Wednesday, March 24, 2010

The Only Routine is there is NO routine

It has been three weeks since I first arrived in Morocco and I am finally beginning to feel at home. I’ve begun to love small things about Morocco and have taken them as my own. My favorite part of the day is the first half an hour that I’m awake. My favorite scene is not the snow-capped Atlas mountains or the mini water falls that are created by the cliffs below my village. It’s not the field of rose bushes and walnut trees nor is it the running river that runs between my town and the neighboring duwars. My favorite view of the day is when I first wake up and I se the sunbeams shine through my stained glass windows and they highlight the thousands of teeny holes in my mosquito net. The first fifteen minutes of the day is my favorite time of the day.

After those first fifteen minutes, when I am reminded that I really am in Morocco, every other aspect of the day is a surprise. Sometimes they are good surprises and other times they make me question why I left the comfort of my home, but the journey I have taken is so special because of the positives and negatives and that will make this experience memorable.

One of the more exciting days was our first souk (market) day. Once a week, a nearby town hosts a souk, a large outdoor market. Souk attracts people from 50 or more kilometers away and provides a large variety of fresh meats, vegetables, fruits, spices, clothing, music, fresh mint tea, and almost anything else that you can imagine. Our souk town also hosts restaurants, cybers (cyber cafes), and lots of cheap shopping for the everyday. I had been looking forward to our souk day for over a week because it was an opportunity to travel outside of our village and see some of the other health trainees who lived in nearby towns/villages…but I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

We left our site at 8am and traveled via transit (a small bus that serves as a cheap form of transportation in rural Morocco). Our ride was no longer than 25 minutes and we arrived at the souk town, but there was no sign of civilization….so we began to walk. We walked for what seemed to be a half hour down alleys, down a dirt path, over a few hills and then finally we began to see streams of people, cars, and other transportation (yes…there were a few donkeys). We had finally arrived at souk. It was the largest open air market that I had ever seen. We walked past dozens of cages of live chickens (who would soon meet their end), more oranges than I could ever imagine eating, and so many different spices that I didn’t have time to stop and smell them all.


Since this was my training groups first time at souk, our language teacher decided to use this as an educational moment. As she stood somewhat silently in the background, we tried to maneuver our way through asking how much different items were (per kilo), bargaining for good prices, and getting all of the items we would need for our lunches and snacks. I thought this would be a manageable task…we had gone over food vocabulary, we knew the basic numbers, I was familiar with the currency (Durham), and I have always been a fan of bargaining. Sounds easy…wrong. The first vendor we went to was selling copious amounts of fresh fruits and vegetables. Note: the best quality food is available earlier in the souk (around 8 or 9) but it also more expensive and more difficult to bargain. As we began to ask how much for matisa (tomatoes) and batata (potatos) per kilo…I thought we were getting good prices so we started filling bags with tons of food. After we had picked enough at that stall, I asked “Shail kochi” (how much for everything) and the vendor replied 600. I was shocked…there was no way that 3 kilo of carrots, 2 kilo of potatoes, and a few other kilos of fruits should cost so much. After recalculating the math and going over the prices…I thought we were being swindled …taken advantage of. I could tell the man was getting frustrated and so was I, but right before I was ready to throw in the towel, my language teacher came over and explained that the price was correct. We were to pay 600 rayal…which is a completely different currency than the Moroccan Durham that I was familiar with. The rayal is a currency that is used primarily in rural areas in Morocco. 20 rayal = 1 durham and 1 durham = (approximately) 9 US dollars. So we ended up paying about 30 durham (less than 4 dollars) for a few bags of fruits/vegetables. We definitely got a good deal, but it took forever to identify all of the different things we needed, to pick out good quality, and to figure out the total price. It was definitely a learning experience that left me exhausted, but I was also exhilarated at the end of the souk because we were able to get almost everything we needed, with the exception of some cheese that we were able to get from the supermarche. I loved talking with the vendors. For the most part, they all were willing to speak slowly and indulge my fragmented pronunciation of sentences and words.

Going to souk was not an ordinary day (we got to travel out of site, I saw other PC volunteers and trainees, I got to hear some French and saw more than one vehicle drive by every hour). But in many days it was a typical day…I woke up that morning and could never have imagined the challenges and victories that I would experience before the day would be over. The days have been long and tough, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I look forward to continuing to share this experience with all of you!

Quick note: I have finally begun to settle into my new room and have started decorating the walls. I have designated one wall space as a “words from the wise” area where I can post inspirational and encouraging phrases so that I have a visual reference when times get tough. It includes phrases like “ Take it one moment at a time” and “Celebrate the small victories”. I would love to include any quotes, jokes, advice, or sayings that you think would be helpful….if anything, you’ll be able to know that your words are “published” in Morocco (sort of).

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Community Based Training

I have passed the one week point and am happy to say that I am adjusting well to Moroccan life. After spending about five days in hotels where we learned more about our training and how to prepare for life in a rural community…w have finally move to our community based training sites (CBTs). I have been placed in a beautiful rural town in the Ouarzazate region that is a beautiful combination of all of the wonders of Moroccan nature. The town is situation near a trickling river that is surrounded by grassland and the farther away from the river you travel it turns into a forest of eucalypts-looking trees (which are my favorite trees) and then the trees slowly turn into sand (we are in the desert) and finally the town is surrounded by mountains (sand mountains). It is the perfect oasis in the desert. I live with a host family and I have my own room on the second floor of their house. I have a host mother, father, 2 sisters, brother-in law, and I believe two younger brothers.

