Our original itinerary called for us to have left at 4:30 AM, but the flight was changed. While it shortened the layover the I was looking forward to in Casablanca, it meant that was had time to say goodbye to friends that weren't going back to the States, especially Glenn and Adam. It's strange, because I think the potential on tours like this is for people to become fed up with one another, but I know I'm definitely going to miss seeing some people on a daily basis. We had a really strong and friendly group dynamic, and it added miles enjoyment-wise to the whole experience. But now we all have new friends to meet up with and travel with in the future, so it's only so long and not goodbye.
Next, we turned our attention to scheming a possible visit to Rick's Cafe, modeled after the restaurant in the movie "Casablanca". That had been the plan, but with our altered itinerary, we weren't sure if it as possiblele. Since the flight from Marrakech to Casablanca was only 25 minutes, we had plenty, and started booking it for the exit. Unfortunately, we were stopped- we had already gone through customs in Marrakech, and they wouldn't let us out of the airport as such. Neither would they let us do another entry and exit stamp- supposedly you can only get one stamp per day.
We dejectedly spent the next few hours grabbing food, doing a group crossword puzzle, and playing "Heads Up" before getting in line for boarding...a line which did not move for several hours. We didn't start boarding till wayyyyy later than our original departure time. And while, for most of the trip, we have been able to use everyone's language skills, the airport announcements were in rapid French and Arabic, leaving us incapable of comprehending the cause of delay or the prospect for it to end. We then also found out that our same flight had been cancelled the previous afternoon, so we worried that this would be our fate. Luckily, it was not, and we were eventually able to take off.
Another amazing trip abroad. I am feeling incredibly grateful for so many things- a great travel companion in Michael, the ability to have come on this trip in the first place, and so many great people that I am looking forward to keeping in touch with- and that I am missing already! Too bad thinking on the trip positively till doesn't stop me from being incredibly sad that it's over. Until the next time...
Monday, August 12, 2013
Morocco Day 9
Glenn, Adam, Louwena, Ray, Michael, and I woke up to fo ride quad bikes, otherwise known as 4x4s, in the desert. I was nervous about this, but it ended up being one of my favorite things on the trip, besides the Berber camp. Idris' village, and just spending time with new friends. We practiced on a little track for a few laps, then headed out into the countryside. One thing that really helped alleviate my fears was the fact that we were on a path. The path itself was actually much easier to ride than our practice track, so soon we were flying along. I drove first, as we wended our way for an hour through the desert, a tiny village, and to a stop for tea at someone's house. Michael drove us back to the track again after. I could not believe how covered in dust we were!
A quick shower later and we were back on the road, as Idris was escorting a final group trip to the market. We walked over (think the final temp was around 125 or higher, so it was certainly tiring) and set about shopping. Soon enough, Glenn, Michael, and I had either made purchases or realized there was nothing to our liking, so we set off in search of street food. This was a great decision, since it was one of the most tasty things I've had (though I can't promise my reaction wasn't based on hunger and the sheer pleasure of trying something new). The sandwiches, thoughtfully purchased by Glenn- thanks!!- were made from kebabs which were then deposited in a bread pocket and seasoned with onions and spices. Mmm!
Back to the hotel for a shower and nap...to be honest, I couldn't really sleep because I was already dreading the idea of going home, saying goodbye to new friends, and having to leave a fascinating place. So I met some of the group at the bar for drinks instead, and we formulated a dinner plan. Eventually, Michael, Glenn, Adam, Vicky, Grayson, and I set out for a restaurant. We had a specific one in mind, but en route found a Lebanese cafe with a diverse menu, alcohol, and shisha- everyone's needs were met. We spent the next few hours enjoying food, drink, and especially each other's company. My favorite part had to be teaching "Never Have I Ever" to the Brits and hearing their reactions, as well as learning some new and unexpected facts about everyone.
Eventually, the group was whittled down to Michael, Grayson, and myself. We decided to check out the upstairs club at Comptoir, but were denied on the basis of Michael's shorts, so we went to the rooftop deck next door at Cafe Extrablatt. It reminded me of a place we used to go in Cairo, with it's plush couch seating, subtle lighting, and mood music. However, it took us about 0 minutes to get a menu. Worth the wait though, because cocktails were only 80 dirham ($10), which beats Comptoir's price of 110 ($14 ish). They werew delicious as well. The music started putting us to sleep, though, so we headed for home...probably the for the best as it was nearing 3 am.
