It's been a month already! In the spirit of reflection, this post is aimed at the "little things" that slipped through the cracks of previous posts. Here are a few observations by the numbers and answers to your consolidated questions.
1: Sock "lost" in the bathroom. Happened on Day 1 with my Moroccan family and was followed by a quick run to the local mini-market.
1: Moroccan "friend" who tried to rip me off while I was looking for an apartment. Friend-no-more.
1: Haircut. While sitting in the chair for 30 minutes, this was also the number of words that I understood in the exchange between my Moroccan host and the barber.
1: Program I've seen other than the news regarding the Egyptian (and other) demonstrations shown in any cafe / restaurant. This program was a soccer game.
2: Bus rides. Typically crowded and much, much slower than a petite taxi, I've only ridden them twice - both times with my Moroccan host and never again (Enshallah).
2: Hamman visits. The Moroccan Hammam is famous for its deep cleaning and therapy. This is also the number of layers of skin I lost each time after the coarse scrubbings!
3: Guys I saw publically peeing downtown in the middle of the day during my first week. No citations witnessed.
3: Colors for the petite taxis between Rabat (blue), Fes (red) and Marrakesh (green, if I remember correctly).
3: Yellow-colored fingers from smoking. Time to stop.
4: Midnight strolls with my Moroccan family and friends. Typically returning at 1:00 AM for dinner, I rather quickly began to opt out of this routine after the first week.
4: Round-trip train tickets purchased. Easily the most reliable and efficient way to travel between the big cities.
5: Times per day the Mosque down the street echoes out the "Call to Prayer" for the devote Muslims. Like America, there is the religiously devoted and everyone else. Life doesn't stop for the call and most people that I've met don't pray but once or twice a day (if at all).
5: Teachers that my classmates and I had in a one-week period while our scheduled dialect teacher was under the weather. Typically, we would have one instructor; it was a frustrating week because the dialect isn't formally written but still taught in writing and each teacher has their own transcription system.
6: Workout sessions (running mostly) that I've done since arriving (zero regrets thus far).
7: Political and religious conversations that I "enjoyed" with my host family before I opted to cut my stay with them in half.
8: AM - Typical wake up time.
10: Approximate number of times I've almost been hit by a car (while trying to cross the street). One other time while I wasn't.
12: AM - Typical bed time.
14: Times that I watched the band Queen on DVD with my Moroccan host (and unemployed music composer) during my 14-day stay with them.
20: February - Big demonstration planned in Rabat. Guess who will attend.
28: Moroccan Dirham (MAD) for lunch today - Chicken Tajine, French Fries, Salad and Coke. Approximately $3.00 USD.
30: Days of the Arabic / Dialect mix in my head. It's been a little frustrating at times because about half of the Arabic words work in the dialect. The trick - so I'm told - is to know which ones (thanks teaching staff).
Picture break: The Rabat Lighthouse
Now, to some of your questions. It's taken a little time to feel comfortable answering some of them, as I'm still new and don't want to make many opinions too prematurely. From your comments, Facebook posts and emails...
Any particular reason for Morocco? I chose Morocco because I wanted to continue my passing familiarity with Arabic but didn't want to be in a more traditional country in the Middle East or Egypt. This has been a fortuitous choice so far. I heard that Morocco was more open to foreigners and was less traditional than its fellow Arab states. I've found both to be true up to this point. There's a liquor store down the street, and I don't feel too out of place as I walk around in traditional American clothing. Further, there's a lot to see and do as well as a multitude of climates and terrain. Very similar to California in size, feel and climates!
How do they "celebrate" their traditional holidays? From what I've been told, traditional American holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, are observed here but not treated with the same importance. There are as many Muslim holidays as there are holidays in the US. Yesterday, Mohammed's birthday was cause for most shops to close. Big parties and celebrations are held during Ramadan, Eid Al Fitor and Eid Al Ahad amongst others. I haven't seen any of them yet, so hold that thought!
Do all children go to school and, if so, up to what age? Do individuals have to pay for college or does the government pay/subsidize? What doe most study (men versus women) and are classes segregated? I don't have good answers to these questions yet, but give me some time. For now, there has been continuous educational reforms in the country since the 1950's. At present, there's a mix of boys-only / girls-only and non-segregated schools. The latter is more typical in the bigger cities while the former remains the norm in the smaller "Rif" villages (from what I've been told by a professor from a university in Meknes).
What's a "typical" breakfast, lunch, dinner? A typical breakfast for me is black coffee and some type of bread or croissant. Lunch is usually whatever the special of the day is at my school. Choices have ranged from pastilla, tajine, couscous to panina and french fries. Dinner is a mix of traditional Moroccan dishes and whatever French / foreign restaurant I visit. Pizza is also a big dish here, available at most restaurants.
What are your travel plans? For this first month, I wanted to travel around Rabat and see everything worth seeing in my host city. I feel that I've done that (for the most part) and will now branch out to the rest of Morocco for the next couple of months. From the northern Rif to the southern Sahara, I hope to see it all! After that, I'm planning a cross-continent European trip from Portugal to Moscow. Next summer, after my first year at Al Akhawayn, maybe more Europe or India and the Far East...
What's your program in Rabat like? Is this an immersive year? I guess you take some dialect classes and otherwise try to interact with local people as much as possible? The program at the school is very flexible. I'm putting together a piece with my classmates that should describe it better than I could myself. Hopefully, it will be ready next week! This is the first year of my two and a half year immersion. I live in the city, try to limit my visits to the Embassy and attempt to meet new Moroccans daily. In the fall, I will regain some "structure" and attend Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane for a Master's in International Relations (which, one could argue, is my ultimate administrative goal here).
How is Morocco? Tell me what you think of it! Is it what you expected, more, less? How is the culture there? Are you fitting in? I've enjoyed everything about Morocco so far! I've found the people and the culture to be very open and accepting of foreigners / foreign ideas. Unfortunately, as a result, I've found it somewhat lacking a national identity at times. For instance at the National Theater, there wasn't a national anthem or introduction in Arabic along with the French/English/Sign welcome. Personally, most people are welcoming and things are easy to find. The culture - as I've witnessed in daily life - doesn't appear to fundamentally differ from what we try to accomplish daily in America. Tomorrow, I'll complete my month of dialect classes (which I've attended almost daily from anywhere between two and six hours). I interact with people - Moroccan and foreigners alike - daily, mostly for lunch, dinner or evening strolls down Rabat's spacious streets. I have taken a few days off though and stuck around the apartment watching American movies!
To those who asked these questions, I hope these answers are good enough. Keep 'em comin! For those who didn't, feel free to jump in...
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