NordenBladet – The Moroccans are particularly proud for their Argan oil that is produced from the seeds of a naturally growing tree Argania spinosa in Northern Africa in the South Eastern part of Morocco. This expensive oil is often called the liquid gold of Morocco. When going to Morocco as a tourist, the argan oil is the first on the list of goods to be brought back home from Morocco. Yet one cannot get the 100% pure and good quality argan oil from everywhere.
I visited the Khmissa Argan represetational store in Essaouira (Centre Mejji, Taftachte) with a couple of OHMYGOSSIP and NordenBladet colleagues and we were introduced to the preparation process of argan oil. There are argan oil products from nice brand names (i.e. Rosa Huile and Aitma Sens) for sale – soap, oils, lotions, etc – at the local shops.
What does the argan tree fruit look like?
The argan fruit resembles an olive but it is somewhat larger and more round. Inside the fleshy fruit there is a very tough shelled nut with 2-3 almond-like kernels.
Where does the argan tree grow?
The argan tree grows on a narrow area and the crop is rather limited (from a 60-year-old tree of the maximum fruitfulness you get 8 kg seeds in a year).
How is it harvested and produced?
Perhaps many of you have seen an exotic view – goats eating on top of trees as birds. The animals that have climbed up are gulping the fleshy fruit of argan, yet their organisms do not digest the seeds inside the shell. Thus women are gathering the nuts from their stool, which is then followed by careful treatment. Traditionally the oil is pressed manually (ca 36 kg will result in 1 litre pure oil), maiing it very unique.
What does it contain?
Argan oil contains plenty of bioflavonoids, omega 6 fatty acids, other beneficial ingredients, also vitamin E twice as much as does olive oil.
What is argan oil used for?
Argan oil is very much valued in the preparation of cosmetics products and also in medicine. It is a universal „magic item”, well suited for practically everything. Historically it has firts and foremost belonged to the local kitchen.
Argan oil is good for nourishing dry hair and making them shine. Just a few drops of oil added to the shampoo or regularly applied to hair roots will decrease splitting of hair ends and loss of hair. Also, it balances skin metabolism and fosters rejuvenation of skin cells. It is suitable for sensitive skin and occurrance of acne.
When there is a tendency of splitting in nails and the cuticles are dry, it is possible to cure the situation, holding fingertips in a mixture of oil and lemon juice (1:1) once a week for 15 minutes at a time.
Photos and videos from Morocco and the visit to Khmissa Argan can be found from Instagram accounts of Helena-Reet Ennet (@helenareetennet) and Estella Elisheva (@estellaelisheva)
NordenBladet – In my first blog post reflecting my dreams and wishes (My dreams and wishes – workable, unobtainable and completely unrealistic -Vol 1) I revealed one of my biggest dreams that is actually already coming true – to be one fine day as powerful as has been Arianna Huffington in the world media.
Today 67-year-old Arianna Huffington was in 2009 according to Forbes magazine the 12th in the list of most influential women in the media. In 2014 she was according to Forbes the 52nd most influential woman in the world. In 2011 the media corporation AOL took up Huffington Post for 315 million dollars, originally belonging to Arianna.
Having developed the OHMYGOSSIP brand for nearly 10 years (the websites known worldwide are today publishing in Estonian, Finnish, Swedish, English and Russian, in social media also in Norwegian and Portuguese and have 150 000+ unique readers daily and 5+ million followers on social media) I can now say that in a way I have today already outdistanced Huffington, since I have grasped hold of a wider international public – OHMYGOSSIP is delivered in seven languages.
In 2016 OHMYGOSSIP was integrated under the largest and most popular Scandinavian media trust NordenBladet. Just like after the successful bargain Arianna Huffington became the president and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post Media Group, similarly I became the member of board and editor-in-chief of NordeBladet. After uniting OHMYGOSSIP with NordeBladet the brand’s expansion has augmented and already in 2018 it is estimated that there will be nearly 400 000 unique readers daily merely from Scandinavia. However, I have conemplated on this dream in my PREVIOUS blog post.
