Adventures with Alice!

Apologies for the late blog post! Things have been going pretty well.
People have come and gone over these past few weeks! My roommate Maggie left to go back to Italy, but now I have another roommate who is from Belgium! So that's pretty cool. My host sisters also left, just today, to go to camp/work in the northern part of Morocco. And unfortunately, they aren't coming back until after I leave. So we said our goodbyes last night! The students from the BU group also left on Sunday, and it was sad to say goodbye to them! I did meet some more people though, some from Princeton, another from Chicago, and even some Moroccans!

In other news, Alice Su came to visit this past weekend! We had quite the adventure.

Friday.
After picking Alice up, we went to eat at Sbahi with some other people from Al-Alhawayne University. Then later that night, we went to the CCCL, where there was a farewell party for the BU kids. It was such a fun event! There was Moroccan music, and lots of dancing and shouting. They would call out someone's name, and that person would have to go into the middle of the circle and start dancing! Both Alice and I were called into the circle....But we had a fun time! The Moroccan families of the BU students were there as well, so that was really nice.
Afterwards, we met up with Djali, Alice's French friend, and we went to the Kasbah, and later on to Cafe Blueberry for dessert!

Saturday.
I gave Alice the shortened, super-quick, 90-minute tour of Rabat. Needless to say, we only saw 2 sights. We went to the Tour Hassan and the Mausoleum. But while we were there, there was an American/English/European tour group, and we kind of latched on to them and listened in on their tour. And a kind old couple start talking to us in English! They were sweet.
After lunch at my favorite pasta place, La Mamma, we met up with Alex, and headed out on our voyage to the beach. After much hassle - involving chasing down Djali for Alex's bathing suit, asking bus drivers for the correct bus, finding the grand taxi stand, figuring out prices to go to Temara - we finally squeeze into the grand-taxi along with 3 other people, and head out for the beach! (Note: grand taxis are not grand. Neither are they big. They are simply regular sized cars, but they fit 6 passengers in at once. 2 in front, 4 in back!).
We finally make it to the beach, and we meet 2 Moroccans, who become our friends, and decide to be our escorts. Alice and I set off to find a bathroom to change, but we end up on a 40-minute adventure, down a sketchy beachwalk, where there were sketchy plastic tables and chairs on the side, and random broken carnival-like cars, just sitting in the mud. Looked like a scene from a bad horror movie. We return safely, and join Alex and the guys. After some time in the water, we go back to our stuff, and take a giant 2 hour nap/tan on the beach. When we finally wake up, the 2 Moroccans were still there, watching us, and they ask: "Is it normal for you people to come to the beach and just sleep?" Why yes indeed, it is very normal :)

Our journey home was just as adventurous! We get onto the street and again ask our way around to get to the right bus stop. But we didn't know which bus to take, and we also didn't know if the bus was ever going to come. Didn't look like it. But right then, Djali calls Alice, and says "Alice! I'm right in front of you!". He had driven past with his Moroccan friend and saw us! So we sprint across the street, and piled into the car! Yay! We make it back to Rabat, and Alice and I get off at Agdal, where we did some shopping. Then we went to Yoka Sushi for dinner - our new favorite restaurant in Rabat. Dragon roll. Boston roll. Miso soup. Cucumber salad. Teppanyaki. Delicious!!

Sunday.
Our new Belgium friend, Jitske, joined us for church in the morning! Then afterwards, while trying to decide where to eat for lunch, we decide that it's not too soon to go to the sushi place again. So off we went, and enjoyed another delicious meal! Then we dropped off Alice at the train station.


So all in all, it has been a fun two weeks! Unfortunately, I didn't take many pictures this weekend. But go to Alice's facebook, because she has lots of great photos from this weekend!


Some other updates!
- The desert trip last weekend didn't end up happening, but it may be happening this weekend!! Very possibly. Will definitely post about that soon!
- My poor packages from the US still have not arrived, and it has been over 1 month! :( :( let's hope it gets here before I leave!!

And countdown to home: 11 days!