It has been a very interesting first two days at my CBT. I arrive Sunday during the evening and was led to our house by my host sister, Nora. I was greeted by all of the females in the family and my two younger brothers and we sat and had tea together (mint tea is served frequently in Morocco and is a form of hospitality). The next few hours a lot of hand expression were used to communicate. I quickly learned how to say eat and drink (prior to this I was learning Moroccan Arabic but people in my host town usually only speak Tamazirt) because I was oferred a lot of food and a lot of tea. After tea, I was given my Moroccan name, which is pronounced Ha-dee-jah. Although my host family has tried to pronounce my name…it is very difficult for them so (as most PCV volunteers have experienced) I was given a new name and that is how my community identifies me. Also Ayanna (in Moroccan Arabic) means tired or lazy…so it makes for a very interesting first conversation with people.

Over the next two days at my site, my days went something like the following:

6am: Alarm goes off
6:45: Wake up after several snoozes
7am: Eat breakfast with host mom and sister. Breakfast is often bread, tea, olives, and butter
7:45: Walk to school (language courses with the five other PC trainees)
8:00-10:00: Language class with our language and culture coordinator
10:00: Tea (mint tea and bread with cheese)
10:30: more language classes
12:00: Lunch at school
12:45-2:00: Break where we can journal, play soccer, etc.
2:00-4:00: Culture sessions (either group discussion with LCF or assignments that require us to go out into the community and practice our language skills
4:00: More tea
4:30-6:30: More culture and language session
6:30: Head back to our separate host families where we have mint tea, watch Moroccan soap operas (they have them at night…not during the day) and help family cook/prepare meals
9:00 Dinner
9:30: I excuse myself to go to my room (and take some personal time after a long day of learning)
10:00: Go to bed

The days are certainly jammed packed with activity but I am excited about the progress I have made over a few days. I am currently back in the city (for two days of training) but I leave for my host community in a few hours. This time we will be there for two weeks straight. It will hard learning more vocabulary and language skills (especially ones that are related to the health sector) but I am excited to try and form an ultimate Frisbee team and learn more about the nature and environment that surrounds my time. When I get a chance…I will post some pictures of my town and tell you more about my amazing host family.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Safe and Sound

This morning I arrived in Morocco! I am safe, I am sound, and I am more excited than ever to begin my training. Seventy other Peace Corps invitees (people who have been invited to become a volunteer but have yet to complete the pre-service training) travelled with me from JFK airport to Casablanca. After a three hour drive, we arrived in Marrakesh where we met the Peace Corps Morocco staff.

I don't know what I expected of Morocco, but my expectations have already been surpassed. From the moment we drove away from the airport, my senses have been overwhelmed with the different shades of Moroccan skin tone, the feel of the sun as it weaves in and out of cloud cover, the soft wind, the taste of sweet Moroccan mint tea, and sound of a new and exciting language. I found myself closing my eyes to take it all in...and the best part is that it is just the beginning! Today was a day of rest. We stayed at a hotel in the outskirts of Marrakesh and have been eating fresh fruit, well seasoned meat, the most wonderful mint tea. We are also staying in bugalows (mini-apartments) with 5-6 invitees to a bungalow. We have a toilet, a shower, a bed, a kitchen, and a common area...most importantly, we have wireless internet. This is a luxury that I will never again take for granted. As I have been talking with Peace Corps staff, I've realized that there is a very real possibility that the community I live in may not have running water, electricity, or internet access. I could have all of these ammenties...or none...or somewhere in between. I have my coleman camping shower so I'm set on the water (besides I like wells), and electricity I can go without (or I can learn to)...but if there was anyway that I could garuntee one thing it would be internet access. Now, I know this can't happen without electricity, but my priorities have already been made in my mind. However, I go into the next few days with low expectations, not because I think little of the community where I will be training for the next 10 weeks (starting on Sunday) but because it is better to have low expectations and be surprised than to have you hopes dashed because of unrealistic expectations.

So what is next for me? Tomorrow morning the invitees and Peace Corps staff will travel to the Ouarzazate provence, on the other side of the Atlas Mountains. We will stay there for a few days to finish some fo the medical interviews, vaccinations, training information, etc. On Sunday, we will be split up into small groups (5-6 people) and we will travel to a rural community where we will begin our language training and some health training. We will each stay with a host family during our ten weeks of pre-service training. Throughout the pre-service training, we will occassionally meet as a group again with the 70 other volunteers. At the end of the training, we will take several proficiency test (including policy, language, culture, etc.) and those that make it through (which will hopefully be all of us) will officially be sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers. Yep...and THEN the hard stuff really begins....2 years of service in a rural community.

Sounds crazy? Well, I couldn't be more excited. I have alot to learn and alot to experience (good and bad). I have yet to experience a Moroccan toilet, I have not gotten sick, I have not felt alone, I don't know what it feels like to be the only person who speaks English within a 10 mile radius, and I haven't started craving sushi yet. But then again....I haven't heard the native tongue on my lips, I haven't washed my first batch of clothes (by myself, with the water I pulled from the well), I haven't seen the sun set over the Atlantic Ocean, I haven't eaten goat yet (which I AM looking forward to), and I haven't been able to be a part of the cultural exchange which makes the Peace Corps the amazing experience that it is.

Like I said, there is so much for me to experience and I my plan is still to take it one day at a time, not to sweat the small things, and learn to celebrate the successes (no matter how small they may seem). I look forward to hearing your support during the tough times and sharing the happy times with you. I'm in it to win it...there's no turning back now. There are too many amazing things is this country, this culture, and these people that I have yet to discover and I'm looking forward to the next 27 months to do that.