L-Eid and the end of Ramadan!

L-Eid is the celebration of the end of Ramadan! They weren't sure if it would be on Saturday or Sunday (it depends on whether you can see the moon at all or not), but it did end up being on the day that most predicted - Saturday. Typically, this is a big celebratory day for everyone. They dress up in new or their nicest clothes (we did dress up, but this was a different day, just for the picture!) and do henna on their hands and feet (the night before), wear special coal makeup around their eyes (women and children) and go to be with their family. They go around to their neighbors, other family members, and friends and have tea with them and socialize. They pay alms or food to the poor and eat all day :) We had meat kabobs, which I think is probably pretty special (to have extra meat at a meal) and cous cous during the day for lunch. We went to the "bled" or home village of my host mom. It is about a half hour walk back into the fields and fruit trees. It is a beautiful walk on a dirt road, passing by all kinds of fruit trees, mostly olive trees and other small gardens. 'Grandpa and Grandma's' house is really big. They have a mud/straw walls, some of which are covered by concrete. They have a garden with all kinds of fruit and vegetables and herbs - grapes, pomegranates, olives, flowers, mint, verbena, beans, onions, and more :) There was a donkey in there too! Inside the house walls, but outside the house (an open air courtyard, sort of), there is a dog, chickens, a dairy cow, goats and sheep. It was nice to visit and see some different places and people, but it was still hard. I talked to a few people a little about where I'm from and what I do, but only some of it gets through and they ask questions that I don't understand too. So, it's hard not to just be a spectator all of the time. In one of the homes of another
relative, they were really excited to see me and have me as a guest, but for the first 15 minutes, they seemed to think I was
French. They get a lot of French tourists in that area and I'm not sure they've ever come across an American. They gave me a pomegranate to take home :) My host mom had/has a terrible tooth ache. She can't even sleep it hurts so bad, so our festivities were really limited. Baheeja, the oldest daughter, took me around to the relatives houses for tea and also took me to see a nearby Kasbah and some 'ruins.'

It's interesting here because if a house is abandoned, it pretty much just decomposes quickly back into the earth because it is pretty much just made of earth. That was before plumbing and electricity though. Now they are using concrete too, so I'm sure that is changing. My host mom also has a new niece, Miriam. We visited with her at the grandparents house. I'm pretty sure her brother and wife and kids live there too. Altogether, it was a nice day with the family, but not a highly celebratory day for us. It is nice that people are eating again during the day. It was such a strange addition to the cultural adaptation to avoid eating, drinking, chewing gum, etc during the day around people. We felt like we were sort of hiding when we ate :) A couple of the people in our group tried fasting. One did for almost the entire month! They had a hard time with it, but really valued the cultural experience. One of the main reasons that Muslims fast is to know what it is like to feel poor and without food. It is also for purification. I just found out, however, that my host parents are still fasting! Apparently, you get extra deeds if you fast an additional 10 days after Ramadan! I wonder what it will be like once they start eating too!

On our way to Skoura, we stopped at a Kasbah for a minute. It is the Kasbah that is pictured on one of the old bills. Apparently, they reprint their money every time there is a new king, so now the money is all with the new king on it. We met with our artisan, Rashid, before we left Ourzazate - he happened to be there also! We asked him a lot of questions about costing and pricing so we could continue on with our project ideas. Here are a couple of pictures of him in Skoura, loading a kiln with 60 water jugs... We went to the suq again to buy vegetables and practice asking for them. We did pretty well, except the sellers were always answering us in French. That is pretty confusing. I'm not sure if I'm just not understanding them or if they are talking in French. There are some interesting sites at the suq... not mentioning the meat hooks and that whole area, it's pretty funny to see sellers lying on their product or totally surrounding by it. The spice displays are also attractive and it's great anyway to have so much fresh food!!! It's thrills me - really! You can make anything here! as long as it's not processed :) So, it's time to learn to cook! In fact, my host mom asked me today if I cook. I told her a little and she asked what I cook. I said eggs (I've been thinking about cooking them scrambled eggs!) and pasta (which turned into me saying I can cook spaghetti with vegetables). That was pleasing and she said when you come back, you will cook Spaghetti with Vegetables! I hope they like it. My friend, Brian, made guacamole and they politely didn't eat it after trying some. Well, it's back to Ourzazate for 4 days before the long stint in Skoura... and then we find out our final sites! One of the last two days in October, we'll know and then we spend over a week there checking it out and such! We are all so nervous to find out where we will be for the next 2 years! When I visit, I'll also be able to set up my P.O. Box, so I'll be able to receive mail there - I'll be officially moving to that address at the end of November after swearing in on November 26. whew... it's all coming along pretty quickly. LOVE and PEACE to you all!!

