Online Editing

I decided to use a recent article about Morocco from the March/April 2005 edition of Out Traveler. "Under Morocco's Sheltering Sky," by Matthew Link, offers a well-rounded description of the northern African country. It also provides specific information that may be important for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender travelers.

Publications like Out Traveler may seem a little ridiculous to mainstream audiences, but numerous LGBT travelers turn to their pages to find out more about the overall "gay" climate. This can include a breakdown about local laws pertaining to homosexuality or homosexual behavior, a description of customs and traditions, pointers about how to travel safely with a partner, or give information about where to find gay-friendly or gay-owned establishments.

For this week's assignment, the class has been asked to edit a full-length article down to half the original size and to create an appropriate presentation for online media. Here is my edited version of the article:

Morocco
Under Morocco's Sheltering Sky
Story by Matthew Link; photography by Alex Tehrani

History

You needn't go much farther than Marrakech to get all of what Morocco promises. The place is distinctively Berber (an ancient, non-Arab race of people indigenous to Morocco). It's a culture known for its richly ornate details in its decorative arts. Morocco's history may be one of conquest, but the robust Berbers remained a thorn in each occupier's side. You can spot the Berber pride in the how the young men strut about the streets, with a confident air that echoes centuries of staunchly defended free will.

Check out some of Marrakech's hidden architectural gems:

• Ali ben Youssef Medersa (a theological college from the 1500s) is a marvel of geometrical patterns and archways, as is the relatively modern (late 1800s)
• Palais de la Bahia, richly decorated with intricate ceilings and elaborately carved doors

Facts

Modern Morocco is a place with more paved roads than 10 of its African neighbors combined, where satellite dishes atop stucco roofs beam in global images from afar, where in a few short years all trade barriers with its giant brother Europe to the north will be abolished. It's a shining example amid troubled neighbors Algeria, mired in civil conflict, and Mauritania, one of the most destitute countries on earth. But Morocco has its own problems:

• Morocco is also a country where humans drenched in poverty drown while trying to cross the Strait of Gibraltar to prosperous Spain
• tired donkeys pull lemon carts across open sewers
• half of 30 million people cannot read or write

Even so, Morocco is ruled in mythical fashion by a new modern king with a genial fist, and it's slowly becoming poised to lift itself up from its long history of conquest.

Modern Culture

Tourists may come to Morocco for its arid beaches, its deserts, its monuments, and its architecture, but invariably they are smitten by the nation's greatest allure--its pulsating, living culture. And Marrakech, once the government capital and now the indisputable tourist capital, has culture in spades.

Make sure to check out:

• 12th-century minaret
• reverberations of ancient flutes
• tang of roasting meats
• clicking of horse-drawn carriages
• calls of fortune-tellers and touts

Most of Morocco's new prosperity can be attributed to the young monarch King Mohammed VI, who ascended the throne in 1999. His smiling, Big Brother-like photograph greets one in every store and office in Morocco, and he carefully balances Muslim tradition with European capitalism.

Visitors can surround themselves with more familiar amenities on the outskirts of town:

• American-style supermarkets
• Luxurious cars (Mercedez)
• Popular Restaurants (Pizza Hut)

Gay Life

Marrakech has surpassed the sordid port of Tangier as the contemporary gay capital of Morocco, thanks mainly to the influx of Westerners who open up riads (guesthouses) in the city. I had been warned that what could look like homosexual flirting could also be a setup for stealing money--and they were firmly tracing the steps of tourists, not locals.

• In 2004, a Moroccan newspaper reporter had been thrown in the slammer for implying that the minister of finance was having homosexual trysts at a seaside resort
• Months before, a gay British tourist had been jailed for having sex with a local lad
• The king is rumored to be homosexual--but since it is a crime to speak ill of him in any way, don't expect to hear much above whispers

Gay identity in most parts of the developing world is a luxurious aspiration. Most marriages in Morocco are still arranged, women are cloistered away, and men form strong emotional bonds with one another that can be easily mistranslated by foreigners. Morocco has no gay infrastructure of queer bars, restaurants, or hotels anywhere in the country.

Essentials

Accommodations:

• La Mamounia
• Riad Gyvo

Nightlife:

• Diamant Noir

Tours:

• Heritage Tours

Recap

By editing this piece, I have transformed it into a useful guide for LGBT traveler's who may be thinking about visiting Morocco. I took out a lot of the first person narrative that the original author used. It was a great piece, but didn't really meet the specific criteria for this assignment.

I think it would be a great idea to include the pictures featured in the original article. They brought so much depth and visual stimulation to the text. As well, I would provide pictures of the places and things specifically mentioned in the article. For the digital media version, I would include hyperlinks to these establishments and provide a link to a map of the city. I would also link to an informational page about Morocco (history, climate, seasons, health risks, demographic information, etc.)

As far as suggestions for improvement, I probably would have offered more information about the most popular tourist attractions and information about secret getaways. Maybe even information about local museums, attractions, etc. I think offering more information about the local laws which pertain to homosexuality would be helpful for LGBT travelers (this is usually done in most pieces printed in Out Traveler).