tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13504370037496312862024-03-13T04:51:01.624-07:00iRabatYES Abroad Morocco 2012-2013Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-81585566566747560172013-07-14T10:51:00.001-07:002013-07-14T10:51:23.312-07:00The End<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This is the end of my blog. I've been home a couple months now, and it's pretty safe to say my experience is over by now. Certainly there will be more cultural learning and stuff that results from this, but now I'm going to sign off.<br />
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And for all you archive-browsers, here for the first time: have a look around my pictures; <a href="http://irabat.blogspot.com/2013/01/christmas-break.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Christmas Break</a> was maybe my favorite.<br />
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So, الله يسلمكم و يحفظكم all.</div>
Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-44033243458573577582013-06-17T20:43:00.002-07:002013-06-17T20:43:42.582-07:00Conclusions<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So, I'm home.<br />
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We left early Sunday morning and arrived in Washington that night. All day Monday was a post-program orientation, which included discussion about community re-entry, reverse culture shock, etc. Tuesday morning we gave a short presentation at the State Department, along with the YES Abroad Bosnia students who had also just returned. That afternoon we all said our tearful goodbyes (sarcasm?) and went our separate ways; I arrived in Salt Lake late that night.<br />
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This week, then, has been a lot of seeing people again and of course lots of questions: my very favorite thing about Morocco (I'll go with the linguistic diversity), my favorite food (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastilla" target="_blank">pastilla</a>, perhaps?), and whether or not it was worth it (I might say "duh," but apparently not everyone has gotten that impression from me.) Seriously though, yes, it was fun, and yes, it was worth it, and yes, I'm glad I went, and yes, I missed my family, and yes, I'm glad to be home, and yes, I want to go back someday. I think those are the easy questions.<br />
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And yes, you too should <a href="http://yesprograms.org/yesabroad" target="_blank">apply</a>!<br />
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Now, of course there were challenges. Certainly some of these are good and necessary for a complete foreign exchange experience, and I wouldn't want to have had it too easy, but it's always tempting to think about how much better it could have been. Because in theory, it could have been so different if the program had been better or I had been more motivated or something. And yes, my school was kind of a joke (I have no desire to elaborate), and that's going to be improved for next year's kids, and I probably would have learned more Arabic had I not been stuck with other Americans the whole time, and that's going to be different in the future, and yes, I could have done <i>so much more</i> with my time. But that sort of thinking is clearly not helpful, and even if we kind of were AMIDEAST's guinea pigs this year, I can't begin to complain about the experience I had. I mean, I did get to study in Morocco for a year, totally funded by the government. (Thank you, taxpayers!)<br />
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So, what was so great about my experience, anyways? [brought to you by YES Programs and the Bureau for Educational and Cultural Affairs.]<br />
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– Language learning. I vastly improved my French, Arabic, and Spanish, which will certainly be useful to me in the future, and I enjoyed it to boot.<br />
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– Cultural exchange: a bit harder to measure, but the essential goal of the program. I learned <i>so</i> much about Morocco, Islam, American society, culture in general, living with a host family, etc.<br />
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– Personal development: you know, like becoming more mature and independent and confident and stuff.<br />
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And we keep hearing that it's going to be many years before I fully realize the impact this had on me. But I think it's safe to say it pretty much changed my life.</div>
Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-80507245025696634722013-06-08T03:20:00.002-07:002013-06-08T03:20:49.351-07:00untitled<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So it's now Saturday, which means we're going home tomorrow. And that's all surreal and incredible and happy and sad and all of that, but I'm not going to write about it now because, among other excuses, my laptop is completely dead. But when I'm home I'll write more.</div>
Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-66659240879791953582013-05-24T05:05:00.000-07:002013-05-24T05:05:20.943-07:00Week 39<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I'm going to be home in less than three weeks. We're leaving Sunday, June 9th, and flying to DC, where we'll have some sort of debriefing and return orientation, and I'll be back to Utah the night of Tuesday the 11th.<br />
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[insert reflections here]<br />
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seriously, though, this is where I'm supposed to talk about how much I've learned about Moroccan culture as well as my own, the day I realized I actually do love America, how challenging and rewarding it's been, how much I've learned about myself, etc. Heck, if I tried hard with I bet I could even make it onto the YES website. (I don't plan to.) I ought to say something at least, so I'll post an entry reflecting on my challenges this year as well as one highlighting my successes and what I've gained and whatnot.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizg7NILLWNEmGHCeMlvCCqACsUdX_ZyVlgE9CFwemIZICG3Y32ivI8Egd10GgySZOQ64E9607Hr_ASv-PqWZ8IUH18mFgG7c2aByANZsgnJ7RaV-4SMdNi60_KME74TX9Tmcu5F0XBsT0k/s1600/P1030991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizg7NILLWNEmGHCeMlvCCqACsUdX_ZyVlgE9CFwemIZICG3Y32ivI8Egd10GgySZOQ64E9607Hr_ASv-PqWZ8IUH18mFgG7c2aByANZsgnJ7RaV-4SMdNi60_KME74TX9Tmcu5F0XBsT0k/s640/P1030991.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>ashhadu anna la ilaha ila allah...</i></td></tr>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-84463031772535881592013-04-29T11:31:00.000-07:002013-04-29T11:31:40.191-07:00foobar<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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L'avril passé j'ai écrit que tout ce blog ne serait forcément pas en anglais. Je ne pensais jamais vraiment que j'allais écrire en français et certainement pas en arabe, mais quand même il y a toujours la possibilité—qu'on se plongera dans la culture étrangère et au retour on aura oublié on anglais, qu'on se trouvera dans un lycée rigoureusement français, etc. Mais bien sûr c'est une partie essentielle de l'échange culturel, adapter ses attitudes, même si cette adaptation s'agit simplement de ne pas attendre trop d'ajustement.<br />
C'est aussi que j'ai remarqué que j'avais fait un blog-post chaque mois depuis mon arrivée ici. Donc le voilà, pour avril. Ce mois j'ai heureusement eu l'opportunité de retourner à Tanger, Assilah, et Chefchaouen ainsi que visiter le souk de Khemisset. On part demain à Marrakech, la dernière des grandes villes (touristiques) marocaines.<br />
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-85824137314078482322013-03-18T16:07:00.005-07:002013-03-18T16:07:48.836-07:00Winter Break, part 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I don't feel like writing much, but I will post some pictures of our trip. We drove up north, to Assilah, Tanger, and Chefchaouen.<br />
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Assilah is a small seaside town, originally a Portuguese port. The medina was small and almost entirely empty (it was Friday) except for Spanish tourists. It was really nice.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiausCEFVKF1npd0_HhvyF_A2FobhJLNh9_7VNXPflsIIVG_nj6H0XAVivhfahBuwTin6KbZbnY0QZKLfPqYBeCX2zz5gFsXcuY1oWahAE_g37QBq7jn0_9huH-UfqLHj7H8KpG1A2FexEf/s1600/P1020932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiausCEFVKF1npd0_HhvyF_A2FobhJLNh9_7VNXPflsIIVG_nj6H0XAVivhfahBuwTin6KbZbnY0QZKLfPqYBeCX2zz5gFsXcuY1oWahAE_g37QBq7jn0_9huH-UfqLHj7H8KpG1A2FexEf/s400/P1020932.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">some statue</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsaF3PpMqNmxgOfXh-ja48ypSCjHT3JErBsFHHqPNnoBZh-m7CkZBfXO6tlWoSbFJrVKna5KdC1O1ZrUfG_3x6DFEnv2XEklF7XgzOHAdcGbLkIFeOGAWVn2cc8MKyg1Ti0-t0EvjWR7BY/s1600/P1030932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsaF3PpMqNmxgOfXh-ja48ypSCjHT3JErBsFHHqPNnoBZh-m7CkZBfXO6tlWoSbFJrVKna5KdC1O1ZrUfG_3x6DFEnv2XEklF7XgzOHAdcGbLkIFeOGAWVn2cc8MKyg1Ti0-t0EvjWR7BY/s400/P1030932.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj5QlJxz_lLJ-h20elB0CiJEMMeCeCMuhyphenhyphenltKL9z6gMUrwAhEVY348d950g67hamW5xAR8d2UIIWnjobztHHxWWhvSyOH0EC60E8UXeOnysVgu3sBjQxSNAfS1CkTGlD0TYN34-nwIQkz8/s1600/P1030066.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj5QlJxz_lLJ-h20elB0CiJEMMeCeCMuhyphenhyphenltKL9z6gMUrwAhEVY348d950g67hamW5xAR8d2UIIWnjobztHHxWWhvSyOH0EC60E8UXeOnysVgu3sBjQxSNAfS1CkTGlD0TYN34-nwIQkz8/s400/P1030066.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Every year there's a mural festival.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvtqIMlZpPAWWOQZ2vp_U5CTQIIE_q0NazLvDXiFmqsnomAEDLTq22U5XgGueRuOXOla1tCcqDN-xx-IxJBze5Dw768G294LkjIh1Bt68251vMB2Nu3A9vmwPPN0hYrcK7add4yfPm1atj/s1600/P1030074.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="363" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvtqIMlZpPAWWOQZ2vp_U5CTQIIE_q0NazLvDXiFmqsnomAEDLTq22U5XgGueRuOXOla1tCcqDN-xx-IxJBze5Dw768G294LkjIh1Bt68251vMB2Nu3A9vmwPPN0hYrcK7add4yfPm1atj/s400/P1030074.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDx7MKY6iWL5_EiRXcrypg4If-t77B_L09G0ZOIdychYeqC5XCOkBPLL_lQDL2JyE8_i60C5F52r2XwgGh5IgR_uCh7E0LO-jqeNCOH4xP88MZTr4fvkhIUxF48-wUNHpp-9PBLM22MFD2/s1600/P1030169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDx7MKY6iWL5_EiRXcrypg4If-t77B_L09G0ZOIdychYeqC5XCOkBPLL_lQDL2JyE8_i60C5F52r2XwgGh5IgR_uCh7E0LO-jqeNCOH4xP88MZTr4fvkhIUxF48-wUNHpp-9PBLM22MFD2/s400/P1030169.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We then went to the Cave of Hercules, where the hero slept before performing one of his Labors. (Morocco's Atlas mountains are where, according to the myths, Atlas held up the sky.) The cave has a famous window looking over the sea, which apparently is shaped like Africa.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">or something</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZfshzWE4FdUboDk4RhiP3Aeamlr3gEXu3kc8gC1YeU6Qgkq82BotH1nOuuYHRrOC8g-ycLZsEO-Np6gZNEG3DaxEY1M5nGBX11L-oaQJQ9Au_MNMB83DR-cvWs69vKt7h0U8Mynd7pT12/s1600/P1030331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZfshzWE4FdUboDk4RhiP3Aeamlr3gEXu3kc8gC1YeU6Qgkq82BotH1nOuuYHRrOC8g-ycLZsEO-Np6gZNEG3DaxEY1M5nGBX11L-oaQJQ9Au_MNMB83DR-cvWs69vKt7h0U8Mynd7pT12/s400/P1030331.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spain on the horizon?</td></tr>
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Just a few miles past the cave we came to Tanger (Tangier, Tangiers, طنجة, <span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.1875px;">Τιγγίς),</span> one of the country's main ports. For a long time is was an international zone, frequented by the wealthiest Europeans and Americans and known for its lavish parties. Paul Bowles, Allen Ginsberg, and other important American writers spent time here.</div>