CBT Homestay!

Me and Amina

Again, I wrote this on a different day than the posting date... My homestay so far has been a challenging, yet rewarding experience. My family (which turns out to be different than the intial one I was told about) is awesome. There is a father and mother and 4 girls (ages 15, 12, 6, and 9 months). My host sisters: Baheeja, Dure, Waseema, and Omyima...

The father is a Classical Arabic teacher, so he is really patient with me and helps in learning the words, although sometimes he tells me the words in Moroccan Arabic, classical Arabic, French, and Spanish too. The kids also like practicing Dreeja (Moroccan Arabic) with me and practicing English.


Two days ago, something didn't agree with me and I had a ridiculous amount of diarrhea. I went all through the night and took a little Pepto and a little rehydration medicine, but I was throughoughly miserable, wearing down the pathway between my room and the turkish toilet every half hour. In the morning, I made it to Amina's house before school was to start and used her phone to call Peace Corps Medical. They gave me a plan for how often to take the medicines and what to eat. I'm eating on the BRATT diet that Peace Corps prescribed. Bananas, Rice, Apples, Toast, and Tea. I'm not exactly sure why this is a good diet for diarrhea, but it seems to work, so I'm sticking to it. After school, Amina went to my house and explained the food to my family. When I got home, I slept and slept. I got up only to go to the bathroom or once, they woke me up and I ate half a banana and a little bit of bread. Today, I feel a lot better, although I still have a little ways to go. A funny thing - in the Peace Corps - Gastro-intestinal problems are so common that everyone knows everything about each other. We discuss the specifics all the time. So, maybe this explains why I shared this... Prior to this, I've really been enjoying the food at my host family's. I feel like they talk me into eating more than I want to at times, but still, it's quite good. The "break fast" at sundown is also full of very sweet items. That is a little weird because it's at our dinner time, but I'm guessing that they are so depleted that they need the sugar right away to get some calories. Now, I'm still a little sick, so almost no food sounds appealing to me. A typical day in Skoura (this is about Mon-Sat) goes like this: I wake up around 8 and get ready for school then I walk myself to Amina's house. This takes about 5 minutes. The first couple of days I had escorts there and back, but once I knew the way, they let me walk on my own. Two of the others in my class always have their little brother or sister there to pick them up after classes. Once arriving, we talk briefly about our evening with the homestays and then we start language lessons. These go until lunchtime. We have an hour for lunch and then we do our technical training. For us, this has been getting in a taxi and going to a small village about 7 km down the road to talk with the potters there. We have been gathering information about their community, resources, needs, and knowledge. We are going to try to develop a project that will help them out in some way. Right now, we are thinking of developing a small marketing strategy for them, as they are only depending on passersby for clients. We get back to Amina's house around 4 or so. After school, I sometimes go to the internet cafe (which is down the road from Amina's (maybe another 5 minutes). Sometimes I buy some fruit or something on the way back, but usually I head back to the homestay at this point (I always tell them when I'll be back so they don't worry). Sometimes my host sisters want me to go out for a walk with them before L'fthur or Break Fast around 6:45 or sunset. Otherwise, I usually help in the kitchen, finishing up with the preparations. After the meal, I hang out with the family for a while watching TV (every family in Morocco seems to have satellite TV, even those that are not at all well off). I, of course, don't really understand much, but sometimes I understand some by context. During this time, I usually bring my language books into the living room and review my lesson and vocabulary. Most of the time, the family will get involved trying to work with me and help me somehow. Now, the dad has taken to asking me what I learned that day, so that is really helpful for review. Around 9:30, they serve mint tea (with lots of sugar) and some snacks or bread or something. Then there is another meal around midnight before everyone goes to bed. I don't do so well with staying up for the midnight meal. Since I've been sick, it hasn't been a problem for me to go to bed early, but other times, it's harder because they want me to stay up and they don't understand why I would go to bed, I guess (also, I can't communicate a whole lot to them besides "I'm tired" "I want to rest" "I don't feel like eating"). Really, I want to explain that I don't feel good in the morning if I eat a big meal before I go to bed, but I don't feel like they would understand this (but maybe). I think after Ramadan, it won't be so difficult. In general, Moroccans eat dinner very late, but midnight is later than usual, I'm pretty sure. **Additional note... now it's been a couple more days and the last two nights we have had a little more to eat with the tea and then went to bed! I've been on BRATT still, but I don't know if this is why. I think I'm missing something in the routine here.... hmm...

