Holidays in Morocco

I recently read a book called The Caliph's House where the author writes about his first year living in Casablanca after moving from the UK. I picked up the book knowing I would be visiting Morocco this December/January. One of the descriptions on the back cover says that Casablanca is "where Islamic tradition and African folklore converge". I am so excited to leave tomorrow to visit this seemingly foreign country with my family and friends. It will be interesting celebrating Christmas in a Muslim country... Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

More good food

I of course took the liberty to try some more good food in Switzerland. To go along with fresh croissants with nutella and nice creamy yogurt for breakfast, here is a sampling of the other cuisine:

Montreux tea with rum served from a boiling pot.

Gaufre with grand marnier and powdered sugar.

Pikeperch probably from the Lake.

Rosti with "raw ham" and egg.

Let it snow, Let it snow - In Switzerland

I made another trip up to our Swiss headquarters last week. There is something about snow and the Christmas season. They definitely go hand-in-hand. I was welcomed to Switzerland with a delay in Zurich as the connecting plane waited to be de-iced before taking off to Geneva. And the snow/rain/gray clouds continued in Lausanne throughout most of my trip. Regardless, that did not stop me from doing some exploring and wandering. This time I took a train around the east side of Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) to Montreux and walked 3km further to the Chateau de Chillon. Montreux also had a wonderful Christmas market with good food and trinkets which was most enjoyable to walk through. Although the holidays is often too commercialized, I think some of that helps set the mood for celebration of the season.