So I'm actually just writing to say that I won't be writing a lot. Funny how that works, right? Everything's fine, I'm on my way to Safi (a small non-touristy fishing town on the coast) to start writing my ISP. This past week has been a little crazy with getting everything together for my independent study, changing my topic a little for the last time, going to 2 conferences (in Arabic), Thanksgiving and moving out of the apartment in Sale. while this whole semester has been such a whirlwind, I still can't believe that this past week is over and I'm actually here right now. By here I don't mean literally here in Morocco, but here at this point in the trip. I've gotten used to so much here and I can't believe I only have less than 2 weeks before returning to the US. IT just feels so surreal! 2 weeks, 30 pages, a presentation, a ton of heart-breaking good byes and a flight are the only things separating me from America.
Anyway, since I have this 30 page paper to write by next Sunday, which btw I haven't started it yet, I won't be posting for another week. But I promise when I'm finished with my paper and have my presentation under control I'll write again bien sur. In shallah (hopefully) i'll have the first draft done by Wednesday. Wish me luck! It's going to be a looonnnnggg week.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Let's hide the sfouf in the crack den!
Thursday
Sooooo it's definitely been an interesting couple of days. number 1) i'm on day 3 without a shower 2) i saw 4 freakin sheep slaughtered yesterday morning and 3)I ate more innards than i ever thought i could stomach (no pun intended but I did eat lung and was offered pancreas. politely declined by telling Chaima I didn't think I could handle it).
After I posted yesterday, everyone napped, then we all had tea and cookies. I met Hemsa's sister and hit the highlight of my day... she thought I was Moroccan! I was sitting there with the family still in my pjs (which btw is VERY moroccan... no one changes out of their pjs unless they are leaving the house and even then you can just throw on a djellaba to cover the fact that you haven't changed in 2 days) with the cat on my lap and i kissed her when she came in and said Salam alle cum (which is like saying hello). She started talking to everyone in Arabic and was telling what seemed to be a hilarious story about Hemsa, who is my host brother's best friend. Everyone was cracking up,, but I was just sitting there petting the cat. I guess she must have said something to Hemsa because I hear him say (in arabic) "no, she's from the US." His sister was like, really? and he said yeah, she's american. At that his sister turned to me and said "I am so sorry... I thought you were Moroccan! I thought that you were just sad or something because you weren't talking at all." She was so cute! After tea and cookies, Hemsa, his sister, Ahmed, Chaima and I went out for a walk. I have NEVER seen the streets so empty! Usually Suika, the main street and open market, is crazy busy with people walking and shouting prices and trying to sell you things but it was almost completely deserted because of the holiday! While we were walking Hemsa's sister walked with me and talked to me about her life. She works in marketing, but was told that she can only work in an office because she wears the head scarf. She used to work in Europe but she didn't wear a scarf then. On our way back, we saw this intense physical fight. A woman was beating this young man and then a fully grown man joined in. The young man fell to the ground and a man proceeded to kick him in the stomach. Then the young man managed to get away and ran, but then fell to the ground again. Fortunately a bunch of men intervened and stopped it. It was one of the only times i've truly felt powerless here. I realized I really wanted to do something, anything, to help this kid but I 1) don't speak the language 2) I'm a woman and it probably would not have been good in that regard and 3) if I had gotten involved I probably would have just gotten the kid in more trouble and gotten myself into a mess. So we stood there until it was broken up.
Today I woke up early and went with my family to the butcher. They carried the 4 sheep carcasses down the street to be chopped up. Apparently some families do it themselves and mine used to, but the past couple years they've been going to the butcher, so there we were. We carted the meat back to the house and watched as Ahmed and his cousin carried the last one off. On our way back to the butcher, we watched as the sheep fell from their arms onto the street! It was crazy watching these 2 boys try to carry this huge sheep. Luckily a nice man was coming the other way and took the sheep from them and carried it the rest of the way for them.
At this point I think I need to talk about what I must have looked like. This is day 4 of no shower, meshimushkil, I was still in my pjs as I have been for the past 24/48 hours and I was wearing Chaima's djellaba over them. I was still not wearing contacts because of my eye and I haven't washed my face or brushed my teeth because I had breakfast, then went straight to the butcher's. And I was actually in public like this! Clearly my sense of hygiene has been so skewed by this trip. I'm actually beginning to get a little concerned for when I get back to the US.
Anyway, I left in the afternoon and only was able to leave with the promise that I would be back Friday for couscous. I love my host family so much! So I came back to my very cute apartment with Megan because Chandra was going to get her friend Hannah from the Casablanca airport. I'm not sure if I've described the apartment yet. It's this really cute place on the 2nd floor of a little complex in the middle of a sleepy little part of Sale. Although we don't have a refrigerator, hot water or an oven we're cooking our own meals every day we're there. It's actually not that difficult because of our location right between the open veggie market and the grocery store. We just cook enough for us and use things like milk and cheese within 24 hours of opening them.
Friday I headed back to Rabat in the afternoon and had a great lunch with my host family. After lunch, my host mom carried a covered pot to the table. I was shocked when she opened it and there was one of the sheep heads! They had boiled it so that they could take off the skin and take out the tongue, brain and whatever other meat they wanted. They made fun of me while I sat and watched with my eyes popping out of my head and my mouth covered with my hand. I just couldn't believe that they could do it so non chalantly! It was pretty crazy. I left in the afternoon again and hung out with my friend Lauren. Apparently there's some drama with the group that is living in an apartment in the medina, but there are also a lot of very strong personalities.We (the girls who are living in Rabat, Megan, Chandra and her friend Hannah) went out to Pizza Hut for dinner, which was a welcome change to the sheep and moroccan food and also cooking. Afterwards we went to get ice cream and had an unfortunate encounter with a couple of drunk men who seemed to think it was ok to follow us.
Here is my theory: the attention that a group of girls gets on the streets here increases exponentially by the amount of blonde hair that is visible. Which is quite unfortunate because Chandra, Hannah and I all have blonde hair. But we headed towards the medina and the guys left us alone. Then we caught the bus and went back to the apartment.
