Nov 3, 2009 - Here's lookin' at you kid

Salam! I'm sitting in our plush hotel in the "romantic" city of Casablanca! On 10/30 we were in Marrakech which is actually a really cool city! We went on a tour of the city and saw the Koutoubian Mosque which is a really huge and beautiful mosque from the 4th century which is the most famous monument in Marrakech/ We also went through the Saadian tombs which are beautiful. ... and is pretty awesome! Now we are in Casablanca which in reality is a very dirty and crowded city, not at all the romantic place you would imagine! However our hotel is nice and we got to see Rick's Cafe which is based on Rick's bar from the movie and is very kitchy indeed! We also got to see the Hassan II Mosque which is the third largest mosque in the world. ... Its really gorgeous and is the only mosque in Morocco that infidels can go into.Salam! I'm sitting in our plush hotel in the "romantic" city of Casablanca! On 10/30 we were in Marrakech which is actually a really cool city! We went on a tour of the city and saw the Koutoubian Mosque which is a really huge and beautiful mosque from the 4th century which is the most famous monument in Marrakech/ We also went through the Saadian tombs which are beautiful. ... and is pretty awesome! Now we are in Casablanca which in reality is a very dirty and crowded city, not at all the romantic place you would imagine! However our hotel is nice and we got to see Rick's Cafe which is based on Rick's bar from the movie and is very kitchy indeed! We also got to see the Hassan II Mosque which is the third largest mosque in the world. ... Its really gorgeous and is the only mosque in Morocco that infidels can go into....

Oct 29, 2009 - Sara of Arabia

Salam~ Hello to you from the misty sea-side town of Essaouira, Morocco!!! Excursion so far has been quite the adventure! On Saturday we drove all day through the low Atlas mountains way down to the Sahara desert to the town of Erfoud. ... Needless to say this is a very, very, very expensive and rare oil! We got to try a little bit of it on our hands and it really is amazing! It made my hands really soft without being greasy at all! Really cool! It's also a really great organization because it is all run by women and helps them to provide for their families and work together to help each other! After that we moved on to our hotel in Essaouira! Essaouira is where we are having our fall break! It's a gorgeous misty little sea-side town that is often compared to beaches in New England in the USA. ... The air feels very humid and damp compared to the desert air we just left.Salam~ Hello to you from the misty sea-side town of Essaouira, Morocco!!! Excursion so far has been quite the adventure! On Saturday we drove all day through the low Atlas mountains way down to the Sahara desert to the town of Erfoud. ... Needless to say this is a very, very, very expensive and rare oil! We got to try a little bit of it on our hands and it really is amazing! It made my hands really soft without being greasy at all! Really cool! It's also a really great organization because it is all run by women and helps them to provide for their families and work together to help each other! After that we moved on to our hotel in Essaouira! Essaouira is where we are having our fall break! It's a gorgeous misty little sea-side town that is often compared to beaches in New England in the USA. ... The air feels very humid and damp compared to the desert air we just left....

Oct 23, 2009 - A busy week!

Salam!!! Its been a while since I last updated! I know that you must be curious all the details of the wedding right? Unfortunately, the morning of the wedding I awoke very early with the unmistakable grumbling deep in the stomach that can only mean one thing when you are living in a developping country. There were 600 guests present all wearing their most beautiful kaftans and looking amazing! There was traditional music playing and people dancing the entire evening! (Think belly dancing for 8 hours!) Waiters in suits distributed more desserts than an army could eat the entire night!!! Now we know why those bakers started working two weeks before the wedding! The bride wore 5 different outfits including the traditional Fesi garment with the enormous heavy headdress and the groom wore three different outfits. ... The groom gave the bride a huge dowry of perfums, shoes, clothes, beautiful gold jewelry and diamonds! Everyone had an amazing time and then slept all through Sunday.Salam!!! Its been a while since I last updated! I know that you must be curious all the details of the wedding right? Unfortunately, the morning of the wedding I awoke very early with the unmistakable grumbling deep in the stomach that can only mean one thing when you are living in a developping country. There were 600 guests present all wearing their most beautiful kaftans and looking amazing! There was traditional music playing and people dancing the entire evening! (Think belly dancing for 8 hours!) Waiters in suits distributed more desserts than an army could eat the entire night!!! Now we know why those bakers started working two weeks before the wedding! The bride wore 5 different outfits including the traditional Fesi garment with the enormous heavy headdress and the groom wore three different outfits. ... The groom gave the bride a huge dowry of perfums, shoes, clothes, beautiful gold jewelry and diamonds! Everyone had an amazing time and then slept all through Sunday....

Oct 16, 2009 - Couscous Friday!

Salam! Its been another busy week of classes here in Fes! Yesterday we had a fascinating lecture on the complicated linguistic situation in Morocco! So there is Classical Arabic which is from the Quran and only used in the Quran so it is a frozen language that no one actually speaks in normal life and that you cannot change because it is sacred. ... Then there is standard modern Arabic which is a standardized modern version of Arabic that all Arabic speaking countries agree on and use for business.Salam! Its been another busy week of classes here in Fes! Yesterday we had a fascinating lecture on the complicated linguistic situation in Morocco! So there is Classical Arabic which is from the Quran and only used in the Quran so it is a frozen language that no one actually speaks in normal life and that you cannot change because it is sacred. ... Then there is standard modern Arabic which is a standardized modern version of Arabic that all Arabic speaking countries agree on and use for business....

