Mom' s marinated olives

Finally she delivered her secret recipe   ☺☺☺                  



Ingredients:

- Olives
- Coriander seeds
- Cumin
- Black peper/ salt
- Paprika
- Curcuma
- 2 Garlic cloves
- Harissa or hot paper if you like it hot
- Parsely
- Fresh coriander
- Olive oil
-  Water


 Put all the ingredients into cooking pan, add little bit of water, let everything on fire untill water is evaporated, mix it while cooking.

Ready steady, add some fresh parsely and coriander and serve cold.

The quantity of the ingredients is up to the one of the olives. One small spoon each, for the jar up on the picture.

Enjoy it

Charity and social volunteering

   The past 4 years when back home, i was part of social work as a volunteer. The first one was at Tazzanine association for orphan kids, i laughed and cried during those moments and my heart was broke at eachtime i sad goodbye to the kids.

   One thing i have  promissed, even if no longer physically present beside those  kids because of my job as a nurse , i will do my best to be still supportive.

                                                                  Tazzanine team
                                                 
                                                                  

                                     
                             
                                             

                                                                      My kids



       

  The association is situated at the main public hospital of Agadir, the kids have been found abandoned either on streets or  left by a family member at the association, due to life circumstances.

 The number of beds at the association is very limited as well as supplies,  this creates an inappropriate help and care.

  Let us help if we can;

 On top right of my blog, you will see a booking. com link, one trip or acommodation  reservation from you, is gonna go to the association.

  let's do this, you travel/ they get one extra bed and other supplies , it ' s win win situation  .


  Grateful if you can share around.


  Peace and love

My biography

I am laila from Agadir south Morocco, single and well surounded with friends and family :)

                                                       My story :

    
Baby me
 

                                                    My teenhood
                                                                                        

 After hight school , i left Agadir my home town to Paris for an Au-pair  adventure, for those who don' t know it , it is a cultural exchange program, 4 great years of my life a head as 20 years old young lady, starting with the Lazareff family:

                    

                                                 
  Later on i moved to Netherlands for an extra 8 years of adventure, where i kept on working as a nanny , taking care of expat kids and few dutch kids in the Hague city:

                    

During those 8 years, amazing people crossed my road, some became family and we shared strong moments together, fun fun fun :

            


There was a love and care around despite the hard time each one of us faced.

Time passed i decided to come back home and pass to my people what i have learned throught this journey so i have decided to became: 

                                                         

   I present myself again, i am laila an Ecofriendly nurse, who believes in mothers nature medicine and cure ;)
 
   I have decided to start this blog because my culture is all about natural remedies, tips and healthy recipes.
 
    It is also great way for me to help my community to develop there conditions, and  to promote products related to the region in one way , let the world know about there virtues and make it accessible to them in an other.
 
   Our region suffer from drought, most people live from tourism or fishing industries only . I wish to encourage those who are creative, who are courageous, i wish to see relief and smiles on faces.

  Let' s us be united, peaceful and caring.
                                                                 

Pick of the day

        Morning sweets,


     

     

       It' s 9H40 Am in Agadir, the sun is shining and 17 Degree selsius.

       Good breakfast means healthy body ,just had huge one :/

       Mint tea with a pinch of thyme, to prevent from cold

       Brown  bread with cheese and marinated olives my mother made, gonna get the recipe for you later ;)

      Yougurt with apple and spirulina.
 
                                                              Ready to hit the day

                                                                     Enjoy

Argan Oil

     Argan oil or golden oil named after it's color, is coming from south Morocco region, between Agadir and Essaouira. Due to climate change the trees are risking extinction,making the oil rare, 40 trees gives one litre.

 Both humans and animals get a good benefits from the nuts.

 Ps: - Tajine with Argan goats meat tastes delicious , the oil tastes like grilled nut so you can imagine the meat ;)

       - The region is very arid with poor economy, Argan gave an opportunity to local  people especially Housewives to create female cooperatives, helping the community to have better life.

                                               The process of the oil making


 The ladies cracking the nuts.
 After roesting the nuts, grinding and pressing them.


   Final result, golden oil contains Omega 3, 6 and vit E,   virtues are :

-  Protection from cardiovascular illnesses.
-  Reduces bad cholesterol.
-  Antioxydant.

Cosmetic use:
-  Anti acne and skin spots
-  Anti aging skin treatment.
-  Hear nourishement and protection from external aggresions (sun, wind...)


NB: Argan oil becomes toxic under cooking temperature, use it only as a dressing.

        The cosmetic one can not be used for consumption.

        The edible one is good for both, beauty treatement and cuisine.

