualid synagogue in the medina and to the Jewish cemetery. The synagogue was of the revered Rabbi Itzhak Bengualid, and it served as his home and judicial court. “He was a modernist Rabbi who approved the entrance of the Alliance Israelite School to Tetouan in 1862, this was the first Alliance school in the world. It paved the road for the rapid Europeanization of the Jewish community. He is known as a tsadik and people come to his gravesite on the anniversary of his passing. One of the other synagogues in Tetouan's medina has been turned into a bathhouse, we are lucky this one was saved.” (http://vanessapaloma.blogspot.com)

We reached the synagogue following Momo as he wound through a labyrinth of walkways. Then, we reached a door in the long unbroken wall, and we entered. The small synagogue is divided between the men’s floor at ground level and the women’s floor, which is in fact a balcony that looks down from four sides. On the ground floor there is a niche with a curtain to the right of the bima where older or sick women could sit if they could not climb the stairs. The synagogue is quite simple, nothing like the ornate decorations of the Nahon Synagogue in Tangier.

From the synagogue Momo drove us to the cemetery, which he said included 35,000 graves, the largest in Morocco. It is huge. In the older section of the cemetery the stones covering the tombs have no writing, and he explained that the traditional practice was to not write information if there were descendants to carry on the name of the family. If there were no descendants, then a person’s information would be carved into the stone as a record of the end of that family line. Workers were building a small wall around the graves of three tzadiks. He also pointed out that people were buried facing Jerusalem, feet first. Laying that way, if the dead were to sit up, they would be looking in the direction of Jerusalem. Some graves were placed on an east-west axis as the main part of the cemetery became more crowded.

As we drove out of the cemetery, he drove through a poor section of town high on a hillside, and he mentioned that a number of the Madrid train bombing jihadists came from that neighborhood. Two articles in the New York Times have discussed this neighborhood and the issues of jihadism. ("Where Boys Grow Up to be Jihadis," Nov. 25, 2007. Andrea Elliott. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/magazine/25tetouan-t.html?_r=1&emc=eta1&oref=slogin
and "Bombings Leave Moroccans Both Worried and Confused," April 21, 2007. Ian Fisher.)

Tetouan Asmir Association

2008-01-08T14:15:00.000-08:00

Prof. Mhammad Benaboud arrived with Vanessa and Prof. Benjelloun from Rabat, and we drove back to Tetouan to the Tetouan Asmir Association for the preservation of Tetouan history and culture. We saw a review of the web site produced for the Association, and Vanessa sang Sephardic songs from Tetouan. The website is : www.tetouanasmir.org, and it gives an excellent coverage of the history and life of the city. It must be the best web-based introduction to a Moroccan city. Prof. Benaboud had organized a two day symposium on the cultural and political history of the city, and many of the participants were at this evening meeting.

We went upstairs to see the rest of the building. In the second floor conference room, they were Muslim marriage contracts that looked very much like ketubahs. The art around the text is Islamic of course. These marriage contracts were made by a local artist author from the early 1900’s in Tetouan. Apparently, these are not normally made in other areas. Prof. Benaboud invited us for dinner afterwards to a fish restaurant in Martiel, which is next to the sea. His wife and three other professors were in the group, and we talked long into the evening about the Association, Islam, Judaism, and the state of the world among other topics.

A visit from Abdullah and the last night of Hanukah

2008-01-08T14:02:00.000-08:00

Abdullah knocked on the door and came in to talk for a bit. He said that the medina was largely inhabited by Jews when he was small. Abdullah was born fifty years ago in the house where he still lives. It was the family house, and when his parents died the various properties that they owned were divided up among the children, and he was given the one in the medina. The four houses that are now in the gated complex were different when he was young. A Jewish family lived just to the south of him, next to the steps going up the terrace. They had eleven children, but he said that you never heard them. (I thought of course because they were always studying.) The family just below him at the corner going to the gates was also Jewish. So, there were three families, and two of them were Jewish. After the Jews left, he said that rural people moved into the vacated houses, and they did not have good modalities for city living. He said that when he retires he wants to move to the country because he likes the tranquility that it offers.

He told a story about years ago he had a rooster that had lived with him for some time, and he kept it on the terrace. When Peter built the house where Vanessa is living, the rooster disturbed him because it would crow in the early morning. He mentioned it to Abdullah, so he decided to catch the rooster and pen it up. He went to his roof-top terrace and tried to catch the rooster, which became agitated running around, and it flew over to Peter's terrace. So, Abdullah went over there to catch it with him, and as they were chasing it, the rooster took off flying and flew across the street into the old Jewish cemetery. It apparently landed there (four stories down) without hurting itself too much. He laughed hysterically remembering his rooster flying off Peter's terrace into the cemetery. They eventually caught it and brought it back, and Abdullah apparently made a good tajine with the rooster.