** One day, we visited the suq (the open air market that is in town once a week) and bought some fruit and vegetables. They also have all kinds of things, like second hand clothes (you know where I'll be shopping!) and miscellaneous stuff. I thought the suq seemed kind of like lots and lots of yard sales all together, where some people are selling the same things and bargaining was expected. One morning, I set up a time (7 am) for me and two other volunteers to meet a current PCV at the Dar Chebab (Youth Center) to work out (Yoga and Running), but then that was the morning that I was so sick and I missed it. :( When I get back to Ouarzazate, I'm going to try running with some others. I miss working out. I also didn't bring a yoga mat and the floors so far haven't been befitting of laying down on.

Today, in Gdarra (the small village), it got really windy and it felt like we were in a sandstorm. I don't know what qualifies as a sandstorm, but I'm going to go ahead and say this was one. There was sand going everywhere. We were inside a little shop, but the doors were open and we were all covered in dust and sand sitting in there. I kept sneezing and the sand was getting in my eyes. The shop owner poured water on the sand outside his door to stop it from sweeping in so much. They also told us that one or two trainees will probably be placed in Gdarra/Skoura. We like it ok for our CBT site, but none of us really want to be located there... After the sand storm, I really don't want to be. I don't think I will though, inshallah.






Pictured above is our group interviewing the president of the potter's association in Gdarra and one of the members. Also pictured are my CBT mates: Anna, Matt, Brain, Amelia, and my Language and Cultural Facilitator, Amina.


