Reflection

Well, I did it! I’m home. My suitcase is looming ominously in the corner, waiting for me to unzip it and clean/organize all of my Moroccan belongings (21 kilos of such, for I threw away about 10 pounds of things before my flight home!) I have yet to schedule my OPI Arabic exam, or get in shape for cross country, or start applying to college. But who even cares?!

 I can’t even express my gratitude to NSLI-Y and Amideast for everything this trip has done for me. Not only have I only just begun my Arabic journey, but I’m positive that I want to do something related to this beautiful language, and something on this side of the world, in my future. It’s unfortunate that I have to leave, and I hate to say goodbye so soon.. Who knows if I will ever see my host family again, or even some of the people in my group? Who knew that six weeks could knit such strong bonds in a group of 15? We all have shared this amazing journey together, and I don’t think that anything can ever replace that. We have created irreplaceable memories that I will never, ever forget. I hate to be nostalgic and emotional before I even get home, but I am honestly going to miss this more than I thought possible.

I shouldn’t be sad, because this is just the beginning – and I understand that. It’s just a really difficult concept to grasp when jumping from an absolutely perfect life, back to…the norm. (warning: this post rings of nostalgia, but at least my thoughts are coherent as I’m writing it, because I just woke up from 11 hours of sleep.. woah) The type of stress I experienced in Morocco – whether related to Arabic frustrations or sleep deprivation (or both) – won’t parallel anything that I will experience back in the United States because I can’t cure it with a walk through the medina, or a night on the beach at the Kasbah de Odayahs watching the stars, or bonding with my host sister using my charades and limited Arabic. Never again will I wake up each morning after 5 hours of sleep, sprint to get ready and hail a petit taxi to get to school on time (never failing to be late, of course,) and practice my Arabic with the driver. Never again will I sit in class with some of these people who have become family to me, or meander through the streets of Agdal amongst Ramadan festivities. I’ll never get to experience the “first time with a host family” feeling again, or watch the stars all night from the beaches at the Oudayas. Yet, I still have so much ahead of me.

Landing in America, I realize how different my two worlds are. Some culture shock observations I’ve already made, in my hours in America… *What is this microwave contraption?! Why is there not a flush button on top of the toilet? Is it really true that guacamole, sweet potatoes, blueberries, raspberries, and veggie burgers are actually accessible? Why is everyone speaking English? Why is everyone dressed so inappropriately? This weather is so humid, why am I not in the middle of a desert? Why is everything so gigantic? Why is everyone rushing around so busily? Why do I not see people eating khobz, tajine, and couscous? Or drinking mint tea with every meal, for that matter? Am I actually allowed to eat and drink in public, because it’s not even Ramadan anymore, even in the U.S?* Surely those are just a few, as I have only ventured outside to go directly from the airport straight to my bed at 11:30 at night. I’m actually surprisingly ok with being home, for now. I’ll be kept busy with college apps, school preparation, cross country, working, catching up with people, Arabic studying, and lots of lots of reading. By the way, Eid Mubarak to everyone! I’ll miss you, Morocco. It’s been real. Thanks for changing my life.

See ya soon, America.

It's really hard for me to believe that my trip is already ending. I remember my first awkward day here, when I walked into our hotel as one of the last people to arrive and introduced myself to everyone. It's amazing how in six weeks, I have transformed as a person and my group has become so tight knit. At the PDO in DC, I could hardly remember a basic greeting in Arabic (Salam Alaykum) and now I'm able to have simple conversations. My past week has been packed full of adventures, and let's be honest - who needs sleep when you've got coffee? I'll try to recall my past week, but it's all a blur to me because it's flying by and I'm trying to make the most of my final days in Africa.

We had a lecture on Moroccan carpets, visited an authentic carpet souk, have had a million hours of Arabic class, worked on our final project, finished our garden (it actually ended up looking quite nice, despite our complaints that we weren't getting anything done.) We also had one of two re-entry orientations, which was a huge bummer for everyone. Nobody wanted to hear that we would be leaving so soon, or that coming back is a million times harder than leaving. I think everyone knew it, but nobody was ready to talk about it. It's time to face reality I guess, and it's better to accept that you're leaving than hit a wall of culture shock upon return, though it's inevitable. Okay though, let's see what else is new since I last updated..

On Saturday we went to Fes. It's an incredible city, with a beautiful old medina that has winding, hilly streets and shop vendors prepared to bargain on every corner. Multiply the factors of claustrophobia, 100 degree weather, conservative and uncomfortable clothing, a beating sun, and a lack of sleep by ten though, and you'll realize..Not the most pleasant experience. Our dance party in the bus to C'est La Vie plus blasting the air conditioning made it an awesome ride home, though.

