When I was a little girl, growing up in Tangier, I would often accompany my parents to Souk’d Bara le grand Socco in Tangier to buy fresh eggs, onions and delicious sheep’s cheese from the “Djbella” – the local mountain farmers. Next, we would go to the cavernous fish hall, where the bounteous offerings of the sea never ceased to amaze me.

Tangier, the city where I was born and spent my childhood. A city on the crown of Africa, gazing into the distance, towards Europe. This is where mythical demigod Hercules fathered a child with the giantess Tingis, the later founder who named the city after his mother.

For me, returning to Tangier means coming home. I couldn’t believe my luck when I got the chance to come to Tangier with Female Economy, the company I co-run. We set to work with ten theatermakers, visual artists and authors from Tangier, Casablanca and Rabat and ten residents from the Medina, the old part of the city, and in an intense two-week workshop, the creators and residents plunged into the intimacy of our adoption method. Listening to their life stories, we got a fascinating glimpse into the dreams, desires and problems of the people who live here.

We set up shop in the small theatre of Darna, one of our partner foundations, right across the fish market that I’ve known since my childhood. The street is one where you might find well-off ladies parking their brand-new SUVs amidst children sniffing glue and inebriated homeless people sleeping on the pavement, all set against the backdrop of the ancient Medina, with its beautiful winding streets. Perched atop lies the Kasbah, overlooking the beckoning sea and, for many, the promised continent beyond.