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We visited the American Legation, a building given to the new United States for their diplomatic presence and used until just a couple of decades ago. It now houses a museum.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63H4bGcD8gDgZMSfrbRrcRbEaJ5x67ERATQrj7cBzfkvPKZvcimhAt1ynk4M9BWtb3_ndY-5RqLU5VVEQDfIehfGVNu6Jprg_BXNUgGaluovZmCopWqTXXvDy4fnh4wwoFigDEOH7Dj9D/s1600/P1030347.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63H4bGcD8gDgZMSfrbRrcRbEaJ5x67ERATQrj7cBzfkvPKZvcimhAt1ynk4M9BWtb3_ndY-5RqLU5VVEQDfIehfGVNu6Jprg_BXNUgGaluovZmCopWqTXXvDy4fnh4wwoFigDEOH7Dj9D/s400/P1030347.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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From Tanger we drove south, into the Rif mountains and to the town of Chefchaouen. Chaouen is known for two things: its blue buildings, and hashish. In fact, most of Europe's cannabis comes from this mountain range. (I didn't actually get any offers.) But the town was beautiful. It was swarming with tourists, but still much friendlier than Tanger or Rabat.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvpKdkauflQkD8FSsKtvB2Xo88TCXx81CriTkK26AifLsCb0zTkCAfMmyT0Ie18qhmP9tA1gnlnnw1JXaZl_dwV_0xEeIHao-KhBig7W4CwkPPZQoBTsxdCXj-nZW-8UK6bsvB0EiEHmiK/s1600/P1030600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvpKdkauflQkD8FSsKtvB2Xo88TCXx81CriTkK26AifLsCb0zTkCAfMmyT0Ie18qhmP9tA1gnlnnw1JXaZl_dwV_0xEeIHao-KhBig7W4CwkPPZQoBTsxdCXj-nZW-8UK6bsvB0EiEHmiK/s400/P1030600.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The whole town is blue and purple.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBWeRFi9Mj_Jnno_q4hBZUcdPV4-eQOj1DvgL6VlV3KC0rlBFFXt8uwYF6egKi_F-aEd0ImN4u9S_1zhswYQm3Yfs9q7hcCLsxFF0f47dP4HnjO0j6S90vFgIJafadqafkuXti7GAgiMpx/s1600/P1030633.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBWeRFi9Mj_Jnno_q4hBZUcdPV4-eQOj1DvgL6VlV3KC0rlBFFXt8uwYF6egKi_F-aEd0ImN4u9S_1zhswYQm3Yfs9q7hcCLsxFF0f47dP4HnjO0j6S90vFgIJafadqafkuXti7GAgiMpx/s400/P1030633.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ras el-Ma', a spring just outside of town</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">inside the Casbah</td></tr>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-14925977012035119962013-03-12T14:01:00.002-07:002013-03-12T14:34:15.613-07:00Winter Break, part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
February 23 was the beginning of two-week break, officially Winter Break. This one, I think, was more exciting than any we've had so far.<br />
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Monday morning I went back to Chellah, the Roman/Islamic ruins just outside of town. It's springtime now, and it was beautiful, with flowers all over and dozens of noisy storks.<br />
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On Tuesday we went to Fes again. In the morning we had a guide to show us around, then he left us and we went out in search of lunch. After asking the natives (our Moroccan chaperone did the asking) and then repeatedly asking for directions, we ended up at a small, smoky, family-run place that served the best beef I've ever had. (It's great when an adventure like that turns out well, but there's just no guarantee that such food won't make you sick.) After lunch we went around for the sole purpose of shopping, which went well. I bought, among other things, a nice teapot and a common sort of Moroccan hat. We returned to Rabat that evening; the three-hour drive means that a day trip to Fes is possible if somewhat exhausting.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nice mounds of spices (cardboard) outside the entrance of a shop selling<br />
Argan oil products, the new craze in America. You can see women<br />
grinding it by hand—what fun for the tourists!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another old medersa, or Islamic school</td></tr>
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Fes is an unmissable and unforgettable Moroccan experience; just the size of the old medina makes it world-famous, and the sounds, smells, crowds, and hustlers are legendary. I've heard its touristy nature compared to the Pyramids of Egypt, only less so. Now that I've been several times I'm glad to have gone, but I don't think I want to go back anytime soon.<br />
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On Wednesday we went to the zoo; in a word, meh. I mean, it's a fine zoo, and it was fun to have the Arabic names of the animals (especially the mahas and gamooses), but it was almost completely empty, with only a couple French families and local school classes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aww...</td></tr>
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On Thursday we had another class with the master calligrapher Mohammed Qarmad.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He's really good.</td></tr>
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Early Friday morning we boarded our AMIDEAST bus and started driving north.<br />
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TO BE CONTINUED. . . . .</div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-82988562500434079642013-02-28T09:15:00.000-08:002013-02-28T09:16:39.925-08:00The Fondation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Since around the beginning of December I've had the experience of teaching English to Moroccan kids. The place where I'm teaching is called the Fondation Occident-Orient and it mainly educates sub-Saharan African immigrants. It's located in a poorer neighborhood called Manal, about 20 Dh west of here.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Fondation</td></tr>
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It has, as you might expect, been difficult and rewarding, impossible and fun, pointless and educational.<br />
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I teach two hour-and-a-half classes each Wednesday afternoon. Both groups consist of anywhere between 3 and 25 kids ranging in age from 4 to 15, but generally there are around 15 of them, roughly 9-10 years old in the first class and 6-8 in the second. In each class there are two or three kids who can already speak English pretty well, and there are also always a few whom I've never seen before and who don't speak a word of English.</div>
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Normally I hold class in a room in the library, which is fairly nice but has the downside that we're not allowed to make any noise—that means games, videos, and songs are doable but difficult. Recently, though, I've been moved downstairs, into a room where the dusty chairs are falling apart and there's a dog (that is, either big and scary or highly distracting) on the other side of the glass wall. A few times there hasn't been any room for us at all and I've conducted my class outside, around two or three small tables and with no whiteboard.</div>
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Discipline is always an issue; I feel like a substitue teacher and they know it. They really only respond well to authority if it acts like a stern parent and speaks Arabic to them, and, well... Occasionally I've had an assistant, a Moroccan student about my age who either keeps them completely in line or just spends the class chatting with the older students in the back.</div>
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But when they are willing to listen, it can be a lot of fun. Many of them are motivated and learn the material pretty well, and of course young Moroccans trying to speak English are awfully cute. There's no set curriculum, and so we (another student teaches them on Saturday) just come up with things to teach them. There was one time a few weeks ago when a bunch of Americans from some NGO walked into the center and came to see what we were doing. The kids in my class did fabulously: every one of them said, in English, their name, age, and "Nice to meet you." It was great.</div>
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Two weeks ago we had the most adventurous and fun class yet. I had been told the week before that a group of Belgian "Scouts" (pronounced "skoots") was coming. What it turned out to be was a group of Belgian students, here for a school project, who brought activities, games, and waffles.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Only the Moroccan ones are my students.)</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: left;">They had sports for the boys and a photo shoot for the girls, as well as Musical Chairs, sack races, painting, and masks. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_LlZ6SGk3js1MjeymxNnVHSCeusfOqQTA0axdBJvYq54QWXD6doA0tDrrLNs6wipGdf8vaf-9y_oPln_onS07dA-OZaCEo-RB8ZAMIQSdOnejcX9mRSLQFR4BK-Lcsi0ztMPxzei0muW8/s1600/P1020174.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_LlZ6SGk3js1MjeymxNnVHSCeusfOqQTA0axdBJvYq54QWXD6doA0tDrrLNs6wipGdf8vaf-9y_oPln_onS07dA-OZaCEo-RB8ZAMIQSdOnejcX9mRSLQFR4BK-Lcsi0ztMPxzei0muW8/s400/P1020174.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing in the off-limits garden</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE24q9dthlEGpvQQBbUdjos6GQzBRKw_-hV1KIwyivLRryq43-ElEsD5RhARIe7cP20RVQlETMq6b8pxzbXIaRZubCLPx2n03XpwUdmsnNkPA5_xbp7ODTOJIXpRtpDuyeRHoTBVdALge0/s1600/P1020203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE24q9dthlEGpvQQBbUdjos6GQzBRKw_-hV1KIwyivLRryq43-ElEsD5RhARIe7cP20RVQlETMq6b8pxzbXIaRZubCLPx2n03XpwUdmsnNkPA5_xbp7ODTOJIXpRtpDuyeRHoTBVdALge0/s400/P1020203.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit of music: accordion and African drums<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWDnq_gmRB0ZQzHfuEBBjLtoR0se7TyHIpOS55mmJHt87eyP1rLJJz-c0VPhtZZLrRGxSHcZkYDabJuycjRbN-Bk5GwqgExQGTV9I36TPsdx8cSZ4HGjbuID7EXahZCS_Kzz18A9RVdhU/s1600/P1020272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWDnq_gmRB0ZQzHfuEBBjLtoR0se7TyHIpOS55mmJHt87eyP1rLJJz-c0VPhtZZLrRGxSHcZkYDabJuycjRbN-Bk5GwqgExQGTV9I36TPsdx8cSZ4HGjbuID7EXahZCS_Kzz18A9RVdhU/s400/P1020272.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTgfhKniw0SfyZm-QoqEXQZUI2utzE2giIP3_4crAhLlZk3-vrXlbQz5jDAeifTvOWSnZQtnz7TNQaafr_LwPGW-SxE6xJEeX31dsOdmS12mbzv05Q4XoPfB8JN97wozBxJWK-04lNRVXq/s1600/P1020247.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTgfhKniw0SfyZm-QoqEXQZUI2utzE2giIP3_4crAhLlZk3-vrXlbQz5jDAeifTvOWSnZQtnz7TNQaafr_LwPGW-SxE6xJEeX31dsOdmS12mbzv05Q4XoPfB8JN97wozBxJWK-04lNRVXq/s400/P1020247.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So that's been an adventure. It's certainly frustrating sometimes, but I'm sure this is a valuable experience for me and all of that. And the kids really are fun.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGmUQFEFd_Iw5lQQmItQVMxYO6G8eGAPVU-B-wJWnILlAw9G-YEwWTXFZv_x2vn9ZiYTEu-NH_1GwK4xDFLABLWcZSSqrAGzT3QRVVhddosApBgkeU0nsoi_vifOxtazPvy8B7AxDd6BGp/s1600/P1020279_2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGmUQFEFd_Iw5lQQmItQVMxYO6G8eGAPVU-B-wJWnILlAw9G-YEwWTXFZv_x2vn9ZiYTEu-NH_1GwK4xDFLABLWcZSSqrAGzT3QRVVhddosApBgkeU0nsoi_vifOxtazPvy8B7AxDd6BGp/s400/P1020279_2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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</div>
</div>
Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-85096355093726090522013-01-17T12:48:00.000-08:002013-01-17T12:49:46.175-08:00My World<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: left;">It's easy to get used to the sights around here, but I realize how different they are than back home. So here are some pictures to give you an idea.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx6ARlXWL_r82kDZ-dRvloc9xbbUcTVJv_6eHCEnRH4StvB_BC4MzkkbFLIxvVR-kTUO9paExrlDhqjFghyphenhyphen6DNQkN_rcKJXWAG0EvCsie7VKr4S0WV6oKUjDYGOdTmLlxpI1LPIwcTGVvG/s1600/P1000604.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx6ARlXWL_r82kDZ-dRvloc9xbbUcTVJv_6eHCEnRH4StvB_BC4MzkkbFLIxvVR-kTUO9paExrlDhqjFghyphenhyphen6DNQkN_rcKJXWAG0EvCsie7VKr4S0WV6oKUjDYGOdTmLlxpI1LPIwcTGVvG/s400/P1000604.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical street</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxhOhO7IZpjdWa3cvtInhaRnn-kz7Bx6z6bI-CiFEKswkRQnExsXMpdO44tNhl4b45HxBLK6s0imrBUK3ue3YUjQfo_60OJucJTxY0rRkkmuktvxmwsTCv58qoSkONnoP93bYVEhQZm46/s1600/P1000561.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxhOhO7IZpjdWa3cvtInhaRnn-kz7Bx6z6bI-CiFEKswkRQnExsXMpdO44tNhl4b45HxBLK6s0imrBUK3ue3YUjQfo_60OJucJTxY0rRkkmuktvxmwsTCv58qoSkONnoP93bYVEhQZm46/s400/P1000561.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A neighborhood park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVpaowjflUPGg01K0ivHDFabLpOMruHxAyYh3-o3biT_MWqtRxuPJ21ytvkRe9s0VSt4zuPM2V2n4wd7KwfN8VI-KVuL2-HCpQDLka78C-ruL_2CCqynthqgeX9IadKtUBiizpcTpmAbTx/s1600/P1000597.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVpaowjflUPGg01K0ivHDFabLpOMruHxAyYh3-o3biT_MWqtRxuPJ21ytvkRe9s0VSt4zuPM2V2n4wd7KwfN8VI-KVuL2-HCpQDLka78C-ruL_2CCqynthqgeX9IadKtUBiizpcTpmAbTx/s400/P1000597.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The local mosque</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGdxVqKC1MebcwMHDdDz53WvoWMkpLnsBthbGufqPJrk5J9Ck77oCeXvRnp_2dEJc6uVD9lDV3om38YktnAW_RdHOdl5Hg6cQhm1RdUf4Bg2Q6Z3dsnWphqCCzILq1vdcY91Hygfzp9i1M/s1600/P1010001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGdxVqKC1MebcwMHDdDz53WvoWMkpLnsBthbGufqPJrk5J9Ck77oCeXvRnp_2dEJc6uVD9lDV3om38YktnAW_RdHOdl5Hg6cQhm1RdUf4Bg2Q6Z3dsnWphqCCzILq1vdcY91Hygfzp9i1M/s400/P1010001.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sidewalks here are much more interesting.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBF6OE_WCEZBZMNf1GeWeb8n88s_NjnSe0CJ0tdA2P5yc_HTnxzjBhOVQBhhxDnofFAlF4IdXR0XsOYHAer8Yru2x_J6hgy0YjaCmsZ24F8VtdrajID52KaLvcl0lUolEBfYXCYNS5Zqy/s1600/P1000591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPuiHLzozu_h2-5vav3k5JQ_SsZRtgVeSg33gq9kqoYv8XM6FaJqkMeLcXT4_s0WfDJN4wbSOBECACAlHlzSgTN13Sajvs7im3AV1QGMiWtg_JVey5pUinJpFbyPrKfdoEZCPmLzIs6ly/s1600/P10100333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPuiHLzozu_h2-5vav3k5JQ_SsZRtgVeSg33gq9kqoYv8XM6FaJqkMeLcXT4_s0WfDJN4wbSOBECACAlHlzSgTN13Sajvs7im3AV1QGMiWtg_JVey5pUinJpFbyPrKfdoEZCPmLzIs6ly/s400/P10100333.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yep, just a medieval stone gate there</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglWdgWZCpDFKnhVYXuTToKxGGJDLD9_nF8gJILGyb30M8BPJb4ZpBE4dllpibK_L0q8V0pHN9J6x_m9esdS6zrREFlk56NfWXlCTDBkipg69cVMnUVLn3tM8y6wOGlQ6YDzkuGKfZowliS/s1600/P1000623.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglWdgWZCpDFKnhVYXuTToKxGGJDLD9_nF8gJILGyb30M8BPJb4ZpBE4dllpibK_L0q8V0pHN9J6x_m9esdS6zrREFlk56NfWXlCTDBkipg69cVMnUVLn3tM8y6wOGlQ6YDzkuGKfZowliS/s400/P1000623.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bab Rouah and a main road leading into town</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBF6OE_WCEZBZMNf1GeWeb8n88s_NjnSe0CJ0tdA2P5yc_HTnxzjBhOVQBhhxDnofFAlF4IdXR0XsOYHAer8Yru2x_J6hgy0YjaCmsZ24F8VtdrajID52KaLvcl0lUolEBfYXCYNS5Zqy/s1600/P1000591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikK-SvaP0SbGWixF6KKKxE1yzarA_tAKLbu6ZW7k2ZpEzxso82dJp0cwQpsYUFZqBbeTeWYBz3eGB-Gn4hNOnxDaomlpPDBH5MCGRFlk7LD8iDa-_B2mzZV3mwA8j2ffvcLSHQ_3fVlPuv/s1600/P1000634.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikK-SvaP0SbGWixF6KKKxE1yzarA_tAKLbu6ZW7k2ZpEzxso82dJp0cwQpsYUFZqBbeTeWYBz3eGB-Gn4hNOnxDaomlpPDBH5MCGRFlk7LD8iDa-_B2mzZV3mwA8j2ffvcLSHQ_3fVlPuv/s400/P1000634.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading towards the center of town</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBF6OE_WCEZBZMNf1GeWeb8n88s_NjnSe0CJ0tdA2P5yc_HTnxzjBhOVQBhhxDnofFAlF4IdXR0XsOYHAer8Yru2x_J6hgy0YjaCmsZ24F8VtdrajID52KaLvcl0lUolEBfYXCYNS5Zqy/s1600/P1000591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBF6OE_WCEZBZMNf1GeWeb8n88s_NjnSe0CJ0tdA2P5yc_HTnxzjBhOVQBhhxDnofFAlF4IdXR0XsOYHAer8Yru2x_J6hgy0YjaCmsZ24F8VtdrajID52KaLvcl0lUolEBfYXCYNS5Zqy/s400/P1000591.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">high-class</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWMMvqXGAyDnl2bcHgL9SHQ8b0R-LDlKUz-8PlACnc00w_Fm2niMGHSjQbG5a9p_JfBuYQtnLRfldgwor1ZD5rWaKDreYFJ7ralLlbCAgQHzCr2QTFmW_y6VPx8bav_QSEmG8yN0jIkjGf/s1600/P1000593.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWMMvqXGAyDnl2bcHgL9SHQ8b0R-LDlKUz-8PlACnc00w_Fm2niMGHSjQbG5a9p_JfBuYQtnLRfldgwor1ZD5rWaKDreYFJ7ralLlbCAgQHzCr2QTFmW_y6VPx8bav_QSEmG8yN0jIkjGf/s400/P1000593.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arabic, French, and Tamazight</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5ZzGs2b7TVlCnAevgwDJsu1zv8EyWe92sjwiSwkzkLraKkQ4gC_Zt8HXpeHBBwzMxcVms7BEDWDWSx6ZFgZCwlwcb8xQI9c9ezNo4Vkkhy4WGVdVr2Z4Cf3OtUMmL0BvvRl-SX5mhtbO/s1600/P1000583.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5ZzGs2b7TVlCnAevgwDJsu1zv8EyWe92sjwiSwkzkLraKkQ4gC_Zt8HXpeHBBwzMxcVms7BEDWDWSx6ZFgZCwlwcb8xQI9c9ezNo4Vkkhy4WGVdVr2Z4Cf3OtUMmL0BvvRl-SX5mhtbO/s320/P1000583.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A normal street sign in Arabic and French</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUMjjYoMR5JzBw-6mgswDyCvXrKFAGJRRgrnBiSHv6txv-CaZT5Bt2pI5qaxIFKrgUxJcz5CGmD1iLD2c16pfLxEABP3sRE1GWB0I_GLPNYqVqyU6GESCiebaaJQkTDza8pyxZcc6-5Kr3/s1600/P1000601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUMjjYoMR5JzBw-6mgswDyCvXrKFAGJRRgrnBiSHv6txv-CaZT5Bt2pI5qaxIFKrgUxJcz5CGmD1iLD2c16pfLxEABP3sRE1GWB0I_GLPNYqVqyU6GESCiebaaJQkTDza8pyxZcc6-5Kr3/s320/P1000601.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another functional street sign, though not quite official. <br />
It's the Arabic in the middle (زنقة آم الربيع).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Whether or not you choose to call it graffiti, there is always something interesting written on the wall.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3TMGsEnTugwr9LUanDyUDY_xPMWcUi9N5WsXo8-2Z5DgZLZR3Hjau6YlV5HmiH4DiROK1U9JTJhtChjLmY4nUaTQVM0eBekRef-9Z3wpB-XSd0OjMEMF0FCbBtbfKMcDNjQbrBIQtpZhs/s1600/P1010002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3TMGsEnTugwr9LUanDyUDY_xPMWcUi9N5WsXo8-2Z5DgZLZR3Hjau6YlV5HmiH4DiROK1U9JTJhtChjLmY4nUaTQVM0eBekRef-9Z3wpB-XSd0OjMEMF0FCbBtbfKMcDNjQbrBIQtpZhs/s400/P1010002.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"No parking." This one is painted ominously all over, and usually disregarded.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4kGECkCMsXR2oeHcVrYeNdP8XGSZobK7-AnloCtdHOoNXBGbTlf9PVltoEh6qt4YPtq_iBAX8aaoaJKFRGF9Y5JMz4vHtaQ73doEMfuZZwL1Vy2G1vzpWz1NCYn2v71Uo3msiwyGHBaZm/s1600/P1000608.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4kGECkCMsXR2oeHcVrYeNdP8XGSZobK7-AnloCtdHOoNXBGbTlf9PVltoEh6qt4YPtq_iBAX8aaoaJKFRGF9Y5JMz4vHtaQ73doEMfuZZwL1Vy2G1vzpWz1NCYn2v71Uo3msiwyGHBaZm/s400/P1000608.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No littering. Or else...<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0xtA4fcXlkG6O6FxY0TgYFjLGezPkNTYrNSHKZq7Q2BfYYrb9wItOhDEIDi1rAYVX9WifT-NrBLgrJuSvbYlJT0QgPY4oekcpzMEHF6nF1pHI0MdFi2K5Q0TbpEcb934zVGJb1nfrymWm/s1600/P1000600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0xtA4fcXlkG6O6FxY0TgYFjLGezPkNTYrNSHKZq7Q2BfYYrb9wItOhDEIDi1rAYVX9WifT-NrBLgrJuSvbYlJT0QgPY4oekcpzMEHF6nF1pHI0MdFi2K5Q0TbpEcb934zVGJb1nfrymWm/s400/P1000600.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No urinating here. Thank you.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFeH91EOUm6vzSaWAQzSmUeRogmlDXsLKHixnzorK7bamVFJ41dqjPUVxmdo6wQ_E30dGOspzvYLn5R8S-4gd2w4a8t3ODicA-etnZ9PtcEk8PpMfkGe3VWbH7mF8mOgYaywX1gJMAX3N0/s1600/P1000605.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFeH91EOUm6vzSaWAQzSmUeRogmlDXsLKHixnzorK7bamVFJ41dqjPUVxmdo6wQ_E30dGOspzvYLn5R8S-4gd2w4a8t3ODicA-etnZ9PtcEk8PpMfkGe3VWbH7mF8mOgYaywX1gJMAX3N0/s400/P1000605.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The national motto: God, Country, King.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6xQQnWZpL5tN4NcGqb-p6iB2-GFGhs1JsxBM9bHHQI7vwiuY7Kobah2B-TCkf-66RhIdyK9bSstGZKIUi3Pp2qLTrLXWsLTf0R9LP65xNLsBKdlS8ucgeV32abXTYAO4z4TJBSuEaRzc/s1600/P1000588.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6xQQnWZpL5tN4NcGqb-p6iB2-GFGhs1JsxBM9bHHQI7vwiuY7Kobah2B-TCkf-66RhIdyK9bSstGZKIUi3Pp2qLTrLXWsLTf0R9LP65xNLsBKdlS8ucgeV32abXTYAO4z4TJBSuEaRzc/s400/P1000588.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yup</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZWafTjJtKyjuHiWq8CkgpIMlzRoeXw6L57rc2uEV0s_4HLqfx1o5cSCII0vImk5_DYbHU2nd6J-9QM-7wXRxQqKIXRLjR-ErI-QCxTnXuuIIpUf2OINX73XFmDtocvZamK9QtOqP9SClt/s1600/P1000689.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZWafTjJtKyjuHiWq8CkgpIMlzRoeXw6L57rc2uEV0s_4HLqfx1o5cSCII0vImk5_DYbHU2nd6J-9QM-7wXRxQqKIXRLjR-ErI-QCxTnXuuIIpUf2OINX73XFmDtocvZamK9QtOqP9SClt/s400/P1000689.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Things look different in Salé. This is what much of the countryside is like as well.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBo61KFkH8fMGhXtTL-lW8HEQOZHmZgod8wR3Q-gfUctpGaGzdM8Og4F5Okl6aI1dj71DJCpLaYcsb3xrovm7JslWdvfdsTgPXp6oh2Tz2IZwMCcp-7I1oCxfqFVjUJ33OizLrUgOt7M_g/s1600/P1000922.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBo61KFkH8fMGhXtTL-lW8HEQOZHmZgod8wR3Q-gfUctpGaGzdM8Og4F5Okl6aI1dj71DJCpLaYcsb3xrovm7JslWdvfdsTgPXp6oh2Tz2IZwMCcp-7I1oCxfqFVjUJ33OizLrUgOt7M_g/s400/P1000922.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">The new tram system is very useful for getting from Agdal to <br />the Centre-Ville, the medina, and Salé. </span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9-zy4V-r-20uh3xidjAVYND5OJL_1HU72mFSRbYL2lwxbSwauzQsUP0WplcS-L4enejxUjgdZ_Ap_KFdylqogVt8W3ELsy5VB_iT7HngzuqXBBQuDq-FZA8BWfgZLZLbIrJZ87P3pJrt/s1600/P1000732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9-zy4V-r-20uh3xidjAVYND5OJL_1HU72mFSRbYL2lwxbSwauzQsUP0WplcS-L4enejxUjgdZ_Ap_KFdylqogVt8W3ELsy5VB_iT7HngzuqXBBQuDq-FZA8BWfgZLZLbIrJZ87P3pJrt/s400/P1000732.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-45863637377713756292013-01-07T12:46:00.000-08:002013-01-17T12:05:36.662-08:00Christmas Break<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
For Christmas break our school got two full weeks off (<i>much </i>more than the local school system) and AMIDEAST did indeed have all sorts of fun activities for us.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFt0-wnqr2lc0BE_dS11v-rrGCOXT0xKFaWKZ1AeRajcUtnyl9cMwpe_Rd51fOO1xqXsYEgJJxUQXrgBMFBap7R-kxvjrWR0dLZNz92me2RQrP60e_pQ6WcaaCri5IYhpWC2be9PsN3JBP/s1600/P1000625.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFt0-wnqr2lc0BE_dS11v-rrGCOXT0xKFaWKZ1AeRajcUtnyl9cMwpe_Rd51fOO1xqXsYEgJJxUQXrgBMFBap7R-kxvjrWR0dLZNz92me2RQrP60e_pQ6WcaaCri5IYhpWC2be9PsN3JBP/s320/P1000625.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas Eve in Morocco.</td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZVP4Z4XpSPlpNBx8bzp9kD1kSF7a1Le9K1Po74C6rHRsVi1DodV2z5MpAq0zQny7iVf-NlG_v5HBjQBIPFXxGJx-LQ5CBaFsJy0gpWkrzJrqJ-SKJ5nVatGTuglkhDPrAl-NuJhaW1tm/s1600/P1000595.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZVP4Z4XpSPlpNBx8bzp9kD1kSF7a1Le9K1Po74C6rHRsVi1DodV2z5MpAq0zQny7iVf-NlG_v5HBjQBIPFXxGJx-LQ5CBaFsJy0gpWkrzJrqJ-SKJ5nVatGTuglkhDPrAl-NuJhaW1tm/s320/P1000595.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not exactly a "White Christmas," but I won't complain.<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAeKQQH8MhvEI9e8QYRSpbtIEIBfQ4IkEWB83jU1tvRJE36nBVJdSFleoplD0dzzcxLKa_CdmBx9RK25f99-dle6RSkO3m4GA7UdALUxRrlp_Y56bZzCyvZBstuFfPtdwSXnroqOxprr8/s1600/P1000636.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAeKQQH8MhvEI9e8QYRSpbtIEIBfQ4IkEWB83jU1tvRJE36nBVJdSFleoplD0dzzcxLKa_CdmBx9RK25f99-dle6RSkO3m4GA7UdALUxRrlp_Y56bZzCyvZBstuFfPtdwSXnroqOxprr8/s400/P1000636.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank goodness for air mail!</td></tr>
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On Wednesday, the day after Christmas, we had a cooking class taught by an AMIDEAST host mother. We learned how to make a traditional tajine and, of course, mint tea.<br />
That evening we met several Moroccan students who studied in the U.S. last year with the YES inbound program. We will be starting a photography project with them, and we had a professional photographer come to talk to us about what he does.<br />
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On Thursday we went to Souk al-Khamiss, a huge weekly market in Salé. All sorts of things were for sale, even more than the everything available in the Rabat medina. There was an entire field devoted to animals; hundreds of people were buying and selling sheep, goats, cows, chickens, and horses. Entire tents were devoted to clothing, secondhand books, shoes, and power tools in addition to the traditional spice and cookie vendors. The butchery was also quite impressive.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3k6mGDxA3UXcJt_0W05kJU_gIXHKdeAQL6OgNM_2Tjj-_T71159KceRxXJsXW8bHy2JlkexfnH1vsxAuY2g4dvs2-VqxtAgiMRISJIEL43JbA6Nhwed-bOJz8BbQV9rtlmyeMb1j7Tmq/s1600/P1000693.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3k6mGDxA3UXcJt_0W05kJU_gIXHKdeAQL6OgNM_2Tjj-_T71159KceRxXJsXW8bHy2JlkexfnH1vsxAuY2g4dvs2-VqxtAgiMRISJIEL43JbA6Nhwed-bOJz8BbQV9rtlmyeMb1j7Tmq/s400/P1000693.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The situation wasn't conducive to a lot of conspicuous picture-taking, <br />
but here's a view from the outside. It was amazing.</td></tr>
