It is crazy to me that I am now writing about week 10 of my journey in Morocco. I have two weeks left before I am flying back to Washington D.C. to share my experiences in the IFYE debriefing. Week 10 has been a busy one as I move around with my host family to visit other family members around the region.
We spent three days this past week in Fes, which is about an hour away from where we are at, Meknes. While there, we were visiting the host mom’s sister who is pregnant. The highlight of the experience was visiting the Fes Medina. I have been told before that it is the best Medina in Morocco and that I have to visit it before I left. It has tons of little side streets and winding alleys filled with shops. You can find almost anything you could want in the medina, and I took the opportunity to buy some souvenirs for my friends and family. We also tried some different Moroccan sweets and the family bought a wooden recorder that has gotten its fair share of use.
Along with visiting the medina I also got to spend a lot of time hanging out with the family and getting to know the sister’s family. We played card games; I tried my hand at soccer (and got beat by 7 year olds) and we had a disco party on the roof. We also had the opportunity to do a picnic in a nearby garden/park in the evening and it was filled with kids, trampolines, popcorn and more - almost like a fair. In Morocco it is very common for a lot of people to be out in the evening because during the day it is so hot. Because of this most evenings we go for a walk, visit a nearby park, or go shopping at a souk which is something I look forward to every day.
This week I also did the biggest thing outside of my comfort zone during my time here in Morocco so far. I visited a Moroccan hammam. This has been something that people have told me to do throughout my time here because it is a big thing in Morocco, it just never worked out before. But it finally happened. Going into it I was very nervous and knew little about what it was, just that it was supposedly a big shower. And that it was. Hammams are separated by men and women, and you go in and it is very warm, kind of like a sauna. You have a bucket, and you go to faucets around the edge of the room and use the buckets to wash yourself along with different soaps and things we brought with us. The most important part of the hammam is using a glove to exfoliate your skin. I went with my host mom and host sister, and we spent about two hours there (I know a long time).
Also, this week we went back to Ait Laachor to spend a couple of days visiting more family members. While there we went on a lot of hikes through the mountains, and I even rode a donkey. When we visit family, we are usually there all day. We spent Sunday at a family members house across the mountain, getting their around 11 a.m. and leaving around midnight. While there, I got to see how they make butter, cook bread in a natural oven, and consumed around two kilos of almonds with a family member. They were gifted to us and when you are given a gift in Morocco you must finish it. It was a struggle, but we persevered. We also spent some time fishing for scorpions but sadly we did not find any. I was really hoping to see one but we couldn’t get one out of their holes in the ground.
During these past couple of weeks with this family I have really started to feel like I belong here and that I understand so much more of the Moroccan culture and customs. I am starting to pick up on the Arabic language and have unique relationships with each family member. I am very excited to spend my last two weeks with them and it will be a sad goodbye on September 10.