This was the last night of Hanukah, and Gloria and I went to the Casino (Jewish Club), which was having the last candle lighting. The Rabbi was there, as well at the Azancots and the key people from the synagogue. When we arrived, Abraham Azancot came up to us asking where Vanessa was. We told him that she was on the train coming from Casablanca where she had been giving concerts the last two days. He said that the last night of Hanukah was poorly planned since it had not included Vanessa to sing. He was clearly disappointed. The last candle lighting was brief and simple with the Rabbi lighting the candles. The men gathered around and sang, but the women stayed at the card playing tables. These were the last candles of Hanukah for this year, and they shined brightly.

Hanukah party at the Jewish Old Aged Residence

2008-01-08T13:50:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 9. Vanessa was singing at the Old Aged People’s Residence, and it was a super success socially with more people from the community than I had seen before. There must have been at least fifty people there in addition to the older people from the Residence. It quickly divided into two rooms with the women taking the room with the large central table, and the men separating off into another room with soft chairs. The women’s room was loud with chatter, soft drinks, bunuelos.

The men’s room was much quieter, and services were held there at the appropriate hour with the Rabbi leading. Even while the services were going on, the women continued talking and laughing quite apart from the religious activity. Vanessa was accompanied by Marcel and Haim Botbol, and they provided music that never quite gained the dominant attention of the gathered crowd.

The talking, especially by the women, was too much fun. Quite a scene. This was Hanukah, and toward the end of the event, candles were lighted by an older man I did not know. After the candle lighting everyone sang “Ocho Candelas para mi” and other songs.

Hanukah at Vanessa's house

2008-01-08T13:44:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, December 6, Vanessa had a Hanukah party planned, we spent the entire day getting the house ready, buying the food and drinks. Vanessa and Gloria were at Nelly's during the morning, I thought, preparing bunuelos. They came back early afternoon with none. They had acquired the ingredients, and Vanessa still had to go back to make them. That took the rest of the day. At one point I went by the Casino to buy more kosher wine for the evening’s event and sat talking with Maurice, the owner of the restaurant concession for a bit. While I waited, his wife had stuffed potato pastries prepared which added nicely to the offerings at the party. Well, on to the party…

We were not sure that people would actually come, but come they did, some 20-25 people, including all of the people Vanessa hoped would be there. Great success. Vanessa and Gloria did some serving, but only later did we realize that what they did not serve was basically untouched. So, the practice here is not to serve your self. You accept only what the hosts actively offer to you. Now we know. Good event.

Jews and Morocco

2008-01-08T13:29:00.000-08:00

December 8. During Maariv services I sat next to Leon Azancot. Leon leaned toward me to talk on several occasions. He asked how I liked Tangier, and I told him that I liked the Jewish community. He said that today it is nothing like it used to be. When there were thousands of Jews, it was really good. There were seventeen synagogues in the Medina, and there were marriages and social gatherings every day.

During the period of the Vichy government in France, the Germans were pushing the French to let them take the Jews of Morocco, but Mohamed V who was the king then said that Jews and Muslims were equally citizens of Morocco and that the Germans could not take either. He protected the Jews, and Jews appreciated that. As I read about this later, it seems that the Germans did plan or make certain preparations to built camps in Morocco to hold Jews, but they were never able to carry out those plans.

In 1967 the Jews of Morocco spent all of their time by the radio listening to the reports from the Six Day War. The Moroccan soldiers in the IDF won the 1967 war because there were so many of them in the army at the time, and they fought better than the others. When the IDF took Jerusalem, people were so excited. Everyone went to the synagogues still in the Medina and sang and celebrated, but after that it was a problem. The Muslim neighbors and clients stopped interacting with the Jews, and some even became hostile. Many people decided to leave Morocco then.

He said that during the time that Tangier was an International City it was very wealthy. There were many banks and more gold here than in Switzerland. He was in insurance, and he provided insurance on all gold shipments, so he knew the quantities that existed. The BMCI bank that is just across the street from the current synagogue has a huge basement, and it used to be filled with gold. But, when independence came in 1956, people took all the gold out of the country, and many Jews left. These are the things that Leon told me.