I don't really have time to blog, because I need to be either studying Arabic or making the most of my last few nights of Ramadan festivities in Morocco.

So, see you soon America!

Love from Morocco,
Marg

Update

I currently am living in the most beautiful place in the world. As I type this, I'm speeding down a highway in the middle of Morocco at night, and the sky is illuminated by stars. I just watched the sunset over the barren, hilly desert landscape and am staring out the window as the wind tangles my hair and music is filling the air. I just finished reading The Virgin Suicides, and am discussing it with some others who did likewise. My words can't begin to explain how perfect and at peace I feel here. I'm surrounded by the most incredible language in the world, with amazing people, expanding my horizons and learning more than I thought I was capable of, both academically and culturally. I didn't realize when I came here how deeply embedded in the culture Arabic is -- without even a basic understanding of the language, the culture is nice to see, but not something that can actually be experienced. Morocco is quite incredible.

Our schedule is packed each day with activities and school, or else we are exhausted out of our minds and attempting to catch up on all of the sleep we don't get. So let me give a quick synopsis on my last two weeks: cultural site visits to the artisan village in Sale (where I tried my hand at pottery,) and the Rabat zoo! A day trip to Casablanca, including a visit to the Hassan II Mosque, the only mosque in Morocco which non Muslims may visit. Also the largest mosque in the country! The influence of Islam in the Arab world is so palpable - the call to prayer 5 times each day, ringing out in unison throughout the country, beckons millions of followers to come pray. It's a beautiful thing. In Casablanca, we also visited the Morocco mall (incredibly Western: they had a Starbucks, Pinkberry, h&m, and a million other American stores. Sort of fun, but a small touch of America was enough for now.) 

The weeks are flying by, and school is difficult but rewarding. I often feel overwhelmed and behind simply because there is so much to learn, but in actuality I am learning at such a fast rate. My host family has complimented me multiple times on how well I'm doing, and it feels so rewarding. Our final is so soon though - Ahh!! My family took me djellaba shopping a few nights ago (no big deal to them that we were out until 2 AM meandering about the old medina amongst Ramadan festivities, despite the fact that I would be waking up for school in a few hours. We're on Moroccan time, after all.) But I did get a beautifulll djellaba that makes me feel like a real Moroccan, so it was completely worth it! 

This weekend we went to Essaouira and Marrakech, cities in the south of Morocco. They are both really touristy in comparison to what I'm used to, so I got to wear "scandalous" clothing for once... Yes! My knees were showing! Essaouira is a lovely little beach town, where we visited a synagogue and shopped around in the medina. In Marrakech, our group lucked out with a super fancy hotel that had a pool (yayy for night swimming!) Unlike Rabat, the medina there had monkey and snake charmers entertaining tourists. The street food, orange juice, and (of course) mint tea were also delicious as usual! Plus as a fun fact, I even had mint tea in the exact location where there had been a National Geographic feature. So awesome!! 

Anyway, I'm sleep deprived and we're about to arrive in Rabat. I love it here. Ntshawfo ghdda!

Love from Morocco, 

Marg

More photos!

Tangier and Chefchaouen

As a disclaimer, I know that Google translate is not the best option when it comes to translating anything.. However, if you are home alone, sick, and desperate to know the correct dosage of your French medicine so that you will stop coughing, sneezing, and feeling generally miserable.. It comes in pretty handy. Apparently, I got a virus from the ocean  after my beach trip the other day, which means no school for me for the next couple of days. This is actually a huge bummer, because that means hours and hours of Arabic instruction, a trip to the market, a calligraphy lesson -that I'm missing out on. Maybe I can just ignore what the doctor said and go to school sneakily anyway.. Inshallah.

But this weekend was phenomenal. The most beautiful places on the planet that I have seen in my entire life: The most northwestern point of Africa in Tangier (from which you can see the horizon of Spain,) the spot where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic, and Chefchaouen, Morocco. I could try to explain how absolutely perfect and amazing these places are, but my words cannot give justice to the inexplicable beauty.

Our first stop on Friday was Asila, a tiny artsy town with abstract murals on every wall, that overlooks the Atlantic ocean. Each year, they have an art festival where artists go and paint over that of last year, so it never looks the same. Our next stop was Tangier, a more European style city in the northwest. We took a walking tour through the medina, saw Hercules cave, went to the spot where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic, and ate lunch at a European cafe where I had my very first real salad in weeks! I know that might be a little strange to get excited about, but every single salad I have ordered in Morocco has been a plate of mayonnaise, rice, tomatoes, and maybe one piece of lettuce.. So I was pretty excited! In Tangier we also got to visit the American Legation, where the only U.S National Historic Landmark outside of the U.S exists! Then on Saturday afternoon we ascended the mountain to the beautiful blue and white city of Chefchouen.

