Spring Break start

So, I had my Spring Break adventure from Morocco to Cairo to Dahab to Cordoba to Grenada.


Here are some of the awesome highlights.

We took a red eye flight out of Casablanca to Cairo. We arrived, after a few hour delay, in Cairo and we walked off the plane in a daze at roughly 7 Am their time. From there, we had to buy a Egyptian visa and find our luggage (which was delayed :()
finally, we walked out of security and we saw some guy holding the all too familiar name of Ali on a sign. Now, Ali is a very common name in the Middle East, and Ali constantly gets asked if he is Arab/ if he is Muslim.

Of course, he always answers yes, his father is Iraqi. Of course, when asked if he was a practicing Muslim, he got skeptical looks when he did not say he was practicing Islam. He also always added an interesting dynamic to going through security. As I am a white American, I rarely have any trouble going through security. However, it is uncommon for Ali to not get additional questions regarding his whereabouts and his Iraqi lineage.

Well, back to the story. We were looking for a sign that read Erin as we were being picked up by representatives from the American Hostel in Cairo. So, we were confused when we saw a sign for Ali. However, we found the correct people from the Hostel and we were about to leave the airport when the guy that was holding the sign for Ali ran over to our guide to the Hostel. It turns out, the guy that was holding the Ali sign was looking for our Ali. The man’s name was Ahmed and he had his friend Nasser with him. It turns out, that Ahmed is the son of a friend of Ali’s father. Ahmed was instructed by his father to take care of Ali and his friends while they were in Egypt.

It was amazing! For a while, I was skeptical of Arab culture. However, this was it at its best. I found out that it is not uncommon to have your children take care of your friends children when the situation calls for it. Ahmed went as far as to purchase guides for us, bring us to dinner, and show us around Cairo. However, I did not mention that he is not from Cairo. That’s where Nasser came in. Ahmed came from around an hour a way to pick us up at the airport at 5 AM with his friend (and waited the extra 3 hrs that we were delayed getting out of the airport) and took care of us for our time in Cairo all because that is what is expected of a good Egyptian male. Imagine having this treatment in the USA…

Naturally, Ahmed and Nasser speak English. A little history… Egypt was under English control (but then again, who hasn’t been? Answer, a lot of countries) So, we saw the the Egyptian Museum with them and experienced Egyptian culture and food. Along the way, we met up with Nathaniel’s friend Dalia, who also contributed to our experience a bunch.

That night, the Americans Erin, Ali, Cindy, Rachel, Sarah, and myself went out to dinner with Dalia on the Nile. I was hoping to see Nathaniel’s old houseboat on our trip, but Dalia said that she couldn’t recognize it.
I can’t believe that Egyptians can live in that heat. The next day, we trekked to the pyramids and the Sphinx. Scratch that, we took a bus. Remember Ahmed (he brought along another Ahmed, too), well he found us a bus to take around Cairo. Side note, never drive in Cairo… While there is a larger presence of police than in Morocco, drivers are much more reckless due to larger roads to do drive crazily on. I didn’t know that driving would be worse than in Morocco, but it definitely is. So, we saw all the great sites of Cairo and we even went to a Papyrus museum with our guide Sameh.

We finished up our trip to Cairo and quickly saw the Christian areas of Cairo. However, viewing the Coptic areas will be for next visit. In winter… It is much too hot to go to Cairo. I can’t imagine living there all the time.

There are so many memories that are not coming to me now about Cairo, but it was such a great experience that I will never forget it all.

Reflecting quickly on Cairo. It is much more developed than all of Morocco. I was actually surprised by this, but then again it is a nation that the United States dumps money into. Additionally, it is historically much wealthier than Morocco. However, that is not to glorify the country, as there is a much more apparent sense of corruption in the country. The size of Cairo surprised me immensely, so I imagine there are very poor areas as well. As a side note, the GDP of Egypt is $425.5 billion for 80 million people. Morocco’s is $125 billion for 35 million people. However, I prefer the less wealthy country with cleaner air. The smog in Cairo and Giza is unbelievable.

Later that night, we flew to Sharm El Sheikh where we got picked up and brought to Dahab, where we would spend our next 4 days.

I will have to finish up the rest of my trip later

Spain and a pic from Azrou

Sooo, I didn’t post before Spring Break… My bad. But that means that I have been having a great time.

