An Afternoon in Interzone
Interzone, May 2018.
That afternoon seemed different because of the blue and purple colors on the sky, illuminating the square with the old people seating in old square benches and the young people laughing and running around, taking pictures each them, showing your friendship one for the others. Me, involved in my personal way, just crossed the crowd, smoking my cigarette of haxixe, listening to Roni Size and The Represement on the headphones. On the way of the Old Medina, looking for something new, smells, clothes, colors, tastes, all these things are calling for me, as little whispers in my mind.
Always looking to all possible sides, afraid of the Police or of the bad people, because he was in another world, a different world, indecipherable, untouchable, very deep and absurdly new. All the buildings looked different, smaller, older, almost entirely whitewashed, with old advertising signs nailed to some larger, wider façades, some in neon. Coca-Cola advertisements are written in Arabic, along with rental signs, dentists, and souvenirs. He stopped in the center of the square. He looked up at the sky and was pure blue with little bands in purple, almost no cloud and a huge sun shining. It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon. He took a deep breath and followed himself to his final tour of the Medina.
When we arrived at the Medina. Soon he spotted Omar. This enlightened human being called Omar Bakrin, practically from another world, or that same: Interzone.
He took me to the heart of the Medina. I had been to the Medina three times before, and in two of them, I met Omar in the alleys, offering to be my guide. But I was accompanied, with my friends from the band and I could not accept. Only now, I was alone, and Omar again was there with open arms and a wide grin of one tooth. I accepted at the same time! I was crazy to hear his stories, and to see and feel the Medina with other eyes, listening, attentive to every little detail, every color …
After two kisses on the face and one hug. Omar invited me to follow him into the heart of the Medina. we passed over some alleys called oldest Medina, just with Butcher’s stores and a bunch of different kinds of meats, including Camel meat. It’s disgusting to see this kind of things, also the smell is not good!! A mix of blood, viscera, and skins cut… a true bowel caleidoscope!! (but with everything laid out!) Can you imagine that? So, this is very normal in Morocco, including the flies flying around the meat in an extraordinary ballet!! After we crossing that alley, Omar took me to a barbershop. Because I needed to shape my beard with a local barber. I just love doing it when I travel … shaving the beard in another country or shining my shoes, and being able to talk to some real place.
(to be continued…)