Saturday we went back into Rabat after a late breakfast. Unfortunately it was raining, but that didn't stop us from walking around the beach and the medina and visiting the kasbah's beautiful garden. I went to the HUGE grocery store in Rabat that reminds me of Walmart and got marshmallows and oats. I got back just in time to hang out with Chandra, Hannah and Chandra's Moroccan friend Driss who is 30 and speaks pretty decent English. He kept us laughing with his stories about sneaking over to Spain and told us more about the Eid. We returned to Sale not at all hungry but ready to cook. So we made dinner with veggies, then made these amazing no bake cookies with the oats, bananas, peanut butter and milk. We ate like 1/2 of the cookies right out of the pan. Seriously, we're going to need a wheelbarrow to get me out of this country. None of us were even that hungry, but it was just so addictive! We were all on such a sugar high, then we felt pretty sick. Hannah was hilarious when she all of a sudden said "Erin there is something wrong with your prescription. It says to take it with an empty stomach, but that's not possible while you're in Morocco." It's so true! While we were trying to overcome our silliness, we explained to Hannah why we called the back room the crack den. When we had made sfouf (this awesome combination of peanuts, almonds, sesame seeds, browned flour, honey and oil) late one night we had to blend it. But we didn't want to keep up our neighbors so I suggested that we blend it in the back room. I stayed in the kitchen to clean up, but when I went back and tried to open the door, Chandra just looked up and said "close the door" while Megan was sorting through all of the nuts to make sure that the big ones went in first. I sat there and seriously felt like a drug dealer. So now we refer to the back bedroom as the crack den. So since there is a lock with a key, on Saturday night we decided to hide the sfouf, no bake cookies and the milk in the crack den with the window open and treat it somewhat like a fridge. with a lock. so we couldn't eat anymore.
Sunday we woke up late again and made a late breakfast/early lunch of oatmeal, cinnamon, milk, honey and membrillo which is the perfect combination between apple and pear. I stayed in and researched for my project while Chandra took Hannah around the souk, then to the airport. It was so sad saying good bye to Hannah, but luckily she'll be in Madrid all year so we might travel together next semester! When Chandra got back we went to the souk and got stuff for dinner, and had a nice quiet night. While it's been nice having other people stay with us, it's also nice to have some quiet and have it just be the 2 of us.
Sooooo it's definitely been an interesting couple of days. number 1) i'm on day 3 without a shower 2) i saw 4 freakin sheep slaughtered yesterday morning and 3)I ate more innards than i ever thought i could stomach (no pun intended but I did eat lung and was offered pancreas. politely declined by telling Chaima I didn't think I could handle it).
After I posted yesterday, everyone napped, then we all had tea and cookies. I met Hemsa's sister and hit the highlight of my day... she thought I was Moroccan! I was sitting there with the family still in my pjs (which btw is VERY moroccan... no one changes out of their pjs unless they are leaving the house and even then you can just throw on a djellaba to cover the fact that you haven't changed in 2 days) with the cat on my lap and i kissed her when she came in and said Salam alle cum (which is like saying hello). She started talking to everyone in Arabic and was telling what seemed to be a hilarious story about Hemsa, who is my host brother's best friend. Everyone was cracking up,, but I was just sitting there petting the cat. I guess she must have said something to Hemsa because I hear him say (in arabic) "no, she's from the US." His sister was like, really? and he said yeah, she's american. At that his sister turned to me and said "I am so sorry... I thought you were Moroccan! I thought that you were just sad or something because you weren't talking at all." She was so cute! After tea and cookies, Hemsa, his sister, Ahmed, Chaima and I went out for a walk. I have NEVER seen the streets so empty! Usually Suika, the main street and open market, is crazy busy with people walking and shouting prices and trying to sell you things but it was almost completely deserted because of the holiday! While we were walking Hemsa's sister walked with me and talked to me about her life. She works in marketing, but was told that she can only work in an office because she wears the head scarf. She used to work in Europe but she didn't wear a scarf then. On our way back, we saw this intense physical fight. A woman was beating this young man and then a fully grown man joined in. The young man fell to the ground and a man proceeded to kick him in the stomach. Then the young man managed to get away and ran, but then fell to the ground again. Fortunately a bunch of men intervened and stopped it. It was one of the only times i've truly felt powerless here. I realized I really wanted to do something, anything, to help this kid but I 1) don't speak the language 2) I'm a woman and it probably would not have been good in that regard and 3) if I had gotten involved I probably would have just gotten the kid in more trouble and gotten myself into a mess. So we stood there until it was broken up.
Today I woke up early and went with my family to the butcher. They carried the 4 sheep carcasses down the street to be chopped up. Apparently some families do it themselves and mine used to, but the past couple years they've been going to the butcher, so there we were. We carted the meat back to the house and watched as Ahmed and his cousin carried the last one off. On our way back to the butcher, we watched as the sheep fell from their arms onto the street! It was crazy watching these 2 boys try to carry this huge sheep. Luckily a nice man was coming the other way and took the sheep from them and carried it the rest of the way for them.
At this point I think I need to talk about what I must have looked like. This is day 4 of no shower, meshimushkil, I was still in my pjs as I have been for the past 24/48 hours and I was wearing Chaima's djellaba over them. I was still not wearing contacts because of my eye and I haven't washed my face or brushed my teeth because I had breakfast, then went straight to the butcher's. And I was actually in public like this! Clearly my sense of hygiene has been so skewed by this trip. I'm actually beginning to get a little concerned for when I get back to the US.
Anyway, I left in the afternoon and only was able to leave with the promise that I would be back Friday for couscous. I love my host family so much! So I came back to my very cute apartment with Megan because Chandra was going to get her friend Hannah from the Casablanca airport. I'm not sure if I've described the apartment yet. It's this really cute place on the 2nd floor of a little complex in the middle of a sleepy little part of Sale. Although we don't have a refrigerator, hot water or an oven we're cooking our own meals every day we're there. It's actually not that difficult because of our location right between the open veggie market and the grocery store. We just cook enough for us and use things like milk and cheese within 24 hours of opening them.
Friday I headed back to Rabat in the afternoon and had a great lunch with my host family. After lunch, my host mom carried a covered pot to the table. I was shocked when she opened it and there was one of the sheep heads! They had boiled it so that they could take off the skin and take out the tongue, brain and whatever other meat they wanted. They made fun of me while I sat and watched with my eyes popping out of my head and my mouth covered with my hand. I just couldn't believe that they could do it so non chalantly! It was pretty crazy. I left in the afternoon again and hung out with my friend Lauren. Apparently there's some drama with the group that is living in an apartment in the medina, but there are also a lot of very strong personalities.We (the girls who are living in Rabat, Megan, Chandra and her friend Hannah) went out to Pizza Hut for dinner, which was a welcome change to the sheep and moroccan food and also cooking. Afterwards we went to get ice cream and had an unfortunate encounter with a couple of drunk men who seemed to think it was ok to follow us.
Here is my theory: the attention that a group of girls gets on the streets here increases exponentially by the amount of blonde hair that is visible. Which is quite unfortunate because Chandra, Hannah and I all have blonde hair. But we headed towards the medina and the guys left us alone. Then we caught the bus and went back to the apartment.
