My Thanks in Thanksgiving

When you think of Thanksgiving do you think of all the good food there is to eat or do you think of the people you'll eat the food with?  Do you think of the football games on t.v. or do you think about how lucky you are to be able to afford a t.v., electricity and cable?  Do you think about all the leftovers or the fact that you do not have to worry about what you will eat for the next few days??  Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for all that you have in your life.  With each passing year that I'm away from my family during the holidays, the importance of them becomes clearer to me.  This year I have so many things to be thankful for.

Our Thanksgiving feast; roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, string beans, Moroccan squash, cranberries and biscuits!

I'm thankful for; family and friends, PC and PCV's, a working computer, internet, my camera, external hard drive that entertains for hours, a house with no holes in the walls, real pillows, big coffee cups, American coffee, popcorn and cheesy popcorn topping, a dar chbab complete with amazing mudir, hard working students and enough electric sockets for all the new computers, living close to the ocean, camels on the beach, living close to a big city where I can let my hair down, being able to buy soy sauce and granola, people who understand sarcasm, the ability to laugh at situations that are frustrating, friendship scarves and necklaces, random phone calls from America, skype dates, care packages and letters, the #17 bus, Tuesday souq where I can buy a week of fruits and vegetables for under $4, big bakery where I can walk behind the counter, my nook, working headphones, unlimited free meds from PC, the phone plan, utorrent, media file exchanges, goats in trees, camel herds outside my town, sunny days with a gentle wind,  little kids that say 'hello', lightweight cardigans, movie nights, power and water 24/7 (usually), Fannie Fan McFanster, clothes that have survived Albania and Morocco, friendly people in Inzegane, homemade holiday decorations, sitemates, being able to sleep through the first call to prayer, msm and hrira, tie-dyed lizars, windows that are open in grand taxis, air conditioned buses, McDonalds in the Marrakech train station, online news sources, people who don't laugh at my baby Darija or Tashalheet, international sign language and pictures of all the wonderful people in my life!

I'm thankful for the company and food I had this year on Thanksgiving!

Last but not least, I'm thankful for you!!  Thanks for following me during this adventure and sending your support.  I hope that you had an amazing Thanksgiving and have just as many (if not more!) things to be thankful for.  Now it's time to break out the Christmas decorations and play all my favorite Christmas music.  This is indeed the most wonderful time of the year :)

A is for America

A is for America, and all the conveniences that you find there
M is for movies and bowling and being able to go out all day long
E is for everything.  You can buy everything in America!
R is for relatives and friends who help you celebrate the important things like birthdays, baptisms, and holidays.
I is for information technology.  You can find whatever you need online.  Weird, huh?
C is for coffee, big, enormous, steaming cups of coffee, and cooking pork products at all times of the day
A is for America, my favorite country in the world.

About a week ago, I returned from a two week visit home.  It was absolutely wonderful.  America did not disappoint.  I had a great time catching up with family and friends, going out, dressing up, eating all sorts of marvelous foods, and just generally enjoying myself.  It made me realize that I'm starting to get to that point where I'm ready to be home for good.  I said starting to realize people!  I'm not coming home tomorrow or next month, but I am starting to look forward to going home after I finish this service.

Life in America is still pretty much the same as I remember it.  Sure there are a lot of new crazy contraptions out there but I'll figure them out some day (electric cigarettes; who knew?!).  I can still go to a store and find an entire aisle of just bread.  I can still go and have breakfast at 2 am or 5pm or anytime I feel like it.  Americans still drink coffee by the gallon.  America is just as amazing as I remember.

While I was home, my aunt threw me an early Thanksgiving dinner with all the classic dishes.  It made me realize how lucky I am to have a family to support me through all of my adventures.  I am very thankful for all that they've done for me over these past 3+ years with the PC.  All the care packages and cards and skype dates have helped me make it this far.  I am so lucky that they are and always will be my family.

There's so much more I could say about my trip home but I'll keep it short today.  Overall, great trip home and America is still awesome.  'Nuff said :)

Another Reason Why I Love My Job

Just before I was about to leave for my trip to America, my kids at the dar chbab threw me an early birthday party.  One of my counterparts arranged for me to get henna in the morning before the party in the afternoon.  I had promised to bring brownies to the party and since I wasn't sure who else was bringing anything I was baking right up until my sitemate, Beth and I left to walk up to the dar chbab.  This is Morocco however and when there is a party, there are treats!