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On Friday we had a calligraphy lesson from master calligrapher Mohammed Qarmad. His work actually appears on the Moroccan currency as well as the mausoleum of King Mohammed V. He taught us about the art form in general as well as specific instructions on forming the Arabic letters.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaMeD-V3pkpU2gHBhhO-pKPoBD3EjNsUM0CsKbyqxmQXFzFvEIk9AXe0PKGvdcm4o2ciAYJ8LNiU3JmWX8_uhkJiods2I4Lcrf1mJd47ZIkNHrRwDJk1qzQA6A66oDqPvIXNm6cVEjyE7L/s1600/P1000737.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaMeD-V3pkpU2gHBhhO-pKPoBD3EjNsUM0CsKbyqxmQXFzFvEIk9AXe0PKGvdcm4o2ciAYJ8LNiU3JmWX8_uhkJiods2I4Lcrf1mJd47ZIkNHrRwDJk1qzQA6A66oDqPvIXNm6cVEjyE7L/s400/P1000737.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He wrote my name in several different styles</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiRRW6jlRCcztPUhBlbJWaPFk22kiGPPagwbI5w2K3ThVoRzIQj5hGpVRVG_73Y-pG4TmtVF5b7QJx32cnzasfdcW1bkfMJ8qz2GZQnVHjAECgltwmAs-EioLD_ggiX25AX-DOxIwxr1cu/s1600/P1000733.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiRRW6jlRCcztPUhBlbJWaPFk22kiGPPagwbI5w2K3ThVoRzIQj5hGpVRVG_73Y-pG4TmtVF5b7QJx32cnzasfdcW1bkfMJ8qz2GZQnVHjAECgltwmAs-EioLD_ggiX25AX-DOxIwxr1cu/s320/P1000733.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpD-46Mxa6BCSDzWFoihe-PYWO6txeLYTmlYLGi0Sd8SVNxjqDRbQW-LHQHBhRERa6bzmVs7alwxPFmu0qV16jh9ZETRD_lU3BLWGKGOSvKhqh9NbyVo14vE3cyGxDPtQMcr4RodV6v6T/s1600/P1000738.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpD-46Mxa6BCSDzWFoihe-PYWO6txeLYTmlYLGi0Sd8SVNxjqDRbQW-LHQHBhRERa6bzmVs7alwxPFmu0qV16jh9ZETRD_lU3BLWGKGOSvKhqh9NbyVo14vE3cyGxDPtQMcr4RodV6v6T/s320/P1000738.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My own beginning attempts.</td></tr>
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That weekend we took a trip to the Middle Atlas mountains and the quasi-Alpine village of Ifrane. The mountains are beautiful, with great cedar forests and valleys that are really reminiscent of Europe. We had a fantastic guide who has been hiking these mountains for fifty years and has even learned the local Tamazight (Berber) dialect. Most of this land is Berber-owned and agricultural, with the exception of a growing tourist industry (there is even a ski resort, apparently.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSvTTWUO2XTm9ES9zC7TIKLali5Q5t7ZEFmne-a8ON6vlVwU66Gc3Slpu4NXBZHUkwyf1D-cCYuzeHCNFPfBhDv_2EcDyYrT9vhnvB1UDo261DG1oi_1thFiNaW6l5wyxLXr29MsZG3Now/s1600/P1000781.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSvTTWUO2XTm9ES9zC7TIKLali5Q5t7ZEFmne-a8ON6vlVwU66Gc3Slpu4NXBZHUkwyf1D-cCYuzeHCNFPfBhDv_2EcDyYrT9vhnvB1UDo261DG1oi_1thFiNaW6l5wyxLXr29MsZG3Now/s320/P1000781.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM7tyCkCHIHEf52jx_WHdHaRXmq1fpJhil9fl_S44B6GKJpJArs6gmfP14mG_5BKTwtReu-bpfjKjoJsJbq2AzzYDKzBCwVo8wZAAJHRUdlClLrudr7O97ehbhWU0Jf45rQmQ_GSEcNNiD/s1600/P1000836.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM7tyCkCHIHEf52jx_WHdHaRXmq1fpJhil9fl_S44B6GKJpJArs6gmfP14mG_5BKTwtReu-bpfjKjoJsJbq2AzzYDKzBCwVo8wZAAJHRUdlClLrudr7O97ehbhWU0Jf45rQmQ_GSEcNNiD/s320/P1000836.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgdvxt0MevHhceSM5GN6lm6w9MZfI_eFzNbAX30PNwRNRwyJoBL7nK0WvpIOlJ_I-nEN5IxdfYWBiQD15l_fRqvwmSeR51GPO_vWciD4xU5YVXKoWbIh5kDQLE5yBvO-rz55ceZjHAKcW/s1600/P1000884.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgdvxt0MevHhceSM5GN6lm6w9MZfI_eFzNbAX30PNwRNRwyJoBL7nK0WvpIOlJ_I-nEN5IxdfYWBiQD15l_fRqvwmSeR51GPO_vWciD4xU5YVXKoWbIh5kDQLE5yBvO-rz55ceZjHAKcW/s400/P1000884.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parts of it are remarkably similar to my own vision of the Scottish Highlands.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrlY0jzoKdA7aqB5-vj088dka1oZ-K6qS-f6kubz80b2v8dYuSyrq5qZl4EWbRSOi2m6n6pTul2BsL5bnN5KIFl3jWimhDXLKDev0vC2DqyN1BqgbYRRX3NEXIYSmwCQK8_wkEkpmWZ0HB/s1600/P1000875.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrlY0jzoKdA7aqB5-vj088dka1oZ-K6qS-f6kubz80b2v8dYuSyrq5qZl4EWbRSOi2m6n6pTul2BsL5bnN5KIFl3jWimhDXLKDev0vC2DqyN1BqgbYRRX3NEXIYSmwCQK8_wkEkpmWZ0HB/s320/P1000875.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj64l21eTse4ny2O1aWzkb4_mSrTHtRVY-OdZWLeIV9lDmDX8AC3XloQR3M-2UKlt5FgAlumupiOlzOkvtopW40ykPubJ6M680ZQCosD5kKBgBpbfKJFgyMRKqNaXi_ZhnR_-M-O86Gm6Eg/s1600/P1000907.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj64l21eTse4ny2O1aWzkb4_mSrTHtRVY-OdZWLeIV9lDmDX8AC3XloQR3M-2UKlt5FgAlumupiOlzOkvtopW40ykPubJ6M680ZQCosD5kKBgBpbfKJFgyMRKqNaXi_ZhnR_-M-O86Gm6Eg/s320/P1000907.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl94Yg9PdGHB1BOVy_5Zh7obOVolmYWJtDC_iyLb7Mep3KOtMk-VfsYBW5mbOE7A7BOxOw9TuG-GkZ_IX866etA56U-Bq1Vds-SDrCs7LsXiDYu7yR-4kN9Pmea_K7dAOH1wO0goPzePPo/s1600/P1000876.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl94Yg9PdGHB1BOVy_5Zh7obOVolmYWJtDC_iyLb7Mep3KOtMk-VfsYBW5mbOE7A7BOxOw9TuG-GkZ_IX866etA56U-Bq1Vds-SDrCs7LsXiDYu7yR-4kN9Pmea_K7dAOH1wO0goPzePPo/s400/P1000876.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our guide and some of our group</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOIKmWd9STPv42QsRXBosXiBiG-hgn-xuzNbWLD589AZqFAhIvFWRdNfFGWhuZk59uDC17t0-xuQu-y5m6h5DNXXSQNAvoE1AuLD0xVOF3oHLd-kbPzFVXDmD7A_316fxeuMixWo9mY6yE/s1600/P1000917.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOIKmWd9STPv42QsRXBosXiBiG-hgn-xuzNbWLD589AZqFAhIvFWRdNfFGWhuZk59uDC17t0-xuQu-y5m6h5DNXXSQNAvoE1AuLD0xVOF3oHLd-kbPzFVXDmD7A_316fxeuMixWo9mY6yE/s400/P1000917.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A remote Berber village we visited</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSxyGodBp-Wvt4e0sJv0O9DGgK-NiugbdD4_cO1ecABQLSXDUo342hIR1fNep0LpLfFfvPDM6PFzJiEdmubXOuaBaBZ0aFMetOh2CV5HcYT55nxoo9jL-pp9t42Xe6v9JpO2panae4QH0S/s1600/P1000870.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSxyGodBp-Wvt4e0sJv0O9DGgK-NiugbdD4_cO1ecABQLSXDUo342hIR1fNep0LpLfFfvPDM6PFzJiEdmubXOuaBaBZ0aFMetOh2CV5HcYT55nxoo9jL-pp9t42Xe6v9JpO2panae4QH0S/s400/P1000870.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow!<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
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Wednesday and Thursday of the next week we went to Salé for some traditional pottery classes. We also got to see tajines being made, on human-powered wheels and dried out in the sun.<br />
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Our last trip of the break was to the largest city in Morocco, and probably the most famous; in Arabic it's الدار البيضاء or literally "the White House" — Casablanca.<br />
It's famous, of course, for the movie; this was filmed entirely in Hollywood but there is (now) an American-owned Rick's Café. In any case, it was great publicity for the city and the country.<br />
Despite the famous name and status as the economic capital of the country, Casablanca in fact has very little to see. It is known as Rabat's dirty big brother; there is much more wealth disparity and crime.<br />
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It does, however, contain the largest mosque west of Saudi Arabia: the Hassan II Mosque. It's the seventh largest in the world, and it's only a few decades old so it has cool features like a retractable roof and a giant laser pointing towards Mecca. It's one of only two in the country that are open to non-Muslims. We didn't actually get to go inside, as it was closed, but the exterior was quite impressive.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFuIta3NkAZf0pqjSZjmur8DKBHPeUQXpU4-lVDAP42L4p-X3uwg3ca4ysl1eSyc0SYRTzmrsEos9QCnj6N0MbSYgyokEY_FPv0zKB-68kt9-35FUL6Nb5yZLt-vsEIwT137HCADUt_YX/s1600/P1000976e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIFuIta3NkAZf0pqjSZjmur8DKBHPeUQXpU4-lVDAP42L4p-X3uwg3ca4ysl1eSyc0SYRTzmrsEos9QCnj6N0MbSYgyokEY_FPv0zKB-68kt9-35FUL6Nb5yZLt-vsEIwT137HCADUt_YX/s400/P1000976e.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There were a lot of tourists. I'm just glad we weren't as obvious as these ones.</td></tr>
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We then walked down along the ocean to get lunch, and then we went to Morocco Mall, the other main attraction in Casablanca and the largest mall in Africa. I think it's good to consider how we Americans can be so utterly unimpressed by a giant mall when Moroccans are so thrilled to see so many American stores in one place. Among other outlets, this mall has two Starbucks, McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Domino's, American Eagle, Gucci, and Rolex. That's some serious wealth.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In some ways, this city could almost be Hawaii.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF75Vxj8qtEwuIhB26WrWY13lj__9AzHImM90Bm_zvEZJHX-CVAbQZiRvh8Q3JUOl5tAenNiP0vURuTJLDuywsbW-FaXt52sQEBGbx7taSvYxH6z6WLrP0Bgy8hxrUbjPrKG1kLMmgZiFd/s1600/P1000995e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF75Vxj8qtEwuIhB26WrWY13lj__9AzHImM90Bm_zvEZJHX-CVAbQZiRvh8Q3JUOl5tAenNiP0vURuTJLDuywsbW-FaXt52sQEBGbx7taSvYxH6z6WLrP0Bgy8hxrUbjPrKG1kLMmgZiFd/s320/P1000995e.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now we're back in Rabat and we've started school again, which always imposes that ambivalent mixture of normalcy and math homework. Sometime soon (إن شاء الله) I'll put up pictures of what I see everyday, so you can get a glimpse of my regular world. </div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-86120491830398423782012-12-19T14:16:00.000-08:002012-12-19T14:16:07.595-08:00The Archeological Museum<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Sometime in November <a href="http://lesoukimaginaire.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Noa</a> and I went and found the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabat_Archaeological_Museum" target="_blank">Rabat Archaeological Museum</a>. It's a small place, but it houses Morocco's largest collection of historical artifacts. Morocco is actually pretty interesting archaeologically; the museum features objects from Neanderthal, Phoenician/Carthaginian, Roman, and Islamic civilisations.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The main hall of the museum. Entry costs 10Dh, or about $1.15.</td></tr>
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Some of the earliest evidence of humanity comes from this region, and there were a few prehistoric displays. There were a few objects from Phoenician traders, but the vast majority of the museum was dedicated to Roman objects.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpM2pto6L8Qj3LU5EjTZJKQ7SuSON_dkCDkGn5b5KPBCqc53vN2E8wQ74id5q1j51yepqdLN40va6v2kee-nQ5DnnIQiTSmcL5jZb8iS3cyDkAdw4ALFrOkJAuK5m1f7bCApnVZ4FrTPw/s1600/P1000524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpM2pto6L8Qj3LU5EjTZJKQ7SuSON_dkCDkGn5b5KPBCqc53vN2E8wQ74id5q1j51yepqdLN40va6v2kee-nQ5DnnIQiTSmcL5jZb8iS3cyDkAdw4ALFrOkJAuK5m1f7bCApnVZ4FrTPw/s400/P1000524.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">old stuff</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs7aVadkBVSZ7QY0orYi1HUIrfcaMgENacwhKyc_IVWEF2psi2Ud7LXM0-AnNRKHHeJEoOKnHrrH-new1ShytfpNNFSw4ACsMo4S7xHlziqSjxET4mi7MIcq9zhi-LZNnsxvE5AArLvchA/s1600/P1000529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs7aVadkBVSZ7QY0orYi1HUIrfcaMgENacwhKyc_IVWEF2psi2Ud7LXM0-AnNRKHHeJEoOKnHrrH-new1ShytfpNNFSw4ACsMo4S7xHlziqSjxET4mi7MIcq9zhi-LZNnsxvE5AArLvchA/s320/P1000529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Roman mosaic</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpe7GFZUm3s5s1KqKxfN5L40DkQZx2xMPiGbRZgikD2PkfTfrHDgDG0GxlAaWRnesic6PuDilhwSzUc3i4Xnkt2QCEfjn2mi12EI0kzICQN_Qb9c0OyBbKc4MGovO0pBWH0H94OmRpnW6v/s1600/P1000527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpe7GFZUm3s5s1KqKxfN5L40DkQZx2xMPiGbRZgikD2PkfTfrHDgDG0GxlAaWRnesic6PuDilhwSzUc3i4Xnkt2QCEfjn2mi12EI0kzICQN_Qb9c0OyBbKc4MGovO0pBWH0H94OmRpnW6v/s320/P1000527.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ancient Roman columns, out in the rain.</td></tr>
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The largest Roman settlement here was Volubilis, which we visited at the beginning of November. The museum had a lot of marble busts and statues as well as a whole room full of Roman bronzes. Upstairs was an Islamic-era collection; there were some early Christian artifacts as well as gold coins, astronomical instruments, and other Islamic objects.</div>
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One overwhelming feeling was how small and open the place was; we were the only ones there besides the guard outside, a guide who showed us around for a while then left us, and a cat who walked freely inside and out and could have slept in the ancient brazier if it had chosen to. Ancient stone tablets and mosaics were outside in the rain and wind. </div>
