A Moroccan garden, and a tale of contrasts

They had been to Finland together.  He, the dapper former Moroccan minister of health, and she, the Morocco office director of an international organization. 

It was February in Helsinki that year, they remembered, as the bougainvillea climbed over their heads in his Moroccan garden.

With a pink and green Moroccan fountain glimmering nearby, they reminisced about how their coats had not been warm enough in the Nordic air.

 

Sitting in the dappled sunlight in their light cotton shirts, she remembered that the rosy cheeked Finnish babies had been swaddled in lamb fleeced strollers.

While the water rushed into his garden’s reflecting pool, she recalled the delicious fish caught through holes in the Finnish ice.

He told her that he swam twice a day in his stone-clad infinity pool.  In Helsinki, Finns of all ages had jumped into frigid lakes before walking into steamy saunas.

His white house and matching white flowers were a reminder of Finland’s pristine white snow.  The snow capped Moroccan Atlas Mountains many miles in the distance, an echo of the time they had once spent……… in a Winter wonderland.

   

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P.S. Hop over to Lalla Lydia's blog for a great round up of Moroccan cookbooks. Yum.

Comments

[Leslie]

As always....beautiful photos and stories....but aren't you "over here" now? Soon, I guess, after the magic slipper shopping is done :>).

[Liisa]

nice comparison between both countries and wonderful photos once again!

P.S. I sent you and email - hope it goes through to you this time

[Anna]

Winters in Finland are indeed severe, but beautiful. However, summer temperatures in Helsinki vary between 18 and 30 degrees, so our summers are lush, even if we don't have bougainvilleas. But with global warming, who knows? ;)

[heather]

beautiful pics, i love the way you tell stories.

[flutter]

so totally gorgeous

[Hope]

How absolutely gorgeous!

[Kathy here again]

Isn't it unbelievable who you meet in Morocco? Maybe foreigners have access to highly placed civil servants and other celebrities in Morocco, maybe Moroccans are just generally more approachable, I don't know, but it seemed like in Morocco I knew a lot of big shots and I certainly felt I must have been so special! Much more anonymous now!

[Persephone]

Fantastic juxtaposition. (Sorry, I just sounded like a complete wanker, but you know what I mean.) Also - that fountain. On my WORD, that fountain. I love those colors. I want to live in that fountain.

[Pam Aries]

DEAR GOD..these photos are fabulous! Yeah..who couldn't sit in this Eden and think fondly of Finnish tomfoolery!

[franki durbin]

you're such a poet. so lyrical. it's such an interesting way to capture the story. as usual, very nice photos :)

[Xander]

I was just watching an old James Bond movie on tv the other day (I think it was Never Say Never Again), and there was scene with an underground pool built into sandstone ruins. I was thinking what a refreshing combination turquoise waters and sandy colored stone were; it certainly works beautifully in this garden! -X

[ready2spark]

Get me on the first plane!

[Marianna]

Another great travelogue within a travelogue! How do you do it, Maryam!!

[Neutral Dwelling]

The post kept me intrigued- all the way through!

[Gillian @ Indigo Blue]

Snow is the last thing I think of with photos like these. Makes me want to swim!
ox
Blue

[Minerva]

I remember jumping in to the ice hole in a freezing lake AFTER going to a sauna, not before. :-)

[Houdac]

What a beautiful house! Thanks for sharing photos...the story is such a poetic one.
Hope to visit your guest-house soon. I'm sure it will be a garden of peace and a heaven of poetry.

[Lalla Lydia]

Maryam,
what a beautiful post, I hope you'll do more like this where we'll get a voyeuristic peek into the beautiful homes in Morocco -my only regret is that there aren't more pictures! What kind of camera do you use? -till next time, Lydia

[Mimi Lenox]

Great weaving of the imagination there, Miss Maryam.

[simon]

Bouganvillea:- I had a pink one and then it just died! Really weird! Its 35c here and I think a swim in that pool would be great!

[Azma]

Love the fountain and the cosy babies..

[Liberty Post Editor]

You tell the best, I mean the best stories.

[cruststation]

It's paradise, and I'm lost for words...

[Paris Parfait]

Yes, indeed what lovely contrasts. Beautiful photos of your colleagues' gardens.

[Karen Cole]

Yes,I'd like to know what camera you use, as well. Beautiful!

I haven't received my goodies from Italy yet. We shipped. I'll share when they come.