By Fajir Sabah
Special to The Times Kuwait
We all agree that travel is a source of relaxation and enjoyment, and we never disagree that each of us has different goals when it comes to travel and exploration, whether for pleasure and tourism, discovery and experiences, work, or treatment. All these goals have their unique experiences, which differ from one person to another.
My last experience of 2023 was my journey to Morocco, specifically Casablanca, where I had a work experience. I received a generous invitation from the Arab World Festival of Educational Short Film, directed by Mr. Abdullah Abari from Morocco, and the delegation leader, Dr. Ammar Al Ibrahim. I was invited to chair the jury for the films participating in the festival.
It was a different experience from all my previous ones, whether work or travel. Most of the time was filled with enjoyable and beneficial cultural and artistic activities of the festival, attending films, and discussing them with the other distinguished jury members. Some days were spent touring and discovering the beautiful city. Indeed, it was a beautiful area with its people and land, where I found safety and inclusion. We walked safely through the streets to reach a tea shop or “atay” as it is known, sipping tea with my book after breakfast at the hotel, until noon, when various discussions began. We got to know diverse ideas and coexisted with nearby environments with many beautiful differences that complement us.
We spent a week between the festival and its activities and the city that revives with an old atmosphere where everyone knows everyone, with street vendors still present and old markets everywhere. We enriched this tourism with a short train trip to Rabat, where we saw museums, shrines, buildings, and some of the famous traditional Moroccan markets. We also honored this day with a visit to the Omani embassy in Morocco, meeting the ambassador, and exchanging talks about culture and art in Morocco, Kuwait, Oman, Tunisia, and most of the participating countries.
It was a beautiful trip filled with work, art, love, and discovery, a cultural artistic tourism through which we got to know the creativity of the people and their beautiful art, especially when visiting the Academy of Traditional Art and seeing all that was made by students who used their creativity to beautify their college. They were smart in creating another source of income through side projects that polished their artistic talents. We met the dean of the academy and had an interesting and enjoyable conversation with him about the college, the festival, and art, and attended the useful and enjoyable lecture delivered by Professor Youssef Al Balushi from Oman and its impact on the audience and students.
Fajr Al Sabah, writer and content creator was among the group chosen as a young leader to represent Kuwait and highlight the country’s rich culture, history and literature at the World Youth Festival 2024. Fajr Al Sabah is also a Member of the Kuwaiti Traveler’s Association and Member of the Media Committee. A graduate of the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts – Department of Criticism and TheatricalLiterature, Fajr is a travel enthusiast and can be found on Instagram as fajersabah_blog.