I shouldn't say I was surprised at the amount of treats that they brought but it made me feel really good that they took the time to bring things.  There were two cakes, numerous sodas and they even brought me presents!  I really hadn't even thought about if they would bring me presents or not.  I was really surprised at their generosity but then again it's Morocco and I should have known better.  After we sang happy birthday and I blew out the candles, I cut the cake and we all dug in.  Everything was so delicious!

After eating and digesting for a little bit, I opened the presents.  There was a candle holder, a framed piece of art and a really cute 6 piece coffee cup and saucer set.  We had gone shopping about a week earlier for a present for the mudir and they didn't want to talk about what to get me then but they had been secretly asking my opinion on things that they thought I might like.  They know how much I love coffee so they decided on the coffee cups.  I still can't get over the fact that they bought me presents at all.... the cakes themselves were present enough!

One of my cakes!!

It's little moments like this where I really love my job.  I can tell that I'm making connections with people in the community.  Two of PC's main goals is cultural exchange between Americans and host country nationals and I know that those goals are my favorite to work on.  In a community like this, it's hard not to love!  Just another reason why I do what I do :)

Break a Leg!

Just over two weeks ago, the Acting Out Awareness group had their first official performance in Inzegane, a town about an hour north.  After months of rehearsals, changes in props and finally finishing the set, they were really ready to take on their first live audience.  We met up just after 8am to pack up the van and head up where we were greeted by the mudir and an assistant and treated to a Moroccan breakfast.  The Inzegane dar chbab staff seemed to be very interested in what we were doing and they were also eager to share what programs they have to offer their youth.  I was impressed with the information available at the dar chbab about AIDS.

Opening scene.... the little guy is the AIDS virus

There were already about 20 kids hanging out at the dar chbab when we arrived but not more than five minutes after we pulled up another 20 kids came running up.  As we were setting up and talking to the staff there, kids kept popping their heads into the room to see what we were up to.  I noticed several of them point at me and go "That's an American!"  I know what my part in this whole project is and if I can help out more just by being the American that every one comes to see and look at, fine by me.  By the time we were ready to start there were close to 60 kids in the room.  

Captive audience

The performance went perfectly except for one small flaw at the end.  There are these six boxes that they turn around to spell out an awareness slogan and they flipped the boxes around out of order.  A small mistake that they realized and fixed by the end.  As I was watching the kids in the audience watch them, I could tell that they were fully engaged in the performance and that they were getting the message.  They even got a standing ovation at the end!  No Moroccan activity is complete without dancing so there was a little dancing and a few games after we finished to fully round up the activity.  We also had a discussion with several members of a theater group at the Inzegane dar chbab to discuss how we could do joint projects in the future.  Everyone seemed pleased at the idea of working together and sharing resources.

Defeating the AIDS virus

This was just the first performance out of eight.  I think it went very well and the kids in the group were pleased with their performance.  It will be interesting to see how they improve over the next seven performances and see how many people will end up hearing their message.  These kids impress me every day by their dedication to this project.  I'm just happy that I can be a part of it.  The next six weekends will be the other performances most likely.  With that said, break a leg guys!

Some of the participants

Morocco How To #3: Tajine

Tajine, a traditional food of Morocco, is actually not a food but the type of pot that you cook the food in.  A tajine is a clay pot that is flat on the bottom with slightly raised edges and a triangle shaped cover.  Traditionally it is cooked over coals but you can also cook it over a flame on a stove top.  There are both clay and metal tajines but I would recommend the clay tajine as would most Moroccans you might talk to.  There are many different things you can cook in a tajine but I will only give you the how to for one.  The following how to is on how to make a traditional chicken tajine.