A quick shower later and we were back on the road, as Idris was escorting a final group trip to the market. We walked over (think the final temp was around 125 or higher, so it was certainly tiring) and set about shopping. Soon enough, Glenn, Michael, and I had either made purchases or realized there was nothing to our liking, so we set off in search of street food. This was a great decision, since it was one of the most tasty things I've had (though I can't promise my reaction wasn't based on hunger and the sheer pleasure of trying something new). The sandwiches, thoughtfully purchased by Glenn- thanks!!- were made from kebabs which were then deposited in a bread pocket and seasoned with onions and spices. Mmm!
Back to the hotel for a shower and nap...to be honest, I couldn't really sleep because I was already dreading the idea of going home, saying goodbye to new friends, and having to leave a fascinating place. So I met some of the group at the bar for drinks instead, and we formulated a dinner plan. Eventually, Michael, Glenn, Adam, Vicky, Grayson, and I set out for a restaurant. We had a specific one in mind, but en route found a Lebanese cafe with a diverse menu, alcohol, and shisha- everyone's needs were met. We spent the next few hours enjoying food, drink, and especially each other's company. My favorite part had to be teaching "Never Have I Ever" to the Brits and hearing their reactions, as well as learning some new and unexpected facts about everyone.
Eventually, the group was whittled down to Michael, Grayson, and myself. We decided to check out the upstairs club at Comptoir, but were denied on the basis of Michael's shorts, so we went to the rooftop deck next door at Cafe Extrablatt. It reminded me of a place we used to go in Cairo, with it's plush couch seating, subtle lighting, and mood music. However, it took us about 0 minutes to get a menu. Worth the wait though, because cocktails were only 80 dirham ($10), which beats Comptoir's price of 110 ($14 ish). They werew delicious as well. The music started putting us to sleep, though, so we headed for home...probably the for the best as it was nearing 3 am.
Morocco Day 8
Leaving the palace, we headed for Tombuktu (not to be confused with Timbuktu in Mali), which was the sight of one of the Moroccan dynasty founders, a pottery collaborative, and a famous library housing ancient manuscripts. Unforunately, the library was closed, but we were still able to tour the town and watch pottery being made in the traditional style.
We headed back towards Marrakech by way of Ouarzazate with the intention of stopping to pick up sandwiches. However, now that Ramadan is over, a series of feast days (today being the most important) are in effect, so nothing was open in town, and we continued along.
I have noticed that here, men are more willing to speak to me than in Cairo. Whereas there, I would be out with male friends and despite my stronger Arabic skills, Egyptian men would defer to the guys and ignore me. In Morocco, including the more remote and potentially more conservative areas, this is not the case, and everyone has been extremely helpful and friendly. Not quite sure what to make of it.
Another interesting moment from the van ride was when an older British woman on the trip called up to Michael and I and asked, "Who did you guys (America) get your independence from?" We looked at each other, taken aback, and Michael responds, "Uhh...you guys?" We followed up with the question (previously asked of Glenn and Adam, with the response, "We're not sure"), "What do you guys call the war between our countries, the Rebellion of 1776?" Her response was, "What happened in 1776?" It turns out that the American Revolution is not touched upon at all during a British student's studies...It was an interesting thought, humbling in fact, to think that America and the Revolution was so insignificant in British history as to not merit a mention.
We spent a looooong car ride fantasizing about new foods in Marrakech. We have been eating a lot of tagine over the past week, and while it is delicious, there is certainly broader variety within Moroccan cuisine. It's time to get at it! Therefore, we were very excited to see some b'stila at dinner. This is composed of a savory meat mixture (in this case, beef and chicken) with in a sweet pastry shell. Amazing! Following dinner, some of us went to the square to see what it looked like on a feast night. It had almost the feel of a carnival, down to children's games, dessert vendors, and small shopkeepers. It was beautiful to see (video coming). Finally, we met up at Comptoir, our de facto hangout, with some of the others from the group who were out celebrating Grayson's birthday again.
We headed back towards Marrakech by way of Ouarzazate with the intention of stopping to pick up sandwiches. However, now that Ramadan is over, a series of feast days (today being the most important) are in effect, so nothing was open in town, and we continued along.
I have noticed that here, men are more willing to speak to me than in Cairo. Whereas there, I would be out with male friends and despite my stronger Arabic skills, Egyptian men would defer to the guys and ignore me. In Morocco, including the more remote and potentially more conservative areas, this is not the case, and everyone has been extremely helpful and friendly. Not quite sure what to make of it.
Another interesting moment from the van ride was when an older British woman on the trip called up to Michael and I and asked, "Who did you guys (America) get your independence from?" We looked at each other, taken aback, and Michael responds, "Uhh...you guys?" We followed up with the question (previously asked of Glenn and Adam, with the response, "We're not sure"), "What do you guys call the war between our countries, the Rebellion of 1776?" Her response was, "What happened in 1776?" It turns out that the American Revolution is not touched upon at all during a British student's studies...It was an interesting thought, humbling in fact, to think that America and the Revolution was so insignificant in British history as to not merit a mention.
