Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1121563
letter editor ANA HOP 16 T he words on this June issue cover — The Tourists — say everything about what's inside. By definition, a tourist is someone who travels for pleasure or culture. I love being a tourist in a foreign place, as nothing inspires me more than being among the unfamiliar — be it people, places, languages, or subject matter. As I worked my way through the stories that appear in the magazine this month, I very much felt like a tourist in my own profession. We visit Marrakech by way of El Fenn. PaperCity contributor Diane Dorrans Saeks recounts the magical 28-room hotel that is a celebration of the history of its city, with a nod to contemporary art and design. Next month, I'm attending a wedding in the South of France. Perhaps I'll extend my stay and make the three-hour flight from Nice to Marrakech. I can imagine few more intriguing places to play tourist. A trip I'm still kicking myself over not making would have brought me to Seville, Spain, for the wedding of my friend Tessa Mugica. A native of Spain, this creative spirit and wise soul is one of those enviable people I consider a preternatural tourist. Wherever she goes, Tessa has an innate ability to find something new — or to see common things through a new lens. After marrying her fiancé, Robert Montana, in a civil ceremony in Dallas, Tessa observed her family's Spanish roots and history by way of a three-day wedding several months later in Seville. The main event was a formal ceremony in the ancient Iglesia de Santa María la Blanca, followed by lunch at the historic Hotel Alfonso XIII. What I love about this wedding is its authenticity, as well as Tessa's deep commitment to celebrating not only her union with Rob, but also to her cultural and familial roots. Being a tourist doesn't always mean having to travel. As a journalist, I often find myself talking to people who are wildly foreign to me in their professions, passions, and work. This is how I felt during my first meeting with professional witch Corbin Chamberlin. The world of witchcraft is admittedly foreign to me. And, while I do smudge my home every Sunday, cultivate a garden of herbs, and have an odd obsession with the movie Practical Magic, I never felt more energetically aware than after my meeting with Corbin. We talked about the importance of being mindful with our words (everything we say has the power of a spell and the potential to impact our lives, Corbin says); the magic of ritual, whether it be smudging your home or surrounding yourself with crystals; and the rise of the divine feminine. "You have hundreds of years of men and this macho perspective — and thinking in this singular way," Corbin told me that day. "And people are realizing there's more to spirituality. They are getting in touch with the divine feminine, if you will. This hetero-normative masculine thing in the past was not working. So, I think there's been a resurgence of the great feminine." Moments like these have crept into my mind many times in the month since we met — and it's no accident. That's what the best touristy moments do for us: They push us out of our comfort zones and force us to see the world in a new way, ultimately reshaping our lives. Corbin did that for me — and I didn't even have to buy a plane ticket. Christina Geyer Dallas Editor in Chief christina@papercitymag.com