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Afterwards we found a real French restaurant nearby. The food was actually French--they served wine and bacon--and <i>all</i> of the diners were French expatriates. We had lunch and crêpes for dessert.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieY2SBC4S1h9gSjNVAh1V3S1jg-XXMQv6KREhptCMgqzASMpSPl5NR3-dVvNuCdHzoSnKMzvXAb55nwQrtGTH254t__rzjHXNW-e7E0q4vptVq_GZrqG9T9iyVOxnVZWQW6B6WAX_V0CdN/s1600/P1000543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieY2SBC4S1h9gSjNVAh1V3S1jg-XXMQv6KREhptCMgqzASMpSPl5NR3-dVvNuCdHzoSnKMzvXAb55nwQrtGTH254t__rzjHXNW-e7E0q4vptVq_GZrqG9T9iyVOxnVZWQW6B6WAX_V0CdN/s400/P1000543.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj86WlMIv8euy7fxbXjCCzSAypPNrpWYe39qCkNznJMM3ZZjt4kzFFvXtrHAhPDj_OdY0iyIrFhxd0LtTGou4ZxqG4ohy6lQf3S_zyXLQ-b8JM3QOxB3Hucig5M9WukTzYttBRWGDzj3Al-/s1600/P1000541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj86WlMIv8euy7fxbXjCCzSAypPNrpWYe39qCkNznJMM3ZZjt4kzFFvXtrHAhPDj_OdY0iyIrFhxd0LtTGou4ZxqG4ohy6lQf3S_zyXLQ-b8JM3QOxB3Hucig5M9WukTzYttBRWGDzj3Al-/s320/P1000541.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And something completely random I saw in the Medina that day.</td></tr>
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For Christmas break we get two full weeks off, and it sounds like AMIDEAST has some fun stuff planned for us. I don't have the itinerary quite yet, but I'm sure there will be all sorts of adventures to write about. Or something like that.<div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip_IfwGATmb2gAaqSMlgrrSRY_FnT4kA1gzZqtnsLaHgOipIDzbQWqSiutziYfV0ZAza8uW4KCPkNj0yZ0HR4Wb3tz7Abftr7QmL1A2tPZHMOqwNmP5CC-u4eZybmE-ob55N4CWGukrwZ9/s1600/P1000550+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip_IfwGATmb2gAaqSMlgrrSRY_FnT4kA1gzZqtnsLaHgOipIDzbQWqSiutziYfV0ZAza8uW4KCPkNj0yZ0HR4Wb3tz7Abftr7QmL1A2tPZHMOqwNmP5CC-u4eZybmE-ob55N4CWGukrwZ9/s400/P1000550+b.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Friday couscous from a few weeks ago. The white drink is <i>leben</i>, a<br />fermented yogurt milk sort of thing. It's pretty good.</td></tr>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-40266587330419286942012-11-06T08:51:00.001-08:002012-12-19T14:34:56.283-08:00Fall Break part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We just finished our fall break, a two-week vacation including the holidays of Eid al-Adha and the Green March.<br />
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Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, starts on the tenth day of the last month of the Islamic lunar calendar, exactly seventy days after Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan. Eid al-Adha is also known as <i>Eid Kbiir</i>, the "big feast," as opposed to Eid al-Fitr, which is <i>Eid Saghiir ("</i>little feast."). It celebrates Abraham's willingness to follow God's commandment to sacrifice his son Ishmael. (This was a test of obedience. At the last minute Abraham was told not to kill his son and was rewarded for his faith. See Q. 37 and Genesis 22.) In remembrance of this every family sacrifices a sheep, of which one-third of the meat is given to the poor, one-third is shared with friends and neighbors, and one-third is kept and eaten with family. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quite literally, as a sheep to the slaughter.</td></tr>
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On the terrace outside our apartment there were in fact three sheep slaughtered in a row: one for our host family, one for relatives who came for the holidays, and one for the family next door. After this (I won't include pictures) the sheep were skinned and began to be cut up. That day and the next we ate all the best parts: heart, liver, stomach, and intestines on Friday, then kidneys, lungs, and brain on Saturday. The next few days we ate a <i>lot</i> of mutton.<br />
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The following week we took our first group trip outside of Rabat. We went to Fès and nearby Meknès, a few hours to the east.<br />
Meknès was the capital of Morocco during the reign of Moulay Ismail in the 17th century. We visited the old stone fortress as well as a large underground prison.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4iIPkHE7mX2XZ2RZAfFDTAa8v-EMfIQ8UWSDE_qtwyDz78wUGEjOtqcvUAGVz8eht5RfMI915_l5H5-CFsJ49WBzG1Z3P0D9t6V88avJ0GIm292fKjK3U5zaZyQx28znln5spPR8JoD4/s1600/P1000244.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4iIPkHE7mX2XZ2RZAfFDTAa8v-EMfIQ8UWSDE_qtwyDz78wUGEjOtqcvUAGVz8eht5RfMI915_l5H5-CFsJ49WBzG1Z3P0D9t6V88avJ0GIm292fKjK3U5zaZyQx28znln5spPR8JoD4/s400/P1000244.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An impressive <i>bab </i>(gate) leading into the Meknès medina. The <i>petits taxis</i><br />
are light blue here, and red in Fès.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The compound seen from the outside</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU80fxioFLClz0t87key54XaeuDz-UuoKIt3VMraGvJiLuwdOLlZ4WLrXcF9ADh_J80Xox2NJoNm5zxOxMDRUpokxqahKaW8Q-XRdV4NZNHwxurV2JeXaFzcprU2j8alvq7iGooaYw4-Cl/s1600/P1000260.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU80fxioFLClz0t87key54XaeuDz-UuoKIt3VMraGvJiLuwdOLlZ4WLrXcF9ADh_J80Xox2NJoNm5zxOxMDRUpokxqahKaW8Q-XRdV4NZNHwxurV2JeXaFzcprU2j8alvq7iGooaYw4-Cl/s320/P1000260.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The granary, with very thick walls</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSouuXyHXN_FjcOI2U8jSr3LNlanAoch1xbzuhkq34zyHvlxbBWO9PBxgg9_7WCCUbh1cjJEg-aeyIYUmK32hn6u03sY8UfbtkGU_Yzkfy4XeHjnhUAsmK_igWltOci25ASkD6hQ_MwPDE/s1600/P1000315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSouuXyHXN_FjcOI2U8jSr3LNlanAoch1xbzuhkq34zyHvlxbBWO9PBxgg9_7WCCUbh1cjJEg-aeyIYUmK32hn6u03sY8UfbtkGU_Yzkfy4XeHjnhUAsmK_igWltOci25ASkD6hQ_MwPDE/s320/P1000315.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moulay Ismail is known for being a cruel ruler. This complex<br />
held thousands of prisoners in dark, crowded conditions.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBPlzthBNFIlnRtZllA-MQqF14NbWAv3vuBPF_wPUsHK5eqRWGCSL-KVz15a2lU2GGlzW5HJ_YX4DtXC9Xo3i-T83i8JFaauWbH2s2xNTbLirjsW_kMuYf5Cs-VkNh9LCAMwr0iFhaZJ_-/s1600/P1000276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBPlzthBNFIlnRtZllA-MQqF14NbWAv3vuBPF_wPUsHK5eqRWGCSL-KVz15a2lU2GGlzW5HJ_YX4DtXC9Xo3i-T83i8JFaauWbH2s2xNTbLirjsW_kMuYf5Cs-VkNh9LCAMwr0iFhaZJ_-/s320/P1000276.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruins of the extensive stables</td></tr>
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Next we went to Volubilis, the ruins of a Roman town. The Romans abandoned it in the third century but until then it marked the southwestern boundary of the Empire. The settlement became wealthy through growing olives, and there are many upper-class houses. The site, like most of the ruins in Morocco, was largely destroyed by the great Lisbon earthquake of 1755.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The temple of Jupiter</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI4F395jzRELQNLxQKAa3T5UT_17BuUlMAx2ZLi6kFErXhn4__PLnzJYf4xQBK3xH5dtnAieYfWwe4V2YdHMfScGSvlPOA2s5ifFbwM0ffj83QNlSh5L92lPl8g95Q2tfBD-ILXTO6624M/s1600/P1000368.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI4F395jzRELQNLxQKAa3T5UT_17BuUlMAx2ZLi6kFErXhn4__PLnzJYf4xQBK3xH5dtnAieYfWwe4V2YdHMfScGSvlPOA2s5ifFbwM0ffj83QNlSh5L92lPl8g95Q2tfBD-ILXTO6624M/s320/P1000368.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overlooking the surrounding countryside</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A mosaic in one of the houses</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8xAwsGSMIr2AoqJvuOfEimXXI3Fcdb1UtbOBCmKvxqiLcaAcBEkVFNhdqghcusHA8hR6t47DJ5V85VUsq5OQO5lXvt6oR9Bb15SdGEOr2hTj8WbObhn9i5CptVzA4dSPWGCvzgEKCxJM/s1600/P1000399.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8xAwsGSMIr2AoqJvuOfEimXXI3Fcdb1UtbOBCmKvxqiLcaAcBEkVFNhdqghcusHA8hR6t47DJ5V85VUsq5OQO5lXvt6oR9Bb15SdGEOr2hTj8WbObhn9i5CptVzA4dSPWGCvzgEKCxJM/s400/P1000399.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The triumphal arch.</td><td style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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From Volubilis we set off to Fès. When we arrived it was already fairly late so we didn't see anything that night but checked into our hotel and went for dinner. The next morning we got into our tour bus--clearly emblazoned with the word TOURISME--and headed into town.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7inn9d5o1gyP8BiJKKXDGcZleiZJCF_NlFS8df5B8wyrV4xrqRhNUviEC2aVbdR2di5ZPc2r5VM9p9Lc-cQSmeErZS4feUbqtk5vdwSr8I1blka9NqCsAS1IsmTq-QN3Y7weZYkHYsJR/s1600/P1000413.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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(The rest of this post is continued below. Technical difficulties.)</div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-11238050925620984922012-11-06T08:47:00.003-08:002012-11-08T06:36:09.896-08:00Fall Break part 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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(continued from above.)</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7inn9d5o1gyP8BiJKKXDGcZleiZJCF_NlFS8df5B8wyrV4xrqRhNUviEC2aVbdR2di5ZPc2r5VM9p9Lc-cQSmeErZS4feUbqtk5vdwSr8I1blka9NqCsAS1IsmTq-QN3Y7weZYkHYsJR/s1600/P1000413.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7inn9d5o1gyP8BiJKKXDGcZleiZJCF_NlFS8df5B8wyrV4xrqRhNUviEC2aVbdR2di5ZPc2r5VM9p9Lc-cQSmeErZS4feUbqtk5vdwSr8I1blka9NqCsAS1IsmTq-QN3Y7weZYkHYsJR/s400/P1000413.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bab of the royal palace. Note the ridiculously conspicuous tourists to the left.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn9XkSbkoEbudFd-5WG76KclINN4b2q15LVwi2Vw-Vn0gpxP33j5Xb_1EgQl7-39BP954cK0zVHDX2Ya7jasWN06lJdn8MsGSIJXLS4UcKVq8GcNdidLORKKnVZVW-pVdrOTLptSA_8OkI/s1600/P1000425.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn9XkSbkoEbudFd-5WG76KclINN4b2q15LVwi2Vw-Vn0gpxP33j5Xb_1EgQl7-39BP954cK0zVHDX2Ya7jasWN06lJdn8MsGSIJXLS4UcKVq8GcNdidLORKKnVZVW-pVdrOTLptSA_8OkI/s400/P1000425.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The medina, seen from above. This medina is the largest in the world, and <br />
probably the most extensive car-free urban area anywhere.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM5LmZEjL8HwI3eMacccfxbLDJC02BlvjYUnVEicJM1ge-cLL8OcfV9Q8kZGm6gtRLWEWPAh9xmW69SS4dwTQuN56oLavNgioaxzsC_pbRcUHsch3oeBTjrkvbY4yS4CTMeZoMF-BZc7r/s1600/P1000437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM5LmZEjL8HwI3eMacccfxbLDJC02BlvjYUnVEicJM1ge-cLL8OcfV9Q8kZGm6gtRLWEWPAh9xmW69SS4dwTQuN56oLavNgioaxzsC_pbRcUHsch3oeBTjrkvbY4yS4CTMeZoMF-BZc7r/s400/P1000437.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The main entrance into the medina.<br />
All your bab are belong to us.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGPa4S0L66agoV52fE73pHd25zGKCj_60fzzrtNpWGenATTs1sWuaOKot8K8CXbw3TNGCxUxrNl5IhXmhFUjr1m_wjy720ZFl_ysSTJjw81YGDSaAQ-fxjHYb6V54VR3KqAAGzvnkA78Fw/s1600/P1000465.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGPa4S0L66agoV52fE73pHd25zGKCj_60fzzrtNpWGenATTs1sWuaOKot8K8CXbw3TNGCxUxrNl5IhXmhFUjr1m_wjy720ZFl_ysSTJjw81YGDSaAQ-fxjHYb6V54VR3KqAAGzvnkA78Fw/s320/P1000465.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just as in the Rabat medina, you can buy pretty much anything here. The Fès medina, however, is much more crowded and there are throngs and throngs of tourists.</div>
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One place we visited in the medina was the Medersa Bou Inania, an old Islamic school with a mosque inside. This is the only madrasa in Fès that has a minaret tower.</div>
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The Fès medina is <i>huge</i>. We went through a residential quarter--there are 100,000 people living in the medina--as well as centers for handicrafts and metalwork. We visited a traditional Berber carpet shop:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKbEz_iRK03H4RqUKC0YWh6cqZj5C0I87pzH7iPvlc2IoBtCEPVjIjf5UPFqip3ez2jtLp-NCB8buV21smkNOfczLi-1iHYNDMXc25tj6rIWwuAVmlJ8R_uHGH3_eh3f5mW4jSu2LqWV_X/s1600/P1000487.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKbEz_iRK03H4RqUKC0YWh6cqZj5C0I87pzH7iPvlc2IoBtCEPVjIjf5UPFqip3ez2jtLp-NCB8buV21smkNOfczLi-1iHYNDMXc25tj6rIWwuAVmlJ8R_uHGH3_eh3f5mW4jSu2LqWV_X/s400/P1000487.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45ipjvFKty4QKuLModZ5dZKpvimXCM1FWxmaPmVslXBfm4q6oCeaG_gUwxIN2sE672h7ugg_1N3XOdGDnQLHnkinFqfhfSBgJha3c8sdcsY5SqU1iE3d79DGfvfTJCX_UUbVuHQi_pIKz/s1600/P1000495.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45ipjvFKty4QKuLModZ5dZKpvimXCM1FWxmaPmVslXBfm4q6oCeaG_gUwxIN2sE672h7ugg_1N3XOdGDnQLHnkinFqfhfSBgJha3c8sdcsY5SqU1iE3d79DGfvfTJCX_UUbVuHQi_pIKz/s320/P1000495.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Traditional dyes include blue indigo, green mint, and<br />