We spent a looooong car ride fantasizing about new foods in Marrakech. We have been eating a lot of tagine over the past week, and while it is delicious, there is certainly broader variety within Moroccan cuisine. It's time to get at it! Therefore, we were very excited to see some b'stila at dinner. This is composed of a savory meat mixture (in this case, beef and chicken) with in a sweet pastry shell. Amazing! Following dinner, some of us went to the square to see what it looked like on a feast night. It had almost the feel of a carnival, down to children's games, dessert vendors, and small shopkeepers. It was beautiful to see (video coming). Finally, we met up at Comptoir, our de facto hangout, with some of the others from the group who were out celebrating Grayson's birthday again.
Morocco Day 7
Being unable to move about much ( remember, 4 people on probably a queen sized bed) left us all a bit tired, but it was worth it to be able to lie there and watch the dawn approach. The sky looked like a rainbow, all the colors represnted as they spread from the horizon. Others from camp were coming up and had to make do with chairs or sitting on the stone wall, but we had the most comfortable perch by far. We laid there as the sun slowly brightened, then got up to see it actually begin to peek above the horizon. After it fully emerged, which took about two minutes, we promtply went back to the tents for a pre-breakfast nap.
During this nap, I had a crazy dream. I was still a teacher in the dream, but some guy had come along and was purporting to revamp the entire way that we teach special ed. He was very condescending im the dream to my colleagues and I, but in the end it spurred me on to become a better teacher: Right before I woke up, I was walking out the door, heading for one of my students, with the idea of proving to her that I would be the teacher she deserved. This isn't to say that I did a poor job with my students this year, but there is always room to improve- especially when it is their futures and their educations at stake. The dream was all the more interesting because I've been reading Michael's copy of the alchemist, which talks about universal languages and following our personal legends. I feel that right now teaching is what I am meant to be pursuing...if Coelho is right, maybe the desert was giving me reinforcement in the universal language of dreams lol.
When we got up at 7:30, the heat almost knocked us over. It was mind-boggling that the temperature could rise from being a bit cool to boiling you alive in only an hour. We did eventually figure out that it was around 120 degrees Fahrenheit. After breakfast, we departed from camp via the SUVs again. We stopped along to road to view some fossils, which was a wild experience. Here we werew, hundreds of miles from the current day coastline, and there are sea creature fossils embedded in the stones. Really wild.
Our hotel for the night could have been a palace, and im fact was named such although it had never been a royal residence. Pool lounging, a tagine dinner, and then celebratory cake and drinks for Grayson's birthday rounded out the night.
During this nap, I had a crazy dream. I was still a teacher in the dream, but some guy had come along and was purporting to revamp the entire way that we teach special ed. He was very condescending im the dream to my colleagues and I, but in the end it spurred me on to become a better teacher: Right before I woke up, I was walking out the door, heading for one of my students, with the idea of proving to her that I would be the teacher she deserved. This isn't to say that I did a poor job with my students this year, but there is always room to improve- especially when it is their futures and their educations at stake. The dream was all the more interesting because I've been reading Michael's copy of the alchemist, which talks about universal languages and following our personal legends. I feel that right now teaching is what I am meant to be pursuing...if Coelho is right, maybe the desert was giving me reinforcement in the universal language of dreams lol.
When we got up at 7:30, the heat almost knocked us over. It was mind-boggling that the temperature could rise from being a bit cool to boiling you alive in only an hour. We did eventually figure out that it was around 120 degrees Fahrenheit. After breakfast, we departed from camp via the SUVs again. We stopped along to road to view some fossils, which was a wild experience. Here we werew, hundreds of miles from the current day coastline, and there are sea creature fossils embedded in the stones. Really wild.
Our hotel for the night could have been a palace, and im fact was named such although it had never been a royal residence. Pool lounging, a tagine dinner, and then celebratory cake and drinks for Grayson's birthday rounded out the night.
Morocco Day 6
Our morning started with a visit to the Todra gorge, which reminded me of our trip up The Narrows in Zion. Sheer cliffs overlooked a river running through the canyon bed. Rivers, and hydroelectricity, actually supply 95% of the country's power needs, according to our guide. We weren't able to see any on our trip, but there are apparently a multitude of dams in Morocco- if I remember correctly, around 70. Michael and I took a look at some of the goods being sold at small stands, and ran into some Spaniards who were telling us about driving their car onto the ferry, and that they are touring Morocco from their own car. Incredible!