The Sights, Sounds, and Smells of Morocco

Souika. Bustling with people, pushing and pulling, some trying to make their way home, others trying to shop. The sound of men, yelling at the top of their lungs, "Solde, solde!", trying to attract you to the heap of clothes and shoes lying on the table. The smell of sweet corn, roasting. The smell of popcorn, popping in a black cauldron. The smell of snail soup (still haven't dared to try it!). The smell of freshly squeezed orange juice by the side of the street. 4dh.
The distinct smell of leather as you approach Rue des Consuls. The smell of scented aromas and oils. The smell of black soap, used in the hammams. The smell of mint tea, brewing at tea time.
The sound of the waves as you leave Rue des Consuls and approach the beach. The sound of the whistle as the tram guy blows it frantically, telling you to get off the tram tracks because the tram is coming (despite the fact that the tram is moving at 3mph!).
The smell of an empty Medina, when the shop-keepers have left and you realize how wide the street actually is. The smell of over-flowing trash, overflowing into the street.
The sound of the 4:30am call to prayer. The sound of the 5am parade that went by this morning (!!). The sound of the rooster at 6am, going off every single minute (I counted). The sound of honking.
The traffic. The cars coming at you as if he will never stop. The sound of screeching tires. The sight of the bus-stop, when masses are waiting for the bus. The sight of teenagers riding on roof-tops of buses, because the bus is full. The sight of masses gathering in front of the parliament building, carrying signs and shouting chants of protest. The sound of Moroccans, singing together as they wave the Moroccan flag.
The sound of silence. Which is rare, and precious!

Three weeks from today, I will be on a plane, heading home to the US! I am two-thirds of the way done! After six weeks here in Morocco, I am thankful for the experience I have had so far. I am thankful for all my French teachers over these years, because I would've never been able to make it here without the French! I'm thankful for the cockroaches, the tummy bugs, the man who scammed me for money, the lady who won't let me return my broken internet key, the many Jawal cards I used up trying to figure out how the minutes here work, the couch that is now my bed, the impossible task of crossing the street, the cold showers, the spiders in my shower, and all the things in between! I'm thankful because they are all learning experiences that have helped me appreciate the comfort of being at home! Though I am much more comfortable here now than I was six weeks ago, I still have lots to learn and experience. But for now, I am thankful.

And so, the countdown for home begins. 21 days :)

P.s. Souvenir shopping has begun! Taking any present requests now!

Fes: el-Bali, el-Jdid, Boulejoud gardens, hammam

This past weekend, my friends, Maggie and Rebecca, and I went to Fes! What a wonderful city! I had a great time, and there was just such an interesting feel about this imperial city. It wasn't just the monuments and sights that we saw - though those were beautiful as well - it was just the entire feel of the city! Did you know, that Fes is the largest populated area that has no car access? (fun fact thanks to Rebecca) And it's true - the streets are narrow and filled with blind alleys. But the people of Fes know their way around like it's just another city. This website has a great map of the Fes Medina - and even that doesn't encompass the thousands of winding streets of the city!

So bear (bare?) with me! This is going to be a long post - filled with pictures!


Fes El-Bali
The Old Medina was a gigantic maze. We first arrived at our hotel around 11:30am, and we headed out to try to get some lunch before our guided tour in the afternoon. We get onto the main street, and manage to find a road-side sandwich place for a quick lunch. Harassment in Fes is much worse than in Rabat! Men were shouting "konichiwa" left and right, and there were also a few "sister of Jackie Chan?" comments. Maggie and Rebecca also got lots and lots of attention, and it was just a crazy scene.
Our tour began around 2pm, and it was pretty good! Our tour guide took us to the Medersa Bou Inania, the Kaiorouine University (though we couldn't go inside), the tanneries, the carpet workshop, the oil-making store, and some other nooks here and there. Walking around in the Medina was crazy. There was trash everywhere, and kittens hiding in every little corner. There were also lots of mules, often packed with tons of boxes, and when you hear someone screaming "Balak!", you better get out of the way. It was quite the bustling scene! It is nothing like the Medina we are used to in Rabat, where there are about 2 main streets, wide and full of people, and the rest are little alleyways where people live. In Fes, everywhere we turend was another neighborhood. There was the market where they sold leather goods, handicrafts, and pottery. Then there was the neighborhood with the henna women, and argan oils and herbs. There was also the market where there were live chickens waiting to be ordered and taken home. It was just such a cool experience walking amongst it all.