Saturday we went back into Rabat after a late breakfast. Unfortunately it was raining, but that didn't stop us from walking around the beach and the medina and visiting the kasbah's beautiful garden. I went to the HUGE grocery store in Rabat that reminds me of Walmart and got marshmallows and oats. I got back just in time to hang out with Chandra, Hannah and Chandra's Moroccan friend Driss who is 30 and speaks pretty decent English. He kept us laughing with his stories about sneaking over to Spain and told us more about the Eid. We returned to Sale not at all hungry but ready to cook. So we made dinner with veggies, then made these amazing no bake cookies with the oats, bananas, peanut butter and milk. We ate like 1/2 of the cookies right out of the pan. Seriously, we're going to need a wheelbarrow to get me out of this country. None of us were even that hungry, but it was just so addictive! We were all on such a sugar high, then we felt pretty sick. Hannah was hilarious when she all of a sudden said "Erin there is something wrong with your prescription. It says to take it with an empty stomach, but that's not possible while you're in Morocco." It's so true! While we were trying to overcome our silliness, we explained to Hannah why we called the back room the crack den. When we had made sfouf (this awesome combination of peanuts, almonds, sesame seeds, browned flour, honey and oil) late one night we had to blend it. But we didn't want to keep up our neighbors so I suggested that we blend it in the back room. I stayed in the kitchen to clean up, but when I went back and tried to open the door, Chandra just looked up and said "close the door" while Megan was sorting through all of the nuts to make sure that the big ones went in first. I sat there and seriously felt like a drug dealer. So now we refer to the back bedroom as the crack den. So since there is a lock with a key, on Saturday night we decided to hide the sfouf, no bake cookies and the milk in the crack den with the window open and treat it somewhat like a fridge. with a lock. so we couldn't eat anymore.
Sunday we woke up late again and made a late breakfast/early lunch of oatmeal, cinnamon, milk, honey and membrillo which is the perfect combination between apple and pear. I stayed in and researched for my project while Chandra took Hannah around the souk, then to the airport. It was so sad saying good bye to Hannah, but luckily she'll be in Madrid all year so we might travel together next semester! When Chandra got back we went to the souk and got stuff for dinner, and had a nice quiet night. While it's been nice having other people stay with us, it's also nice to have some quiet and have it just be the 2 of us.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
I saw four sheep slaughtered before 11am... how was your day?
So it's the Eid and let me tell you it's been a day. I came back to my family's house last night and had dinner with them. There were 2 sheep waiting upstairs when I got there and I was assured that there were 2 more coming. I wasn't sure how sleeping was going to go because my family's cousins are all here, but I shared the room with Leila and Chaima. Unfortunately Chaima's teeth are bothering her, so we both went to bed early, me because I knew today would be crazy, and Chaima hoping to get some sleep. I got up this morning and had this great breakfast of pancake-like things covered in butter and honey and of course tea. It was awesome! Then I went downstairs to change and brush my teeth, but I didn't get to do anything because the men came to slaughter the sheep. It was CRAZY!!!! I watched most of it and Chaima took pictures and a video for me. I still don't think it's registered for me, but it was pretty weird. I just kept saying "welli welli welli" which is like saying "ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh." I couldn't watch some of it, but I was seriously impressed with how much I was able to watch without seeing my amazing breakfast again. After they killed them, they would blow into the skin so that it inflated like a balloon because it makes it easier to shave off the skin. Once the legs, skin and heads are off, they hung them from the ceiling with plastic underneath. Never have I ever seen so much blood in one place in my entire life. It's truly amazing how these women cleaned after. They dumped water and soap all over the floor and the terrace floor and pushed it all into the drain in the corner. These women are so incredible! everything is clean and normal again other than the 4 sheep bodies just hangin out (no pun intended!) For lunch we had the liver and fat which btw is definitely an acquired texture. Then they all started cleaning again and although I keep offering to help, they told me no, but maybe tomorrow. Btw I'm still in my pjs... there just hasn't been any time to change and it's already quarter to 4! The day isn't even over, but I thought I should write now while I have the time... the way things are going, who knows what other crazy things will happen! My friend who is staying across the street told me that around the corner they are shaving off the horns and cooking the heads on a fire... Idk if I'm up for it now, but I might go and check it out later. I mean how many times am I going to be in a Muslim country for this?
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Ok I know I need to stop writing novels, but it's been an interesting week!
Thursday
So we had our arabic final exam today and let me tell you I am soooooo happy to have it be done and overwith! It was rough being one eyed, but my eyes did really well! we'll see how well when i get my exam back though. lol. After the exam, we had a calligraphy class which i think was just unecessary. It seems like a lot of what happens with our program is well intentioned, but ill timed. Like for exam this calligraphy class. It was in English and he was teaching us how to write each letter in the arabic alphabet. after we just took our final exam. in arabic. seems kinda ridiculous, right? we thought so too. after the calligraphy class we had lunch, then i went to kenitra to the organization i've been visiting. The woman there is so cute! we talked in darija, french and a very little bit of english. she invited me to a conference on the 27th for victims of violence, which should be really interesting. By the time I got back from Kenitra it was a little late and i was so exhausted!
Friday
No classes! I woke up late (9am), had breakfast with my family, then went to watch a movie with some friends. We didn't actually finish the movie, but I left to have lunch with my family and pick up my money for ISP. They give us enough money to live off for the next 3 weeks. It'll be good to see how I budget my money and how I manage to restrain myself from shopping. it's gonna be rough fo sho! I hate having cash on me because i'm much more inclined to spend it, so i decided to hide ti on myself. hahaha i have money in the weirdest places now! Anyway, we were supposed to have a fun dance party-ish thing with our families today, but because my host dad passed away, it was shuma for them to go. Chaima looked so sad when she told me! But it's completely understandable. So instead we went shopping on suika (the main souk-road) for things for the Eid.
I don't think I've fully explained the Eid yet... So it's a Muslim holiday when Abraham sacrificed the sheep instead of his son. So on Eid, which is Wednesday, they sacrifice one sheep per family. Except that 3 other families are going to be celebrating at my family's house. meaning 4 dead sheep. It's going to be a mess. as in I'm going to be a mess. They keep showing me videos and pictures of last year's Eid and let me tell you, I am convinced they're going to find me downstairs curled up hiding under a blanket.
