Two sides to every story

I recently went on a trip to Marrakech, Morocco and found that there were two sides to Marrakech. There was the pretty and sparkly side, that makes you say "ooooooh" and "aaaaaaaah" as you marvel at the breathtaking Islamic architecture. The streets are perfectly manicured and even the public trash cans are stylish. The people are warm and friendly and everywhere you go they always say to you "Welcome to Morocco!"

Koutoubia Mosque--World's tallest mosque

Inside the Saudian Tombs

Lady making weird pancakes in the restaurant in our hotel

Public trash can. Very chic I must say.

But there's another side to Marrakech, the authentic and dirty side that makes you say "oh hell no!!" and "get me the f&#% outta here!" because the mysterious particles you see floating in the air makes you afraid to breath and the horrendous stench from the donkeys and goats roaming free is enough to make you suffocate and collapse in the 107 degree heat. All of a sudden the warm and friendly people are hard to find, instead you have swindlers who are trying to "help" you find your way around the town, and small children steal your dinner off your plate right in front of you.

Open air market

Another view of the open air market

Just an ordinary guy..riding his donkey

An ordinary street

Stray kitties--just because they're cute:-)

Mystery meat at its best

Yes, there are always two sides to every story, and depending on who you're dealing with, sometimes three or four. Just like there was a sparkly side and a dirty side to Marrakech, the same can be said for my life.

I was chatting with with an old friend online and she said, "you're so lucky! You have a great job and get to spend a year abroad traveling around the world living the good life. I would kill to switch places with you right now!"

That, my friends, is the sparkly side of my life. Sure, I'm living in the great city of London and every now and then I get to do a little bit of traveling, but let's not forget the dirty side. This "great job" I have, is actually an internship and because I have the job title of Intern instead of something lofty like Director of Global Business Development, I receive a measly "salary" and I'm often relegated to Office Bitch (i.e. secretary) when all of the very important people go away on holiday.

The great western philosopher Kimora Lee Simmons once said, "before you classify someone as lucky, make sure you know everything about their big picture." So the next time you come across someone who you think is living a charmed life and they keep going on and on about all the things they've done and and all the things they have, say to them, "that's great. But what's the other side of the story?"