My dreams are outrageous, my word to that! Believe me, it a kind of craft to dream this big! It is not without a reason that members of the ruling family of the United Arab Emirates and US millionaires have repeatedly quested my opinion and thoughts on the elaboration of various exorbitant ideas. Yes, you have heard me correctly! I have shared my opinion and practical advice and changed ideas with the wealthiest folks of this world. To be more thorough, I would like to add that hereby we are discussing the accomplishment od dreams without financial boundaries. For a complete understanding of the situation, I would like to ask you the following question: What would you do if funds were none of a problem? What would you do if the most insane of all your dreams could come true – would you build a floating town above another town, a cinema in outer space, would you publish newspapers with moving images? Would you build world peace, commit to the manufacture of cancer medication? Develop gene technology? Spy after fellow humans? Make your contribution in science? – the options are limitless. In today’s blog post I will not yet focus on describing these „completely unrealistic” dreams. However, in the posts to come I will elaborate on those – beginning from what I would do or buy had I got 100 million euros, 500 million euros, a billion euros (etc) and also on the idea which special skills I would wish to have.
Dreams have no limits! I intend to open to you the realm of my dreams – even that side of it which might seem ridiculous to articulate. I gather dreams and dreaming is cool and I would say even dreams that are unrealistic and the dreaming that is outrageous is cool. Those impossible to attain – not even for the money of the entire world – this is the place where we enter the universe of fairytales! My favouraite place! Fairytales for me are like water and air. I just cannot go on without fairytales! If I hadn’t dreamt myself into one fairytale or other every once in a while, then I would have gone absolutely bonkers by today (this, nevertheless, is possible already now, hehe).
I need childlike fantasies and a world of fantasy. This could be the reason why I tend to get along very well with children and find a common language. I am fond of fairytales, I like to make up fairytales and I really wish to put a tale on paper and between covers – this is my dream that might be considered quite a realistic one. I want to be an author of fairytales!
Currently there is in my head a story for grownups „Sepher Strong and the Azure Palace“, where women are ruling the world and the harem males are hassling to become the favourite male. The 50-year-old governess finds spouses for her sons and names daughters the rulers for different regions. Men are unable to read and write and they cannot be found on any governing positions. Only the males with special training can write – the Hunters. There is also a young gentle woman in the play – Shoshana or Shana, and she decides to turn the entire truth of the moment upside down. There are loads of text in my head, it could make book, it could just as well make an entire trilogy. The novel is ready in my mind, I need to do the writing – there is the synopsis and the full narrative.
This is the very dream that I need time for to come true! Time is the most precious of all wealth for me right now, it is precisely time that is already planned long ahead! Here I am not speaking about lets say an hour or two every day, this could be saved if needed – I need 3 weeks nonstop just for me – complete commitment, writing myself into the events, no disturbances, none at all. Then the book would be ready and at least as successful as J.K Rowling’s creation of Harry Potter adventures or Stephenie Meyer’s series of Twilight. This would of course happen in the circumstances that I be able to find a capable marketing specialist for my book as well as a PR support manager. There are piles of great books in the world and there are also piles of crappy (pardon!), non-existent marketing scores.
Actually what is currently nested in my head is genuine genius, the book would be awsome, above today’s hits. It is a billion dollar project! And I intend to accomplish it one fine day, since the book already exists in my mind – the entire volume, chapter after chapter, all there nice and smooth! The book sprouted in my head thanks to this photograph and my life with my darling autistic baby child Ivanka Shoshana – the world’s sweetest, most tender, beautiful and smart little girl! Everything is possible, you just need to have faith in yourself!
NordenBladet – the Majorelle Botanical Gardens, accommodating a versatile plant collection from five continents, are open to visitors since 1947. the gardens are famous for tye collection of cacti, the fountains as well as the birds from ten endemic species.
The gardens that are now open to all interested visitors have been founded by the French artist Jacques Majorelle – this picturesque private property was the fruit of 40 years of his commitment. 18 years after the artist passed away the property was purchased by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge. They restored the estate as a private property.
The French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent (1 August 1936 – 1 June 2008) truely loved Morocco and Marrakech. He was actually so fond of Marrakech that he wished the Jardin Majorelle, where he lived and worked together with his spouse Pierre Berge, to be his last resting place.
In October 2017 the Yves Saint Laurent Museum was open on Yves Saint Laurent Street in Marrakech.