Anyway, I went out with Chaima, Ahmed and our neighbors, Mariam, who is 13, and her mom Rachida. We walked around for a while, but Chaima and I kept getting distracted with different shops so we were constantly trying to catch up until Rachida decided we would walk in front of her. But when I walked a little bit ahead, 2 guys catcalled at me in English. I guess Chaima didn't hear them and called me back to look at something. I guess that was all they needed for encouragement because they then followed us almost all the way home! By the time we got back we were all really tired. But it seems like no matter how tired I am, I seem to sign onto skype regardless. It's gotten a little bad. I was thinking about it and it's definitely a good thing that I didn't get the internet modem until now. Even though it's been rough not having internet, I've spend so much more time with my host family and gotten so much more sleep this semester that I think it's really been good. But it's good that I have it now.
Saturday
So tomorrow I'm moving out of my home stay and into my new apartment with chandra and megan is staying for a few days. I'm freaking out a little bit (ok a lot) because I really love my family. I don't want to move out. They're so much fun and I have fallen in love with all of them and my life here. I don't know what to do. They've just been so good to me and so wonderful, I'm so sad thinking i'm not going to live with them anymore. .
But today I went shopping with Chandra and Jena before Jena left for home. We got some pretty good deals, then Jena had to leave to get her stuff together. Chandra and I walked around Rabat looking for the English bookstore with no luck, but we did get to explore some random parts that I had never seen before. And I tried a prickly pear which btw are delicious! They're like a combination of watermelon and mango and pineapple. it was awesome. After wondering for a while, we went to meet the gang to take Jena to the airport. On the way to the airport, Jena told us that her host family may have taken her camera. She's had so many issues with this family! First they were using her stuff (make up, computer, clothes, jewelry, etc), then they were feeding her in her room, her clothes weren't coming back from the laundry and her host mom told her she owed them much more money than possible for the medical bills from when Jena was in the hospital. Then Jena told us that she still coudln't find 2 pairs of pants and that her camera is missing. I got really really fired up. So i told her we would get it for her and at the very least mail it to her when we get back.
I was in tears at the airport when we had to say good bye. It just broke my heart that she left and i won't see her for a very long time. I hate this part of the whole study abroad thing. that whole making friends then all going back to respective states/countries thing is completely not ok with me. I'm considering becoming a hermit. then at least there's no one to say good bye to! but i think i would go crazy. like legit crazy. and i think it would only last for like 2 days. then I would be bored and miss being around people. After I got back from the airport, i had a late lunch, hung out with Chaima and we put tea on our eyes which is supposed to help with bags (?), exposed my family to peanut butter on oreos (they loved it!) and gave them the gifts i got. They gave me a teapot, which is adorable and my host mom's friend gave me a purse. It was so sweet! I packed all my stuff and let me tell you it was r.o.u.g.h. rough. my bag is packed to the max and i even have an extra plastic bag with crap in it. this does not look promising for going home btw. i think i'm going to have to leave quite a few of my clothes. packing's going to be a problem fo sho.
Sunday and Monday
I woke up at like 8, but I couldn't handle going upstairs and having to say goodbye, so I watched bones for 40minutes. I had breakfast with my family, then got dressed, got my stuff together and said my good byes. It's funny because I'm coming back in a couple days for the Eid so my tears were kinda ridiculous, but I think we all recognized that it wouldn't be the same. Regardless of how often I come back, I'm not living with them anymore, so it's not the same. My host mom and I cried for a little bit, then I left with Ahmed and his best friend Hemsa who's over like every day and is practically adopted. They helped me carry my stuff, then we met up with Megan, and they took some of her stuff too. We went to Chandra's house, then to the woman who we're renting the apartment from's house. They were so cute! The 2 boys (remember, they're only 14) were so sweet and carried as much as they could, then waited with us at the bus stop. It was hilarious because they bumped into one of their friends and when he asked them where they were going, they said they were coming to New York with us. It was adorable because Hemsa was like "you have a place for me to stay, right?" and "you are my sister now, right?" Of course! They were just so sweet. So we got on the bus, went to the apartment and started making a list of what food to buy for lunch and dinner. I swear I've been in a food coma ever since we got here. We have cooked and shopped for food and cooked some more. That's it. And it's been wonderful!
Since we've moved into this adorable one bedroom 2 living room apartment with no hot water, shower head, oven or fridge, we've made peanut butter chocolate balls, grilled cheese with tomato soup, chicken marsala with rice and pasta, fruit smoothies, peanut butter and banana sandwiches, tea, nachos from scratch, bean burritos with guac and salsa, banana peanut butter and chocolate smoothies, avocado juice and moroccan stuff called sfouf which is ground nuts, flour, cinnamon, a tiny bit of anise, honey, sesame seeds and oil. Wow... looking at that list just about sums up how my stomach has been feeling lately. thrilled and freaked out all at the same time. We had an exciting time figuring out where to buy things. There's a grocery store around the corner, but that can be boring and is not nearly as fresh as buying all of our fruits and veggies at the open markets (souks) down the street. We've gotten some pretty funny looks here, especially when we decided to play in the rain on Sunday night. Actually, the next morning the neighbors were asking what we were doing. when I told them they were like "Oh that's so nice!" but i think they were a little skeptical of these 3 white girls running around at like 10pm in the rain. hahaha it's going to be a really interesting couple weeks!
So we had our arabic final exam today and let me tell you I am soooooo happy to have it be done and overwith! It was rough being one eyed, but my eyes did really well! we'll see how well when i get my exam back though. lol. After the exam, we had a calligraphy class which i think was just unecessary. It seems like a lot of what happens with our program is well intentioned, but ill timed. Like for exam this calligraphy class. It was in English and he was teaching us how to write each letter in the arabic alphabet. after we just took our final exam. in arabic. seems kinda ridiculous, right? we thought so too. after the calligraphy class we had lunch, then i went to kenitra to the organization i've been visiting. The woman there is so cute! we talked in darija, french and a very little bit of english. she invited me to a conference on the 27th for victims of violence, which should be really interesting. By the time I got back from Kenitra it was a little late and i was so exhausted!
Friday
No classes! I woke up late (9am), had breakfast with my family, then went to watch a movie with some friends. We didn't actually finish the movie, but I left to have lunch with my family and pick up my money for ISP. They give us enough money to live off for the next 3 weeks. It'll be good to see how I budget my money and how I manage to restrain myself from shopping. it's gonna be rough fo sho! I hate having cash on me because i'm much more inclined to spend it, so i decided to hide ti on myself. hahaha i have money in the weirdest places now! Anyway, we were supposed to have a fun dance party-ish thing with our families today, but because my host dad passed away, it was shuma for them to go. Chaima looked so sad when she told me! But it's completely understandable. So instead we went shopping on suika (the main souk-road) for things for the Eid.