So, back to my homestay: their house is really nice, it seems. I think it's made of brick or stone and concrete(?) and it's 3 stories. The top level is the roof - there they have a goat, 6 sheep, and a rabbit. The goat and sheep get all the food scraps - just like a compost bin! The first floor is the only floor that is really finished and decorated. There are 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen, two living rooms (one for family and a nicer one for guests), a common room (outside the kitchen - like a dining room, but no one eats there), and the entry way with a sink. On the second floor, it seems like someone sleeps up there (maybe the parents). There is also some food for the animals, and a sink and stuff like that. I think the idea is that they finish the house little by little as they get more money, but of course that is my speculation because I haven't asked them that yet. At this point, they don't really seem to need anymore space, but Moroccan families don't necessarily stop growing. When the children get married, sometimes they live at the parents too (even more than one couple) and lots of times the the grandparents are part of the home. Also, from the roof, there are open stone windows that look out over the desert. Behind the house is the vast open desert. It is beautiful. And in the distance, you can see the mountains and at night the moon and stars. I don't know if you guys all know about the turkish toilets, but that is what they have all over Morocco. There are some western toilets around here and there, but, I guess we should expect the norm, which is the Turkish toilet. I took a picture for you, since my family's bit-la-ma (bathroom) is pretty clean. You stand where the foot marks are and squat down over the hole. Their plumbing is good enough that we can use TP, but they use water and soap. You then pour the water from the bucket down the hole and this flushes it (similar to our system). I've also been fortunate to take showers in here (sometimes even with hot water!) Morrocans typically go to the hammam (bath house) once a week and get seriously scrubbed down (removing layers of dead skin) and if they need or want to, they take bucket baths with the hot water. Some of my fellow traininees don't have showers or hot water (that they know of). Just like the landscape of Morocco, the amenities can vary greatly from place to place, even house to house. The major tourist destinations in Morocco have all the luxuries of home. I'm happy to experience something in between and also to be aware of the variations. I'll keep letting you know what I find, but keep in mind that I am just observing. There is a lot more out there than what's before my eyes.

Well, we are now headed back to Ouarzazate for 4 days... We are all excited to see everyone else again and to take hot showers and share experiences. Hope you are enjoying the adventure as much as me. Please don't hesitate to send me a little message on the blog or by email. I'm enjoying hearing from everyone and writing you back :) LOVE and PEACE!!!!

The Next BIG NEWS!

Today was a very nervous and exciting time for us... We found out our Community Based Training (CBT) sites, the languages that we will be learning!!!, the other volunteers that will be in our CBT site, and the type of family we will each have for our homestay. For the next 10 weeks, we will be travelling back and forth between the CBT and Ourazazate (Seminar Site). For this first trip (leaving tomorrow) we will stay 9 days and then return for 4 before going again.

So, for the details...
I am going to be learning Dreeja (Moroccan Arabic)!!!!!! I am thrilled about this!
I have 4 other volunteers in my site, Brian, Matthew, Anna, and Amelia. We have Mina as our Language and Cultural Facilitator (LCF). She is amazing. Her English is excellent and I really like her teaching style. I think we will all learn really well. Brian in my group also speaks French fluently, so I kind of doubt we will have time, but if we do... I could try learning some of that too! We are going to a bigger town, Skoura, to stay and learn language and travelling to a small village by taxi, Gedarra, to do our technical training. For the technical training, we will be interviewing artisans (probably pottery in this case) about their business and products and seeing where they might need some assistance and then developing a project to analyze how they could improve their problem. Should be exciting! My homestay family sounds really great too. There is a mother and father, plus 5 children! 3 older girls, 18, 15, and 13 and 2 boys, 10 and 1! Also, the father is a teacher! I don't think I could have asked for a better match. Love it!

So, wish me luck integrating! I'm sure it will be challenging. L'humdullah It will be great!

Seminar Site Training

Since we arrived in Ouarzazate, we’ve had 3 language lessons, 4 technical sessions, 1 medical session, and an introduction to Islam.

Our meal schedule is pretty interesting. Because it is Ramadan, we eat up to 5 meals a day! We have our normal breakfast at 8 am, which consists of Bread with honey or butter and coffee and orange juice. We are served lunch at 12:30 pm which is a salad of sorts, pretty good actually. It is usually all the same ingredients and maybe one different one. Usually cucumber, carrots, rice, potatoes, beets, lettuce, tomatoes (or a sort of salsa), and sometimes something hot like beans of some sort. We have bottled water with this meal ☺ Neither of these two meals are eaten by Muslims. They are fasting during this time. At 6:45, Muslims break their fast and begin their meals… l-fthur or breakfast is served. There is always a type of soup and one or two types of bread, dates (I think these are pure fructose sugar) and usually some other very sweet items. Coffee, tea, and orange juice are all served. At 10 pm, we have another meal (the biggest of all the meals), this one usually has a type of meat, as well as salad and bread. All drinks served again. Two nights ago, we even had a milkshake! It tasted like a vanilla milkshake, but it was green and one of our teachers suggested it might be avocado. There is one last meal at about 3 am, but none of the PCTs get up for that, although, I suppose we could if we wanted to. I’m not sure, but I think this one consists of fruit, bread and cheese usually. Sometimes, they set out bags with these in them for those that wake up to eat and pray. I’ll get some pictures of the meals on soon ☺



