It's been long time...

Hello everyone,
sorry for the long absence. I will try to cover some things I have been up to in the past weeks. Three weeks ago we went to Fes, relatively early to be honest, so I could go to services. Let's put it this way Sephardic, semi-orthodox, French-Moroccan services are different from what we have back home. Holla to the Miami Hillel!! The people there were mostly older men. I assume that only maybe 3 or 4 were below their mid thirties. This probably has to do with the fact that being Jewish is not the big thing anywhere anymore, except to miss class, got to summer camp, or in Israel where it is forced upon you. Another reason for an aging Jewish population, at least in Fes, is that everyone left. They all bolted for Israel...
After services I was kindly invited to a congregant's house along with the Rabbi to have dinner. I was expecting to speak Arabic, but no, they only spoke Hebrew and French. Turns out that many of the remaining Jews here are French people that moved down here during colonial times. This family in particular is originally from Strasbourg, and lives between there and Fes. The dinner was typically Moroccan Jewish though, a delicious 4 course meal. It consisted of some cold vegetables as appetizers, followed by fish and chickpeas, the third course was a delicious beef kind of stew. The taste of the two main courses was out of this world. I mean since fish is always tasty, I will not elaborate on it any longer. The beef though... OY GEVALT that was good. I think the lady cooked it either with figs or dates. Along with the meat we had sliced string beans, which she cut individually, they seem to have been steamed. That course was just flat out amazing. The desert were strawberries that have been left for a day sitting in sugar. Yummy and 100% kosher, yes.
They explained to me during dinner that Moroccan Jewry is very moderate, and while one might perceive them to be orthodox this is not the case. Towards the end of the service two women were sitting along with the men, and no one cared. It was perfectly normal for the Rabbi to show me to the Taxi, or that lights were turned on in the apartment. This fascinated me, the sad thing was that I could not discuss this in more detail since I do not speak French anymore, and my Arabic is not proficient enough either.
This is the first entry of what has happened around here during my absence. More to follow.

Have a great Spring Break MIAMI.

Ma Salaama min Al-Maghrib,

Diogo

P.s. I am obsessed with these doors.