After the tour, we took a little break and returned to our hotel. Afterwards, we went out for a walk and ate at Cafe Clock. We also found the gardens, which were closed. So then we walked some more and went by the Royal Palace. As we were walking, a man kept following us and talking to us, but we just kept ignoring him. He had some pretty sweet lines though: "Open your heart. I make you happy. Why you don't open your heart? Spice girls. Flowers. I like flowers. Show me your eyes. I miss you." When we finally got mad at him and told him to leave us alone or else we'd call the police, he says "You not spice girls! Why you not talk to me!" And finally left.
When we were walking down the street looking for dinner, we were bombarded by restaurant-owners, showing us their menu. All the restaurants offered the exact same food - so they kept trying to entice us by telling us they would give us massive discounts. Finally we chose one up on a terrace to avoid the massive crowds. Fes was a blazing 110 degrees in the afternoon. It's as though we stuck our face to an open oven and left it there. At night, it cooled down only to about 90 degrees, so we were still pretty hot. Finally after dinner, we walked back to our hotel, and relaxed for the evening. We also took the greatest showers ever in our bathroom. The water pressure was perfect, and it was just amazing. Here are pictures from the first day!

Walking in the streets of the Medina 

Tanneries of Fes!

At the Bou-Jeloud main gate! Also known as "The Blue Gates"

Inside the Bou Inania Medersa

At Cafe Clock!

Hammam
Oh, the hammam. What an experience! I had heard about the hammam before, because my host family goes there once a week to take their showers. It is the public bath, where they go inside, take off all their clothes, and take a shower there. Usually, there is a women that can do the scrubbing for you. They use what's called a "kiis", which is a prickly scrub, and scrub at you all over to get the dead skins off. Then they use black soap, and wash down your body.
So while we were in Fes, Maggie and I decided to try it out! But we were a little iffy about the whole public, standing-in-an-open-room-with-everybody-else kinda thing. So we found this place that did private hammams! It did cost a little more, but I think overall, it was definitely worth it.
Sunday morning, we wake up, and Maggie and I meet this kind women who took us on a 20 minute walk through the Medina. We arrive, and we change into bathrobes, and go in one at a time.
First, she asked me to lie on my tummy, and she used a soft oil. She would first rub it all over my back, and then use a bucket to pour water all over me to wash it off. Then she used the "kiis", and scrubbed scrubbed scrubbed. It was pretty sore! But I could feel the dead skin coming off. Being here in Morocco, where the medinas are often dirty and filled with smoke, my skin has become pretty gross. After washing that off, she used le savon noir - black soap - and rubbed that in. The soap smelled pretty good. Then I turned onto my back, and she did the front side. After all that, she washed my hair! With Pantene :) Lots of head massages and she also used the black soap for my face. Then she had me stand up, and she stood up onto the bench that I had been lying on, and poured the bucket of water from my head. It was like standing under a waterfall! I almost fell over because the water was so heavy. She did that a couple of times, and then I was done! Took a total of about 50 minutes.
It was quite the experience! Afterwards, my skin was very soft and I felt like my pores were not as clogged up. We were lucky, because on Sunday, the weather was slightly cooler, so we didn't start sweating as soon as we left the building!

Obviously no pictures from the hammam trip...

On our way home though, a Moroccan man approached the woman, and apologized to her. She asked him why, and he said "I am going to marry these two girls. They are beautiful. Tell them to wait for me. I will marry them. I love them."



Fes el-Jdid
After the hammam, we went back and got Rebecca, and we went to visit the gardens and Fes el-Jdid. This is known as the newer part of Fes, though it is still very old. Here, we visited the Jewish Quarter, Mellah, and some synagogues. We obviously looked out of place, and very lost, so a man approached us and said he would show us around. So we figured we had no better idea, and getting lost in the Medina is a big problem, so we followed him. He showed us around a little bit, and then we paid him for his service. Fes el-Jdid was not as exciting in my opinion, but it was still cool! And we got to see the Boujeloud gardens, which were very pretty. Here are pictures from that:

Maggie and I in the gardens

In Mellah - the Jewish quarter of Fes el-Jdid

After that, we ate a late lunch/early dinner, and returned to our riad to get our bags before going to the station. We really enjoyed staying at the riad! And everytime we came in, the owner would says things like "This is your home now! Want some tea? I can make tea right now. No? Okay, your room ok? Ok for you? Ok, bye bye now!" They were all super sweet. Bye bye Riad Ahlam!