We have ventured out just a bit to try to buy a few things we need and such. The markets are really different here than what I’m used to. It seems that the Moroccan way of obtaining customers is have a long conversation with them. They ask a lot of questions and almost always invite you to sit and have tea with them. I haven’t yet felt comfortable negotiating the market, but that will come. I also only learned the numbers yesterday, so that will really help. A few days ago, we managed to buy some water and toilet paper without speaking Arabic hardly at all ☺ I’m looking forward to being able to communicate though.





The view from our hotel is pretty great. Today, we did our laundry on the roof of the hotel. That was really a process! It took 2 hours for me to do it and my back and wrists hurt afterwards! Then, just my luck, it started raining!! It stopped shortly after, but it was pretty dramatic.




Today I had an interview with the Program Director and Assistant to talk about what our skills are exactly and our site placement preferences. We’ll see what happens. I figure we will probably find out on Friday what language we are learning (since we leave Saturday to start our Community Based
Training (which will be our first homestay and at a site where they will speak the language we are learning). I requested to learn derija (Moroccan Arabic) instead of one of the Berber languages, but I have a feeling I’m not the only one requesting this, so they said they would do their best to accommodate our preferences. “en shallah” they say, or God willing.

Road to Ouarzazate~

The road to Ouarzazate is 3 hours of continual mountain overlook. It is a path only taken in conjunction with Dramamine. We turn every hundred feet, dipping and climbing, as if hiking through a rocky valley, trying to find a foothold. We step only as the mountain allows. At times mountains surround us on all 4 sides, turning a corner out of the valley and to a foothill of an even larger mountain. We approach a small village se up on a hill. At the bottom of the hill is a tiny stream. I imagine the strength in the legs of these people from their journeys up and down. The goats stay to the side of the road, avoiding our bus. We pass a small shop with a young white woman talking with locals. I can only wonder if she is one of us. This could be my home for the next 2 years.

Back Log!

I’ve made a flickr page for the more comprehensive collection of pictures. Please visit at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12973534@N04/

I’ve discovered that our time difference is 4 hours later than the East Coast of America.

I am still pretty unsure of how and how much internet access I will be able to use. I will know soon about the next 11 weeks, but after that, I will evaluate again. Even if I can’t get my computer online though, it’s great to have it – I type everything out ahead of time and then when I go to the café, I’ll be able to just copy it to the blog. So, however often, you will likely receive a very long update! I’m sure I won’t write as much once day-to-day life is more similar, but right now things are still changing a lot.


A little catching up to do here….
The last half of August…

Jesse and I flapped our wings until we arrived at my sister, Angela’s house outside of Denver Colorado. That week involved missing the end of the crazy turn-around Rockies game, finishing my dress!, major shopping at REI (don’t doubt the outdoor involvement of people in Denver! – that place was HUGE – 3 stories - and packed!), playing with my adorable nephews, and much other fun. Jesse and I went hiking in the Rocky Mountain National Park. It was totally gorgeous. We saw many beautiful waterfalls, tall and wide. We shared some of the most beautiful overlooks and trail walking and didn’t encounter any mountain lions or other such creature. We also got a change to spend an evening with Jesse’s cousin in the area. He took us to Red Rock Amphitheatre, where the nature rock makes incredible acoustics.

