The Kasbah Chronicles/June/July 2024 first published in July 2011! Free

More on my extraordinary medical mission to the Peruvian Amazon; looking ahead to Namibia; reflections on volunteering at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles; a refreshing fruit soup recipe;

Musings in English and en français

The Kasbah Chronicles: since July 13, 2011...This is July 4^th, 2024 edition: It’s summer! Bitter Sweet: A Wartime Journal and Heirloom Recipes is on Amazon.com and at select bookstores around the US. volunteering at the 1984 LA Olympics; and volunteering at medical mission to the Peruvian Amazon;

Why am I still writing The Kasbah Chronicles after 12 years? It’s the process.

A recipe:  Chilled Lilied Melon and Mango Soup

Links of interest: food, travel, and more

For sale: Moroccan items from Kitty’s personal effects

Musings:

Late again, or should I say, off schedule; I have tried several times to stand up at my computer and write my “monthly” Chronicles, only to stare at my screen and decide I was too tired, too hot; too busy; lacking in inspiration... you get the picture.

Excuses and more excuses. Thus, that led me to wonder: Why do I keep doing it? Are readers really interested? My answer: It’s a compulsion; it’s the process of writing, of revisiting literally, places I have been, of singling out people, of traveling without leaving my office ; it’s wanting to share these experiences with you. I think long and hard about what to include in my newsletter and, when I am inspired, I spend three days writing and editing. Typos and mistakes do occur, and I apologize.  I feel compelled to write about an exciting new product (usually food related!); I love sharing unique experiences from my travels (and my last trip to the Peruvian Amazon held plenty of those!)

So I thank you all, once again, for sticking with me, even though the Chronicles are fewer and farther between. Could advancing age be a factor as well? Hmmm.. another excuse.

I am off for 3 weeks to Botswana and Namibia in August—why? you ask: because it’s there! Because I want to visit its pristine coast and its desert; because it is at the exact opposite end of the continent from Morocco; because I am curious... and because, time for such travels for me is growing short. What I really want to do after I am through with these far away flings is to discover US national parks.

On the health front, I am suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome, and will undergo an operation on my left hand after Namibia. I am told that recovery takes several weeks, even months, so you may not read much from this end for a while. My right thumb is acting up now, so who knows, I may have to learn to speak into my computer next year.

So thank you all once again for following my mental meanderings.

As the 2024 Paris Olympics approach (I hope you are not fighting the masses of visitors heading to France) I find myself reminiscing about my own Olympic experience in 1984, as an interpreter and announcer for the French team in Los Angeles. A life-changing experience since it launched my journalistic career. Escorting French journalists to Olympic venues in and around LA opened my eyes not only to travel writing, but also to putting my “nose in everyone else’s business” (usually about food or travel!) as my late husband used to say. Oh, the places I’ve been, and the people I have met, and the foods I have sampled. A few pictures will show that I was indeed at the Olympics, and that the French team smuggled me onto the field during the closing ceremonies as Lionel Ritchie and his flying saucer landed in front of us as we belted out “ALL NIGHT LONG!!!”

Vive les Olympiades.

Kitty interpreting for one of the French theater companies that preceded the Games. 

Peruvian medical mission: More:

It was extraordinary, exhausting, hot, and I wish I had been 20 years younger... but I did it!

You can read about the mission here: https://www.socalpams.com/selva-in-action, and its energetic founder, and our leader during the mission, Anita Soluna, M.S. - Project Director - Volunteer Coordinator
From the Selva in Action website:

“Anita’s love of archaeology led her to Peru where, in 2007, she and a friend visited the jungle, saw a need for better access to medical services, and they founded Selva in Action. During Anita’s extensive experience in the social services, non-profit, and international corporate arenas, she served as Director of Education for the Los Angeles County Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), and held executive management positions in two organizations serving pregnant and parenting teens.  Anita received her M.S. in Clinical Psychology from California State University, Los Angeles.  She is a member of the Peruvian American Medical Society (PAMS) and serves on both the Publications and Medical Missions Committees. A native of Los Angeles, she currently lives in Winchester, TN. Anita believes that “the jungle spoke my name” and she has dedicated herself to this project.”