I don't think I've fully explained the Eid yet... So it's a Muslim holiday when Abraham sacrificed the sheep instead of his son. So on Eid, which is Wednesday, they sacrifice one sheep per family. Except that 3 other families are going to be celebrating at my family's house. meaning 4 dead sheep. It's going to be a mess. as in I'm going to be a mess. They keep showing me videos and pictures of last year's Eid and let me tell you, I am convinced they're going to find me downstairs curled up hiding under a blanket.
Anyway, I went out with Chaima, Ahmed and our neighbors, Mariam, who is 13, and her mom Rachida. We walked around for a while, but Chaima and I kept getting distracted with different shops so we were constantly trying to catch up until Rachida decided we would walk in front of her. But when I walked a little bit ahead, 2 guys catcalled at me in English. I guess Chaima didn't hear them and called me back to look at something. I guess that was all they needed for encouragement because they then followed us almost all the way home! By the time we got back we were all really tired. But it seems like no matter how tired I am, I seem to sign onto skype regardless. It's gotten a little bad. I was thinking about it and it's definitely a good thing that I didn't get the internet modem until now. Even though it's been rough not having internet, I've spend so much more time with my host family and gotten so much more sleep this semester that I think it's really been good. But it's good that I have it now.
Saturday
So tomorrow I'm moving out of my home stay and into my new apartment with chandra and megan is staying for a few days. I'm freaking out a little bit (ok a lot) because I really love my family. I don't want to move out. They're so much fun and I have fallen in love with all of them and my life here. I don't know what to do. They've just been so good to me and so wonderful, I'm so sad thinking i'm not going to live with them anymore. .
But today I went shopping with Chandra and Jena before Jena left for home. We got some pretty good deals, then Jena had to leave to get her stuff together. Chandra and I walked around Rabat looking for the English bookstore with no luck, but we did get to explore some random parts that I had never seen before. And I tried a prickly pear which btw are delicious! They're like a combination of watermelon and mango and pineapple. it was awesome. After wondering for a while, we went to meet the gang to take Jena to the airport. On the way to the airport, Jena told us that her host family may have taken her camera. She's had so many issues with this family! First they were using her stuff (make up, computer, clothes, jewelry, etc), then they were feeding her in her room, her clothes weren't coming back from the laundry and her host mom told her she owed them much more money than possible for the medical bills from when Jena was in the hospital. Then Jena told us that she still coudln't find 2 pairs of pants and that her camera is missing. I got really really fired up. So i told her we would get it for her and at the very least mail it to her when we get back.
I was in tears at the airport when we had to say good bye. It just broke my heart that she left and i won't see her for a very long time. I hate this part of the whole study abroad thing. that whole making friends then all going back to respective states/countries thing is completely not ok with me. I'm considering becoming a hermit. then at least there's no one to say good bye to! but i think i would go crazy. like legit crazy. and i think it would only last for like 2 days. then I would be bored and miss being around people. After I got back from the airport, i had a late lunch, hung out with Chaima and we put tea on our eyes which is supposed to help with bags (?), exposed my family to peanut butter on oreos (they loved it!) and gave them the gifts i got. They gave me a teapot, which is adorable and my host mom's friend gave me a purse. It was so sweet! I packed all my stuff and let me tell you it was r.o.u.g.h. rough. my bag is packed to the max and i even have an extra plastic bag with crap in it. this does not look promising for going home btw. i think i'm going to have to leave quite a few of my clothes. packing's going to be a problem fo sho.
Sunday and Monday
I woke up at like 8, but I couldn't handle going upstairs and having to say goodbye, so I watched bones for 40minutes. I had breakfast with my family, then got dressed, got my stuff together and said my good byes. It's funny because I'm coming back in a couple days for the Eid so my tears were kinda ridiculous, but I think we all recognized that it wouldn't be the same. Regardless of how often I come back, I'm not living with them anymore, so it's not the same. My host mom and I cried for a little bit, then I left with Ahmed and his best friend Hemsa who's over like every day and is practically adopted. They helped me carry my stuff, then we met up with Megan, and they took some of her stuff too. We went to Chandra's house, then to the woman who we're renting the apartment from's house. They were so cute! The 2 boys (remember, they're only 14) were so sweet and carried as much as they could, then waited with us at the bus stop. It was hilarious because they bumped into one of their friends and when he asked them where they were going, they said they were coming to New York with us. It was adorable because Hemsa was like "you have a place for me to stay, right?" and "you are my sister now, right?" Of course! They were just so sweet. So we got on the bus, went to the apartment and started making a list of what food to buy for lunch and dinner. I swear I've been in a food coma ever since we got here. We have cooked and shopped for food and cooked some more. That's it. And it's been wonderful!
Since we've moved into this adorable one bedroom 2 living room apartment with no hot water, shower head, oven or fridge, we've made peanut butter chocolate balls, grilled cheese with tomato soup, chicken marsala with rice and pasta, fruit smoothies, peanut butter and banana sandwiches, tea, nachos from scratch, bean burritos with guac and salsa, banana peanut butter and chocolate smoothies, avocado juice and moroccan stuff called sfouf which is ground nuts, flour, cinnamon, a tiny bit of anise, honey, sesame seeds and oil. Wow... looking at that list just about sums up how my stomach has been feeling lately. thrilled and freaked out all at the same time. We had an exciting time figuring out where to buy things. There's a grocery store around the corner, but that can be boring and is not nearly as fresh as buying all of our fruits and veggies at the open markets (souks) down the street. We've gotten some pretty funny looks here, especially when we decided to play in the rain on Sunday night. Actually, the next morning the neighbors were asking what we were doing. when I told them they were like "Oh that's so nice!" but i think they were a little skeptical of these 3 white girls running around at like 10pm in the rain. hahaha it's going to be a really interesting couple weeks!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Shwiya Homesick
Tuesday was kinda rough I think partly because the weather and partly because my eye has decided to fight me every step of the way towards recovery. Lately i've been a little more homesick than usual. I feel like I'm running out of time here, but then I realize that we still have another month. It's been kind of frustrating. A couple of my friends are going home this saturday because they have enough credits to go back early and for health reason. Jena was the one who was in the hospital with a blood infection and won't fully recover for another few months, Tulsi has a bacterial infection on her eye and no one really knows what the story is with Meg. Although they're leaving for legitimate reasons, it seems so tempting to go home early and spend some extra time with my family and friends, and avoid the huge project my ISP has turned into. But I know that I should do the research and it's really really interesting. It's something I really want to know more about, but it's just hard to think about trying to do it in 3 weeks. I'm not really sure how it's going to work out. Meanwhile, I'm so excited to move out and have my own schedule next week, but I hate thinking about leaving my host family. My host mom is so sweet, my sister and brother are just the most fun and my host grandma is so silly. I love them, but I think it'll be good to make my own meals and stuff. it's going to be the first time I've ever really lived on my own... and i'm in a developing country. Should be pretty interesting! I think it's a good thing it's only for 3 weeks.