yellow saffron.</td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUV26UT1QlFQpdXFBeptZXMClb3iCMNlw1wW0fHt1rRpNQB66Z5BtLqv64sCk4iiefKhZlYrHgSuI3G1lqKjsQSG3kYnqGCcxYP0DI6gJwonLURCyvEmih8MTo3aZyT6B33gTAOadhJe__/s1600/P1000490.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUV26UT1QlFQpdXFBeptZXMClb3iCMNlw1wW0fHt1rRpNQB66Z5BtLqv64sCk4iiefKhZlYrHgSuI3G1lqKjsQSG3kYnqGCcxYP0DI6gJwonLURCyvEmih8MTo3aZyT6B33gTAOadhJe__/s320/P1000490.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This blanket is made with white sheep, black sheep, and<br />
camel wool.</td></tr>
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We also visited a shop that sold fabric made from cactus fiber. Other destinations we visited are the shrine of Moulay Idriss and the al-Quaraouiyine mosque school, (debatably) the oldest university in the world.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HtLsd5E1KN5IDRpvwcrwjtXhy-k5ha0bR7SbYjq0SJHoue6qLlAoBKmwz0-6Ba0J_uC89qjqCdpoCuWeVJjpRGa-U-tPlN81lB7Jf_pPwgH6wK03Z7CX_LwB7dmhvYXsOY7lc9iNQPHw/s1600/P1000496.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HtLsd5E1KN5IDRpvwcrwjtXhy-k5ha0bR7SbYjq0SJHoue6qLlAoBKmwz0-6Ba0J_uC89qjqCdpoCuWeVJjpRGa-U-tPlN81lB7Jf_pPwgH6wK03Z7CX_LwB7dmhvYXsOY7lc9iNQPHw/s400/P1000496.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The couscous I had for lunch was particularly good.</td></tr>
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Our last stop was the famous tannery quarter. Here animal hides are turned into all sorts of leather goods, but especially <i>baboush</i>, the traditional Moroccan slippers.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5GlSGBG0l5dCi_tmxdRHCiwWxlZ_iSdevweovN2_xC39FZLmzR1Hx5SxzwKPuCBh2iIpOrS3w9Rzmm5sUIzy-14yM6LX0QQvd3DYybXHa99HykiqGnHNLMhsxvotdihMK9ux76A-MJU54/s1600/P1000519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5GlSGBG0l5dCi_tmxdRHCiwWxlZ_iSdevweovN2_xC39FZLmzR1Hx5SxzwKPuCBh2iIpOrS3w9Rzmm5sUIzy-14yM6LX0QQvd3DYybXHa99HykiqGnHNLMhsxvotdihMK9ux76A-MJU54/s320/P1000519.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It doesn't smell <i>that</i> bad...</td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhGMoisNeAKdgBGLwIq8OyicaU2qwCkCQroDn2s_-5-M_pJ_sgvEIolVIibjBRh0YpMsZ6iDvRgXgQhj9qkoYu6KmcDTuopOBsTDmhCSmvjV0gzq0m1H6wcWqNKQYDfrVszzWVdVk-kRS/s1600/P1000521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhGMoisNeAKdgBGLwIq8OyicaU2qwCkCQroDn2s_-5-M_pJ_sgvEIolVIibjBRh0YpMsZ6iDvRgXgQhj9qkoYu6KmcDTuopOBsTDmhCSmvjV0gzq0m1H6wcWqNKQYDfrVszzWVdVk-kRS/s320/P1000521.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellow slippers are especially traditional.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYenPgVPwbjsRYRt5KE6dYFveCD93PH9NEdnzbxsH4mespfKGCL1reyczvkibatBEuZO8WMfUKpG29ly48bkYu5rrM3b0ZZ0B8qFFT6T_cpcxaEKNfSB8YR7QtzlDhyphenhyphenGcn1sIzf2BQTQMw/s1600/P1000523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYenPgVPwbjsRYRt5KE6dYFveCD93PH9NEdnzbxsH4mespfKGCL1reyczvkibatBEuZO8WMfUKpG29ly48bkYu5rrM3b0ZZ0B8qFFT6T_cpcxaEKNfSB8YR7QtzlDhyphenhyphenGcn1sIzf2BQTQMw/s320/P1000523.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All sorts of nice leather things</td></tr>
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The next day we had planned to go back to the medina, but never made it. On the way home we stopped by Moulay Yacoub, a site with natural sulfur hot springs. The hammams there are a popular destination for Moroccans on vacation, and we got our first authentic hammam experience.<br />
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I would have loved to spend more time in Fès, and it's far enough away that we probably won't be back, but now at least I've been. We saw the famous medina, and got Meknès and Volubilis as well. Now it's back to school until Christmas break. Sometime in the spring we'll once again dress up as tourists and visit another of Morocco's great cities.<br />
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-24975856354826807492012-10-16T13:21:00.001-07:002012-10-31T04:50:49.478-07:00mostly school, again<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">Yes, sometime last month I said I’d post when school was settled down. I maintain that I’m <i>still</i> not entirely sure whether I have math class on Tuesday or Friday (last week it was both, and the week before it was neither), but I can’t claim I haven’t had anything to write about. Soon we will have two weeks off for fall break; that includes Eid el-Adha, perhaps the biggest holiday of the year, and we will also take a trip to Fes. But for now, it’s mostly just school.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I have two or three two-hour classes each day, plus one on Saturday. (I have fewer classes than normal because I’m not taking English or P.E.) We may or may not have a half-hour lunch break at noon. In the morning, getting to school, I take a <i>grand taxi.</i> Getting home is always an adventure, but I most often take a <i>grand taxi.</i></span></div>
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<span class="s1">My classes are: French, Spanish, history, math, biology, and physics. Class often consists of copying down notes either from the board or by the teacher’s dictation. For math and science my class has only nine students, and in the other subjects we combine with the rest of the Première class (20-30 students). </span></div>
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<span class="s1">The main focus in the last two years of high school is preparing for the Bac (Baccalaureate) exam. Students can take either the French Bac or the Moroccan one and a good score is critical for getting into a good university. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Grades are given on a 20-point scale like the Bac. Scores above 18 are rare and what we consider an “A” is about 14-15 here. We’ve already had a few tests (<i>contrôles</i>, maybe more like quizzes), but there will be larger tests (<i>épreuves</i>) and regular practice Bacs (<i>similis</i>). Fortunately I haven’t had to take any of the <i>similis </i>for French, because poetry analysis is pretty much no fun. I don’t usually have all that much homework here, but apparently the other school (l’Institut) is quite different.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Classes are in French, but there’s plenty of Arabic spoken around, and many people like to speak English with me. The other students are all taking English as a (third) language but some already speak it pretty well, in addition to Arabic, French, Spanish, and perhaps a second first language.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10oUMuQQgU63tVj2HYHzgiVeBwz80MqjRgoShZqa199Q9tt3Qt2sDCeEqFIr620Y30c0x2n4ALPRLadkG5GG4Gg_lRMFAxWou4y2hXf444q-jsBlJURpA2VCVBN-Jx-MApQnWECF3uaea/s1600/P1000214.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10oUMuQQgU63tVj2HYHzgiVeBwz80MqjRgoShZqa199Q9tt3Qt2sDCeEqFIr620Y30c0x2n4ALPRLadkG5GG4Gg_lRMFAxWou4y2hXf444q-jsBlJURpA2VCVBN-Jx-MApQnWECF3uaea/s400/P1000214.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;">
A picture, because it's boring to only have text. This is the café next to our apartment.</div>
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One advantage is that when there's a soccer game on, you know whenever something exciting just happened.</div>
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<span class="s1">The weather here is still pretty warm, but less so than it was in August. It doesn’t ever get very cold We’ve had a little rain and should get a lot more in the winter.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">So, generally, things are going pretty well. I should have more to post at the end of the month, during our school break, but for now things have settled down into a routine of school and regular meetings at AMIDEAST. </span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-90466937898322039612012-09-18T12:03:00.000-07:002012-09-18T12:03:38.631-07:00The Old Medina<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">A unique part of many North African cities is the <i>medina,</i> or old city. (Not to be confused with Medina, the city in Saudi Arabia.) The Arabic word means “city” or “town,” and this was usually all there was at the time the French arrived. Many existing cities were destroyed to make room for French settlements, but in the case of Rabat the medina was preserved and the <i>ville nouvelle </i>was built around it. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I’ve now been to the Rabat medina three times, but the first two times we were moving too quickly for pictures. Here is at least a glimpse of what it looks like and what you can find. (The internet connection is slow so I'll have to put up relatively low-quality images. Sorry.)</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvgizdHao5fvGlnQOdRiq8RRfstU8ME36Qwbhyphenhyphen2fK-YBiESX599thKh8q8xVfH65-DBv50AbAWVRWlbUGcPNX0rQu3NH7M1CoUC9U1Yn0iVfUHpaAKnj4ONpoR4re7p86SAvQdtjmvkEK/s1600/P1000108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvgizdHao5fvGlnQOdRiq8RRfstU8ME36Qwbhyphenhyphen2fK-YBiESX599thKh8q8xVfH65-DBv50AbAWVRWlbUGcPNX0rQu3NH7M1CoUC9U1Yn0iVfUHpaAKnj4ONpoR4re7p86SAvQdtjmvkEK/s400/P1000108.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Avenue Mohammed V at the entrance of the medina</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="s1">Avenue Mohammed V is the main street through the <i>centre-ville</i>. It leads from Parliament and the main train station into the medina. There are many shops and vendors here but the main place for shopping is Rue Souika (literally Souk Street.)</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1">I'm tempted just to say you can find anything here, but there are some things you tend to see a lot of: </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhexyfiQYNsO5Td3aMpP8IKNy-JZQx9C5GxmH9QIvSCsVN_ItVX1rup2TMgGA5bg5zjaYG8Ug2ijkkiyrXumKdg-f83Zw8m6TUK7dE_me60DeUco9rob9YWsx5bzCooF3COM15H17dTB44T/s1600/P1000143.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhexyfiQYNsO5Td3aMpP8IKNy-JZQx9C5GxmH9QIvSCsVN_ItVX1rup2TMgGA5bg5zjaYG8Ug2ijkkiyrXumKdg-f83Zw8m6TUK7dE_me60DeUco9rob9YWsx5bzCooF3COM15H17dTB44T/s400/P1000143.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shoes, both traditional...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYweUdpiMCETPNxKZteuKIqX63hAi1D5IuDsz52RABn5JDf9-Bh_lI0cJ5UzL9P1wfkA9atTKKx-T8gZPjsV3GW15dnFVhXQHxlwSOpJLt9mpmdXYfNTqVeD-LeJLT44r4kVaLT_t47bpp/s1600/shoess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYweUdpiMCETPNxKZteuKIqX63hAi1D5IuDsz52RABn5JDf9-Bh_lI0cJ5UzL9P1wfkA9atTKKx-T8gZPjsV3GW15dnFVhXQHxlwSOpJLt9mpmdXYfNTqVeD-LeJLT44r4kVaLT_t47bpp/s400/shoess.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and Western.</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjovhXusLeona2SOhiIVkPOeGGBe9l48jv9wPm4f8QT23xMafiRp_tAJuzs44Ecis9TtNY8Gu29WFY6-HuxMvwkW_PHkr2B1-_QrUcwpBGiuwbcEj_4ib33CjHMHiQvP8uyVjFZrkrxthG6/s1600/spice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjovhXusLeona2SOhiIVkPOeGGBe9l48jv9wPm4f8QT23xMafiRp_tAJuzs44Ecis9TtNY8Gu29WFY6-HuxMvwkW_PHkr2B1-_QrUcwpBGiuwbcEj_4ib33CjHMHiQvP8uyVjFZrkrxthG6/s400/spice.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Mounds of spices,</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7XyM5irNpI5MkL0sQh3UK5Ku4m5f7194wFvxCpLNtd0UvupIs_bWNXHVpveVPEo0kyQ4GLh-AnJIP1sKXz_5YmHQEGOBbpIqVgB7ZUAV95hc7_MkPaluBrMoA9ddSGYAAP6RA8n0tAbP/s1600/food.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7XyM5irNpI5MkL0sQh3UK5Ku4m5f7194wFvxCpLNtd0UvupIs_bWNXHVpveVPEo0kyQ4GLh-AnJIP1sKXz_5YmHQEGOBbpIqVgB7ZUAV95hc7_MkPaluBrMoA9ddSGYAAP6RA8n0tAbP/s400/food.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">dried fruit and nuts,</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDyKlbuZOPNWMLje7yQWd5GFWzRut0GpRp_GxMCWg0mZGBkxnSMp5p3-OSFOKxsdbetwRL2UEMENADJxAYKUnVOrCEh0TQW2pLKvt7epsrtCRfe3FdYmNRgDh7ZG4N0m-554uVRxr7piD/s1600/dresses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDyKlbuZOPNWMLje7yQWd5GFWzRut0GpRp_GxMCWg0mZGBkxnSMp5p3-OSFOKxsdbetwRL2UEMENADJxAYKUnVOrCEh0TQW2pLKvt7epsrtCRfe3FdYmNRgDh7ZG4N0m-554uVRxr7piD/s400/dresses.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and lots of women's clothing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGaA2kUNTVjKBHyjQ3DNwLlzLhuOwBhmfoBSvkenE_C4CJd57L3Lyh4isOhirF7NV4ykmrBPHF9ZMbdNtPtw214OUpPWjVezOyed9MSDa0ij-kOtR0X7nMTjLSq_lwLeX8l_203g0NGMXY/s1600/mann.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGaA2kUNTVjKBHyjQ3DNwLlzLhuOwBhmfoBSvkenE_C4CJd57L3Lyh4isOhirF7NV4ykmrBPHF9ZMbdNtPtw214OUpPWjVezOyed9MSDa0ij-kOtR0X7nMTjLSq_lwLeX8l_203g0NGMXY/s400/mann.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">The mannequins are creepy. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKr4_1xy5cMGus76NkiNOfl-NvoMlUkTe0LwNXb70p9Osgw0VSpFDtd87QZMSRptQfN9LGWhjNi36TVjjISTK_wNI5HzQLeqSRl_u5IMIM0MBwyr0UrNBBkOExl4qpLjBAZu7oZ_vwy9TM/s1600/fm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKr4_1xy5cMGus76NkiNOfl-NvoMlUkTe0LwNXb70p9Osgw0VSpFDtd87QZMSRptQfN9LGWhjNi36TVjjISTK_wNI5HzQLeqSRl_u5IMIM0MBwyr0UrNBBkOExl4qpLjBAZu7oZ_vwy9TM/s400/fm.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For some reason, Franklin & Marshall clothing can be found all over.</td></tr>
