"Rabat. She is a pretty city."

At your suggestion, I've decided to jump back and forth between Iceland and Morocco. I still have quite a bit to say about both of them, so I hope you don't mind if I run a bit hot and cold.   Today, we're back to Morocco and I have the sweetest Travel Moment to share with you.  

We left the vibrant city of Fez on a very busy travel day.  There was some confusion and we ended up getting on the wrong train.  We were going to the right place, but were not on our scheduled train.  This meant that there was a rather loud and confusing game of musical chairs going on as the train left the station.
 

We finally got settled into seats for the 2 1/2 hour journey to our next stop, the capital city of Rabat.  There happened to be one empty seat in our small coach and a Moroccan father gently instructed his teenage daughter to join us.  She looked nervous but obeyed him quietly.

She sat down and took out her schoolbooks.  The other five of us began discussing our next stop.  Dee started sharing interesting facts about the capital city of Morocco which is also the official seat of the royal family of Morocco.

The shy young girl next to me pretended to be studying but I could tell she was listening to us intently.  Suddenly, she looked up and bravely blurted out  "Rabat.  She is a pretty city."  She had a huge smile on her face.

She said something in French, but I didn't understand and asked her to repeat it.  She thought for a minute and then beaming, she said "Welcome to Morocco."   We smiled at each other and I got that tickle behind my nose that I get when I'm trying not to cry.  Then she quietly said "I like your accent" and turned back to her studies.  Best welcoming committee ever.

Rabat is a modern and beautiful city.  It's my favorite of the ones we visited.  It felt like a European capital but with an exotic twist.  The city has very good public transport including a tram.  It's clean and cosmopolitan, modern structures mixed in with colonial architecture.  We saw more casual dress mixed in with the traditional and groups of expensively dressed, young people going about their city life.  We spent the day with a wonderful guide and visited several very important and picturesque places.  

Dar El Makhzen - Palais Royal Rabat

The Palace Complex is the official residence of the King of Morocco.  Mohammed VI along with his wife, Princess Lalla Salma and their two young children live here. Morocco is ruled by a social and constitutional monarchy.  The title of the King, or the Commander of the Faithful, is a hereditary title passed from father to son.  They Royal Family also has a private family residence outside of the city.  

With distinctive flowing, red curls, Princess Lalla Salma is known for her stylish beauty.  She is the first wife of a Moroccan ruler to be publicly acknowledged and given a royal title.  She studied as a computer engineer and met her husband in 1999.  They were married in 2001. 

Mausoleum of Mohammed V

Mohammed V, the current King's grandfather, is buried here along with his two sons, late King Hassan II, who ruled from 1961 to 1999 and Prince Abdallah.  The distinctive white building is covered with a green tiled roof, which is the color of Islam.

 

Hassan Tower

In the same complex as the Mausoleum, you will see the Hassan Tower made of red sandstone surrounded by 200 white columns.  The tower stands at 140ft which is only half of the intended height of 260ft.  Construction of the mosque was started here in 1195 and the tower is the incomplete minaret for the mosque.  It was intended to be the largest mosque in the world but construction stopped in 1199.  

Kasbah des Oudaias

The Kasbah in Rabat has a completely different feel from the others we visited.  With clifftop views of the Atlantic Ocean and the cool blue colors, it felt much calmer.  It was smaller and less crowded.  It's a mostly residential area with narrow alleys and steps.   We stopped at a cafe, sat outside overlooking the ocean and had some mint tea and traditional sweets. 

Ruins of Chellah

The Chellah is a complex containing both Roman and medieval ruins as well as extensive gardens.  We walked the winding pathways amongst the fruit trees and beautiful rose bushes, taking photographs of the many storks and cats that now inhabit the necropolis.  It has a romantic, ancient feel about it, with storks soaring overhead and crumbling stonework and tiles underfoot.

According to my travel notes, we heard the phrase "Welcome to Morocco" several more times in Rabat.  It's a gorgeous city and probably the Moroccan city I'd most love to spend more time exploring.

Which city in Morocco did you feel most welcome and would love to revisit?

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The Magic of the Northern Lights in Iceland

You know I like to do things in chronological order, but I'm just going to cut to the chase here.  

On our last night in Iceland, we saw the Northern Lights!!! Pinch me.  I can't even believe it.  

I planned our trip down to every detail and everything worked to plan.
However, I knew that seeing the Northern Lights was completely up to chance
and I didn't want to get my hopes up.  If we saw them, great!  If not, then maybe next time.

So, I didn't really think much about them.  Right before we left I took a peak at a forecast website and saw that we might have a slim chance while we were there.  I printed out some instructions on how to photograph them.
I packed my tripod and my remote for the camera.  Still, I didn't want to get my hopes up.

