I’m feeling reflective today. We are finally getting settled in the new
apartment and getting used to how living together is going to work. Last night
we had friends over for Mexican food and we all ate on our terrace that
overlooks the river in Rabat. All in all, it was a fabulous night. I realized
how lucky I am that I love the people in my group so much and how close we've become over the past couple months.
We
also have the most fabulous landlord. He has helped us so much. (We seriously
need to buy him a cake or something for all his help) Today, the washing
machine overflowed, all over everything. We also had trouble with locking
ourselves both in and out of the house. He’s just fabulous and helpful. And
actually as I think about it, people here are almost always helpful. Sometimes it can be hard to get by the
negative parts, like being followed and catcalled after. But every time I have
needed help, or directions, or anything there is always someone willing to
help. The people here are overwhelmingly welcoming. The sense of community is
unbelievable in the Medina and Kasbah (where we are now living.) At first we
had wanted to live in the more “hip” part of town, Agdal, but here in the
Kasbah our landlord is our neighbor and was like, “If you need anything, you
are part of my family while you’re here just ask.” And the thing is…I believe
him one hundred percent. The generosity is just fabulous and overwhelming at
the same time. My friend met an older woman today while hailing a cab. The
women helped her hail one and then they spilt the fare because they were going
to the same place. It turns out the women lives near us and has invited us over
for tea. In the U.S it would be strange to invite someone you met in a cab to
your home for coffee. Here, it’s normal and almost always with the best
intentions.
One
of the hardest parts of being here is coming to terms with the fact that I am
an American. There is no way around that and it is clear that I am a foreigner
here. It is important to me that if I travel or live in a place for an extended
period of time, that I want to be a part of the culture. I want to be immersed.
I was having a hard time with the idea of being immersed versus assimilating. I
have come to realize that I can still be a part of the culture. Yes I am
American and yes I stand out. That is frustrating, but I am still able to show
people that I am trying to learn about their way of life and language. They
appreciate that and are willing to show me more or talk to me in Arabic to try
and teach me. Shop keepers that speak English will say, “Practice your Arabic
with me.” And will then only talk to us in Arabic to help us understand better.
(Also, they don’t try to us as much because we are trying to be part of the
community and like that we are putting in an honest effort.) It is a great feeling to walk to a store in
the Medina, that recognizes me, and gives me the local price for food. So
although I am a “Westerner” and I stand out for many reasons, I have been
welcomed by many into their culture. I have successfully immersed myself in a
lot of the culture here and have gained a lot.
The one thing I wish I could understand
more is the role of Islam. As a non-Muslim, I am unable to enter mosques or
really understand it. It plays such a huge role in everyday life and I do know
the Five Pillars of Islam and have learned about the call to Prayer and other
various informational pieces about Islam, but I can’t really understand it. In
general there are a lot of things here I wish I understood more about but Islam
is definitely one of the top ones.
There is still a lot I am figuring
out and it’s hard to believe I only have a month left but I have definitely
come to peace and understanding with a lot of the questions I was having. I’m
sure things will happen in the next month that will challenge what I came to as
an answer and maybe it will change but as of right now I am feeling very at
home here.
Speaking of which, here are
pictures of the apartment. Let us keep in mind, we're living in the Kasbah, in a traditional home that is very tall and skinny.
This is the view from my bedroom!
My room! Love the tiling :)
The hobbit door that leads to our terrace. But seriously you have to kneel to get through.
The terrace!
The view from the terrace. (It's fabulous at night)
One of the other bedrooms:
An example of our skinny steep stairwells.
The door leading to my room. (Had to post it, love the glass.)
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