Oct 12, 2009 - Assilah and a Surprise Wedding Ceremony

Salam! Technically I am back in Fes today but this weekend I went to a small town called Assilah which is near Tangier so that is why the map is set for Tangier! I just had a great weekend!! We had Friday off from school and nothing planned for class for Saturday or Sunday so a group of nine of us girls bought train tickets and took the train up the coast to the gorgeous whitewashed coastal town of Assilah! We left at 7 am on Friday which was bright and early. ... The train rides were ok.Salam! Technically I am back in Fes today but this weekend I went to a small town called Assilah which is near Tangier so that is why the map is set for Tangier! I just had a great weekend!! We had Friday off from school and nothing planned for class for Saturday or Sunday so a group of nine of us girls bought train tickets and took the train up the coast to the gorgeous whitewashed coastal town of Assilah! We left at 7 am on Friday which was bright and early. ... The train rides were ok....

Oct 8, 2009 - Tanger

Our train departed around 9am and with a change of train at Sid Kacem we finally arrived in tanger at 7pm where we got a taxi (only one!) and found ourselevs back at the Hotel Tarik for our last night in this amazing country.Our train departed around 9am and with a change of train at Sid Kacem we finally arrived in tanger at 7pm where we got a taxi (only one!) and found ourselevs back at the Hotel Tarik for our last night in this amazing country....

Oct 7, 2009 - Marrakech

Today is our last day with Amid- we have really enjhoyed his humour and company, and despite his best efforts we havent converted to islam. Around 1pm we arrived at marrakech but stopped at the train station to buy our tickets for the following morning back to tanger (620 Dh for two) before unpacking our luggage and said our farewlls to Amid, before walking into the medina to our riad- yes a riad this time, as we decided to splurge out for our one night in Marrakech. ... In the evening we wandered back into Marrakech´s famous square to experience the nightlife for which it is so famous- restaurants lined up abñaze with lights and waiters trying to get you to taste their food- "come back to number 9 stall!!" musicians, storytellers, monkeys, snakes, and hundreds of tourists and locals. ... On a rooftop terrace we watched the crowd below as we ate dinner of soup, couscous, moroccan salad, tajine and kebabs, followed by slices of organge dusted with cinnamon- I´ll need to go on a diet when i get home.Today is our last day with Amid- we have really enjhoyed his humour and company, and despite his best efforts we havent converted to islam. Around 1pm we arrived at marrakech but stopped at the train station to buy our tickets for the following morning back to tanger (620 Dh for two) before unpacking our luggage and said our farewlls to Amid, before walking into the medina to our riad- yes a riad this time, as we decided to splurge out for our one night in Marrakech. ... In the evening we wandered back into Marrakech´s famous square to experience the nightlife for which it is so famous- restaurants lined up abñaze with lights and waiters trying to get you to taste their food- "come back to number 9 stall!!" musicians, storytellers, monkeys, snakes, and hundreds of tourists and locals. ... On a rooftop terrace we watched the crowd below as we ate dinner of soup, couscous, moroccan salad, tajine and kebabs, followed by slices of organge dusted with cinnamon- I´ll need to go on a diet when i get home....

Oct 6, 2009 - Ait ben Haddou

Drove up to the top of the gorge for the best view, after a harrowing drive on a narrow zigzag road-awesome! Then back down through the gorge and on to Ouazarte for lunch before finishing for the day at Ait ben Haddou- the medina that was restored many years ago by Universal Studios for Star wars (and has been used several times since for other movies<).Drove up to the top of the gorge for the best view, after a harrowing drive on a narrow zigzag road-awesome! Then back down through the gorge and on to Ouazarte for lunch before finishing for the day at Ait ben Haddou- the medina that was restored many years ago by Universal Studios for Star wars (and has been used several times since for other movies<)....

Oct 5, 2009 - Dades Gorge

A long day today as we left erg Chebbi and made our first stop at Erfoud to visit a cooperative of 65 families who create handicrafts of the region and share in the proceeds of any sale.A long day today as we left erg Chebbi and made our first stop at Erfoud to visit a cooperative of 65 families who create handicrafts of the region and share in the proceeds of any sale....

Oct 4, 2009 - Msa L Kheer

Msa L Kheer! Good Afternoon! Yesterday our group went on a mini excursion to see the Medina of Meknes and Volubilis.Msa L Kheer! Good Afternoon! Yesterday our group went on a mini excursion to see the Medina of Meknes and Volubilis....

Oct 4, 2009 - Erg Chebbi

A cruisy day- we followed the Ziz valley oasis until we came out and stopped at an oasis where a 16 year old led us on a walk thru the "palmeria"- date palms, water running from springs along channels feeding great vegetable patches, and a river, where women and children werte washing clothes (no pictures please).A cruisy day- we followed the Ziz valley oasis until we came out and stopped at an oasis where a 16 year old led us on a walk thru the "palmeria"- date palms, water running from springs along channels feeding great vegetable patches, and a river, where women and children werte washing clothes (no pictures please)....

Oct 1, 2009 - Fes

The imam was early this morning- about 4. After a breakfast of bread jam coffee or very sweet mint tea we walked back down the hill to the bus station and eventually left Chefchouen on a packed bus for Fes. ... At 0900 Drys arrived with an official guide Mizzouzi- a 66 year old randy goat who gave uis the Fes tour of a lifetime. ... Everyone we passed knew him and he knew everyone.The imam was early this morning- about 4. After a breakfast of bread jam coffee or very sweet mint tea we walked back down the hill to the bus station and eventually left Chefchouen on a packed bus for Fes. ... At 0900 Drys arrived with an official guide Mizzouzi- a 66 year old randy goat who gave uis the Fes tour of a lifetime. ... Everyone we passed knew him and he knew everyone....