We were in excellent hands. What was particularly rewarding is making a difference. As well as serving as interpreter (in Spanish) I was assigned to the “cooking detail” with my young team member, Tessa, who otherwise manages a holiday camp on Orcas Island, and with two wonderful Peruvian women, natives of the area: I mean, what do you do with 3 or 4 kilos of PAICHE, a 9-ft long Amazonian fish? Well, chop it, season it, and cook it in what looked like banana leaves. And how do you handle indigenous fruits like cocona and mamay? Fara’s solution: Boil them, strain the to make a drink. BTW: There was no running water so we relied on bottles; no electricity save that created by a coughing generator to power a fridge the size of a large suitcase. With that, we fed the 40 member medical team at 1PM every day. We got into our open air “kitchen” and created meals out three enormous cabbages, a dozen outsized carrots; a few onions, 5 lbs of rice; YEAHHHH—a large package of pasta and a dozen tomatoes. I did not make Moroccan or any other ethnic food---we improvised daily!

The local indigenous population, some of whom had sailed 8 hours at night to escape the unrelenting heat down the Amazon and its tributaries in their long boats to get to the camp. Our own accommodations were excellent, at Amazon Garden Ecolodge  Boutique run by charming hosts Ursula and Juan Miguel (https://amazongardenecolodge.com/Home/facilities ) and located not far from the mission camp, with electricity and internet available 2 hours day. We kept mosquito bites to a minimum by lathering our skin with layers and layers of insect repellent, and by following a malaria protocol.

The medical team is usually comprised of foreign doctors (including a dentist from Australia), and several from the US, but Anita’s organization recruits volunteer doctors and medical students from all over Peru as well as the Peruvian Navy and health department, all assigned according to their specialty to treat the 800 patients who dropped in during the 7 day mission.

https://selvainaction.weebly.com/our-team.html

Chef Jaime Yspushima preparing ceviche with leche de tigre

Our assistant, Farah, mashing boiled platanos.

Fara Atias Hualinga - General Assistant, and Armando Guerra Delgado - Transportation Coordinator. Fara, our lovely, problem-solving kitchen and mission assistant, has been an integral part of SIA since 2007. She lives in the community of Santo Tomas on the Rio Momón and served as Treasurer for the Peruvian Amazon Health Cooperative. For the past 5 missions, Fara has provided valuable assistance in the pharmacy and with logistics coordination. Fara would like to become a registered nurse, an expensive and lengthy project in Peru.

Chef Pilar buying paiche at the Belen market in Iquitos for my ceviche lesson

Look at the size of those cabbages!

Got rice?

Where are we off to?!!

Anita Soluna and granddaughter Cheyenne updating mission files

Franke, team member since 2007.. returns year after year..dispensing reading glasses; and Tessa, my cooking partner

Iquitos: The best way to describe Iquitos, a rough town situated at the confluence of three major “rios”: Amazon, Momon, and Nanay is “the Timbuctu of Latin America”. The only way out is to fly, take a boat, or to step into the Amazon. A very strange town indeed, and I was told, a global center for drugs. Dusty streets, tired buildings, unpaved roads, the only pleasant part is the malecon public walkway along the Amazon. And the heat...unbearable. However, Iquitos provided two unforgettable experiences: a cooking class with local chef and cooking teacher,  and discovering tombs of Moroccan Jews (some families known to my mother in Casablanca) in the town cemetery.

My cooking class took place at the restaurant and Escuela de gastronomia La Mishquina cooking school (https://www.facebook.com/anali.lavadoagnini) where Anali LAUADO AGNINI and her mother, the vivacious chef Pilar Agnini (https://www.facebook.com/people/La-Mishquina), a specialist in Amazonian cuisine, placed me under the tutelage of her 80-year old chef Jaime Yspushima, who spent the morning teaching me how to make authentic Peruvian ceviche. His colleagues describe him as “la memoria de Amazonia.” The soft spoken, 3^rd generation Peruvian explained: “I don’t use any other fish than the PAICHE fished in the Amazon.” (Note: Paiche can measure up to 9 feet long.) There is a lot of fish on them there bones. The white meat tastes like flounder.

Chef Pilar and black choclo.. to make a drink

LIMA: The city is perched on a high cliff overlooking the Pacific and traffic is as bad as in downtown Los Angeles. Yes, I know it is a world destination for exciting cuisine, but I wasn’t looking for 3 Michelin stars. The most attractive area is along the water, on a long boulevard lined with high-rise buildings. Single women do not go out alone at night, and in some places, during the day. So if you are headed to Lima, I would recommend making a taxi reservation ahead to pick you up at the airport, and hire the driver to show you the sights. My driver, Anselmo Quevedo Corpus, a former national cycling champion, was punctual, most solicitous, and a fount of information. At my insistence, he only drove me around the food markets of Lima. You can get in touch with him on Whattsap: 011-51-993-043-083.

