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 21st 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