NordenBladet – How frequently do the Scandinavians actually travel? United Kingdom’s travel site MoveHub.com compiled a list of nations that travel the most, based on World Tourism Organization and World Bank data – top 5 of this list included as many as two Northern countries, Sweden and Finland.
People from Hongkong travel the most, according to surveys its inhabitants undertook 11.4 journeys per year. This extraordinarily high number was due to the matter that the travels of the neighbouring country China were also included in the statistics.
The second place went to Hungary where the inhabitants travelled 1.62 times per year.
In the top 5 there were also the Swedes, the Finns and the Luxembourgians. It was surprising to discover that the Norwegians travel significantly less that the rest of the Northern population, in that respect being beaten even by Estonians. According to the statistics, Estonians undertake 0.93 travel per person per year.
NordenBladet – The Moroccan manually woven carpet is a natural luxurious original piece of work that will add to the character and gloss of each and every home. While manually woven, the carpet is not threatened by water, it is 100% natural and will wear only after decades. Actually this type of carpet necessitates replacement during one’s lifetime only in case of home interior design renewal.
Handmade carpets with traditional patterns are inherited within the family from one generation to the next. Traces of wearing out of a carpet many decades old just increases its value. In the Northern countries for example one might compare this phenomenon to that of preserving the folk costume skirts and aprons down each generation, every piece of handicraft accumulating more value with the years.
Producing a handmade carpet is a long time enterprise and therefore also precious labor. A fine carpet also has a fitting cost (prices of the smallest carpets start from 600 euros).
While in Morocco as a tourist we might ponder the question whether the carpets are actually original work (handmade and not prepared through automated process) and also how we are supposed to transport the carpets when we travel back home.
Answering the first question appears tricky – definitely there are both original works and fake products for sale, so to prevent being deceived it is best to ask from the hotel or from yout travel guide where you can purchase the original products.
One place where you can definitely obtain a quality hand made carpet is the „Chateau Des Souks” carpet and antiquity store on Marrakech market (44, Souk Semmarine Marrakech). „Chateau Des Souks” will give the client a proper carpet performance – will cater peppermint tea and will spread one great carpet after another beyond your feet. The purchase will be redirected straight to your home so you wouldn’t need to worry about that further. Comfortable and trustworthy place!
From the same store you may also acquire beautiful antique articles. A genuine pearl in the midst of the big Marrakech market (soak).
NordenBladet – I am a wild dreamer, but not in the dull, negative sense. I have a vivid imagination, perhaps too intense at times to fit in the frames of normal. However, those that don’t dream big are left with their modest wishes as are the impurities on a lamp shade. I am fond of dreaming and this is one of the best and most pleasant brain gymnastics as well as a way of spending time when you have short breaks in between events. For example, when I am driving to take the children home and there is a tedious moment of pause at some place, then at once I start dreaming. My favourite type of dream starts like this: What would I do if… and there the ideas are let fly…
My so to say dreaming has been the foundation for many big projects that have come to be in the actual world. For example, all my life I have admired Arianna Huffington, today 67 years old. I started off with the design of the OHMYGOSSIP brand towards the end of the year 2007 and at the time I thought I would really wish to be much like that woman – vigorous, skillful, empowered, independent, innovative, etc. Back then it was merely a dream, completely outrageous and unrealistic. I accompanied my dream so closely that a few years later I ventured to assert in my blog that one fine day on the media terrain I would be more influential than Arianna Huffington (you can read about it HERE). In 2009 Huffington held according to Forbes the 12th place among the most influential women in the media. In the year 2014 she was according to Forbes the 52nd most influential woman in the world. In 2011 the media corporation AOL took up Huffington Post for 315 million dollars. Huffington became the president and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group. It is true, my starlight has not reached her measure yet, however, I am less of age by half today and besides the breakthrough in online and print media I have divided myself between various projects – I am developing and expanding my own fashion brand that has gained popularity around the world – Ohmygossip Couture (T-shirts, casual wear, accessories), with my daughters I have founded the enterprise Elisheva & Shoshana, and I am the manager for the 11-year-old Estella Elisheva, the violinist and my daughter, as well as the promoter and administrator of seven world famous stars on Twitter and FB. During the past ten years I have become the most influential woman in the Scandinavian social media (see HERE and HERE). I am not embarrassed to name it – I am the greatest, the most well-known, the most liked, the most shared, I am the top of the cap in every ranking. OHMYGOSSIP and NordenBladet are the best known media brands in social media, with 150 000+ regular unique daily readers and with 5+ million followers in social media. Our marketing portfolio is longed for and envied both by the Estonian significant agents (Ekspress Meedia, Eesti Meedia) as well as the Scandinavan largest media – Schibsted, Bonnier, Alma Media, etc.
