Matt and Lisa Travel!

Blue Walls & Rif Mountains

mattandlisatravel — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 22:20:48 +0000

Chefchaouen, Morocco

Morocco

mattandlisatravel — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 18:59:18 +0000

Casablanca, Rabat and Fez in Morocco

Desert & Ocean of Morocco

mattandlisatravel — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 00:07:32 +0000

Sahara Desert and Oualidia, Morocco

Photos from Marrakesh and the High Atlas

mattandlisatravel — Sun, 30 May 2010 22:58:39 +0000

Now that we’re home and gainfully unemployed (we do make the most of our spare time!), we are going to try to post photos from earlier in the trip. Here are some from Marrakesh, during April 10-14.

Djemaa al-Fna, the heart of Marrakesh.

Djemma al-Fna, the Art Square, is the home of nightly markets, music and dancing. We were lucky to be there on a Saturday night, the most lively. We saw people devouring boiled sheep heads and snails, watched acrobatic dancers, and Matt tried in vain to comprehend Moroccan dialect (Darija) storytellers. We also saw snake “charmers” who sewed the mouths of cobras shut to get tourist money, leaving the snakes to slowly starve to death. Our hotel, where we slept on mats on the roof, was within earshot of the pulsing Gnawa beats all night.

Matt stepping into a cool room in the Bahia Palace.

We saw tons of architecture in Marrakesh, from medieval Arabic to French colonial. The Bahia Palace draws mostly from classic Moroccan, with zellij tilework, Arabic calligraphy, and green courtyards. We searched for the old Jewish quarter, but with most Jews having fled Marrakesh, the mellah is now mostly markets and artists.

Morning mist in the High Atlas.

Morocco is not as arid as most people might think, as the mist lingering in the mountains shows. And yes, they do have roads in Morocco!

Sheep and a mountain.

An ancient medina.

We are Home!

mattandlisatravel — Sat, 22 May 2010 11:35:13 +0000

That’s right, the ash cloud held off long enough for us to fly home to Michigan! We’re back! Neither of us have cell phones at the moment, but don’t worry, we’ll meet up with everyone we can. We will post photos from the last two months as we find time.

But wait, there’s more. In three weeks Lisa, Matt, and Lisa’s family will go to Alaska for over two weeks. The adventure never ends….

Jet Engine over Lake Michigan

Great Lakes, Great Times!

Ireland

mattandlisatravel — Fri, 14 May 2010 09:59:28 +0000

We’re currently in Gurteen, Co. Sligo, where Matt’s grandfather is from. We’ve been visiting a lot of family here and it’s been great. Before this, we were in Derry and Belfast, also visiting family. Everyone here has been spectacular and very welcoming. When we do finally post pictures from Ireland, they should be beautiful!

We are in Ireland!

mattandlisatravel — Sat, 08 May 2010 22:29:25 +0000

The ash cloud fortunately blew over just in time for us to fly to Dublin. Everything is great here – feels like home. More news later.

Portugal was Perfect, Presently in Paris, but Potential Postponing Poses Problems

mattandlisatravel — Thu, 06 May 2010 07:54:54 +0000

Well, our five days in Portugal went by way too fast. That country was really amazing, and we benefited from having three perfect hosts who really took time to show us around their cities. We went to Lisbon, Porto, Braga, and Penada-Geres National Park. Each place was full of great times and great photos, hopefully soon to come.

We are now in Paris, staying with a friend we met in Turkey. The world’s second-most romantic city (Istanbul, Matt claims, is #1) and our hosts are certainly treating us well.

But troubles loom on the ash-darkened horizon. Eyjafjallajökull (the real name!) volcano in Iceland has once again reared its ugly head, spewing yet more volcanic ash over Northern Europe. As of writing, Irish airspace remains closed. We are due to fly to Dublin for the highly-anticipated final two weeks of the trip in 12 hours. Stay tuned….

On Top of a Mountain in Portugal

Seville

mattandlisatravel — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 19:18:17 +0000

We are currently in Seville, enjoying the Feria de Abril. It is a huge city-wide festival with traditional music, flamenco dancing, and . . . bullfighting.

Bullfighting is 100 times more horrible than we thought it would be. Lisa is traumatized. Matt, after killing and plucking chickens in Italy, is now put off meat. Wow. Frankly, we´re surprised it´s still legal. It´s not that we´re squeamish – it´s just cruel.

Anyway, that was a shocking hour of our lives. Granada and Cordoba await us.

Just Arrived in Spain from Morocco

mattandlisatravel — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 20:18:32 +0000

Hola! We hope you enjoyed the photos from Italy, posted by guest blogger Caryn (thank you!). Lisa will upload some photos from her perfect stay on the farm when she can.

We just left Morocco after two amazing weeks there. A ferry took us across the Straits of Gibraltar from the Spanish enclave in Africa, Ceuta, to Algeciras. Next up: monkeys at Gibraltar and bullfights in Seville!

Watch for photos from Morocco when we get the chance.