Bonus:

                                                  Argan oil mask for dry hair

      - 1 banana
      - 1 yellow of an egg
      - 1  natural yogurt
      -  2 table spoons argan oil.

All in a blender, apply on brushed hear  and let it do the job for at least half hour.

Best is during hammam ( phase1) or while you are busy house cleaning.

                                                               Face treatement

Best applied at ( phase4) of hammam ritual as an evening anti aging treatment, you can add it to your night cream or use it pure.

                                                               Fast sun tanning 

To have a long -lasting tan during summer and the rest of the year, it is best to scrub the old skin out during Hammam session or shower before your first sun exposer, apply a mixture of 1 table spoon argan oil, 2 table spoons of carrot juice and a drop of lemon juice, spray the mixture  all over the body and enjoy your tanning.
                                                   
Don' t hesitate to contact me via email or facebook if you wanna order Argan oil, both cosmetic and comestible are available.

        Greatful to mother 's earth generosity, please give her some  love back ,  she will always look after you.   
       
                                                    

Hammam rituals

                                          


    Called also the Maurs bath or Turkish bath , Hammam is a ritual coming from the greco-romano era. However, it became an Arabo-muslim practice since  the arrival of the andalous and ottomans to  Morocco.

 
       This is a 14 th century Hammam in South Spain, Andalousia (Ronda).

  Islam is very keen on body hygiene, so back in the times when a visitor arrives , tree thing were by the entrance door of the city /village that are important to the  visitor comfort, accommodation, hammam and a mosque.

  The guest will begin with bathing, a protocol to protect the hosts from  germs picked along traveling, in the meanwhile to prepare for a prayer,  followed by food and accommodation to rest.

  Hammam is  3  rooms   from low temperature to the highest all the way inside , causing steams
wich is good for sweating.

   
  Now, we have Hammam in every neighborhood as it became more of a social gathering . Mine is behind my house walking distance,  i would invite my girlfriends for pajama party at my place afterwords :)

  It' s a quality time moment with myself an other, while busy washing/ scrubbing, i would be thinking of next article to present to you or next travel destination i would love to go to, when i go with mother, she would scrub my back and give me some advice on how to grow my hear faster , when with my BFF s, we girl talk obviously ;)

  Traditional Hammam rituals are divided to 4 parts: 

Phase 1: Go to the hot room for max 20 min to moisturize the skin with the steam, sweating is good for you as it activate the lymph system and kick out the unwanted cells. Apply black soap all over the body let it on for 10 min, apply moisturizing hear masque if you have dry hear, wash  the black soap and begin scrubbing the skin, this operation is repeated as much as dead skin still coming out.  You will keep the hear masque on till phase 2 and don' t forget to scrub the face  only with hands because of sensitivity of the facial skin. 

                                          

Phase 2:  shampoo time, make sure the hear is well cleaned from the mask. You might apply a nourishing hear and face masque , clean extra grease all over the body with natural soap and  feet scrubbing to obtain a baby foot sensation. 

                                                   

                                                  

Phase 3:  After washing the extra grease from the body, you may either cover all the body  with a clay called Guassoul ( photo bellow) and rest a little then wash with water mixed with hydrolats/infused plants, or skip the clay if no time and just make sure every part of the body is well washed.
                                                    

                                                   

  

  Phase4:Roll yourself in towel, dry out and apply a moisturizer cream to each part of the body to keep  soft the rest of the week. 

  These rituals take around 2 h  and half in total.

   If you come from a country where hamams don' t exist you can set one in your bathroom, make sure it is very warm and steamy with some technics, such as closing any air leak, filling the bath with very hot water, if you have a portable heater that could help too, make sure it is far from water thought......

   I will be providing extra tips for each phase to enjoy more of it, i like to take my time during this rituals and explore nature's gifts to my body and mind, some might be  impatient but i really advice to take it easy, relax and live the present moment, you are practicing self love at that point; so you will be rewarded.

   I am also going to share recipes of different kind of homemade  masques and  i will dedicate an article about the virtues of each ingredient i am using.

   If you need a Hammam set for your home containing all the basics like black soap, body and feet scrubbers, natural soap with natural ingredients, some hydrolats and more , u can contact me by email on the top page right and i will be happy to arrange a personal set for you.     


                                                             
                     
                                                     

The storytelling

   

  Before the  30' s there was no TV or Radio in my country.  There was the oral storytelling that triggered the imagination of all ages, this tradition is over thousands years old.

  Al Halqa
  The halqua is the storytelling circle,  usually composed of man gathering in a square or in weekly souks, the stories are passed on  later on evening to the rest of the family  after dinner.

