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