This was the first waterfall we came to and below is the view with us in front of it at the Rockies game ;)



After we returned from Colorado, we spent a couple of days preparing our next trip. We decided on a camping trip to Lake George in New York (Adirondacks) and then a couple more hours north to Montreal. This was great. In Lake George, we spent a day Kayaking on the lake (which proved challenging, but was fun). We visited a couple of small islands in the middle of the lake. We had a tandem kayak (which seat two) so we could stay together. We also went horseback riding one day for 2 hours. This was Jesse’s second time on a horse and he was great ☺ It would be fun to go again with just us and a guide (this time there we two others as well). Jesse and I (mostly Jesse) cooked breakfast and dinner and sometimes lunch almost every day. Jesse got very good at making a fire in our tiny fire pits. The whole time we were camping, I only saw one mosquito (and that was as soon as we arrived). How incredibly exciting! We thought for sure they would be everywhere. I also had the opportunity to learn good Frisbee throwing technique from Jesse! He didn’t learn good miniature golf from me when we got to Montreal (but I think he just wasn’t paying good enough attention when I was doing well). I made a hole in one! And if you saw this course at the campground, you would understand that this was a great accomplishment (see flickr photo). In Montreal, I think we had the most fun – and mostly because we enjoyed speaking to each other with funny French accents. We learned a very small amount of French and we repeated it as much as possible in our conversations. We walked around Mont Royal, a huge park there and saw the most common site of Montreal – le Croix (the Cross). It is a 100 ft tall steel cross. It was first built in the 1600s after the village had survived a flood (or was it a drought?) I told you that we avoided big scary animals in Colorado, but I can’t say the same about Montreal. We were quite sure that there was a bear outside of our tent in the middle of the night one night. Remembering our survival skill review in Colorado, we tried various techniques to scare the “bear” away from our site. Eventually it left, but frightened might be an understatement. The next day, we did some investigation and detective work and inconclusively thought we may have had a raccoon encounter, instead or a bear, BUT, I think, due to our state of fright, I’m sticking with the bear story.












I arrived at “Staging” for the Peace Corps in Philadelphia around 1:30 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2007. There are 67 Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) – you will soon learn just how much peace corps loves their acronyms going to Morocco with 38 in Small Business Development


We learned that we 38 will have our base training site in Ouarzazate, which is the ‘door to the desert,’ just above the Western Sahara. Ouarzazate is known for it’s new (and old) movie studios. It is the largest in Africa and many American movies were filmed there. Ouarzazate in Tamazight (a berber language) means ‘without confusion,’ so that is good – maybe a very good place to learn these languages! ☺ We will be spending 30% of our time together there for the next 11 weeks. The other portion of our time is for CBT (Community Based Training) – I will be with 4-5 other volunteers and a language/cultural facilitator in a village somewhere “near there” – perhaps up to an hour away.

When we arrived in Casablanca, we were prompted to enter the “Crew and Diplomats” line for customs, which made us all feel quite special ☺ We then took a bus to Rabat (capital city) and toured the Peace Corps Offices of Rabat. They took our pictures when we arrived at the hotel (later on) –oooh fun… no sleep and over a day of travel later!) We will rest for 3 days in Rabat In Rabat, we had lost of lessons and vaccinnations and paperwork, etc. "resting" they called it. A few days later, the 38 Small Buisness Development Volunteers traveled 9 hours by bus down to Ouarzazate (Wait, “where’s that at?” you might say... or did you say? Because you were attempting to read what I wrote. When pronounced Ouarzazate is about like Where za zat? (more about that later).

So, these people I’m with… they are pretty great. Everyone is really very skilled and intelligent. Particularly thoughtful people too. It’s like I’m in a group of people that were pre-selected to make excellent friends. Love it.

My parents and Jesse saw me off in Philly. It was so great to be able to see them all. How blessed! My fellow PCVs thought it was pretty incredible to be able to have them there. They might have been a little jealous – if they weren’t so thoughtful.

Arrival!

