Morocco Day 1: Casablanca & Rabat
Today was our first whole day in Morocco. The first thing we did was visit the Hassan II mosque, which is one of the biggest mosques in Africa and among the top 5 largest in the world. It can hold 25,000 worshippers at a time and has an electronically heated floor. All the materials used for its construction are from Morocco except for 57 chandeliers, which are from Murano. They also used a Moroccan plaster made from olives and egg yolks for the purpose of absorbing humidity so the metal lamps does not oxidize. Astonishingly, all wooden and stone carvings were done in place. It took only 6 years to build in 1987. The mosque was incredibly ornate and absolutely stunning. My only complaint was that so much of the carvings and paintings were above eye level so I could not see them well when I was walking around the ground level. I wished that I could have gone around with a telescope or a ladder so I could get up close and personal with the intricate art work that adorned almost every square inch of the mosque. I have always been deeply intrigued by and drawn to detailed artwork, no matter the era or style. I think it stems from my perfectionist side; I have so much respect and admiration for artists that pay such close attention to detail. The tour was very brief and I wish it had gone more in depth to the artistry behind the mosque and traditional Muslim art in general. Looking at the stunning tile work and engravings made me want to take a class on Arab or Muslim art; the history and traditions behind the designs and how they have been shaped over time... I'm yearning for more!
At one point during our tour, we were taken to the ablutions room where attendees of the mosque wash themselves before entering the service. In addition to these rooms, there is also a large Turkish math underneath the mosque (which, interestingly, has never actually been used). On our way out, a friend of mine pointed out to me how interesting it is that Islam encourages cleanliness and hygiene. Not only do these cleaning rituals most likely contribute to less spread of disease and germs, but it also has mental health benefits. To me, cleaning one's body parts in a particular way must be therapeutic, especially due to its repetitive nature. I would think that these rituals are also therapeutic in that it not only represents physical cleanliness but also cleanliness of the mind and a source of mental calm. Of course all of this is pure speculation as I have never participated in these ablutions not have I studied Islam in depth, but it was an interesting point brought up to me by my friend.
We then took our bus to Rabat during which I soaked in the sun streaming through my window and dozed. Gazing out the window on the bus ride was a learning experience in and of itself but the brief overview made me want to learn more... not more information per se but just immerse myself in it all. The scenery is unlike anything I've ever seen - not in the way that it's unexpected or unimaginable but just that I have nothing to compare it to from my experience. Honestly it has not even hit me that we are actually in another place; that we are actually in Africa; that we are actually in Morocco. How did this happen?!
Once we arrived at our destination, the bus stopped on the side of the street so that we could walk into the Medina, which is the word for old city (i.e. many cities thought Morocco have a Medina neighborhood). Just a few blocks in we came across what would be our home base for our short stay here; a partner organization of the company I'm studying abroad with. There, we had another incredible meal: beef, rice, beans in a sauce, a delicious cauliflower dish, cooked and seasoned carrots, raw cucumbers and tomatoes, and bread. Describing food is not my forte but I can assure you this meal, like the others I have had so far here (the incredible tajine we had the night we arrived as well as the expansive and delicious breakfast buffet from this morning) have been amazing. I have high hopes for the food on this trip! After lunch we launched into a few hours of orientation. During the homestay orientation we learned a bit of Moroccan Arabic (which is very different from standard modern Arabic one would learn in school in the US!). Here's a little lesson:
WAKHA - okay
KHOBZ - traditional bread Moroccans eat with most meals
MEZYAN - good
HSHUMA - shame
KUL(I) - eat ("i" added for females)
SHUKRAN - thank you
SAFI - enough
SHBAAT - I'm full
BNIN - delicious
AFFAK - please
FIN - where is
SBAHL KHIR - good morning
TSBEH ALA KHIR - good night
SALAMU ALAYKUM - hello
BSSLAMA - good bye
After our orientations we were matched up with our homestay families and sent home. We are all in double home stays with a friend so that eased my nerves but as soon as I met the family I knew I had little to worry about. The family has welcomed us with such warmth and love; I felt so comfortable and at ease. There was a mother, a father, and five siblings aged 21(♂), 20(♀), 17(♂), 12(♀), and 6(♂). I have never been so mad I could not speak a language until today, since most of the family speaks only Arabic (although the kids, our host-siblings, speak pretty good English, as well as French!). I wish I could engage in lively conversation with them and get to know them better. At dinner, the host-mom was already saying how she is going to miss us when we leave and that we will always be welcome back and she had only known us for a few hours! She is always hugging and kissing us and it makes me feel so loved and warm and fuzzy inside... After we settled in, we had tea and cookies. The tea here is always a sweet mint tea, which they call attay or assay. It's very sweet and our trip leader here in Morocco said it is always sweet - even when you say, "no sugar," to them it means still a little bit of sugar. As a devout sweet tooth, I found this very reassuring. After tea, the older host-sister and middle host-brother took us on a walk to the beach. There, part of the beach was essentially jagged rock cliffs that the large stormy waves elegantly crashed against (I feel like there's not a good word for how mighty and powerful yet totally graceful water can be all in one moment...). Further down we walked on the part of the beach that is meant for swimming and recreation that has much softer sand and calmer waves. We were walking as the sun was setting and it was so calming for me. Having grown up on and around the coast, always feel a sense of calm, inner peace, contentedness, and happiness when I'm near the ocean. After we had walked the length of what we were told is only part of a very long beach, we continued our walk in and around and through the bustling Medina, filled with merchants, locals, and a lot of good smells. There were copious amounts of street food vendors and merchants selling both modern and artisanal goods.
Above: Sunset over the Atlantic from our walk on the beach
After we finally returned home, we had dinner. Moroccans eat very late - around 9pm. We had another yummy tajine with mint tea and fruit afterwards. This time we ate the tajine the traditional way: using your first 3 fingers of the right hand to use bread to pick up the contents of the tajine. It's very specific and very important. They still gave us separate plates and spoons and forks but my friend and I persisted, eating the traditional way. After dinner, we had a fun Arabic lesson from our host-siblings where we got a brief introduction to the alphabet and numbers 1-10. It is hard to grasp but it makes sense and I think if I stuck with it I might really figure it out! Unfortunately I was so tired that the vocabulary went in one ear out the other but I tried my darnedest.
Above: Dinner!
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