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There are lots of shops selling shirts with English (supposedly) on them. It usually doesn't make any sense and can be quite entertaining. My favorite is still a (men's) shirt featuring a werewolf with shiny pink eyes and, among other quasi-sentences, "You can trll merf me. You do not worry."<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXe91qObyuzLGPFPdviOe9GjyO4b6QQ_1jYJoNIySnAh_178RwmzqCHjvfGQhSILZvDZDH1l5BrY425-J_Qo2P9uJonQl7eVcvtCjD8vTRVWHTJike7eCWJ6-OLneZ_sprZxgdFq9O6zz/s1600/tajine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXe91qObyuzLGPFPdviOe9GjyO4b6QQ_1jYJoNIySnAh_178RwmzqCHjvfGQhSILZvDZDH1l5BrY425-J_Qo2P9uJonQl7eVcvtCjD8vTRVWHTJike7eCWJ6-OLneZ_sprZxgdFq9O6zz/s400/tajine.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some areas and shops are clearly geared toward tourists.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQT-DxeHD_HEpv0vDb0qgW38SWcYA8ZcG3GHnUnau-2d-sf0wUSwvAoPJ0fULYC-2YR8v442mtHoEVoy9dWvRPcgcmfJ6jVwLas_PIrHdXM7NSLxB0H1qL3Zvi7jA3oSexEzQ5R-e1_ceY/s1600/tea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQT-DxeHD_HEpv0vDb0qgW38SWcYA8ZcG3GHnUnau-2d-sf0wUSwvAoPJ0fULYC-2YR8v442mtHoEVoy9dWvRPcgcmfJ6jVwLas_PIrHdXM7NSLxB0H1qL3Zvi7jA3oSexEzQ5R-e1_ceY/s400/tea.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPZTjBdiLpGbCR3fq3pGZX-Ukc2UWUMbrHoTF8lJt6mPAwtQEux-1qR935zlaBYJnCdrS2cwpbkbauSaf-QYatgWsPCuN2tenohT0TiD-jpZ6c3-UyX1VjmEUtt5qxtbLrU33I21YK_M8W/s1600/turtle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPZTjBdiLpGbCR3fq3pGZX-Ukc2UWUMbrHoTF8lJt6mPAwtQEux-1qR935zlaBYJnCdrS2cwpbkbauSaf-QYatgWsPCuN2tenohT0TiD-jpZ6c3-UyX1VjmEUtt5qxtbLrU33I21YK_M8W/s400/turtle.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some places cater more to local tastes. We also saw a shop selling<br />cow feet and heads, but I'll spare you the picture of that one.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uJyIzjn2gOYEObv_GtPWiK7_bW-xu3VpsDH6V98J1pa7qg-VZRx0EvgpkxPVxV973OPZFMb2Zwx7hFDlH5sHhBdgjeCO0V1-faBe12KCslmGuzrV8W83pZnxWNV7uqANw23sgB6Cwuq8/s1600/rug.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uJyIzjn2gOYEObv_GtPWiK7_bW-xu3VpsDH6V98J1pa7qg-VZRx0EvgpkxPVxV973OPZFMb2Zwx7hFDlH5sHhBdgjeCO0V1-faBe12KCslmGuzrV8W83pZnxWNV7uqANw23sgB6Cwuq8/s400/rug.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And apparently Moroccan carpets are famous. <br />(Or, Moroccan carpet sellers are infamous.)<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmqra5YWtWEFtKZEpSMaR9A3VaCzKeXdsw2IWepeVMV2GWMLqJfw1iRETKKU-ZZ6mYWqngVGKxSc1tiDE7USKM2mulMqpe9Ui3HeyTQOm9h2yiQZY7sLEFN_hVVFLUJ_XZwQ2QUWbv6edB/s1600/rug+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmqra5YWtWEFtKZEpSMaR9A3VaCzKeXdsw2IWepeVMV2GWMLqJfw1iRETKKU-ZZ6mYWqngVGKxSc1tiDE7USKM2mulMqpe9Ui3HeyTQOm9h2yiQZY7sLEFN_hVVFLUJ_XZwQ2QUWbv6edB/s400/rug+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Then suddenly the shops end and you once again find a street with cars on it. After you cross the street (easier said than done), you come to the walls of the Kasbah des Oudayas, the fortress on the coast.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKtf03BLg9enjaSmGf2rJ9RURdcyXsm0IAMbJv1sAg8Jv0Uc9ejvTCAdjMMg0Qk7U1hRhK3mjfZjg-RujPjA59CoH4Nnu-JSx5jM-U1cA35xKjkMUeEywtXl5SaEzvhRtDGworgNtx6V0/s1600/lamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkKtf03BLg9enjaSmGf2rJ9RURdcyXsm0IAMbJv1sAg8Jv0Uc9ejvTCAdjMMg0Qk7U1hRhK3mjfZjg-RujPjA59CoH4Nnu-JSx5jM-U1cA35xKjkMUeEywtXl5SaEzvhRtDGworgNtx6V0/s400/lamp.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old and (relatively) new.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrppI061fzWUkjKT2RY5rZ7RuYn8wcrAVcvBv8jQ6xlvevR_pMQBqpwaOe3sTXrgtl01Uq4uUMhS9C3wKFkKc4jn3NJd-uSlpQOJOQBUiy_ULLfSmWIPd_TLuPYdx8EVcB73md8uVcvTjB/s1600/parapet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrppI061fzWUkjKT2RY5rZ7RuYn8wcrAVcvBv8jQ6xlvevR_pMQBqpwaOe3sTXrgtl01Uq4uUMhS9C3wKFkKc4jn3NJd-uSlpQOJOQBUiy_ULLfSmWIPd_TLuPYdx8EVcB73md8uVcvTjB/s400/parapet.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bM2nl2cKzHSsoHIq-D5hcCoWUJjaPZvKUEXeKu0iEs-R0lc9F-wpcZtflHi2EJJX70nHjeQR1zTK9pgWJxlbOPni-kvHqMlrpgO4gKCJYOc0rk1comAHKNfPTrD7CBw-oZYWiTCiOTsy/s1600/wall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bM2nl2cKzHSsoHIq-D5hcCoWUJjaPZvKUEXeKu0iEs-R0lc9F-wpcZtflHi2EJJX70nHjeQR1zTK9pgWJxlbOPni-kvHqMlrpgO4gKCJYOc0rk1comAHKNfPTrD7CBw-oZYWiTCiOTsy/s400/wall.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxZKEz2aJ3VK-CY-4y93V0wli_dvjZyWG5rcl3LV6FuhXD7cS8qARN195jKfKjE-Zl5kE0HxgvKeZkRFqADoSZcNpoP-FPn3c8fb6OKga_LWSprvIKcKjX42vuZHky77NEvyMhBcww5RRj/s1600/cannon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxZKEz2aJ3VK-CY-4y93V0wli_dvjZyWG5rcl3LV6FuhXD7cS8qARN195jKfKjE-Zl5kE0HxgvKeZkRFqADoSZcNpoP-FPn3c8fb6OKga_LWSprvIKcKjX42vuZHky77NEvyMhBcww5RRj/s400/cannon.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHGHG7lemK4IVbOpEDaE-KKYukP19KOkKOhbNalSy5kJ50CbACDXz7BagnRDoTv8QGCVZyms-Ww7mysCgihfB4NIoyV3ZweqgJ4CoSWOK9lrA8UtufBDTkHUhmLbfxl9DtYc2LLYJ8-zZ-/s1600/bab.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHGHG7lemK4IVbOpEDaE-KKYukP19KOkKOhbNalSy5kJ50CbACDXz7BagnRDoTv8QGCVZyms-Ww7mysCgihfB4NIoyV3ZweqgJ4CoSWOK9lrA8UtufBDTkHUhmLbfxl9DtYc2LLYJ8-zZ-/s400/bab.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The main <i>bab</i> (gate or door) of the Kasbah</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSZD_mrJ4oHdi39T3dOeykOaeZRIPftxYvIqCfh3xnfmBkpyTE878-azPEolaCNykM7fuRLP-_4hi7EQVeLydfrefcteOB-UFnk7IVk9GXlp_5NvF866_9jRveXX44CqLgGAWhh7UdYtps/s1600/construction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSZD_mrJ4oHdi39T3dOeykOaeZRIPftxYvIqCfh3xnfmBkpyTE878-azPEolaCNykM7fuRLP-_4hi7EQVeLydfrefcteOB-UFnk7IVk9GXlp_5NvF866_9jRveXX44CqLgGAWhh7UdYtps/s400/construction.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apparently even the ancient stone walls are under construction.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjInmsB-v5D-RtQ3PMP1LYBX3blssBOr6UK3kkErcDmL54nQ9nX-TxI3BQuPyToDOPY6X771dkH3CERebfC-RPiXzvkJOpze05seh-MapECc7MILsUhQpEekuZTvxiZB6Snry6Kwz0Lge10/s1600/door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjInmsB-v5D-RtQ3PMP1LYBX3blssBOr6UK3kkErcDmL54nQ9nX-TxI3BQuPyToDOPY6X771dkH3CERebfC-RPiXzvkJOpze05seh-MapECc7MILsUhQpEekuZTvxiZB6Snry6Kwz0Lge10/s400/door.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the Kasbah: narrow blue streets,</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV69Qpg-stTelmoJA4eU9N0LbS4YdgtqjtQHvYY-EquuxmUV5EIYoVoztWQsR-Gvdf8WjG9Ny4o4jo1TmTRUpO5q90Gxk1yDlW8yjjkqnn93n86kv3y_ros4fh1-f2Gwr4VfZYIgYozfM4/s1600/house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV69Qpg-stTelmoJA4eU9N0LbS4YdgtqjtQHvYY-EquuxmUV5EIYoVoztWQsR-Gvdf8WjG9Ny4o4jo1TmTRUpO5q90Gxk1yDlW8yjjkqnn93n86kv3y_ros4fh1-f2Gwr4VfZYIgYozfM4/s400/house.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and tiny blue doors like the one here.<br /> Imagine living in a house like this.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkzitwa-52Iv-XaYM0C5DKQkWb5ByLEPbOkr1lDjMbeqdotKAu34KPXgt3-w0K1aQDVe-Qd59cvA0p3Qnz7DSU8JUgAO6bLFVgWqFOIqEjzPsX2aQva2VTYv8vPxI523LF_y2ogQB6KzPu/s1600/beach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkzitwa-52Iv-XaYM0C5DKQkWb5ByLEPbOkr1lDjMbeqdotKAu34KPXgt3-w0K1aQDVe-Qd59cvA0p3Qnz7DSU8JUgAO6bLFVgWqFOIqEjzPsX2aQva2VTYv8vPxI523LF_y2ogQB6KzPu/s400/beach.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The end of the Kasbah overlooks the main beach of Rabat.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcnaMOeIyOpeKgqGjlbsydH8GiT7EOGUpS9VZUdxa1RN1fT7xkwYN94tMaRIyLJFzzoWPOxdbxHJdp-SVDSqRTi2qS2eyHtjFuFoWJnPJxHB2pXEzq4u6cnItkxMrWXp2WcA_-o_OaF_8/s1600/sale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcnaMOeIyOpeKgqGjlbsydH8GiT7EOGUpS9VZUdxa1RN1fT7xkwYN94tMaRIyLJFzzoWPOxdbxHJdp-SVDSqRTi2qS2eyHtjFuFoWJnPJxHB2pXEzq4u6cnItkxMrWXp2WcA_-o_OaF_8/s400/sale.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach and medina of Salé seen from the same spot.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1az3xlwhdNQe2dsQp14PX9YD10wnJppZ5F6tuSERZuQCJu_iQaRdqOt0LPv7pfHoLD7oHErfPla4Sb5rO5zAnl4kRKkOTjHC7O9LcDqsfWu-H4SB6sCUkO3WTiJXxdqwJH1ldj_y59sYh/s1600/towerr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1az3xlwhdNQe2dsQp14PX9YD10wnJppZ5F6tuSERZuQCJu_iQaRdqOt0LPv7pfHoLD7oHErfPla4Sb5rO5zAnl4kRKkOTjHC7O9LcDqsfWu-H4SB6sCUkO3WTiJXxdqwJH1ldj_y59sYh/s400/towerr.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plus, a nice view of the Hassan Tower and Mohammed V Mausoleum.</td></tr>
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There are still vast areas of the medina left to explore. And then there's Salé.<br />
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-56212363049147877652012-09-15T09:12:00.000-07:002012-10-01T10:29:34.470-07:00Current Events<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">First, a summary of what has happened around here: There have been demonstrations outside the Consulate in Casablanca. In Rabat apparently there have been small peaceful sit-ins outside Parliament (as per usual). I don’t know exactly what has happened in Rabat but I think nothing major so far. In Salé, across the river, around 300 people gathered in a poor neighborhood before Friday prayers and burned two American flags. We have been advised to stay close to home and Agdal should be safe.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Now, here is what I think of the recent events throughout the Muslim world and elsewhere. Feel free to tell me if you disagree.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">1. The incident in Benghazi was not a result of the film. It is becoming clear that the attack was planned for 9/11 and anger about the film was used only as a convenient pretext. It seems likely that al-Qaeda was behind the attack, but of course it's not certain. The killing of an ambassador is a tragic event and its perpetrators should be brought to justice, but this should be treated separately from the film protests.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">2. The film (“Innocence of Muslims”) itself it hateful and aimed to offend but I think we’re all taking it a bit too seriously. I haven’t seen it but I’m sure it’s nothing of any value. Of course there are those who absolutely irrationally hate Islam, and they are often the loudest. Two years ago Terry Jones became the center of a nationwide and international controversy simply by persistently advocating something extreme and ridiculous. Of course he was never able to follow through with it, but he made headlines all over the country--and I think that’s exactly what he wanted. I think in his case the media are to blame for making him such a big deal. The message of Terry Jones and other radical Islamophobes is so desperate and irrational that they must resort to the bizarre to get any attention. There is a lot of anti-Islamic sentiment in America but most of it is more moderate and almost even reasonable. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">3. In my opinion, whoever made the film--Sam Bacile or Nakoula Basseley Nakoula or whoever it is--is not entirely to blame for the violence. The words of one extremist may have been the spark that literally set several embassies ablaze, but now the film protests are unpopular and most of the protesters haven’t even seen the video anyway. Many of them (at least in Egypt) are unhappy about unemployment or football or just looking to cause trouble. Those with strong anti-American sentiment had it long before this video turned up. Call me unpatriotic, but I think that to some extent the people of the Middle East have good reason to be angry at U.S. foreign policy and American public attitudes towards Muslims. That said, violence in response to words is not justified. Flag burnings and violence against embassies are never appropriate.