Yes, what I have just exercised is boasting and perhaps arrogant, yet the reason why I chose to do that is positive – my message to you is: believe in your dreams, the bigger your dreams, the more you will achieve! Do believe in the impossible, since almost any dream is possible once you really wish to reach them! What is the life cycle of a dream from the emergence of the dream until the dream coming true?
If you dream big and yearn to encourage and inspirit your dream, then you can rely on the reaction to your dreams being spitefulness, malevolence, the wounding and belittling of your dream, negativism and anything else that might tell you the word: be average, do not stick out, do not think for yourself, do nothing to seem different from everybody, do not have hope, do not have ambitions for anything further etc… You may be absolutely sure that if there is someone that feels like your dream looks good, they will try to steal it from you (or do so, if you are not long-sighted enough) and should you be on someone’s way, instead of starting teamwork you will be criticized, defamed, attempted to be reduced. A good saying is: FIRST THEY LAUGH, THEN THEY COPY! At the beginning they ridicule you, and once they realize you are a considerable player, they will start to copy you. Therefore – should you have a dream, be it realistic, unrealistic or completely outrageous – believe in yourself! Everything is possible! Whoever falls repeatedly and knows what it is like to be in the dirt face downwards, will rise towards the sky with the greater, bolder and brighter flash than ever! Everything is possible! Once more, believe in yourself!
In the next post I will tell you more about realistic, unrealistic and completely outrageous dreams, ambitions and enterprises!!
NordenBladet – We have carried out a sizable survey and analysis concerning the NordenBladet and OHMYGOSSIP sites and quite many indicators have surprised me. For exmple, the fact that an entertainment site has grown into a premium travel site where the most searched for are travel blogs and travel info.
Spontaneously enough I have become „a professional luxury travel blogger”, professionally reflecting the luxurious travel lifestyle. It definitely is a fact that the Scandinavians like to travel a lot and their finances favour the enjoyment of life. According to recent surveys the Finns, the Swedes as well as the Estonians are keen travellers and it is a trend that people visit expensive destinations and luxurious hotels and resorts. Also, the age group of our readers was a surprise for me – being higher that what I expected. Our typical reader is a 45+ years of age wealthy lady.
I have for many years been in collaboration with tourism ministries, tourism bureaus, travel agencies, shipping and airline companies, hotels and restaurants. Last week a new direct flight on the Helsinki-Marrakech line was launched and NordenBladet editorial board received an exclusive invitation to travel this line among the first. Invitations like these to various press travels, hotels and flights are abundant and thus unfortunately a selection has to be made as to both what we would wish and be able to reflect. NordenBladet’s target group are the well-off Scandinavians and their preferences, this has been our program already from the starting days of the web journal. However, that the target group exactly be formed according to our original vision – this was something that we had not been quite so positively tuned to happen. I would have presumed our prime reader to be almost 15 years younger. As a mother of two, leading one of the most influential Scandinavian media groups, I often havethe same feeling myself – that once when I take time off, the vacation must be the best possible. There simply isn’t time to kill doing something next to pointless. Time is money, spare time is luxury – therefore making good use of the quality time is a priority for every person.
The affluent kind cares for smoothly organized travels, quality service and nice treatment at the destination and a personal approach. Especially the latter – you should like to feel welcome, that you matter. You should like to feel that you are pampered. Weather going on a mission or on a holiday, people expect quality catering and a clean and cozy, spacious hotel room, the SPA and swimming pool add to the plus side, and the service standards are not reduced at any time. As long as the destination is worthwhile, the elevated cost is not problematic. People turn to me more and more with the query: „What would you recommend?” „Whould you actually travel there were it self-financed?”, „How would rank the service?”, etc.