Here is a quick pic from Azrou

On April 1, I flew to Barcelona and visited Ali and the Sardoninis. Barcelona is absolutely beautiful but soooo different from what I have become accustomed to in Morocco. Culture shock is definitely an interesting experience. Ali picked me up at the airport and I immediately felt uneasy with the amount of white people around me. Sure, Moroccans are considered Caucasian, but they are far from the European white that I know in the U.S or Europe. Additionally, everything looked so new and shiny. I can only imagine what it must be for a Moroccan to enter Europe after spending their entire life in Morocco. Going back to the United States will definitely be interesting…

Soooo, Barcelona seems to be everything that it has been hyped up to be. The beaches are absolutely beautiful and the food was great. It was a big relief being in a nation that had ham again. Sure, I am not the biggest fan of it, but when you have been denied something like ham and pork for so long, you miss it. Oh, and did I mention how I miss bacon? I love baconJ

The wine was so cheap in Barca. Sure, I am use to having bad bottles of wine in Morocco, but most of the wine in Barca was very cheap. For a few Euros you could have a decent bottle of wine. Also, the bars are an experience of their own. We went to one place that specializes in fancy alcoholic shots. Basically, they add all the flavors of alcohol together and then find a theme for the shot. One such thing was the Boyscout, which was a shot that was then lit on fire and then you roasted a marshmallow over it and waited for the fire to die out. It was surprisingly classy.

Ali showed us around Barcelona. Highlights of the visit (besides eating) were the Gaudi exhibits and Gelato by the river. Gaudi was the most famous architect from Barcelona. He created many works, including a great Cathedral and a few apartment complexes (one of which was never resided in). We visited one complex and it was outstanding. It appeared to me like something out of Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I was expecting some oompa loompas to run out and visit.

The Sardoninis had an apartment, which was really awesome. They made me some of the food that I had been craving, a big chicken dinner, and a great pork roast as well. Plus, breakfasts were served with BACON! It was great seeing familiar faces for the first time in months.

OOOOH, before I forget, Mike, Ali, and I went to a conveyor belt Japanese restaurant. Awesome!

Overall, it was a great time that was capped off by seeing Pat and Pete at the Barca airport. They were visiting Ali for their Spring break. I hope to visit them before I go back to the US.

AHHHH Finally, Another Post

So what have I been up to lately? It feels like everything has been a big jumble of booking flights, making plans, securing a job homework, studying, traveling, eating, and not sleeping enough. It’s funny. I imagined that being in a country that stresses taking tea as much as Morocco, that my life would be much less hectic than it is in the United States. Sure, there are certain things that require less stress (namely, not working at all) and that I rarely write papers, but I find my time to be loaded up. I always enjoy myself, but I was hoping to relax a bit more. Well, I have traveled to many different places. Whether it was going with Cody and Rachel to Chellah, or traveling to coastal cities (Mohammedia and Al Jadeeda) or even visiting the Atlas Mountains and seeing some monkeys, there is never a dull moment. I guess it’s a positive thing that my blog has dropped off the face of the Earth.

Well, Mohammedia was beautiful. My Maghrebian-Francophone Literature professor asked our class to visit his house in Mohammedia and to take lunch with him and his family. They were extraordinarily interesting people and the food was great. After cooking on a hot plate for every meal and attempting to keep the apartment clean and then going to school with your other time, you appreciate free food a lot more. I miss being able to throw food in the oven for 25 minutes and then having a meal ready. Eating and cleaning is much easier in the United States. I don’t believe I mentioned it yet… to clean dishes here, we need to throw dish soap into a big plastic tub that we use and fill it with hot water and then bring the tub to the kitchen and soak our dishes. We don’t have hot water in our kitchenL. I digress… After Mohammedia, Will, Jordyn, and I took a train to Al Jadeeda. This city is a destination for Moroccans looking to get away from their cities elsewhere. The city catered well to tourists and we spent our time in the medina or on the beach. Which reminds me, I made friends with basically every child between the age of 4-8 in Al Jadeeda. We were at the beach and a group of scantily clad boys started making their way towards our group (there were about 12 of us). As I was lying on the outside of the group, a boy slowly inched his way to within 4 feet of my head. Our group became nervous that these boys might try to take some of our possessions so I quickly said to the boy. Sahibi, labess? My friend, are you ok?. He of course responded in an excited manner and began trying to talk to me. Obviously, we were not Moroccans so he tried speaking French to me. This turned into a full blown conversation with this boy in a combination of Arabic, French, and English (he knew some English). I was actually amazed at his intelligence. This boy (Muhammed) was around 8 years old and was having logical conversations with me. His friends came over to me and tried talking to me, but Muhammed was the only one I was really able to communicate with. However, that didn’t stop his friends from talking to me and then later dragging me into the ocean to bodysurf on the waves. They even taught me Moroccan children’s games. However, as is the case, as it was getting close to lunchtime, the kids decided to start asking for money. It was at this point that our group had to leave the beach to get rid of the begging children. Reflecting on it, I don’t regret spending time talking with these children. Meeting a group of children that can’t even afford bathing suits (some were wearing underwear) is a sobering experience. All of us on this trip are so lucky to be in Morocco in the first place. Sure, Morocco is much better off than almost all of the other countries in the African continent, but you can notice such a disparity between the poor in the United States and those in a developing nation.