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">4. I hope it’s clear by now that the violence does not represent Libya, the Middle East, or Islam in general. In Benghazi there have been several pro-American demonstrations and apologies from both the government and the people. (I realize now that I’ve violated my own rule in the first point. Of course the events in Libya and the protests elsewhere can be seen as manifestations of a larger problem; just don’t say the film caused the Ambassador’s death.) Militancy and terrorism are not Islam any more than the Klu Klux Klan (or Terry Jones and Sam Bacile, I hope) is mainstream America.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I guess this is where I’m supposed to put in my plea for mutual understanding and religious tolerance and world peace and stuff. I will at least say that some people I know could never imagine going (or sending a teenager) to live in a Muslim country. They cannot fathom the idea of Muslims and Arabs as equals and reasonable humans. Let’s just try not to be hateful and judgmental and hope others can do the same.</span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-22420949021260064312012-09-08T07:04:00.000-07:002012-09-08T07:08:05.953-07:008/9/12<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">It’s been quite an adventure figuring out the best way to get to school. (I’ll post more about school later when my schedule is finalized.) The easiest, most direct way is to take a blue <i>petit taxi</i>. This will take you exactly where you need to go as long as you know how to get there and somehow manage to explain it to the driver, who usually only speaks a little French. A <i>petit taxi</i> can take up to three passengers to school for 12-15 dirham (less than two dollars).</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Next are the white <i>grands taxis</i>. These aren’t actually any bigger than the <i>petits taxis</i>, but they hold twice as many passengers. They have fixed stops and so you have to walk a bit from the stop to the school. Another problem is that if there aren’t a lot of people who want to ride, the driver will often wait until the cab is full before leaving. This means that if you want to get home at a time when not many people are going back to Agdal, you may have to wait quite a while. A <i>grand taxi</i> ride is 4 dirham per person, so it’s much cheaper than a <i>petit taxi</i> if you’re alone but with two or three people the money saved is not worth the discomfort and inconvenience.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">A third option is the bus system. There is a bus that runs from near my house in Agdal to a stop very close to the school. A bus ride costs 4 dirham, the same as a <i>grand taxi</i>, but the bus is much more reliable and even more comfortable. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">It also may be possible to walk home from school. It seems like we’ll normally take a <i>petit taxi</i> when there are three of us and the bus otherwise.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I’ve been asked what is the weirdest thing I’ve eaten here. There really hasn’t been anything too exotic or strange, and I’m not complaining. A few days ago for dinner we had bits of what turned out to be liver. (I’m still telling myself it was beef, and technically that’s true.) We also managed to find some camel milk at a supermarket. That was interesting enough and now I can say I’ve tried it. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I’m still surprised and delighted by the language diversity. I saw a store with a sign in four languages--Arabic, Amazigh (Tamazight or Berber), French, and Spanish. Four languages and not of them English! It’s also very interesting to listen to local radio. There is a lot of American music, ranging from gospel and country remixes of popular hits to explicit rap. There is also a religious station that broadcasts prayer all day long. Many stations are news and talk shows in Arabic or French or both. In a five-minute period you can hear a single station broadcast in three different languages, and sometimes you can find Spanish and Amazigh as well. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">The first few days of school have been pretty hectic, and I’m still not sure of my schedule. There are classes like English that I don’t need to take, classes like Arabic that I can’t take (everyone else in the class speaks it as a first language), and classes like P.E. that I don’t want to take. We’re trying to get that all figured out but for now it’s a bit of a mess.</span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-40838181856017561092012-08-31T04:23:00.000-07:002012-09-08T06:31:39.910-07:00School...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">Yesterday we visited Le Petit Collège, the school I will be attending, and registered for classes. The name is accurate in that the school is very small, with only about 300 students from Kindergarten through high school.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I’ll be in eleventh grade, which they call <i>première</i> as it’s the first one below the <i>terminale</i> or senior class. There are three tracks to choose from: Economics & social studies, Science & math, and Literature & philosophy. I am in the Science track (no surprise, really) and the others from this program are in Economics. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">We also picked up our books: I have one for math, two for science, one for (European!) geography, and three for French. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">School starts on Thursday, September 6. You’ll probably hear me complaining about how it’s all in French (as if physics wasn’t hard enough in English.)</span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-75173062185611466652012-08-30T04:36:00.002-07:002012-09-08T07:33:01.592-07:00Week One<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">We arrived in Rabat on Saturday, August 24. It’s hard to know where to start. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">The first (obvious) thing I noticed, before we had even left Washington, was the language difference. At the airport terminal all of the Air France signs and announcements were in both French as well as English (better, actually), and it got more overwhelming from there. As soon as we got on the plane English was the second language spoken, often with very thick (but amusingly typical) French accents. On the flight from Paris to Rabat (Salé, really) everything was in French and Arabic, but primarily Arabic. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I see the Eiffel Tower! Really, it’s that vague black spot above the wing on the right.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We’ve been having intensive French three hours a day to prepare us for school. The levels of French in our group vary considerably and I’m very glad to have some background in Arabic. I’ve taken two semesters of college Arabic (in a StarTalk program) studying Modern Standard Arabic (MSA or Fusha) and Egyptian colloquial (‘amiyya). The Egyptian hasn’t been much help, but I’m definitely picking up Moroccan words and phrases. It’s very good to know at least the alphabet and basic standard greetings.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I probably ought to say something about the food. Much of it is very French; breakfast at the hotel where we stayed for the first night was baguettes with cheese (always La Vache Qui Rit), crepes with jam, and fresh orange juice. (The juice is so much better than in America!) I think that’s about how breakfast is every day, except with Moroccan bread and sometimes eggs too. We had a traditional Moroccan tajine for dinner on Tuesday and of course it will be couscous for lunch tomorrow.</span></div>
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On Monday we dressed up as tourists and saw some of the famous sites in Rabat. First we went to Chellah, the site of a Roman trading post and later an Islamic town and necropolis.<br />
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<span class="s1">The minaret (mosque tower) at Chellah</span></div>
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The next site was the mausoleum of King Mohammed V and his son King Hassan II. Across from the mausoleum is a huge unfinished mosque, with only columns and a tower remaining.<br />
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<span class="s1">It’s not hard at all to climb up on top of the columns.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span>We then went to the Casbah, or citadel, on the coast. It has a lot of very Mediterranean-looking winding streets and access to several beaches.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Greece?!</td></tr>
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<span class="s1">On Tuesday we had a Rabat City Challenge. We had a list of things to do in the Medina (old city) and Centre-Ville and we competed (like on the show “The Great Race”) to finish them and get back home. The list consisted of things like “buy a bunch of mint,” “find a Hand of Fatima keychain and manage to buy it for less than 10 dirham,” “find out the price of a first-class ticket to Marrakesh,” etc. We were divided into two teams, given Dh150 each, and told to GO! It was a lot of fun and a good way to get to know the city. (Also, Noa, Cheila and I won. Not that I’m going to brag or anything.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">So, that’s what I’ve been doing. AMIDEAST has been very good in helping us to move in and adjust. (And in providing wifi.) I’m not sure if anyone’s actually going to be reading this blog but I’ll try to keep it updated in any case.</span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-18894887552941258642012-08-18T09:28:00.001-07:002012-08-18T19:51:31.025-07:00Info, please<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I will be living with <a href="http://shishka-blog.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jonathan</a> on Rue Jabal Moussa in Agdal. (I just read that "Agdal" is the Amazigh word for "garden.") Apparently our family has internet access in the home, so I'll try to update this blog when I can. We even have American-style toilets :-D<br />
My school will be Le Petit Collège Saint-Exupéry, 26 Rue Ouled Bouziri, Quartier Aviation. It's a primary as well as a secondary school, but other than that I don't know much about it.<br />
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I leave on Friday, August 24. I have an early flight to Minnesota, then to Washington D.C. to meet up with the others in the group. From there we fly to Paris, then down to Rabat.</div>
Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350437003749631286.post-44238880641217502922012-04-16T16:27:00.004-07:002012-12-19T14:38:58.249-08:00hello world<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="s1">Who: Call me Khaled.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">What: One (1) school year with YES Abroad</span></div>
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<span class="s1">When: August 24, 2012 to May 24, 2013</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Where: Rabat, Morocco</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Why: "The Kennedy-Lugar YES Program evolved out of a generalized recognition that public diplomacy efforts had been neglected in many countries around the world for many years and that the effects of this came into stark focus in the aftermath of the events of September 11, 2001. The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, along with the U.S. exchange community, recognized the importance of youth exchange as a key component of renewed commitment to building bridges between citizens of the U.S. and countries around the world, particularly those with significant Muslim populations." (<a href="http://yesprograms.org/about"><span class="s2">http://yesprograms.org/about</span></a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 100%;">More details? No, I don't have any information about my host family or school, but I'll post when I find out. I hope to be able to post regularly once the program begins. All future posts may or may not be in English.</span><span class="s1"></span></div>
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Calebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618961366893932057noreply@blogger.com1