The mountains in Chefhcaouen tower above you and remind you of how vast the world is in comparison to the tiny little specks of houses and mosques that dot the mountainside. For dinner that evening, we went to restaurant Alladin, where we climbed six flights of stairs to sit on the roof with a 360 view of the village. Lanterns, candles, and stars illuminated the night and we feasted on delicious, traditional Moroccan food for three hours -and of course I had mint tea. The sunset call to prayer literally echoed through the mountains from the seven mosques around us, and I have never experienced something quite so beautiful and harmonious. I will try to post a video. After dinner, we walked around the village and did some bargaining for some authentic Moroccan clothing, jewelry, and crafts. Since there is definitely a touristy side to Chefchaouen, many shopkeepers know at least English, French, Spanish, and Arabic. I limited myself only to Spanish and Arabic though, so that even if I couldn't bargain in Arabic I was able to get around quite easily with Spanish.

On Sunday morning, we scaled the mountain on our hike up to the mosque, from which we could see the entire city of Chefchaouen. Beautiful. I felt like I was in a movie. Sunday night, we came home in time for iftar with the family, and, lots of studying. Arabic has gotten significantly more difficult and my biggest obstacle is vocabulary. There's not much to say if you don't have the words to use. So, flashcards are my new best friend!! Arabic is an amazing language though, and I can't wait to keep improving.

Love from Morocco,
Marg

Ramadan begins!

I’m writing this in a moderate state of delirium because I chose to fast today (though I chose to drink water because it wouldn’t be healthy to be dehydrated in this heat), so bear with me. I get to eat in two hours, so please go down sun. Ftar is waiting! Anyway, I have quite a bit to tell.

I have been uber busy with going to the beach, Villa des Artes, packing for Tangier and Chefchaouen, running in the Hilton, catching up on sleep, bathing awkwardly in the hamaam, celebrating a birthday, and obviously most importantly.. Learning SO much Arabic! Just a week ago I could hardly construct a word and now I can conjugate verbs! Well, sort of. I still have a lot to learn. Who knew that there was more than one way to address a group of people depending on how many there were? Are there more than two people? My host family laughs endearingly when I practice my choppy Arabic with them, but they are fabulously helpful as well. I apparently have a heinous accent though, so I definitely need to practice speaking. I am getting a little faster at writing though, which is a plus!

Ramadan here is incredible to see. In the day, all restaurants and cafes are closed and Rabat is a ghost town. At night, the world comes alive and festivities abound. There are about three cafes in Agdal (the neighborhood I go to school in) that are actually open.. One of them being McDonalds. So really, if I want to eat food to have energy to run each evening, I have pretty limited options. During Ramadan, people are on edge and irritable, especially towards the end of the day, and it isn’t exactly safe to be out and about. I had a taxi driver nod off while I was in the back, and it was terrifying. Driving around is unsafe and there are tons of  car accidents.  Any time between 6:45 and ftar is a bad time to be out, so we aren’t supposed to go out until around 8:30 if we want to.

Since most people in Morocco fast during the day, working hours are shorter or people are sleeping during the day. The mosque is brimming with people all day, and it is so incredible to see hear the calls to prayer. The sky becomes filled with the sounds of calls to prayer and it’s inexplicable just how beautiful it is. Ftar (break-fast) is just the first meal, and my family continues to eat every couple of hours until sun rise at 3 AM. Some kids in my group are waking up before 3 each morning to eat, but since I’m not fasting for religious reasons, I am eating breakfast when I wake up and only fasting a couple of days. If you want to know more about Ramadan, here is a website that talks a bit about it!

http://islam.about.com/od/ramadan/f/ramadanintro.htm

The beach here is really beautiful! It is crazy to think about the fact that I am swimming off the coast of Africa, on the side of the Atlantic I always wish I could see when I am standing on the Atlantic coast back home. Another group outing we did was a trip to the Villa des Artes, an art museum, in which we were able to meander about without a guide and see North African art. It really made me want to start painting again.

The most awkward cultural experience I have had thus far on my trip: the hamaam. Let’s just say I feel really, really clean after that experience. I’m relatively positive that three layers of my skin were scrubbed off, so I guess I’ll be keeping my new tan for a while! It was pretty awkward lying down on the floor of this hot sauna room, without much on, getting scrubbed - a little painful, too. Quite the cultural experience though. I can now say I have been to a public bathing house and lost three layers of skin in the process. Interesting.

Well, I’m probably forgetting to mention a few or a lot of things in this post because of my current state of fasting delirium. Tomorrow we leave for our weekend trip to the beautiful (and sweltering) cities of Tangier and Chefchaoun. Insh’Allah I will be able to focus on my homework before it’s time to eat tonight. With or without food  though, Morocco is still amazing.