Rebecca and I in the Riad 

For the whole Fes album, go to Facebook!

Well, today is back to work! And Happy 4th of July from Morocco!! Apparently, there was a 4th of July celebration at the US Embassy in Rabat yesterday. Sadly, I wasn't even invited, because I don't have a US passport...:( I thought they would at least email me....Oh well. Enjoy the fireworks everyone!

The little blue and white city on a hill

This past weekend, I went to the beautiful town of Chefchaouen and the coastal city Tangier! It was very very beautiful!
On Saturday, we left Rabat at around 8:30am, and drove to Chefchaouen, arriving around 1:30pm. After checking into our hotels (7 rooms total, we booked out the entire hotel) and unloading our bags, we went into the old Medina and ate lunch at the Casa Aladdin. It was a three-course meal that took 3 hours to eat! But it was yummy, and the waiters wore Aladdin pants and pointy-toed shoes. For my appetizer I had a French omelette, my entree was beef kebabs, and my dessert was crepes with chocolate and almonds. Delicious! After our 3-hour meal, we went on a guided tour with the cutest little Moroccan man ever. He would be like "Hello! Hello! come on! Yalla!" and when we were walking down a slope, he says "Don't ski without the snow! No skiing!" He was super cute. After that, we trekked up a hilltop and found ourselves on the top of a hill, looking down on the beautiful blue and white town. Here are some pictures!

On top of the hill: Chefchaouen

Tour guide explaining that these are the paints that they use for painting the houses!

A house in Chefchaouen 

On Sunday, we drove over to Tangier, on the coast of Rabat. There was a beautiful beach, where the water was very turquoise-y! We had lunch by the beach, then went on a guided tour of the Medina there.

My roommate, Maggie, and I

The tour guide took us to a "millionaire's house"

Moroccan shoes - in Morocco, they are called "Belgha". I do plan on buying a pair to wear in the States!

While leaving Tangier, we stopped by Les Grottes d'Hercules - Hercules' Cave. This Africa-shaped hole was very cool! There were little kiddies jumping off the edges here.

So it was a great weekend!
Upcoming:
- This weekend: Fes, Meknes, and Volubilis!
- Next weekend: Merzouga - the DESERT. Camel rides, turbans, sunrises on the dunes. All that good stuff.

Sending love from Morocco!

Late nights

Hello!

All has been going well this week! I have a new roommate now, Maggie, who is Italian and is here studying Arabic. Though sadly, she's only here for 3 weeks :( Anyway, Maggie is studying at the Qalam Center, so she has a bunch of classmates who also live in the Medina. We've been hanging out these past few nights, going to the cafe, the beach, and the carnival from last week. We mostly hang out with these two Russian guys, Arthur and Sergei, and there are sometimes two older adults who also join us. Here are some pretty pictures from these past few days!

Moroccan sunset by the beach 

I tried an orange juice by the side of the road the other day and it was pretty good! Here's my buddy Abdenol, who's squeezing my fresh orange juice. Only 4dh! (about 50cents)

This is Bab el Had, one of the main gates entering into the Medina. At night, there are lots and lots of people around here just hanging out, playing around

Late night Medina! This guy is selling fruit, but there are also other stands selling snail soup, corn-corn on the cob, and popcorn

So it's been a couple of late nights, going out with Arthur and Sergei, but then they always walk us back to our house when they drop us off. This weekend, I am joining them and some other people in their Arabic class on a northern excursion!! We are going to Tangier and Chefchaoun, which are two little towns up north. Supposedly, you can see Spain from the coast of Tangier! I will definitely take lots of pictures this weekend, but for now, here are some great photos of Chefchaoun and Tangier, courtesy of google. We will be leaving Saturday morning, and coming back Sunday night. I'll definitely write about the weekend when I return!

! وداعا