A side note, anyone that has the opportunity to travel to a country should make it a habit to visit with underprivileged individuals. It is not that you become a better person because of this (believe me, it’s not a rite of passage and you do not suddenly gain sainthood) but it really makes you doubt people that say “man, I’m starving”.

Oh, before I forget, we met some interesting French expats at our hotel in Al Jadeeda. They were interesting and had done work in the Congo in NGO’s. We shared a couple bottles of wine and I came to the conclusion that (while they were outstanding individuals) being in an NGO does not make one a good person. People choose to leave the comfort of their own home for multiple reasons, to learn (like me), to help others, for personal gain, for wealth, or a combination of reasons. One of these expats set up a fish farm within the Congo. I guess, there are people that can find wealth anywhere.

Last week, I completed my first trip to the Atlas Mountains. We went to Azrou, where Fouad (an assistant director at IES’s hometown). The place was absolutely gorgeous and reminded me of a mix between what Switzerland should look like, the North East, and Morocco all in one. A group of 13 of us (11 students, Fouad, and his friend Kareem) completed the hike up the mountain and set up camp. 3 students decided to come back down the mountain, but the rest of us decided to try our own on top. Luckily for us, Fouad and Kareem did not want to leave us adventuresome Americans on the mountain and they spent the night with us. For the benefit of all of us, Fouad went back down the mountain to show the three students sleeping in the hotel the way and brought back up a bunch of food for a massive feast of sardines, chicken, vegetables, tagine, and water. The food and Fouad were delivered to the camp about 3 kms away. Kareem and I needed to make the trek across the plains to obtain the food and Fouad.

I will get some pictures of the Atlas Mountains for all of my excellent readers to view. The views are like something out of Lord of the Rings. The vast mountains, the beautiful forest, rivers, waterfalls, and a expansive plain. It is difficult to imagine, but Morocco has a variety of landscapes that the United States posseses, but in a fraction of the space.

I will post info about my more recent adventures before spring break! Sorry for the delay blog

BDAY & Marrakech

So… I am now 21. It was slightly anti-climatic. I was unable to really show that I was 21 years young. The day before, I walked into Label Vie (the area grocery store) and purchased some alcohol. For those of you paying attention at home, it is illegal to drink in a Muslim country. However, it is still available for the non-Muslims (and for those Muslims that find alcohol to be an interesting endeavor). Now, alcohol is illegal. However, it is not illegal to drive drunk. There are no laws in place to stop something that is illegal in the first place. That has to be one of my criticisms of Muslim society. A drunk driver is only penalized if he does something which injures another.

Well, anyways, for my 21^st a bunch of students from IES came over and celebrated with me. It was a lot of fun and included a bottle of champagne, a great group of friends, and some delicious cake. It was awesome to have everyone around and I was able to feel a year older in a country that doesn’t tend to celebrate birthdates. (This can be compared to the Prophet Muhammed’s birthday, which is barely celebrated).

In other, non-birthday related news, most of the IES students traveled to Marrakech. It was a bunch of fun for all. Some students traveled to beautiful waterfalls located in the Atlas Mountains. I, on the other hand, stayed with 7 others in Marrakech and spent the day visiting the medina and viewing the city. Cindy fulfilled her desire to buy a belly-dancing outfit. I found a pair of “authentic” Rayban sunglasses for 30 dhs (less that 4 dollars). Sure, they do not really work well, but they look pretty darn awesome. We also took carriage rides around Marrakech and viewed the city after Jordyn found some awesomely cheap accommodations for the 18 of us that traveled to Marrakech. The city is a traditional tourist trap and captures some of the essence of Moroccan civilization. I mean that it captures the things that I dislike the most in Morocco. Heavily in your face salesmen (and in Marrakech they have an attitude) and plenty of people trying to take your money. I am reminded of a situation in which a girl about 4-5 years old came up to me asking for food because she was hungry. I was coming back from dinner and I had some khubbz so I took it out and gave it to her. She basically said no so I took my bread back and walked away. It is these situations that I know that the child was being exploited for their pathetic nature (think Slumdog Millionaire style).

We left Marrakech on a train back to Rabat. It is always a reminder that we are in a developing nation when we run an hour behind for no reason beyond the sunny weather. Train travel in Morocco (in the sun) is an experience in itself. For example, the compartments heat up and the windows are kept close to keep the sound quieter. From there, you discover when your riding mates last showered. Fun stuffJ

Rabat to Fez

So goodbye Fez. You have been beautiful with your smelly streets and friendly people. I will truly miss the Medina Kadeema, as it is doubtable that I will ever be there again. The el-Amouri’s were outstanding individuals and I have invited them to visit me in Rabat, Inshallah. Ali and I hit up the Moroccans citizens that we had called friends and jumped on the bus for Rabat. Bslama Fez.