  Once upon the time, people were simple and happy with no TV or smartphone, they gave each other love and time living the present moment, enjoying the fertility of there imaginations. I was fortunate to be born in between 2 eras of Morocco,  the old as i was  raised by grandma who taught me values , and the modern by a successful working mother who gave me tools to be independent and feminine.
 
  Grand ma was the last  sharing few bad stories coming from her ancestors because mother was busy going to school as a kid,  and working as an adult.  This is the cause  to  extinction of this form of art,  luckily few associations are trying to bring it a life.

   Time for me to share one of them with you, i hope you will enjoy it ;)
   
   The stone by the door:

  Once up on a time, there was a man who made so much money that he couldn't even count it, he wanted only to protect himself and his son but he is money could not stave off mortality.

  I am living you a fortune, he told the boy, and you must guard against those who are untrue. When

you decide it is time to marry, go to my old friend and ask him to find you a bride, he will find you the bride God has chosen.

   The boy promised he will do as his father requested, soon after this the father died.

   Time passed the young man began to long for love. He fulfilled the promise and visited the friend to seek his advice in finding a bride, the friend told him he will find the perfect one.

   Few weeks passed, he found a beautiful, wise and trustworthy woman. the young man was happy to hear this, and so they began to make arrangements for grand wedding.

  The day before the wedding the friend' s father told the boy, in order to discover whether God has chosen this woman for you, you must go to her room tonight. You will find a stone outside her door.
If you can move the stone, you will know that she is the chosen one, if not you must send her back home.

   That night the boy went to the woman' s door, and he heard a singing voice coming from the inside.
charmed right a way he knew this must be the woman for him, for the song sounded like one he remembered from his childhood. His heart raced as he entered the room and saw a lovely woman dressed  in silk robe. She was elegant just as his mother.

   He reached down to move the stone, but he couldn 't move it even an inch as it was too large.He understood that this bride would have to return to her family.

   The friend arranged the 2 end bride to be, the wedding date was set and she came home to get ready, so same stone test needs to be repeated to see if this is the bride God has chosen for him.
 
   The Young man approaching the door, he heard a harp playing, when he peered into the room , he saw a woman as beautiful as the one before, her fingers dancing across the strings, and when she began to dance, he knew she was the bride for him.

   He reached down to move the stone and once more he could not. He is sad and the bride returned to her family.



   For the 3 erd time, the friend introduced a bride though by now the Young man is discouraged. He knew that this woman will be beautiful, wise and kind but what if he could not move the stone again?
  Must he live forever alone?

  Having this sad thought, he moved slowly to the bride' s room and again he heard that child  hood song for the 3erd time, reminding him of climbing trees and swimming by the river and dancing among friends, this time when he looked into the room, he saw a woman dressed in peasant clothing, long black hear and almond eyes.She was sewing a kilt as she sang.

   As he listened, he realized that all the 3 brides could have been the same woman, beautiful, wise  and gentle, someone who could be a friend. But when he reached down to move the stone, once again failed. he was about to weep when a sudden voice said " let me help you"

   The woman and the Young man both reached down to the stone and together they easily moved it a side.

    Then he knows she is the one, and she knows that' s the love God meant for her, moreover they understood that finding love is not enough but working together thought life heaving problems and being able to pass them a side together is the most important to a healthy relationship.

    Time for me to go and look for mine, take care ❤
 
   

Recipe: Bissara

  Good day to you all,

  Because it is  winter, i am going to share  a typical winter dish that all Moroccans fancy as soon as we feel the first chilly breeze,  called Bissara.

  

  Little bowl of this beans soup at any time of the day even at breakfast time, gives you a warm  advanced fuel kick to the day.

                                                                                                                                                                    

   Ingredients:

   

  8 people; 

400 g   green beans

    6      garlic gloves

    2 L  water

            Salt

            Cumin

            Paprika 

            Olive oil

NB: If using dry beans,  make sure to soak them in water 12 hours before start the cooking, dry beans seems to be better as it avoids flatulence ;)

     

        If you have a pressure cooker that is better in order to save time, if not normal cooking pan do the magic.

    1/   Beans, Garlic cloves,  water, salt and cumin  all in the cooking pan, let the temperature raise to the boiling state,  lower the fire, close the pan and let it cook until the beans are melted.

    2/   Mix all of the above in a blender till creamy then bring it back to fire, add olive oil and spices to adjust and serve in beautiful bowls. 