I am extremely pleased and grateful to realize that my personal opinion is of such value. On the other hand it brings alongI huge responsibility – when earlier I used to post to Twitter, Facebook whatever my mood and whatever crossed my mind, then I now carefully ponder what to lay out and what to withhold.
However, I must say that I am very emotional and I do like to continue with this kind of posts every once in a while, and oftentimes I think back afterwards, wondering if it was the right move. And yet my reader is already familiar with this and probably these readers that are with me since 2008 perhaps know me better than I know myself and they already look forward to the straightforward posts!
As a matter of fact, I also have news for you! Actually this is monumental! From now on, via several tourism ministries and tourism bureaus I am going to be organizing press travels for blog writers and journalists. So listen up, the travel-natured – this is your opportunity! If your passion is travelling and discovering the world, please let me know! Certainly I prefer to send to these complimentary luxury travels in the first priority range the blog writers and journalists that contribute in the NordenBladet and OHMYGOSSIP stream, however, until there are vacancies, I’ll be opening the doors for the travel friends who are running their own game. Until the new and exciting travel experience unravels!
If you feel that you are keen on travelling and wish to incorporate your (travel)blog under the NordenBladet and OHMYGOSSIP sites, please let me know of your wish via email: info@nordenbladet.com
On the opening photo: 2x Violinist, Luxury travel blogger and OHMYGOSSIPteen chief managerial staff Estella Elisheva (NordenBladet/ Helena-Reet Ennet)
OHMYGOSSIP — Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, was told she’d become a royal by a tarot card reader. The 45-year-old royal – who is married to Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark – has told the story of how a walk through a local flea market in her home country of Australia saw her meet a fortune teller who told her to expect great things from her future.
Crown Princess Mary insists the clairvoyant told her she would leave her workplace and meet a man from abroad, before becoming famous and moving to Europe.
Speaking to Jens Andersen for his new authorised biography on Crown Prince Frederik, ‘Under the Bar’, Mary said: “So I left there and thought, ‘Well yes, that was a lot of fun, but nothing more.’ But I’ve always been interested in the spiritual. In mystery and fate.”
Soon after her encounter with the fortune teller, Crown Princess Mary met her future husband in a bar in Sydney during the 2000 Olympic games, and she insists she had no idea he was royalty until further down the line.
She recalled: “The first time we met, we shook hands. I didn’t know he was the prince of Denmark. Half an hour later, someone came up to me and said, ‘Do you know who these people are?'”
The couple’s relationship blossomed from there, and they married in 2004 before having four children, Prince Christian, 12, Princess Isabella, 10, and six-year-old twins Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent.
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Frederik admits he also believes in fate, but doesn’t think people can predict the future. He said: “I believe in fate. When I look back on all the exciting things that have happened to me, it’s not random. But I don’t try to look ahead and say, ‘Can I predict my destiny for the next two years?’ I don’t want to talk to anyone who claims they can. No one should read anything about me and my future.”
NordenBladet – In the year 2017/2018 I intend to look deeply into further developing the Ohmygossip.fi web page and launch some rearrangements. As I have said before, the OHMYGOSSIP portals have joined the Scandinavian media affiliated group and within the coming year we will convey all the Ohmygossip pages under NordenBladet. I would like to recruit more wonderful bloggers (drop me an e-mail, should you wish to join us!) and leave the topics about society and politics for the NordenBladet.fi site. The layout scheme for our Estonian web magazines is largely settled and the same is awaiting to be performed with the Finnish and Swedish portals.
Since the homes of our co-authors, translators, board partners etc are scattered all over Scandinavia the accordingly we hold meetings infrequently. And the best solution for that would be a travel outing – be it in Estonia, in Finland, Sweden or faraway. As a rule, I plan one on one meetings with companions in a hotel or in a restaurant, this has so far been most efficient. My bold dream is of course to open up separate offices in Estonia, Finland and Sweden one fine day, however, at this point of time it is financially unavailable and neither is it currently reasonable. Also I have in mind the future trend of arranging regular travel meetings that various Norden Bladet editing team members might partake. At the moment I am further encouraging our cooperation with tourism ministries and tourism bureaus in Morocco and Israel – these are very pleasant people and very professionally minded. This far it has been a very healthily progressing cooperation and I am hoping to expand our common enterprises.