Nahon Synagogue in Tangier

2008-01-08T12:38:00.000-08:00

Avner, the administrator of the community, sent one of the Muslim workers to open the Nahon Synagogue for us to see and photograph. It is located on Rue Synagogue in the Medina, and as we walked along the streets arriving to it, our guide pointed out the other boarded up properties belonging to the community that had been synagogues. There were seventeen in the Medina. At one point we passed one of the three communal ovens that still function in the Medina. The oven worker was sitting there with the wood used to fire the oven. Today, only Muslim families bring their food to be cooked in the oven, but when Jewish families lived here, they also brought food, as we had discussed with Abraham Azancot yesterday on Shabbat.

The Nahon was the most beautiful of the seventeen synagogues, and he said that there could be two or three weddings a day. It was a busy synagogue when there was a large Jewish community in the Medina. More than a dozen chandeliers hang from the ceiling in a spectacle of light. One of the benches still has the name of the Garzon family, the name of Gloria's ancestors from this part of the world. In one photo Vanessa and Gloria are sitting together on the Garzon bench.

It has beautifully carved plasterwork in the Arab style as can be seen in one photo, and hanging on the walls in the upstairs women’s section are silk banners in Hebrew celebrating marriages and Bar Mitzvahs.

These banners are beginning to suffer from the non-archival conditions of the synagogue. Now, it is infrequently opened, but it could become an incredible museum to preserve the memory of Jewish life in northern Morocco. It was the best synagogue in Tangier, built in the mid-1800’s but not used in the last forty years. It was closed in 1967.

The Arab guide said that when there was a Jewish wedding or funeral, that the neighbors respected it. For a wedding people would rejoice, but for a funeral, everyone (Muslims and Jews) would close their businesses and doors as the funeral procession passed going out of the Medina to the cemetery. He talked about Jews and Muslims respecting each other and living together peacefully.

Shabbat in Tangier

2008-01-08T11:38:00.000-08:00

Vanessa and I went to the Shacharit service in which I was totally lost because of the Sephardic Siddur and extra elements in the service to which I was not accustomed. In traditional Sephardic fashion, women sit in a gallery on the balcony level, and they look down on the men during the service. They cannot approach the Torah, but from the balcony women stretch their arms toward the Torah. Hebrew is with an accent that is different to the one I am accustomed to hearing, and I had difficulty catching the words. After the service Vanessa and I went to the Azancot’s house for the study group, and we were invited to stay for lunch. An Israeli couple was visiting, and they were also there. The discussion was about the implications of the terms for setting pots on the fire for Shabbat. Azancot began with the terms as they applied to cooking over charcoal and moved on to the interpretations for cooking on electrical heating devices. We took ten to fifteen and even twenty minutes discussing the implications of different situations. We had dinner with the Azancots and spent the afternoon quietly reading. Gloria rested the entire day, hoping to be better by the next day.

We arrived late for the Minchah service that night, but I was called to the bima for the last aliyot. The Rabbi and his son, Meyer, always read the Torah. When Minchah ended, we sat for a short period, and I heard someone ask if the others had heard “it” yet. I thought they were listening for some bell that stuck a certain hour by which they were judging the end of Shabbat. Later, I heard someone say that the call of the muezzin making the sundown call to prayer is the signal of the end of Shabbat. When they hear the muezzin, they know the sun is down and Shabbat is over. The expression is that Shabbat is over “cuando el moro canta”, i.e. makes the evening call to prayer. At that point, they start the Maariv service, an interesting interdependence between the two religions. The singing is especially beautiful in the service. There is an interesting song sequence in which one man starts a song and another man picks it up and continues. Three or four may come into the song process eventually. If no one else does, the two will sing back and forth until it is completed. Each singer has a different voice style, creating a musically interesting shift of styles.

Havdallah is uniquely Moroccan. Meyer brings in a basket filled with mint leaves, and it is passed around so that each man chooses one or a hand full of mint. Many put the mint in the breast pocket of the suit coat. The basket is also taken upstairs for the women. Afterwards the candles and the wine, and Shemaya does the Kiddush sings the end of Havdallah. Everyone enjoys the aroma of the mint. After the completion of services, everyone leaves rather quickly, going to their respective houses. Sometimes I would find the wilted mint leaves in my coat pockets days later, reminding me of Havdallah.

The Synagogue keeper is a Muslim man, Mohammed and his wife. They live in the bottom floor of the Synagogue, services are on the second floor, reached by a curving staircase going up both sides to the front door. The Rabbi and his family live on the third floor. In addition to the salary from the synagogue, the Rabbi is the kosher slaughterer, killing chickens every second Wednesday morning, charging for the service. The Rebbetzin also does kosher catering for community events. The Rabbi is paid independently for some other tasks as well.

