Hello, friends. Last weekend I ventured out on my own for a solo trip to the former Portuguese colony of Asilah, up the Atlantic coast, and just shy of Tangiers. Most of the people in my original team of volunteers (there were 12 of us) have returned home or on to other places, so I thought I should get used to being on my own. There's still alot of Morocco to see!I met interesting people on the train. In my first first-class car, there was a rather modern Moroccan woman. Wearing too-tight Western clothes on her slightly too-plump figure, she discussed her boyfriend in Casablanca, gave me her phone number, and languidly slept across three seats. At some point a young man joined us in the car, and I was able to observe their soft flirtation. (Such things are more charming and mysterious when you can't understand a word!) When he removed his headphones so that she could hear the rap music playing on his laptop, I changed cars.
In car number two was a man to whom I was speaking in French, but who responded in English. He was from Mauritania, vacationing in Morocco for the fourth time. He worked for the Organization of Islamic Countries (75 members), which is headquartered in Saudi Arabia, but his assigment was tsunami relief in Indonesia. Amazing, huh? He was very polite and funny, and said that people were crazy to learn French, when English was all that mattered!
Coming back from Asilah, I shared a car with a young woman (from Tangiers) who worked as an auditor in Casablanca. She was quite sophisticated and chatted on her cell phone every once in a while in that strange Moroccan mix of French and Arabic. We talked about Moroccan culture and language, and even a bit about religion.
Now, Asilah itself was quite stunning, with one of the most beautiful and clean medinas I've seen. It was under Portuguese and Spanish rule during its history, and has that kind of sunwashed feel to it, with fabulous intact ramparts around the medina. Great beach, snazzy authentic fishing boats, etc.
I felt that I should share this picture of the bath in my hotel. What it lacked in length, it made up for with the double decker design! My hotel was perfectly adequate, though the proprietor kept answering ALL my questions with a very relaxed "No problem." I eventually realized that he just pretended to speak English.
And, while I'm at it, here's a typical public toilet in Morocco. It's BYO toilet paper, or just fill the bucket with water and use your hand!
Arriving at Asilah, I spoke briefly with a Western-looking couple about the distance to town (it's amazing how quickly you find each other), and then I kept running into them throughout my stay, to the point that I was afraid they would think I was stalking them! Matt and Annie are their names, and it turns out they are Peace Corps volunteers just finishing their 27 months in the southern desert towns. They know our staff here at Home Base, because they are former Peace Corps trainers themselves.
So, here are various shots of this delightful town.
In the summer, Asilah sponsors an international arts festival, so there are murals all over the buildings, and bands of roving adorable pre-teen boys offering to let you take a picture of their smiling faces for 20 Dirhams.
Local musicians perform Moroccan music and also pose for pictures for a small fee. The souks are low key, with pretty good stuff.
I must include a picture of a ram, who was munching in a small park with many other sheep, behind some buildings. Why is this notable? Well, this is the week before the BIG holiday, Eid Al-Adha, during which every family slaughters and cooks a sheep. It's a celebration of the Old Testament story of Abraham's son being spared by God. (As a reminder, the Q'uran repeats many of the stories of the Old Testament, and also acknowledges Jesus as a prophet.) So, there are rams munching in lawns and empty lots all over the place this week, awaiting their cruel destiny. We've seen them in trucks, on billboards (included in deals for other products) and even in cartoons. (It's like our rush to get Christmas trees.) Luckily, as I'll be going away this weekend, I'll miss the mass slaughter.
Back to Asilah. There was a nice Catholic church in town (built by Franciscans from Spain, and with the only bells for Mass allowed to ring in Morocco), not to mention convenient phones just outside! Also, this part of Morocco is in the migration path between Europe and Africa, so there were thousands of birds around the church and everywhere in town, more than I'd heard since I've been here.
The beach was protected by a seawall made of interesting concrete objects that looked like giant jacks. You know, the kind you played with as a child.Well, as mentioned, this was a solo trip. I don't like to travel alone to nice places, but I thought I could compensate by thinking deeply about my future as I strolled on the beach, or as I took pictures.
But no, ALL Morrocan boys, teens and men feel compelled to speak, uninvited, with any Western woman they see. Hola, senora! Hello, lady. Comment ca va, madam? Or they make some sound, like a harumph, or a mild hiss, or a whistle. Though harmless, it's quite intrusive, and I could not relax at all during my stay in Asilah. There are a number of places I would like to go yet in Morocco, and I'm likely to be by myself, so I may try wearing a headscarf or something. (Ha! My camera and sneakers will show me for what I am.) Seriously, though, it's my first real disappointment with this country. It hasn't been noticable to me before because I've been traveling with a gaggle of attractive young women, and I have been the invisible one. By myself, not so much.
Oh, well. More to think about during my trip to Belfast next week. Tomorrow, while you are all enjoying what I hope is a wonderful Thanksgiving, I will have my introduction to the East/West Foundation, where I'll be teaching English to adults beginning December 7, and will also hang out at the orphanage with departing volunteer and traveling companion Jen.I'll be back with you sometime during the week of December 7, I hope with a description of my new gig. While I'm in Belfast, I'll have to prepare a bunch of lesson plans, yikes!
Happy Thanksgiving and Eid Al-Adha. I'll leave you with this photo of my lunch in Asilah, a cheese omelette with some kind of scary lunch meat, french fries, olives, bread and soup. B'salaamah.