After watching the sun set into a cloud on the horizon, our group made ourselves comfortable on the rug-covered benches and indulged in some more card games until dinner. There was also traditional music and dancing by some of the guides and camp inhabitants. Later, Michael, Vicky, Adam, Jackie, Kristen, Vinnie, Idris, and I went for a star walk, laying out in the middle of the desert to check out the constellations, talk about aliens, and explore our thoughts on the afterIife. Coming back from that, Michael, Vicky, Adam and I wanted to continue stargazing, so we went to a raised terrace behind the camp. We found that there was even a bed of sorts there to lie upon, so we squeezed in, enjoyed the view, and started talking about our lives and different aspects of our own paths to this point. The next thing we knew, it was past teo AM, and we needed to get up by 5:15 for the sunrise anyway. So we got our blankets and pillows from the tent, continued talking, and eventually fell asleep under the Moroccan sky.
A gas station stop down the road gave me the opportuniy to reflect on several things. First- Language abilities of people even in remote areas. our guides speak multiple languages; Idris knows 4 Berber dialects, 3 Arabic dialects, English, French, and conversational Russian. Now, our guides have been to school (Zuzu has a master's in applied linguistics), but people even in the most remote areas have a smattering of many languages. You can go a very long way, especially when you can mutually work between several different languages. This trip has been particularly enjoyable for that aspect.
Next revelatioin- the cleanliness of bathrooms all over Morocco is astonishing. I remember driving to OCMD with Sara, Katie, and Laura earlier this summer, and had to hold your breath to use the bathroom at a gas station. Here, all you smell is a subtle scent of cleaner, and everything is well-kept. It's singular from any other country, including the US, in this respect.
I was intrigued to do some calculations surrounding gas prices. Believe it or not, gas is more expensive (at least in the south) here than at home. 12.5 dirhams per liter multiplied by 4 liters per gallon (more or less) is 50 dirhams per gallon. Then divide by 8 (dirhams to the dollar) means that gas is around $6 per gallon here. Again, this could just be in the south, since it would be hard and expensive to get resources to this area. We'll have to check prices in Marrakech or Casablanca to verify.
During the afternoon, we stopped at a hotel for lunch and a swim in the pool to break up the monotony of the drive. We rested there for a few hours, then continued on to a Berber camp in the desert. We had to take SUVs to get there, as past of the path included crossing sand and stone. Offroading Moroccan style, if you will. I have to admit, I was a litle scared during the ride. Probably had to do with lack of control; our driver did a perfectly fine job of driving, but not being able to dictate our movements myself had me wondering a host of things: at what point would this tip over on a turn, how close is that other car going to get, etc. Fear I think is part of the universal language, who we are as people. We can face it and try to move forward, or we could become petrified and stagnant. Our reaction is in our control.
A majority of our group opted to participate in a camel ride at sunset, but since Michael and I have both done similar things and found camels not to our liking, we we happy to simply walking across the flat ground and take pictures at the first dune: we'd arrived at the Sahara.
I dont't know if I can fully describ the Berber camp experience, buI will try. There is a compound consisiting of a bar area, a kitchen, a huge dining hall, and an outdoor courtyard and pool. All of the sitting areas whave benches running around the outer walls, which are then covered with Berber carpets (we did visit a carpet cooperative, which was fascinating but too expensive for me to bring back home) and pillows, making for very comfortable seating. Then you head from the main compound through an archway, past the bathrooms, and
then you enter the tent courtyards. It's basically a square, and the outer walls of said square are constructed by the tents themselves. The tents are a gray burlap type material, then with sequined colored rugs for doors. Inside each tent are rugs and mattresses for your comfort. It would have been impressive on its own, but even more to think that this has been part of Berber culture for millenia. Thinking about Berber culture gives me the same feeling as the pyramids; that is, the perseverance with which they have survived and thrived in a climate which most of us, accustomed to today's luxuries, is formidable and awe-inspiring to me.
After watching the sun set into a cloud on the horizon, our group made ourselves comfortable on the rug-covered benches and indulged in some more card games until dinner. There was also traditional music and dancing by some of the guides and camp inhabitants. Later, Michael, Vicky, Adam, Jackie, Kristen, Vinnie, Idris, and I went for a star walk, laying out in the middle of the desert to check out the constellations, talk about aliens, and explore our thoughts on the afterIife. Coming back from that, Michael, Vicky, Adam and I wanted to continue stargazing, so we went to a raised terrace behind the camp. We found that there was even a bed of sorts there to lie upon, so we squeezed in, enjoyed the view, and started talking about our lives and different aspects of our own paths to this point. The next thing we knew, it was past teo AM, and we needed to get up by 5:15 for the sunrise anyway. So we got our blankets and pillows from the tent, continued talking, and eventually fell asleep under the Moroccan sky.
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