Traveling to Morocco during one of its incredible festivals is a great way to explore Morocco, haven an up close experience with people and better understand Morocco’s varied traditions. Visiting a festival in Morocco as part of a private Morocco tour can done year round given Morocco offers a wide…
Celebration is an important aspect of Moroccan culture. Morocco is an exciting and entertaining country that lays claim to cultural, historical and religious holidays and festivals. At any given point of the year there is a Moroccan city or Berber community hosting glorious festivities. Moroccan celebrations can last anywhere from a few days up to two weeks. The exception is Ramadan which lasts for thirty days. While Moroccans celebrate numerous Muslim and national festivals through the year, the dates for most of their religious festivals are based upon the lunar calendar. Therefore it is difficult to predict when religious holidays will fall within the western calendar utilized by most people in the world.
During Moroccan festivities, one can expect to encounter fasting, dancing and feasting – all depending on the type of holiday being celebrated. The Muslim festivals and religious holidays are traditionally observed by all Moroccans regardless of how long they last. They are also often observed by foreigners living in Morocco.
Some famous festivals are: the Almond Blossom Festival which marks the time when these trees bare their leaves in splendid shades of pinks and whites; the Festival of Roses in El Kelaa M’Gouna which gives way to thousands of blooming roses whose scents lingers all during the festival whereby the annual Ms. Roses is chosen; the Fes Festival of Sacred World Music, the Gnaoua Festival, the Timitar Festival of Agadir celebrating Amazigh (Berber) music and the Sufi Festival. Morocco’s leading festival that commands top attendance is The International Film Festival of Marrakech; for its attraction of film makers from around the world who flock to show their feature films and shorts. Every festival is an adventure and offers an opportunity to connect with locals to experience Moroccan culture. Moroccan festivals and celebrations are fascinating and immensely enjoyable therefore visiting during one of them can greatly enhance your trip to the country.
Ramadan in Morocco and other Islamic countries is an unusual time when in addition to heightened spirituality, a special atmosphere permeates the culture unlike the rest of the year. This is even more true when the month falls outside of the school year, as most of it does this year, 2010. Normal schedules are completely turned around during Ramadan, and people enjoy special foods and family celebration.
How does the Ramadan fast affect tourists traveling to the Imperial Cities, the Sahara Desert and other regions of Morocco during this high holy holiday? Can tourists eat or drink in public during Ramadan? This article should clear up the confusion on this issue for tourists, to explain the most polite solutions for tourist behavior at this time, and to assure tourists that there is no problem with them visiting Morocco during Ramadan. Because the Islamic calendar is lunar, holidays such as Ramadan advance by approximately ten days with each subsequent year. This means that Ramadan makes a cycle through the entire calendar of twelve months each twenty-some years. This year, Ramadan started on August 12th, 2010 in Morocco. The fast presently starts in Morocco at approximately 4:30 AM, and ends in the evening at approximately 7:30 PM.
Moroccan cuisine is the culinary star of North Africa. Imperial and trade influence has been filtered and blended into Morocco’s culture. Being at the crossroads of many civilizations, the cuisine of Morocco is a mélange of Arab, Berber, Moorish, French, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean African, Iberian, and Jewish influences. Moroccan cooking is enhanced with fruits, dried and fresh — apricots, dates, figs, and raisins, to name a few. Lemons preserved in a salt-lemon juice mixture bring a unique face to many Moroccan chicken and pigeon dishes. Nuts are prominent; pine nuts, almonds, and pistachios show up in all sorts of unexpected places.
As both a starting point and a destination for merchants along ancient trade routes Morocco developed a cuisine that has Arabic, African, French, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern influences. This blending of cultures and ideas makes Moroccan cuisine unique and often quite surprising. Extensive use of dried fruits such as dates…
Akin to Spain, bread in Morocco is a key component of any Moroccan diet. There is an ancient proverb, “manage with bread and butter until God sends honey”. This ancient saying affirms that there is availability of bread to all groups in Morocco. For example, the Berbers of the Rif…
Ramadan, considered as the most important holiday in Islam, happens on the ninth month of the twelve month lunar calendar followed in Islam. These lunar months are twelve days shorter than the Gregorian calendar, so Ramadan occurs earlier in each Gregorian year. During the year of 2008, Ramadan in Morocco,…
