Lessons learned in Spain and Morocco

By Ana Tajuelo, September 7th, 2012

As September heralded a return to school, I found myself dancing through the aisles of Zellers throwing all manner of lunch-box containers and BPA-free water bottles in to the cart. Forgive me for sounding like an ogre but I kept my daughter home with me all summer long — a decision I began to regret somewhere about a month in.
We kicked things off with a bang by heading to Spain for a fortnight with the family. The two-week stay was most memorable for its sleepless nights. Their refusal to build with insulating materials such as cement made sound-proofing seem like a North American luxury. That, coupled with a garbage truck that passed noisily each morning at 2:30 a.m. had me popping Benadryl like a sleep-deprived lunatic.
Despite their reputation, Spaniards sleep less on average than most other Europeans as the modern pace of life has obliterated the siesta but kept the late bed-time. The economic crisis could be felt all around from sombre discussions with family members to driving past half-built, abandoned roads.
On the plus side, lodgings were cheap and our mood was festive as my father, in light of his recent nuptials, decided to host yet another wedding reception.
I have formally forbid him from every doing this again; a daughter can only give their parent away so many times and frankly, I’m out of wedding speeches.
With the fortnight over, my husband joined my daughter and I for the next leg of our journey. I am of the opinion that anything more than a weekend with family should really only have to be endured by the bloodline, and with that spared my husband the two weeks of madness that can only ensue when too many Tajuelo’s convene.
A short and cheap flight with RyanAir brought us a world away to Morocco. The weather mid-July hovers around 50 degrees Celsius, which is made bearable by drinking copious amounts of mint tea and a mixed fruit beverage called panache. The country proved to be a photographer’s dream and the food was marvellous. Shopping was nightmarish and subsequently we returned with few souvenirs.
Walking through the main square in Marrakesh, the Jemma El Fna, snake charmers would jump up and pull snakes out of their pockets, sending me careening into an oncoming barrage of scooters, a life-threatening menace worse than any potential food contamination you might imagine. The whole experience was quite overwhelming; the exotic sounds of snake charmers, the delicious smells of meat grilling over charcoal flames, incessant and aggressive sales pitches, monkeys being thwarted upon my daughter and handsome sums demanded in return for the photo op… Thankfully the rest of the country proved to be much more relaxing.
It is a Muslim country and therefore I was careful to wear trousers and cover my shoulders at all times but beyond that felt very comfortable and had no issues being a “Westerner.”
The diverse landscapes and culture make it a highly recommendable vacation spot but after eight days on the road we were ready to come home to our quiet lives. I am always hit with how fortunate we Canadians are; a solid economy, access to medical care and accepting of diversity.  One can only hope, and maybe even pray that with the current change of government we continue to do so and thrive economically.
Sadly, I have my doubts.
With the current state of the world, any blind-faith in our ability to remain economically stable by tapping into our vast network of natural resources while furthering the political agendas of the power hungry is to me a little simple. I have travelled and lived across this country from coast to coast. As interesting and exotic as other places are, Canada is the best place to call home.
Let’s keep it that way.

Ana Tajuelo is an entrepreneur, mom and highly opinionated individual. She can be reached at ana.tajuelo@hotmail.com