Each day we would walk by the hotel reception and see the signs for the Northern Lights Tours.
We knew that we had a ridiculously early flight in the morning and should get to bed early.  We knew that chances were we wouldn't even see anything.  It was extra money that we hadn't really budgeted.
It meant 3-4 hours of standing in a freezing field in the dark. 
Do we take a chance?

We're in Iceland.  We'd be crazy not to.

Wow!   Where do I even start?  It was the most amazing thing I've ever witnessed.

We opted for the 7:30 tour with Reykjakic Excursions.
The tour was 5,400 ISK or about £30 per person. They picked us up at our hotel.
We boarded a small bus and headed South towards the airport to see what we could see.

Our guide was the very exhuberant and wonderful Ragga.  She told us that the previous night had been pretty amazing and she was hoping for another great night.  She explained the phenomenon of the Northern Lights and told us what to look out for.  We were instructed to shout out if we saw anything.

Aurora Borealis don't usually look like the bright green ribbons that you see in photographs.

The color shows up after a 20 second exposure of a camera lens.  To the naked eye, it often just looks white or greyish.  A few of us pointed out a spot over the horizon to our right and Ragga confirmed our sighting.
That was indeed the Northern Lights making an initial appearance.  This was a good sign.

Our driver turned off the main road and headed away from the city lights.  We parked in a field and all piled out of the van with our camera gear.  I basically handed Matt the instructions and the camera and said "You do it."
(When the camera is on Manual, I might as well have a cantaloupe in my hand.  I just can't get it.) 

And here's an important tip.  Figure out how to use your new tripod before you are in a dark field with frozen fingers.  One of the locals came over to offer us assistance.   He was adorable and even tried to get into the van.

 
Once we knew what we were looking for, the lights were pretty easy to spot.
They were mostly greyish but when they really got going you could see the tinge of green.
The colors that appear are based on how high up in the atmosphere whatever is happening happens.
(Do you like that technical explanation?)

The most common color is green, but Ragga teased us with the possible sightings of more elusive colors.
Pink, purple, yellow, blue and red.  Things were looking promising for something other than green.
As the lights show slowed down in this spot, we loaded back up into the van to get warm and head to another spot.

At the second location, the clouds were clearing and you could really see the lights all around us.
A streak across the sky in one direction.  Wide bands of greenish light extending across the sky directly overhead.
In another direction, a line of vertical lights marching across the sky like soldiers.

By now Matt and I were getting the hang of the camera.  These photos aren't great
but I'm just thrilled that we even got them!  It was so exciting to see them on the camera display. 
And the green color was now definitely visible to the naked eye.

 We were on the early tour on a small bus, the later tours were about an hour behind us.
Word must have gotten out as to the views we were getting, because soon two big, honkin' buses showed up.
A hundred people piled out of the buses and into the field, eagerly setting up their tripods to capture the show.

By this time we had some great shots and were pretty smug happy with how lucky we had been.
Plus, body parts were starting to go numb from the freezing temperature.
We got back into our van and left the buses as the light show started to die down.
I could not have been happier with what I'd seen.  Little did I know, Iceland had a little finale planned for us.

We were back on the main road heading to Reykjavik and a warm bed.
I couldn't help but notice a very bright band of activity off to our right that seemed to extend forever.
The radio on the bus started to buzz with activity.

Ragga said "I think we should pull over.  Something is definitely happening over here."
We pulled off onto a very well-lit roundabout right off of the highway.
Even with all of the street lights, the activity was so visible.  We just put the camera on auto and clicked away.

Things slowed down again so we packed up all of our camera gear and were getting ready to leave.

Suddenly, the lights kicked off again directly above us.  We were fumbling to get everything back out.

About that time, three buses pulled up next to us just in time for the crescendo.

 We forgot about getting a photograph and just experienced the moment.

It was like a scene out of Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

People standing about, staring up into the sky with mouths agape, voices exclaiming in wonder.

It's so hard to describe but I'll try.  It was like a curtain spread out before us.  The curtain  was made of little mirrors and pieces of glass reflecting bright colors.  The green that we expected but also some pinks and purples.  Everything was moving and changing.  It seemed as if a wind was blowing across the curtain and setting everything ashimmer.  Now I know why they say that the lights dance.  They were definitely dancing and i wanted to dance with them.

Without looking away, I kept touching Matt's arm and saying "Oh my God.  Do you see them?  Do  you see them?"

In classic Matt, he said "I'm standing right here."  Most of us were in tears and breaking out in goosebumps.

It was pure magic.  I sound so dramatic, don't I?