#1: Gather your ingredients and clean them.  You will need, a tajine, oil, 2 big onions, 4 big tomatoes, salt, a chicken (cleaned, cut and sectioned), 1/4 kilo olives, and cilantro.
#2:  In the tajine, pour enough oil to completely cover the bottom.
#3:  Cut the onions into small sections.  Size is up to your personal preference.
#4:  Cut the tomatoes into small sections.  Size is up to your personal preference.
#5:  Sprinkle salt over the top and cook until the onions are slightly brown.
#6:  Place chicken into the tajine so that it is spread out into one layer.
#7:  Pour a little more oil over the chicken and let it simmer for a few minutes.
#8:  Cut cilantro over the top of the chicken.  Cover the tajine and let it cook for a about 10 minutes.
#9:  Uncover the tajine and turn the chicken over.  Add a little more oil and the olives and recover the chicken.
#10:   Let the tajine cook until the chicken is tender and cooked all the way through.
#11:  Serve hot and eat with bread.  No silverware allowed!

This is approximately what your tajine will look like when it's done

Hope you will find this helpful and delicious!  Keep your eyes open for the next Moroccan how to!

One Year.... and Going Strong!

One year ago today I landed in Morocco with about 60 other Americans.  As we traveled by bus from the Casablanca Airport to Mehdiya, I remember looking out the window and thinking "Can I do this?"  My first impressions of the country was that it was brown, fairly clean, the roads were flat and straight, it was hot, and it was NOT Albania.  As most of you know, I absolutely fell in love with Albania.  I was at home in Lezha with my friends and Albanian family, my freedom to do almost anything and was comfortable with the things I had in my life.  Here I was in Morocco about to start from scratch.  What the heck did I get myself into??!!

Over the past year, there have been things I have struggled with, am still struggling with and things that I have done that I am proud of.  There have been good days and bad days.  There are things here that I like a lot and things here that I don't really care for.  My job is not what I expected it to be but it is evolving and becoming more like what I want it to be for my second year.  I still have no idea what projects will actually finish before I leave and what projects will still only be ideas.  I DO know that I have made an impact on my community and that they will remember me after I'm gone and for that reason, I know I've been a successful volunteer.  

So on this anniversary of my arrival in Morocco, I wanted to list out some things that I've done and some things that I still want to do.  These lists are by no means complete but they are a good representation of my first year here.  

Things I have Done

-PST, PPST and IST!! (pre-service training, post pre-service training and in-service training)

-One academic year of English classes with two of my students graduating high school

-Spring Camp in Agadir with 40 kids

-Summer Camp in El Jadida with 80 kids

-Month long day camp at my youth center with about 200 kids between 3 sessions

-World Map Project

-Coordinated the SOS Village in Agadir and worked at one of the summer sessions

-Volunteered at Special Olympics 

-Co-lead workshops on English and Customer Service at Marche Maroc Essaouria

-Won a VAST grant for an AIDS awareness campaign put together by the youth at my dar chbab

-Helped at a PCV led Women's Wellness Conference 

-Helped to redesign and improve PST for the new group that arrived in country YESTERDAY! (welcome new group!)

-Learned some basic Tashalheet 

-Improved my Darija

-Made Moroccan friends in my community

-Learned how to wrap a lizar

-Learned how to make mint tea and tajine

-Traveled around to multiple areas of Morocco without getting lost, injured or pick-pocketed

-Learned how to live as a meat loving vegetarian

-Successfully stayed single (even with all the marriage proposals)

-Survived having a wisdom tooth pulled in country

-Killed my first cockroach

-Successfully integrated well enough into my town so that I no longer get "Bonjour"-ed!

-Learned how to make tortilla's and alfredo sauce (literally learned yesterday so I could put it on today's list)

-Survived the Moroccan summer

-Survived my first Ramadan!

Things I Still Have to Do

-Finish my AID's awareness campaign with my dar chbab

-Start a girl's sports club

-Start a Health Club/Environment Club

-Become conversational in Tashalheet

-Help a friend find funding and start a tourism project for our town

-Learn how to make msmn

-Learn some basic French

-Complete a 2nd year of English classes at the dar chbab

-Work at spring camp, summer camp and day camp next year

-Continue coordinating for SOS Village in Agadir

-And anything else that comes up!!