NordenBladet is a multifaceted platform and in addition to the routine output regarding daily news, politics, health topics and home columns it pays remarkable attention to tourism issues. The Scandinavians like to travel and therefore people constantly seek to find travel stories and tourism related information from our multilingual portals. Also, people are keen on the entertainment section and the opinion and reviews from blog writers that can be found on Ohmygossip sites under NordenBladet are highly valued.
Last year I have taken various team members and business partners to several trips to Morocco (Agadir) and the journeys have been very splendid. Joining me to the same Agadir business visit was Ohmygossip.ee co-author and Ohmygossip Couture long time model Marianna Link and Ohmygossip.fi blog writer Tuija Järvinen. I very much hoped that our Finnish to Estonian route translater and co-author Marju Rõmmel would join us but she was bound to staying at home with her baby son. Then again I mysel couldn’t attend the second trip, but I sent a delegation of three business partners. This year’s travel to Morocco is within the framework of Ohmygossip.fi and accompanying me I have a crew consisting of Ohmygossip.fi blogger Tuija as previously, then Ohmygosspi.fi Estonian to Finnish route translator Risto and then also Estella Elisheva, who is in charge of OHMYGOSSIPteen development. The plan was to have with us Ohmygossip.fi blogger Pia Sarkkinen, but other professional obligations prevented her from joining.
We will be travelling to Morocco (Marrakech) via Helsinki and Stockholm, and on our way back we will test the Norwegian direct flight Marrakech (RAK) – Helsinki (HEL).
However, the Morocco travel itself will be depicted closely in the next post!
Read about last year’s Morocco travel from HERE, HERE and HERE
Hereby a few photos taken by me of OHMYGOSSIP co-authors Marianna and Tuija on our previous journey ?
NordenBladet – I have made up my mind about distancing myself as much as possible from all that has negative impact and the best way to achieve that is being closer to G-d. The more we manage to melt into the rest of nature to be as one the further away we reach from the pointless noise surrounding us in daily life. It often happens that also the nearest and dearest tend to hurt us and on those occasions we need all the extra energy it takes to handle it. As for me, I derive energy from nature!
Lucky enough, I have got my own „secret garden”, and actually it is not quite so secret – however when glanced at with a different pair of eyes, plenty of mystery will unfold. Through various twists the previous year has added quite some esoteric aspects to my life as well as it has included contacts with extraterrestrial forces. For example, as incredible as it may seem, last summer while visiting Viljandi with my sister we stubled upon an actual spook (read more about it from previous blog posts HERE, HERE and HERE) and from then on we have witnessed many evident predictive signs. Actually, prophecies and clairvoyance are not an unknown phenomenon in our family – many ancestors have been veritable sorcerers and with profound knowledge about herbs, helping many find their true path – with the employment of herbs, lunar phases, and overall wisdom – and have helped wipe away love worries, financial concerns and health problems. I know, this tale may sound like regular crap from any Chatterbox in the light of all those TV shows about witcraft, but you can’t beat actual facts. Well, does this somehow scare me? I would say, definitely! I have always been rather sceptical about stuff like that, yet the further down the road the more I recognize that it is important to trust the inner feeling, take into account the signs and not ignore mental images.
But now back to the garden… I am keen on those semi-set half wild gardens, those like my very own. The more you invest your time in the trees and bushes and the more you talk to them, the more the garden opens up in return. It is a very pleasant feeling! I am fond of how in earlier times people grew everything they ever needed – the less of all that industrial production the better. As for me, I also grow plenty myself – especially the beverages (for example various herbal teas and apple juice for winter). I dry up several plants and herbs with numerous beneficial (therapeutial) effects. Should you be interested to learn more about that, then HERE I have compiled a brief practical compendium about easily available plants with significant effect.
I have also observed that I am really in to taking pictures of nature. Here you can find a gallery of a few recent photos that really make me sigh: Life is beautiful, make sure you notice that! The Almighty has provided us with so much to be joyous about!
