Creation of a Vegetarian

If G wasn't a big meat-eater before, you can imagine her reaction upon seeing the butcher counters with freshly cut heads of goats, camels, and sheep. Until now, we could cajole her to eat a little chicken or pork once in a while, but I suspect this trip will nudge her closer towards full-fledged vegetarianism.

Let's not forget about the wild boar head at the leather tannery in Fez. It's rather a macabre decoration. P can handle it, but G, not so much.

Then there are the body parts: whole legs, brains, you name it, it's pretty graphic, for a child who is both highly Bay-Area-vegetarian leaning and also used to seeing meat come in neat little styrofoam packages from the supermarket.

 

She cries at the whole fish, and agonizes over the caged bunnies and chickens; it's pretty obvious, even to an eight-year old, that they're not meant for house pets.  She walks through the meat aisles at the markets using her hands as blinders.

 

 

G is in her element when she's playing with the animals -- the ones that won't be served up in a tagine. The trip is a huge success for turtles (here, in the wild at Moulay Idriss and also in the hotel in Marrakesh).  There is much begging and pleading, "Can't we get one?" (In Morocco? To bring with us on this trip and then fly home to Paris? Like the turtle that peed on our breakfast table in the hotel? No. No, we can't get a turtle.)

For any vegetarians traveling in Morocco, when you get sick of the "vegetable cous-cous" option: On one of our road stops, we discover the egg sandwich guy. He takes a hard-boiled egg, puts it in a soft, thick pita and smashes it around with some olive oil, salt, and pepper, and tops it with potatoes (fried or boiled). P adds olives in hers, and Anthony and I like them with olives, onions, and hot sauce. For about 50 cents, it's an excellent impromptu egg-salad meal. G is a true egg fan and a purist. Her sandwiches are the simplest: just eggs, oil, and minimal potatoes and salt. Once she discovers this excellent street food, it's all she ever wants to eat. When she can't have that, she'll made do with a crêpe.

Somehow, G manages to taste lots of the Moroccan foods, even a bite or two of meat at some meals (though she staunchly refuses to put any form of beef in her mouth). And we're proud of her for trying. But I suspect it's mostly eggs, beans, cheese, and nuts from here on out...