A highlight of my stay in Lima was giving my Bitter Sweet power point presentation in Spanish to 60 students at the Le Cordon Bleu, the only campus in South America offering careers with programs lasting from 2 to 3 years. https://www.cordonbleu.edu/peru/home/en

One of TEN commercial kitchens at the Cordon Bleu University.

Website:

I am upgrading my website, www.kittymorse.com. I will list artifacts from my personal collection, Moroccan antiques and heirlooms, museum-worthy; a vintage collection of Moroccan cookbooks used in my research; antique books on Morocco’s history (my father’s), lovely watercolors of Moroccan landscapes and costumes; new and old Moroccan rugs, and much more. You can view everything soon on my website.

I am toying with the idea of holding a private sale of these objects, in my home, in Vista, by invitation only.  FEEDBACK: Would you be interested in attending in person?? Here are a few items I seek to sell:

-rare books on Moroccan history, part of a family collection. (Please contact me for titles, or if you know collectors who might be interested.)

-rare books on Moroccan architecture and Arabic calligraphy.

-vintage handcrafted brass lamps, similar to those found in Morocco’s royal palaces.

-a variety of Moroccan rugs, from vintage Kilims (thin Berber rugs), to thick piled, pure wool rugs in the style of Rabat and Fez. Sizes vary from large to small prayer rugs. All in excellent condition.

-hand-embroidered, antique silk panel in the style of Salé, Morocco. May have been in a Sephardic home. This is a very rare piece in very good condition. From my father’s Casablanca estate.

-pieces of vintage silver and beaded Berber jewelry

-watercolors and antique oil paintings of Moroccan scenes, by well-known French artists such as early 20th century Abascal-watercolors of Moroccan scenes

UNE RECETTE POUR l’ETE:

Recipe to cool your palates from Edible Flowers: A Kitchen Companion with Recipes by Kitty Morse

Chilled Lillied Melon and Mango soup

Serves 4

Daylily (Hemerocallis species and cultivars) lives a mere 24 hours. This

graceful native of Asia, one of the few edible lily varieties, has long

been prized for its color and beauty, as well as for its culinary properties. The petals are crunchy and fresh testing, much like a crisp lettuce leaf. This chilled melon-mango dish makes a light and refreshing summer dessert.

1 mango, cubed

1 medium in-season melon, cubed

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup sliced strawberries

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

2 tablespoons orange liqueur

5 daylilies, for garnish (optional, the soup tastes fine without them))

In a blender, purée the mango, melon, and orange juice

in batches until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate.

Rinse the blender and purée the strawberries, sugar, and

orange liqueur. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate. Chill the

purées for 2 hours before serving. To serve, ladle the melon

mixture on one side of a shallow soup bowl. Ladle the puréed

strawberries next to it without mixing. Cut 1 daylily into thin

strips and sprinkle on top. Decorate each bowl with a whole flower and serve immediately.

Links of interest:

How to get to Paris from Charles de Gaulle: you may have to wait a very long time for the bus, but it takes you to the Tour Montparnasse. I have used it several times.

https://frenchly.us/how-to-get-from-charles-de-gaulle-airport-cdg-to-paris-by-public-transport/?

San Diego County residents:

If you would like to be kept abreast of ALL the international events happening in San Diego County, subscribe (FREE) to this amazing newsletter: www.parobs.org › newsletter

And if you want to find out what is happening in the art world in San Diego, subscribe to the San Diego Visual Arts Network newsletter:

www.sdvisualarts.net

En France:

Unique au Monde! First solar powered restaurant in France: This forward looking chef is the first to open a solar powered restaurant on the outskirts of Marseille. Le premier restaurant en France à employer seulement l’energie solaire: https://lepresage.fr/wp/ 

WARNING! IF YOUR FLIGHT is CANCELLED: https://www.going.com/guides/airline-changes-or-cancels-your-flight?lid=614l99ge7n4k&ad-unit=none 

Update on my “reassigned” ticket to tourist class from Delta business class: I got a partial refund but who decides on the refund amount??

As usual, Bismillah and Bon Appétit

Thank you for reading my FREE Chronicles.

PAID subscribers, merci et pardonnez-moi, but I have been swamped. More coming for you soon. Kitty

PPS: If you are headed to Morocco this Fall, as it seems many people are, you might want to read my first memoir with recipes, Mint Tea and Minarets: A Banquet of Moroccan Memories to catch a glimpse of the REAL Morocco not encountered as a tourist. I have a handful of copies left in my possession, and I will be happy to sign it and ship it via media mail in the US: $30 plus $6 shipping. Just send me an email.