My service in Morocco is nothing like what my service was in Albania.  It's not better.  It's not worse.  It's just different.  Morocco is growing on me more and more as the days pass.  I'm starting to feel more at home here.  Time has been passing quickly and it's hard to believe it's been a year already.  If my second year in Morocco is anything like my second year in Albania, it's going to fly by.  I'm excited to see what I can accomplish in my remaining time here and anxious for all my new projects to start.  It's been a good first year Morocco, let's keep up the good work!

Ramadan Kareem!

August is over half-way done at this point and so is my first Ramadan.  Ramadan, for those of you who don't know, is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar which lasts for 29 or 30 days.  Since the Islamic calendar is based on the moon, the dates change every year.  During Ramadan, Muslims refrain from eating, drinking and yes, sex, during daylight hours.  It is a time for Muslims to reflect on their spirituality, their humility, patience and submissiveness to God, or Allah.  Ramadan is one of the most important holidays to Muslims as it celebrates the first time that a verse of the Qur'an was read to the prophet Mohammed.  The following has been my experience with Ramadan so far and my plans for the rest of the month.

The first day of Ramadan fell on August 2nd.  I was at summer camp at El Jadida and experienced it along with about 80 Moroccan youth, 16 other Americans and several Moroccan counselors.  We went to bed as usual on August 1st but around 4am, those of us preparing to fast woke up to eat a small meal of bread with cheese, yogurt, orange juice and fruit.  This was to prepare us for the day as we would not be eating again until around 7:30pm.  We went back to bed and woke up around 10.  Our day with the campers started at 12:45 and you could tell it wasn't easy for anyone.  The campers were tired, quiet, and lethargic.  For myself, I found it became hardest around 3pm.  That's when I first became hungry and started getting a head ache.  I couldn't believe I still had to wait another 4 1/2 hours until break fast.  I didn't know if I would make it.  I had a break and decided to take a power nap.  My power nap got me through it and I ran to the food hall along with everyone else when the bell sounded that it was time to break fast.

My first break fast was exciting, delicious and painful.  For those of you who have ever fasted, you know how delicious food tastes again once you eat.  You're so hungry and everything just tastes twice as good as usual.  You also inhale your food which is where the pain came in.  For all of us first timers, we overdid it and left feeling over full.  How could we resist the spread of soup, bread, cheese, msmn, hard boiled eggs, jam, orange juice, dates and sweets??  We vowed after that the second day we would eat slower so as to not leave in so much pain.  The second day was easier.  I didn't feel hungry until right before break fast and at break fast, I paced myself so I didn't overdue it.  I also started staying up until 4 in the morning so that I could eat my last meal before going to bed.  It worked out well and I felt good during those days of Ramadan at camp.

Since leaving camp, I have continued to fast.  I had to stop for a few days because I got sick.  The Qur'an states that young children, the elderly, pregnant women, sick people and travelers going farther than 60km do not need to fast.  It has been an enjoyable experience and not as hard as I thought it would be.  It has been hard to refrain from drinking water during the day, and I have slipped on occasion, but overall I think I have done well.  I have found it easier to fast when there are other people with me also fasting.  It's so easy to cheat when you're by yourself!  I am back in Rabat to help out with a focus group so these next few days should be easy fasting days.  I am going to continue fasting for the entire month as long as I am not hindered from doing so (ex: sickness).

For those of you who are still confused about Ramadan, think about it like the Islamic equivalent of Lent.  During Lent, you give up something for 40 days.  For Ramadan, Muslims all give up the same thing for 30 days.  It can be hard but then challenges make successes that much sweeter, don't they??  Many people have asked why I am fasting.  I am not Muslim.  I am fasting because I am living in a Muslim culture where my neighbors and friends are fasting.  I wanted to experience what they do every year.  This might be one of my only chances to truly experience Ramadan as it should be.  Even if I wasn't fasting, my life here would have had to change.  Business hours are different for Ramadan.  Things sold in stores change during Ramadan.  Transportation has become more scarce in my town.  Life continues late into the night now.  This is my first Ramadan and I have been mentally preparing for it since I arrived in this country eleven months ago.  It is here and I am enjoying it more than I thought I could.  The bell signaling break fast is about to go off so I will end here so that I can get ready to go and eat.  Ramadan kareem everyone!!