on another note, I have 4 new photo albums on facebook so check them out! i took sooo many pictures!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=239089&id=500336784&l=ff303b5829
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240083&id=500336784&l=f1dc49e549
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240127&id=500336784&l=daddfe8911
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=239303&id=500336784&l=4bdef13f1c
on another note, I have 4 new photo albums on facebook so check them out! i took sooo many pictures!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=239089&id=500336784&l=ff303b5829
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240083&id=500336784&l=f1dc49e549
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240127&id=500336784&l=daddfe8911
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=239303&id=500336784&l=4bdef13f1c
Sunday, November 7, 2010
I only came up to you because you have beautiful eyes...
Friday was a mess of a day. I had an arabic exam in the morning which was a mushkil kabeer (big problem) because I can only really see out of one eye when I write and it takes a lot of concentration so I end up with a headache. Not to mention I've missed 2 classes this week because of it. But I took it, w/e. It turns out that my teacher really hates giving us these stupid quizzes, so they don't actually count towards our grade, but are review for the final exam next week. I'm pretty sure i'm going to score an A in this class because I try. That's the only reason. Anyway, after the quiz my whole class went to a cafe and had the rest of class there. After class, I was supposed to volunteer, but i could barely see on my walk back to my house, so I decided not to go. Instead I hung out, then had a meeting with my advisor for my independent study. I'm so excited/nervous to get going with it. it's a little daunting, but i think it'll be good. I've changed my topic a little so it'll be interesting to see where it goes. After my meeting, i opted to walk on the beach and check it out because a bunch of my friends play soccer there on fridays. I put my feet in the water and chatted with some friends, then headed out before sunset. Unfortunately I was not alone. A random well dressed Moroccan boy (I say boy but he was probably around my age) approached me and tried to get me to talk to him. He spoke english and kept saying that he wanted to talk to me to practice. He said that he approached me because I have a beautiful face, a beautiful hair, a beautiful body, and beautiful eyes. Let me explain why this is hilarious. I haven't showered in 3 days (i was worried about getting shampoo in my eye), my hair is in a gross bun, my face broke out because i'm in freakin africa, i'm wearing a white t shirt that's on day 3 of wearing it without washing (not in a row) and my right eye is red, swollen and barely open because i scratched my frickin cornea! I started laughing just because i thought of all days I could get attention, this would be it. (don't worry i've showered since). So first I called Chandra, then realized she was playing soccer, so I called Chaimaa, my host sister, and explained what was going on. She agreed to meet me. Luckily he left me alone as soon as I entered the medina. While on one hand this is a little unnerving. it's also hilarious now that it's over. Why on Earth would he think that I would all of a sudden start talking to him after being silent during a five minute walk? I guess I'll just have to wash the american out of my hair next time i shower. The rest of my night was relatively uneventful. Family has been coming and going since my host dad passed away so it can be a little overwhelming. But my host grandma is hilarious. She's terrified of Lucky, the cat. It's the funniest thing I've ever seen. She screams when he comes in the room.
So Saturday was completely uneventful because I really didn't leave my house until it was dark. I woke up late, showered and tore apart my room. I dragged all of the stuff off my shelves and went through all of my papers. I think I started to panic a little because I realized I only have another week with my host family. Where did the time go? So I reorganized and everything will fit in my bag in shallah. Meanwhile I seriously got up to Episode 6 of grey's anatomy before calling it a day. My one outing was to a cafe to meet my friend Jena's friends who are visiting. After that I headed home while they split to go to a bar.
Sunday was much more exciting. After an early morning run (which didn't last very long as i keep getting these stupid headaches from trying to keep my eyes open in the light), I showered and went on an apartment adventure! There's a cheap apartment in Temara (just south of Rabat) so Chandra and I wanted to check it out. However. it's an adventure because we've never been to Temara, we were never given the precise address or road name, and were completely disoriented after getting off the bus after a 30 minute bus ride. In addition to that I realized I haven't been outside during the day for good reason. My eye was freakin out and Chandra kept forgetting that I couldn't see. So we walked around until we stopped and asked a man about directions to a cafe that we knew was on the corner. Unfortunately, no one could tell us where this cafe was. So the guy tried to give us general directions, and asked us if we wanted him to take us there. We looked at each other and said no thank you. But then we started walking and he drove by, saw and stopped us and told us we were going the wrong way. So he gave us more directions, but then asked again if he could help us by driving us. At this point, he seemed like a genuinely nice man trying to help out a couple girls who are not in the best neighborhood and are clearly lost. He told us about his children and about how he teaches art in Rabat. He was really interested in why we're taking arabic classes. So we got in the car and he drove around trying to find that stupid cafe. He stopped and asked a policeman, and then finally we spotted it. He gave us his card, said if we need anything or if we want to get coffee sometime to call him, then went on his way. from there we knew exactly where the apartment was. It was so cute! 3 women are renting out this first floor apartment that's so adorable, but so hard to get to. So we headed back to Rabat for lunch, then out again to Sale, a town just north of Rabat, to see another apartment. This one is closer to where I volunteer, and is dirt cheap because it's a friend of Chandra's host family. It's also really cute, but lacking hot water and an oven. But ultimately we don't think that matters because it's in a cute, safe part of the city, it's easy to get around, and did i mention how cheap it is? So we're thinking this is it. It's only 2 weeks, then we're going to essaouira for the rest of ISP. It was an experience fo sho because the woman who is renting us the apartment speaks only a little french and no english, so she's going to need to talk to Chandra's host family to get the details. Hopefully it'll work out!
So Saturday was completely uneventful because I really didn't leave my house until it was dark. I woke up late, showered and tore apart my room. I dragged all of the stuff off my shelves and went through all of my papers. I think I started to panic a little because I realized I only have another week with my host family. Where did the time go? So I reorganized and everything will fit in my bag in shallah. Meanwhile I seriously got up to Episode 6 of grey's anatomy before calling it a day. My one outing was to a cafe to meet my friend Jena's friends who are visiting. After that I headed home while they split to go to a bar.