You should know that I ran the far reaches to get on the internet for you :) I climbed carpets and rugs to the roof, walked the entire hotel and there was a connection in only one room of a PCV. And then the connection wouldn'[t work on macs, only pcs. I'm on someone else's computer now.

Here is something I typed yesterday, hoping to send it earlier today...

So, our plane was delayed. Not because we didn't board on time (we boarded 1.5 hours before departure. No explanation, but we sat there for another hour after we were supposed to leave. Very strange. Was the Peace Corps testing our patience. About an hour and a half after we got on the plane, I was pretty tired. Anyway, we arrived late, so the rest of our day got rushed. We went immediately to the Peace Corps offices for a tour, to meet the staff, Sept 11 commemoration, and a very warm welcoming. Here we had our first glass of Moroccan Mint Tea. It was good! Not unbearably sweet!

Our tour was cut a little short and we hurried on to the hotel. After much bag unloading and room organization, we ate lunch. Every lunch and dinner is very good (they are some sort of mix between what we would be used to and what Moroccans really cook). Immediately following this, we had a talk about Safety and Security from an Embassy worker. We weren't aloud out in Morocco without having heard this. This put us all to sleep (didn't mention, but with ALL my MANY efforts), I again didn't sleep on the plane or the bus ride from Casablanca to Rabat (although I was a little closer to sleep on the bus). Then, the remainder of the day proceeded with much more talking. We received our handbooks, medical kits, more paperwork and information about medical staff etc. Of course we had more Mint Tea, but still, no one seemed to be able to really stay awake. After this, finally, A SHOWER! Then dinner and a walk around the block. Curfew was 8 pm, so that was a quick walk. We followed this by trying to buy Internet access in the hotel, but were told it wasn't working  shame. Now, I'm writing this email, so I can send it to you at my first opportunity tomorrow.

To explain the pictures: Family and Jesse at the hotel seeing me off, Jesse camouflaged into the hotel chair, Departing the plane!, A picture of a mosque from the bus window in Rabat, the flowers were the first thing I saw departing the bus to enter Peace Corps Offices (they were literally right in front of my face (inches) when I stepped down from the bus., There are 36 Peace Corps staff members for Morocco. On stage are the ones that were here today to greet us. Bruce Cohen, Country Director (in suit and tie) spoke to us for a while. He is an excellent speaker, very inspiring. I think we a fortunate to be led by this man.

I was amazed by the beauty of all this. The Peace Corps offices were gorgeous, with a large courtyard (where we were sitting), gardens, and beautiful buildings. One of the current volunteers told us not to get used to it. Grass is not an everyday site.

Now, for a little update from today...

First thing one of the other PCVs taught a yoga class :) Then another tired day of learning st. I had a rabies vaccination. The U.S. Ambassador of Morocco came to speak to us and he was also a really down to earth guy (these are the things that make us feel really important). After they let us free, I went with 10 others walking through the Medina (market) and to the edge of the earth (Atlantic Ocean) where I saw the most amazing 360 degrees. There was a beautiful old cemetary that stretched out into the expanse. The ocean, with rocky cliffs, the city and it's busy streets... And the sun was setting over all of this. The call to prayer began and I felt very happy to spend 27 months of my life in this country.

I received a card today from Angela, a letter from a woman from church, and later in the day I received a padded envelope from Angela with a cool art project from Tyler! How fun it is to receive mail.

a note about cell phone to family and such...
I found out that I will likely be getting a cell phone eventually. I'm just not sure if it will be sooner or later. It is free for me to receive calls from anyone, so I know it is typically more expensive to call a cell phone from the U.S., but if you find a good rate, you could call me anytime. and it would be free for me! Maybe the calling card that Vikki had gotten us before or maybe the skype rates? It costs a lot to call the U.S. from a cell phone, but I can get a phone card to call from landlines and pay phones.

I have lots of fun pictures to share, but it isn't working out right now, so soon guys! Post me some comments!

Love and Peace ~