Reading this back, I feel a bit silly and inadequate in my recollection.

But, I don't ever want to forget what it looked like and felt like.

This is now my top Travel Moment!

Ragga was kind enough to send me some photos that she took that night.

The one of the goat and this one.  I wish our photos were as good as hers.

Everything is sharp and she captured the twinkling stars.

She was absolutely giddy that night and it was so contagious.

She declared it one of the best nights she's experienced in the two years that she's been guiding these tours.

She happily claimed tears and goosebumps, too.

Travel in Iceland isn't about historical buildings and man made wonders.

It's all about the earth and nature.  It's about  geysirs and waterfalls.

Bubbling earth and lava flows. Glaciers and mountains.  Ice and snow.

Black sand and green moss.  And magical light shows against a black sky.

I know I sound like I'm being dramatic.  But, I've never seen a more dramatic place than Iceland.

I can't wait to tell you more about our time there.

Have you experienced the Northern Lights?  I'd love to hear about it.

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#LDNBloggersTea at The Royal Horseguards

To use an expression that is all too quickly on the tip of this Southern girl's tongue,

I'm just tickled to death at how the second #LDNBloggersTea turned out!

When I first moved to London during those really rough, transitional months,

I attended a tea planned by Laura at Happy Homemaker UK.

It was a turning point for me.  It showed me that I would make new friends.

It also showed me that bloggers are pretty awesome

and when you get a group of them together, laughter is shared

and connections are made.  We just can't help ourselves.

This is why I've started planning these quarterly teas,

for purely selfish reasons.  I get to have a lovely afternoon tea

AND I get to meet some special people.

Here are the ingredients for the perfect #LDNBloggersTea.

A personalized menu listing the wonderful treats that were in store for us.

An attentive staff that quickly took care of every need with a smile.

Terrace views of an amazing, sunny day along the Thames.

Delicate, pink china that made us all feel like royalty.

The elegant Royal Horseguards Guoman Hotel.
 A private room with tables lovingly set for twenty.

Red roses and hand-tied pink ribbons.

A complimentary glass of bubbly.

 And, finally, two words,

 Chef Ben.

Chef Ben was as excited as we were about this event.

He was all over twitter and so was Louise, their pastry chef.
He greeted many of us personally and proudly talked about the exceptional tea they 
offer at the hotel.   The welcome that we received from this venue was over and above.

And the food!  Oh, the food.
They were easily able to accommodate Gluten-Free, Vegetarian and Dairy Free options for  several of us.
Of course, all of it was accompanied by the most amazing tea.
I think I had about four cups of the pomegranate infused special blend.

The sandwich selection included Coronation Chicken, Cream Cheese & Smoked Salmon,

Hummus & Cucumber and Roast Beef and Horseradish.

Next came freshly cooked scones with clotted cream and jam.

There is still a debate raging on twitter as to whether it's cream first or jam first.

The sweets included Lemon Meringue Cupcakes, Mango Curd Tarts, Meringue Lollipops,

Pink Peppercorn & Strawberry Genache Stripy Macaroons.

The "After Eight" Shot glasses were a big hit.

And my absolute favorite was the Banana Roulade.

I might have wandered over to some of the other tables to see if there were any left.

The the true stars of the show tea were the twenty ladies sitting at these princess, pink tables.

You should stop what are doing right now and visit these nineteen blogs.

Runaway Kiwi
Sunny in London
Meg-Made
Wife School
Two Feet, One World
Passport and Toothbrush
Urban Pixxels
Sweet Serenity
Little Big Bell
{Erin Out and About}
Adventures of a London Kiwi
The Afternoon Blog
More Than Just a Cupcake Lover
Jess-on-Thames
Office Breaks
Happy Ever After Bride
Eat, See, Do
Love and London
Kiwi Footprints

I went home beaming with happiness.

I didn't get to spend nearly enough time with each of you, but I now consider you friends.

I look forward to seeing you all again and getting to know you better.

I hope you each had a fantastic time and made some wonderful connections.

I don't know about you, but I've already finished off the decadent truffles they sent home with each of us.

Sweet treats, sweet smiles and sweet new friends.

All ingredients for the perfect #LDNBloggersTea.


If you are looking for the best London Afternoon Tea,
look no further than The Royal Horseguards Award Winning Afternoon Tea.

Don't just take my word for it.
Check out all of the other posts about the Tea that are linked up below.

With a room full of bloggers you can only imagine the amount of photos that were clicked!

The next #LDNBloggersTea will be Saturday, May 17th.  Be sure to mark your calendars.

Just send me an email at selena_jones@me.com to get on the mailing list

for all of the details.


Would you like to join us for #LDNBloggersTea?

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