Sunday was much more exciting. After an early morning run (which didn't last very long as i keep getting these stupid headaches from trying to keep my eyes open in the light), I showered and went on an apartment adventure! There's a cheap apartment in Temara (just south of Rabat) so Chandra and I wanted to check it out. However. it's an adventure because we've never been to Temara, we were never given the precise address or road name, and were completely disoriented after getting off the bus after a 30 minute bus ride. In addition to that I realized I haven't been outside during the day for good reason. My eye was freakin out and Chandra kept forgetting that I couldn't see. So we walked around until we stopped and asked a man about directions to a cafe that we knew was on the corner. Unfortunately, no one could tell us where this cafe was. So the guy tried to give us general directions, and asked us if we wanted him to take us there. We looked at each other and said no thank you. But then we started walking and he drove by, saw and stopped us and told us we were going the wrong way. So he gave us more directions, but then asked again if he could help us by driving us. At this point, he seemed like a genuinely nice man trying to help out a couple girls who are not in the best neighborhood and are clearly lost. He told us about his children and about how he teaches art in Rabat. He was really interested in why we're taking arabic classes. So we got in the car and he drove around trying to find that stupid cafe. He stopped and asked a policeman, and then finally we spotted it. He gave us his card, said if we need anything or if we want to get coffee sometime to call him, then went on his way. from there we knew exactly where the apartment was. It was so cute! 3 women are renting out this first floor apartment that's so adorable, but so hard to get to. So we headed back to Rabat for lunch, then out again to Sale, a town just north of Rabat, to see another apartment. This one is closer to where I volunteer, and is dirt cheap because it's a friend of Chandra's host family. It's also really cute, but lacking hot water and an oven. But ultimately we don't think that matters because it's in a cute, safe part of the city, it's easy to get around, and did i mention how cheap it is? So we're thinking this is it. It's only 2 weeks, then we're going to essaouira for the rest of ISP. It was an experience fo sho because the woman who is renting us the apartment speaks only a little french and no english, so she's going to need to talk to Chandra's host family to get the details. Hopefully it'll work out!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Sooo I apologize for neglecting my blog... I guess I didn't realize how long it's been, but I've been a little overwhelmed ever since we left for the southern excursion. It was so awesome! I don't think I can go into too many details because I'll write a novel about how unbelievable it was, but I'll make a list of all the cool things we did, then go into more detail
Day 1
visited English-speaking university in Ifrane (a European-like town in the mountains where it's cold!) that I want to come back to and study at. Had lunch and talked with a Moroccan from the Sahara who gave us the scoop on university life
visited the cedar forests in Azrou where there are barbary apes (so cute!) and really really old trees and the town with this amazing view. Chandra and I went on an adventure up a pile of rocks.
Stopped at a kasbah-like hotel in Midelt, where there were huge huge suite-like rooms and dinner was fish. I had to cover the eyes because they were looking at me. =(
Day 2
After an awesome breakfast of every bread imaginable, we headed out at 8:30... on to the desert!
We drove on these windy, twisty, narrow roads through the mountains.. The bottom of the bus started to open, but luckily nothing fell out. When we got to Merzouga it was lunch time and we had this awesome stuffed pizza like thing.
We took landrovers into the desert. A woman from the program left papers on the bus, so our car was like 10 minutes behind everyone else. Does that mean we got to the oasis late? La (no). That just means that our driver had a lead foot, passed like 10 cars, including the other landrovers with our friends in them, to come into the front of the line. Throughout the whole thing my friend and I were having a dance party in the back.
We stopped at an oasis and heard a lecture on the issues the locals are having, then stopped at a woman's organization before driving through the desert to our hotel. in the middle of the dunes. NBD.
WE RODE CAMELS INTO THE SUNSET!!! It was honestly one of the coolest experiences of my life. My camel's name was Asou. Chandra Megan and I rolled down the sand dunes and jumped and landed knee deep in sand. It was incredible. We had dinner at the hotel and had this crazy dance party to live traditional Berber music. Crazy. Then some of my friends and I walked through the sand dunes at night and just rolled and talked and stared at more stars than I've ever seen.
Day 3
Before dawn, we went on a hike through the dunes (no easy feat) and watched the sun rise from the top of a really tall one. We had breakfast at the hotel, then headed off for a really really long bus ride
We finally got to Ourzzazate, where we stayed in the dorm-like place. It actually reminded me a little of the Round Hearth just because of the bunk beds and the way it was set up. I was so tired when we got there, so I didn't go exploring. Instead I finished my book and hung out with some friends before dinner. We had dinner with the other women (it was a women's dorm) who are university students. When I first sat down I was like, absolutely not. I couldn't think of anything to say to them and I had no energy to speak Arabic, french, or even English. Luckily my friend Hannah has enough energy for all of us and I would just explain to them what she was saying because she doesn't speak any French and her Arabic is worse than mine (not awesome). My friend made a good connection that she is a little like Dory from Finding Nemo. We had a long introduction and welcome speech before dinner that no one was in the mood for, but dinner itself was good. Afterwards people were dancing and singing, but I was so wiped out, that was not going to happen
Day 4
MARRAKECH!
We got to Marrakech early afternoon, and we had lunch and explored the city. There's one square that is insane! It's full of snake charmers and women who want to put henna on you (costing waayyy too much) and juice stands that are worse than the seagulls from Finding Nemo. We got back and I napped, then went out to a club with some friends to celebrate mine and my friend's 21st birthday. We had an awesome time, but crashed pretty late.
Day 5
Still in Marrakech
I went for a run with Chandra early in the morning, then went for a swim in the freezing, tiny hotel pool. It felt so nice! We sunbathed and chatted for a while, then showered, lunched and napped. Chandra, Denise and I went to the Majorelle Gardens where there is the Yves St Laurent memorial. It was beautiful. We got a little lost, then went kind of the wrong way through. Luckily we did though because we actually ran into Dillon Kelly and his girlfriend who were just leaving. Dillon and I went to school together for 9 years and haven't really talked since. It was so weird to see him! We talked for about half an hour, then continued our walk through the gardens. After our adventure we went back to the hotel, where I rested, ate and hung out with some friends.
Day 5
Essaouira
We had a long drive to Essaouira and on the way we stopped at an argan oil cooperative
When we got to Essaouira we were all super tired and dropped all of our stuff at the hotel before lunch. Lunch scared me. It was a full on fish and I had to peel off the skin and peel the meat off the bones. It was awful. My friend told me I was eating Nemo and that was it for me. Unfortunately the hotel didn't have enough rooms, so we went to another hotel, then Chandra Jena and I went to the beach. The water was cold, but no worse than the Cape and there were camels on the beach. We walked the beach and climbed the dunes where we watched the sunset.
After dinner, Nawal, our program director, pulled me aside. I couldn't believe what she was telling me. While I had been traveling, my host dad died. He wasn't sick when they went to bed Saturday night, but didn't wake up Sunday morning.