Alia and Friday evening dinner

2008-01-08T09:52:00.000-08:00

Gloria got a bug almost immediately, and she spent the first Shabbat (December 1) in bed. She did manage to go to Friday Maariv services and then to dinner at Alia’s house. Alia is a 98-year-old woman from the community who continues to live independently with the assistance of a live in maid/helper, Jimo, and the sometime assistance of Cristina, the Spanish nurse who has worked here in the Jewish Old Aged Home for forty years. There is also a second maid/helper who comes some days. Alia is both hearing and sight impaired, but she loves to hear stories and hear Vanessa sing. She has a great smile and love of life. This household of three women is indicative of life in Tangier. Living together harmoniously are a Jew (Alia), a Christian (Cristina), and a Muslim (Jimo). Cristina knows the blessings for the Shabbat dinner although she does not say them. Jimo prepares and serves the kosher food, but she avoids contact with the wine bottle. Her own religion of Islam forbids the use of alcohol, and she respects its central role in the Shabbat meal, but she avoids it. Alia has taught Jimo to make exquisite dishes of Moroccan Jewish tradition, all kosher. We did the blessing of the wine, and dinner started with a series of salad dishes, servings of fruits and vegetables almost like tapas. We did the blessing for each of the fruits, vegetables, and grains, as it was first served, which meant that we had a series of blessings during this first salad stage of the meal. After the salads, we did the ha motzi, washed our hands and started the main courses of the meal, soup, then fish, and meat. At the end of each meal at Alia’s house there was always a delicious dessert. The most spectacular one was a layering meringue, chocolate mousse, and meringue. What delicious tastes.

Arriving to Tangier

2008-01-08T09:49:00.000-08:00

On Nov. 28, we left Algeciras on the first fast ferry the next morning arriving to Tangier at about 10 am. Vanessa was waiting for us at the terminal. What a delight it was to see her. She bartered with a taxi driver to take us to her house, which was in fact only a few blocks away, located along the seventeenth century wall built by the Portuguese when they occupied Tangier. The taxi drove along the Rue Portugal, the same street along which the taxi brought Paul Bowles' fictional characters in the movie The Sheltering Sky. We would encounter the memories of Bowles repeatedly over the next few days and weeks.

We spent the day taking a look around the Medina and getting settled into her house. We stopped at the Little Socco at one point for tea and met Rashid, a local figure who knew Paul Bowles. Rashid does drawings, and in addition to his stories offered to show us his drawings next week. Back at Vanessa’s house we sat on her terrace and had another tea Moroccan style. Later, in the early evening we walked to the house of Jose and Nelly Levy who had offered to loan Vanessa and extra blanket because of the cold weather. We had our first experience with the wonderful hospitality of people that we would encounter again and again. They invited us in and offered us a drink. We talked about Colombia, Morocco, Israel, and the United States. Jose follows the news from Israel very closely and knows the details of Israeli politics. They live in a third floor apartment in a building next to the one that houses the Jewish Community offices. Both are engineers, and they have four sons, one in Madrid, one in New York, one in Miami, and the youngest is still in high school and lives at home. They told us about their sons, their appreciation of Vanessa, and of their dream of moving to Israel some day. Vanessa and Nelly have a study session on Wednesday evenings, so Nelly walked back to the house with us. She, Vanessa, and Gloria went to the third floor living room and studied until sometime after 11:00 when Jose arrived to walk Nelly home. In the meantime he had been doing work for his office.

The next day, Thursday, Vanessa had a morning French class, and we slept late, literally getting up when she returned at noon. After lunch we did food shopping in the market next to her house and literally came back to start preparing the food for dinner. Vanessa is enjoying her lifestyle immensely and is delighted with her house of four rooms, each stacked on top of the other, making it her tower by the sea. Her third floor living room has a beautiful view of the beachfront as it sweeps around the bay to the outer reaches of land on the east. A bit of the port can be seen through the trees to the left. It also overlooks the old Jewish cemetery of Tangier from the time when Jews lived in the Medina. We went to the Pasteur Blvd to an ATM to get money and then to a phone store to buy a cell phone for our use while we are here.

Lisbon, Portugal

2007-12-06T06:28:00.000-08:00

November 23, 2007.
Lisbon, the beautiful corner of Europe, that launched the West out onto the rest of the world. The memory of its history can be seen at almost every corner. The tomb of Vasco de Gama is in the Basilica of Belem, and the monument to the explorers/conquistadores pushes out to the water's edge in front of the Basilica. The giant monument several stories high has a line of explorers and priests surging forward toward the ocean, but the back side morphs into a cross to make sure that the ultimate meaning is not lost.