Ramadan Kareem to everyone! Love from Morocco,

Marg

July 4th in Morocco?

Happy July 4^th from Africa! Not that there is any celebration here, but “celebrating” with Arabic class with 15 other Amrikiyas in Africa beats celebration in the U.S, still. Morocco is treating me fabulously!

Our classes have begun, and so far they have been quite easy. Our class is learning the alphabet, and I already know the alphabet, so it’s just a review for me. (Thank you, Rosi!!) Darija is interesting but much harder, because it is a dialect of Arabic with its own grammatical structure – so really, I am learning two languages at the same time. I am able to read slowly and write words at this point, and I don’t actually understand most of the words – but I can sort of make the sounds that are more difficult for non-native speakers to pronounce. I even have a catchy Arabic alphabet song stuck in my head. (I’ll just ignore the fact that I currently know less Arabic than a Moroccan kindergartener!) We have university level speaking partners to practice our Arabic with too, which is super helpful because I need a lot of practice.

               On Monday we visited the Chellah, a beautiful castle-like ancient Roman ruin, and the Mausoleum of King Mohammad V – both so interesting. The architecture is so different from anything that you would see in the United States: It really is an entirely different world. Today we went to a Souk, the Thursday market, in Sale. The idea is similar to a farmers market in the United States, however it was shockingly different – at some points, I was in the panic zone. Cows, sheep, lambs, chickens, and rabbits are dragged around on ropes, blindfolded, have their feet tied together, are shoved in tiny cages, are slaughtered – all in plain view. It is obviously a normal occurrence for the Moroccans who have a rural lifestyle, but for me – it was painful to see, shocking, and nauseating. The thought of it makes me sick. It was definitely different, and not a way of life that I am at all used to, so.. I don’t exactly plan on going back!

               The running situation here for me is totally not ideal. There is a wonderful, forested, running park here called the Hilton. However, its location requires that I take a taxi to and from because I am far too unfamiliar with the city and language to walk there alone. I could run in my area off Rabat, but it is a little sketchy because, as the only American they have possibly ever seen, I get lots of stares, comments, and one time was even followed on a bike. My only opportunity to run is at the Hilton, but because I have to take a taxi, there is a slight problem. Every single time I have been driven in a taxi alone, I was either taken to the wrong location, overcharged, misunderstood, driven in circles, or a mix of them. I hate taxis because it is so hard for me to communicate that even though I can state my location, I always am questioned and even yesterday – taken to the completely wrong location across town where I was charged 40 dirhams for a ride that should have cost 5. It was absolutely terrifying. So, yes, I do have problems running in Rabat, but I am trying my best.

               Moroccan food is terrific! As are the people! And the hospitality! And the tea! There is ton of bread in every meal, and I have been served everything from vegetable tajine, to lentil soup, to couscous, and even the dessert here is better. Phlan and chocolate pudding – SO yummy! My host sister in law is so kind and helpful, (more of a host sister since she lives here), and helps me with my Arabic each night by teaching me words and phrases. She is so welcoming and hilarious. My roomates, Kshama and Tasneem, are really great people too. They are funny and smart and interesting, and each night we have long conversations at the dinner table for hours about random topics (in English, often alone, because we eat dinner alone.. We still aren’t sure why that is, exactly. Maybe that will change during Ramadan?) The mint tea, served with every meal, is deliciously sweet and yummy too. Since we have class during the day, we get about 1-2 hours for lunch somewhere in the city and I have been trying different restaurants every day. My current favorite lunch spot is a Thai restaurant that has amazing sushi and pad Thai! I know Thai food in Morocco. Yes, it’s actually quite delicious.. And though I don’t speak French, Arabic has made me appreciate its simplicity in comparison because all of the menus are in French. It’s almost like I’m learning three languages!

               Our group started community service on Wednesday, which will consist of creating a garden at a park in a South African refugee camp. We picked up trash and cleared a plot, an arduous but rewarding task when we were finished. Next week we will get to begin planting, Insh’Allah. Ramadan starts next week, wow. I might not be able to fast completely simply because I will be running and that would be way too unhealthy, so I will have to eat some, but I will talk to my resident coordinator to work out some kind of plan!

               Also, I have had some questions about whether the removal of President Morsi has caused any kind of chaos here, but I assure you that though the United States media may be over dramatizing its immediate effect, at least in places besides Egypt. There are quite some miles between Morocco and Egypt, and there has not been a visible reaction from the Moroccan citizens (according to what I have seen.. No major protests in Rabat, so far.)

Anyway, love from Morocco!

Marg (PS: I can write my name in Arabic, yay!)

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