I walked the well lit beach with Chandra, then called it an early night.
Day 6
Back to Rabat
Before leaving, Chandra and I got up really early and walked the beach in the morning. We had a really long (8 hour) bus ride. We stopped for lunch in Al Jadida, then got to Rabat at around 5. I got back to the house and all of the lights were on on the stairs. On the way I had been hoping that it wasn't true, but by the time I got up the stairs and saw my host mom in white, surrounded by the women in the family, I knew it was true. My cousin, sister and mom came in to my room when I went in to drop off my stuff and asked how I was doing. All I could do was hug my mom as tightly as I could as she cried and cried. I had no idea what to say, but it didn't matter. I think she knew.
Now
ever since i got back things have been a little crazy. My host mom sits in the living room every evening to say greet the people who stop by to pay their condolences. Meanwhile I somehow managed to scratch my cornea..? so i've been dealing with that this week. Chandra and I are planning our independent study living situation and might have an apartment, which is really exciting.
Day 1
visited English-speaking university in Ifrane (a European-like town in the mountains where it's cold!) that I want to come back to and study at. Had lunch and talked with a Moroccan from the Sahara who gave us the scoop on university life
visited the cedar forests in Azrou where there are barbary apes (so cute!) and really really old trees and the town with this amazing view. Chandra and I went on an adventure up a pile of rocks.
Stopped at a kasbah-like hotel in Midelt, where there were huge huge suite-like rooms and dinner was fish. I had to cover the eyes because they were looking at me. =(
Day 2
After an awesome breakfast of every bread imaginable, we headed out at 8:30... on to the desert!
We drove on these windy, twisty, narrow roads through the mountains.. The bottom of the bus started to open, but luckily nothing fell out. When we got to Merzouga it was lunch time and we had this awesome stuffed pizza like thing.
We took landrovers into the desert. A woman from the program left papers on the bus, so our car was like 10 minutes behind everyone else. Does that mean we got to the oasis late? La (no). That just means that our driver had a lead foot, passed like 10 cars, including the other landrovers with our friends in them, to come into the front of the line. Throughout the whole thing my friend and I were having a dance party in the back.
We stopped at an oasis and heard a lecture on the issues the locals are having, then stopped at a woman's organization before driving through the desert to our hotel. in the middle of the dunes. NBD.
WE RODE CAMELS INTO THE SUNSET!!! It was honestly one of the coolest experiences of my life. My camel's name was Asou. Chandra Megan and I rolled down the sand dunes and jumped and landed knee deep in sand. It was incredible. We had dinner at the hotel and had this crazy dance party to live traditional Berber music. Crazy. Then some of my friends and I walked through the sand dunes at night and just rolled and talked and stared at more stars than I've ever seen.
Day 3
Before dawn, we went on a hike through the dunes (no easy feat) and watched the sun rise from the top of a really tall one. We had breakfast at the hotel, then headed off for a really really long bus ride
We finally got to Ourzzazate, where we stayed in the dorm-like place. It actually reminded me a little of the Round Hearth just because of the bunk beds and the way it was set up. I was so tired when we got there, so I didn't go exploring. Instead I finished my book and hung out with some friends before dinner. We had dinner with the other women (it was a women's dorm) who are university students. When I first sat down I was like, absolutely not. I couldn't think of anything to say to them and I had no energy to speak Arabic, french, or even English. Luckily my friend Hannah has enough energy for all of us and I would just explain to them what she was saying because she doesn't speak any French and her Arabic is worse than mine (not awesome). My friend made a good connection that she is a little like Dory from Finding Nemo. We had a long introduction and welcome speech before dinner that no one was in the mood for, but dinner itself was good. Afterwards people were dancing and singing, but I was so wiped out, that was not going to happen
Day 4
MARRAKECH!
We got to Marrakech early afternoon, and we had lunch and explored the city. There's one square that is insane! It's full of snake charmers and women who want to put henna on you (costing waayyy too much) and juice stands that are worse than the seagulls from Finding Nemo. We got back and I napped, then went out to a club with some friends to celebrate mine and my friend's 21st birthday. We had an awesome time, but crashed pretty late.
Day 5
Still in Marrakech
I went for a run with Chandra early in the morning, then went for a swim in the freezing, tiny hotel pool. It felt so nice! We sunbathed and chatted for a while, then showered, lunched and napped. Chandra, Denise and I went to the Majorelle Gardens where there is the Yves St Laurent memorial. It was beautiful. We got a little lost, then went kind of the wrong way through. Luckily we did though because we actually ran into Dillon Kelly and his girlfriend who were just leaving. Dillon and I went to school together for 9 years and haven't really talked since. It was so weird to see him! We talked for about half an hour, then continued our walk through the gardens. After our adventure we went back to the hotel, where I rested, ate and hung out with some friends.
Day 5
Essaouira
We had a long drive to Essaouira and on the way we stopped at an argan oil cooperative
When we got to Essaouira we were all super tired and dropped all of our stuff at the hotel before lunch. Lunch scared me. It was a full on fish and I had to peel off the skin and peel the meat off the bones. It was awful. My friend told me I was eating Nemo and that was it for me. Unfortunately the hotel didn't have enough rooms, so we went to another hotel, then Chandra Jena and I went to the beach. The water was cold, but no worse than the Cape and there were camels on the beach. We walked the beach and climbed the dunes where we watched the sunset.
After dinner, Nawal, our program director, pulled me aside. I couldn't believe what she was telling me. While I had been traveling, my host dad died. He wasn't sick when they went to bed Saturday night, but didn't wake up Sunday morning.
I walked the well lit beach with Chandra, then called it an early night.
Day 6
Back to Rabat
Before leaving, Chandra and I got up really early and walked the beach in the morning. We had a really long (8 hour) bus ride. We stopped for lunch in Al Jadida, then got to Rabat at around 5. I got back to the house and all of the lights were on on the stairs. On the way I had been hoping that it wasn't true, but by the time I got up the stairs and saw my host mom in white, surrounded by the women in the family, I knew it was true. My cousin, sister and mom came in to my room when I went in to drop off my stuff and asked how I was doing. All I could do was hug my mom as tightly as I could as she cried and cried. I had no idea what to say, but it didn't matter. I think she knew.
Now
ever since i got back things have been a little crazy. My host mom sits in the living room every evening to say greet the people who stop by to pay their condolences. Meanwhile I somehow managed to scratch my cornea..? so i've been dealing with that this week. Chandra and I are planning our independent study living situation and might have an apartment, which is really exciting.
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