    3/ Extra olive oil, cumin and paprika for serving decoration is recommended for the eye eaters :)

   

 Et voila bonne appétit   ❤❤

  Feedbacks about the recipe are welcome :)

    

The guests customs and food talk

 Mom 's advice: the shortest way to mans heart is his stomach 

 A friend : when the belly is full she asks  the head to sing

And the food talk go on and on as it is the case in any mediterranean mentality.
 
   In Morocco,  food takes big place in the culture, at first  inviting people home for lunch or dinner means full table, from the arrival moment of the guests we serve mint tea with dried fruits and appetizers  until the meal is ready, we never make the guest wait., while the guests are socializing with dad, i sneak to the kitchen to help mother.

  Local way of meal serving

Before serving food, guests must wash hands so we don' t send them to the bathroom, we bring the      water to them in this beautiful art peace called Magussel.       

  As a community mentality, everyone eats  from the same big plate in the middle of the table considered main dish , around it starters to refresh a side and lot lot of bread when needed.
  
 

At last we end up with fruits such a way, one plate each table if lot of guests:         


Tea time 

  That' s the time we gather girlfriends around yammi sweet creations and let our senses travel while sipping mint tea, fruit juice or coffe cream , the time we talk about  how to flirt with a man or let him think of us all our life, the time we share a cake recipe one of us has made today, time to share more and more female secrets to keep beautiful from the in and out.

 That's the kind of meeting i would love to create with you, that' s the kind of secrets i would love to share , till then with love and care.

ma salama


   

 
 

My Morocco of now

  Well well well, so much to tell ☺
 
   Of course just as any country who is economically open to the rest of the world, modernity and  capitalism did it 's magical touch on the country, so we find this :




 
     And this :  


                                                                     

    You might meet this lovely little one transporting some goods or someone home though:


   Cute as he seems the authorities couldn ' t do without  he is services and would let him park for free in between cars sometimes :)

    That is the beauty of this land, modern and old rubs in perfect symbiosis, on the highway you might cross villages such as :










      Or in city such as Marrakesh, Essaouira and more we find   streets like :

                    

   That' s how rich  the country is, but that' s not it, let me talk about the ethnicities and there languages now.

   Referring to the article ( bit of culture) the morocco of now speaks 2 mother tongue languages,  Arabic  and Berber in addition to 2 ed languages  French in some parts and Spanish in other,  English as 3 erd is on the way :) 

  The arabic speaking people have different dialects depending to there origins, for exemple:   the sahrawis or the nomads or Desert people, they speak hassani dialect, North people speaks shamali dialect and it goes on....

  

   Berber is divided to 3 , Amazigu, Achelhi and Rifi. 

   I believe that, the above  makes anyone wants to discover more of the mystical land and get to the details of the morrocan art of living, i will not be late then  speaking about the charm of  the main cities in here :)   

     

   Welcome to my warm hearted land anytime....

                                        

   

   

Bit of History

  Close your eyes and let me time travel you, meet my ancestors and try to understand that a moroccan is  many ethnical person ;)

   1 - Berbers were  the original people of the land with a mediterranean origins since more then 9000 years ago, they were known as good warriors and named the maures by the first phoenician invasion  who helped to develop economical and administratif structure,  later on they were kicked out and the romans took over the friendship with the berbers helping them extend in north africa then they took over full power from the berbers in the year 40, then the vandals followed by the bizantins,

   the picture presents a typical beber yong woman , wearing a local jewellery:

2-  At 647 years, Oqba Ibn nafee born in mecca became the first founder of Islam in north Africa by defieting the bezantines and making the moroccan berbers convert to islam mostely by 704,  arabs from the oriant settled in Morocco by then.
  The picture presents an bourgoie from 1930.

4- Jewish communities has been always part of the land coming with the bizantins and still with us till this day :

5- Christian minority exists since the roman times and still  extending, Marrakesh church above:

6-  45 years of spanish and french protectorats since 1912 till late 60's, giving  Morrocans first  access to a real education, in the picture young people on there way to work:

7- me the fruit of all above hhhhhh

Me and my culture

    Hello free souls ,

    I am laila from south morocco, city called Agadir .
    I am here to share various subjects related to my culture and it' s art of living.  Each time i will pick a theme either  about food,  beauty,  travel tips , art crafts, local dancing tips and history, and more to come.

   The purpose of sharing in here is to give a chance to the world to get to know about the richness of my background,   to tell  the little secrets to the Moroccan cuisine,  how we keep our skin/ hear looking Young with natural homemade recipes, how we charm our man life long no matter the age ...... believe me all of this, is an oriental art passed from a mother to daughter that works for generations.
 
  I will try to take you to an oriental/north african  journey and make it possible for you to smell  and taste it while at home, so let' s the adventure begin....... ❤