Gabbi Goes to Morocco

Dream of Trespass by Fatima Mernissi explores her childhood perspective growing up in Fez, Morocco. The novel, which takes place during the 1940s, includes many stories about how numerous family members influenced her ideas about gender and equality. While Mernissi discusses a wide variety of themes, the themes within the novel revolve around gender differences and inequality. Theme 1: Space, Architecture, and Boundaries The architecture of the harem, or traditional Moroccan home, served as the physical structure that separated men and women. Within the harem, there is a courtyard that is located directly in the center that is often decorated with gardens and fountains and even more important, natural sunlight. The courtyard was surrounded by arched colonnade that was supported by four columns; each had marble on the top and bottom. Moreover, a gigantic gate protected each courtyard (4). On all sides of the courtyard were salons. In the book, Mernissi explains that each salon

During my D-term trip to Morocco, it is hard to pick just one place that I want to visit! However, more than anything, I want to visit the Moroccan Medina in Fez. I chose the Medina of Fez because of the historical significance and cultural past ( see image below ). A Medina is the old part of the city that is often found in many countries in North Africa. The Medina is typically walled and contains narrow streets, fountains, and mosques. The Medina is often times car-free because there is not enough space for cars to pass in the alleyways. The word Medina means city or town in modern-day Arabic. The Medina of Fez ( see image below ) is located in the lowlands between the Rif and Middle Atlas mountain ranges in Northern Morocco.  The Medina of Fez was founded in the 9 th century and is home to the oldest university in the world, University of Al-Karaouine . The Medina holds numerous monumental buildings and the memory of the capital that

One aspect about going to Morocco that I look forward to the most is the food. Reading about the culture and the cuisine that we will be immersing our selves in has made me even more excited for D-Term. While many Moroccan dishes appeal to me, one dish that I want to try above all else is chicken bastilla ( see image below ) The name bastilla comes for the Spanish word for pastry, pastille . Chicken bastille is usually served after small plates of fresh salads and before the tagine with meat. Bastilla is a pigeon pie that is often made for special occasions in Morocco such as holidays or weddings. A thin pastry leaf called warqa (see image below ) that is sprinkled with powered sugar and cinnamon on top surrounds the pie.  In order to create the warqa pastry, the spongy dough is slapped against a hot convex sheet of metal called a tubsil  (see image below)  . On the inside of the warqa, there is a savory saffron chicken that compliments the pastry and almond topping.