From there, we saw the countryside of Morocco and drove to Rabat. After spending so long in Fez, I was under the impression that Rabat would be very similar. I seem to have been quite mistaken; Rabat closely resembled European cities. The people were dressed with trendy clothing, women were unveiled and showing skin (something that was unheard of in Fez) and people were wearing braces. The buildings were not from the 1200’s and the streets were not littered with trash.

Our bus arrived in Rabat and the students living with host families left the bus. From there, the remaining dormitory and apartment students traveled to the female only dormitory. There Cody and I were separated from the rest of the IES students, and we begin our journey to our new living quarters. Sidi Baghdadi and his son, Saber, showed us to our apartment. It is huge!

Part 2 of 2

Another event that IES hosted was a learn how to cook like a Moroccan event. With the help of Leila, we learned how to cook and make tea like a Moroccan. As you may be aware, couscous is a staple of Moroccan society. Now, don’t confuse it with that boxed bird feed that people throw into a pot and let sit for 30 minutes. No, this is the semolina grain that Moroccans eat at least every Friday and serve with Tajine. Tajine is meat, vegetables, and sauce. It was absolutely delicious and I hope that I can take this to Morocco and use it with Mr. Cody to produce some excellent dishes for our friends. Sure, I did not take the best notes, but I hope Clara’s will carry me far. However, I did take very intricate notes regarding the tea. It requires lots of mint, cubed sugar, and water heated for roughly 5 minutes.

So, here comes the truly exciting part of my adventures thus far. Ali and I have found a way of being overly friendly with Moroccans. This means that instead of building friendships over weeks that we shoved friendships into a few days. One example of this came at Café Clock where a waiter, Muhammed, who I exchanged numbers with, served us. I few days later I went back to the café and had him as a waiter again. After his shift was over, he sat down and played some music on his guitar. A bunch of his friends came and we all jammed out. It is really an interesting situation to hang out with a bunch of Moroccans. It appears as if they do not have the same worries as those people in the United States. Maybe it is the pace of life or something in the water, but Moroccans tend to love life a lot more than Americans. I cannot pinpoint where the difference is, but where Americans are overstressed about certain things, Moroccans just do not have the same concerns. A perfect example comes from another friend of mine, named Muhammed of course, who basically lived life as it came. He spoke only one word of English “crazy”, but it was enough for me and him to strong friends. His appearance was that of a hippie from the 1970’s. His large afro would cause many people to laugh, but his actions were more memorable. He loved life. He took me downstairs to dance with himself and I wonder if I have ever laughed as hard as that night. I was the only white person downstairs until my friend Will came in and got in on the action. Most of IES was there that night, but the only people that could fully appreciate the truly ludicrous activities were Ali, Rachel, Erin, and myself. It was outstanding. It was the dream that I hope to live day in and day out. Sure, I absolutely miss Marist College and Massachusetts, but there is something to be said about not worrying about life. Sign me up any day of the week.

Part 1 of 2. End of Fez

So what have I been up to these last few days? Well, a bunch! I took a trip to Volubilis and Meknes. I played soccer with homeless/children from damaged households at their school. I took a trip to Safhi? I am not positive on the name and I hope to edit this before posting, but if not I will at some point. I went to a café and made many Moroccan friends that do not speak English. I took tests and did homework. I learned how to cook couscous and tea. I saw a lot of troubling things (that’s another post all together) and I bought 1 ½ kilos of jhmel meat (camel) with Ali. And, on Valentines Day, I went to an English school and watched student presentations (and did a little awful singing of my own).

It’s hard to imagine that I did not do much in the United States. However, I have been almost unnaturally busy. IES has kept us all very busy with activities, lectures, and outings. Each afternoon, from 3-5, we have lectures on topics such as literature in Morocco, history, Islam in Morocco, the Family Code etc. We learned how to cook things such as couscous (well, Clara was the only one that really took notes) and tea. The secret for great mint tea is boil water with a bunch of mint that have their stems cracked and add boatloads of sugar. Yes, there are no exact measurements. Just feel it out.

IES brought us to a school for students taken directly from the streets of Fez. Some of these children came from broken families and others were homeless. You could tell by looking at them that these were children that lived very rough childhoods. The children spoke no English and very little French. They were students from the heart of Morocco’s poverty. This poverty is nothing like in America where children live under a 20,000 a year threshold. These are the children that are living with under $365 a year. It’s impossible to comprehend. Even when you look at it, you can’t grasp the idea.

Volubilis was an outstanding destination to visit. It is a city created by the Romans and was a southern outpost for one of the largest empires of all time. The city still remains a picturesque location. It is a place that undoubtedly had large amounts of money put into it (and it still has remnants from its ancient past). We all had a great time visiting it. From the ancient ruins to a picture of Cody and myself acting as statues, the memories will stay with us forever.