Addie's Expérience Marocaine: Winter Update (Part 1): Excursions with Moroccans

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Winter Update (Part 1): Excursions with Moroccans

!الحمدلله! دابا عندي ورديناتر ديالي

l'Humdulillah! daba 3ndi ordinateur diyali!
PRAISE GOD! I HAVE MY COMPUTER NOW!

So now there is (again) much to update on.

1. My friend, Souad, and her siblings tooke me along for an evening drive to Ifrane, the quaint, snowy, ski town about an hour and a half from Fez.

Me with Souad and her sisters. See? It can get COLD in Morocco!
Don't forget there is NO central heating.

2. "Aid al Adha", or "Aid al kebir" as it is called in Morocco, is one of Islam's most important holidays. Every family (provided they have the financial means) purchases a sheep, which they slaughter as a sacrifice to Allah, just as Abraham did. I spent this holiday with my host family and witnessed the rooftop sacrificings of three sheep (including those of two other neighboring families that preceeded that of my host family). The families then spend 3 days preparing and eating the various parts of the sheep and make use of every part of its body.

My host brothers and a neighbor boy tend the حاولي as it waits its turn.

The boys look on with apprehension and curiosity.

3. Souad and I went to Casablanca where we stayed with her sister who lives there.

We visited the beautiful Hassan II Mosque at sunset.

...and went to the library to find research resources.

Look! French, English, and Arabic books all on the same shelf.
(This pretty much represents my Moroccan communication experience.)

Megarama Cinema, where we saw Number One, a Moroccan comedy that addresses gender roles and the new Family Code in Morocco.

4. I went to my first Moroccan wedding! My classmate, Lamyae, got married and Souad helped me prepare for the event. It felt like prom: hair, nails, dress, photos in the salon...