Hello everyone,
As you may know, my Peace Corps training period will come to an end soon. As tough as the language has been and as exiting as it has been to meet so many new people (from Morocco and the U.S.)...it is time for me to move away from the group training structure and to venture out onto my own. My swearing in ceremony is scheduled for May 5th. Afterwards I will officially be a Peace Corps Volunteer(PCV). You may be wondering what I have been for the past month and a half...well, I've been a Peace Corps trainee. Before you become a volunteer, you have to show a certain level of proficiency in your target language (which for me is Tamazirght) and you have to be familiar with Peace Corps policies and Moroccan cultural norms. All of these things were touched upon during my last month and a half of training.
I have been training in Ouarzazate province, which is east of Marrakech city. I recently found out (to my surprise) that I will also be serving in the Ouarzazate province. This is great news because there is still so much of the province that I have yet to explore and experience. Ouarzazate province is home to mountains, valleys, gorges, rivers, dams, Ouarzazate city, movie studios (where several films,like thbe Gladiator, were shot).... and the desert. It is a beautiful region that continues to take my breathe away every time I travel through it and I look forward to getting to know my community. Feel free to look it up on a map...although many of the rural areas that I have been to are not posted or identified on many maps.
Some of you have requested that I post pictures and I'm sorry that I was not successful in uploading some of my pictures earlier. The internet has come with varying levels of speed and accessibility...some days it is fast...other days it is not...and some days I can't get it at all (and my access is limited to large cities and my suok town). So unfortunately, it seems as if there will not be many pictures included on this blog, however I will do my best to describe some of the amazing people and places that I encounter.
Surprisingly, I have come to learn to live without the internet and have found many other ways to occupy my time (studying, learning but I'm always thankful when I am able to get online and have an email or a message from a loved one back home. Thank you again to all of you that have sent encouraging words, updates, and hellos. I will try to send emails as quickly as I possibly can.
I look forward to posting more updates within the next week about how my visit to my community went. I will spend the next couple of days visiting my final site community and hopefully testing my language skills with the people I will live with for the next two years...in the meantime, have a wonderful day and know that I am sending you tons of love (and sand) from Morocco!
