Morocco

Over the past weekend, a large group of students went to Morocco. The entire trip was planned for us by an organization, so they supplied the itinerary, transportation, food, hotels and security we needed to get a feel for what the Muslim world in Morocco is like. We took a ferry from Spain, in the peninsula, to Ceuta, an autonomous division of the country of Spain located on the continent of Africa. Basically Spain owns the city, and is only used as a port of entry to Africa by ferry. 

Morocco was much different than I expected. Having visited Haiti, I expected it to be a little more third world that it is. Also, I didn't know how Muslim the country actually is. Likewise, I learned many interesting facts about practicing Muslims, including the "Five Pillars of Islam": declaring that there is only one God, praying five times each day facing the Mecca, fasting during daylight during the month of the Ramadan (except the ill, pregnant, diabetic, etc. that require the nutrients), visiting the Mecca once in their lifetime and donating 2.5% of their annual income to the poor. Also, the men are allowed to marry up to four wives that must be treated equally. They all live in the same house together... now talk about a different culture. After seeing several women being mistreated by men (they are very aggressive with the women), I'm curious to keep updated with the Moroccan culture to see if a feminism movement ever comes about.

Now to my travels...

Friday was just a day of traveling: a bus, ferry, bus, hotel. And of course dinner in the hotel, which may I admit I LOVE MOROCCAN FOOD! It's soooo delicious (minus all of our bodies hating the different food for several days after our trip). 

 If anyone is bored with eating regular fruit... cut up a banana and an apple into small, bite-size pieces and pour pineapple juice on top so it's like an adult fruit cup=amazingness.

My first time on a ferry.

Saturday, we took a bus to our first city: Tetuán. We started by walking through the Medina of Tetuán, which is the oldest, most traditional part of the city that is basically an alley of fresh markets, with very poor sanitary conditions.

I only took one picture because I didn't want the locals to feel as if I was treating them like circus animals. However, the markets consisted of fruits, vegetables and meat. As you can see, the veggies are just laying on the ground.

 Upon leaving the unsanitary conditions of the Medina, the alley lead us to this beautiful plaza.

 We also stopped at a Moroccan version of a pharmacy, filled with hundreds of natural herbs and remedies. The pharmacist explained several kinds and uses of these natural substances (and we also got an awesome shoulder massage).

Of course we all got Henna tattoos.

Morocco, although it has its dirty parts, is actually a beautiful country. All the roads are lined with beautiful plazas and grassy areas with palm trees.

 Before signing up for the trip, we were told we would get the opportunity to ride camels. I was of course picturing riding camels through the desert or for a least a half hour, however the bus dropped us off in a parking lot that had several camels for us to ride. So we each had a turn on a camel, riding around the parking lot. It was definitely still fun to ride, however I would have enjoyed a little longer ride with some better views.
[Maybe next time.]

 We drove to the Cabo Espartel, where the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean meet. On the left side of the lighthouse is the ocean, and the sea is to the right.

Our nicely decorated ice cream.

 On Sunday, we went to the village of Chef-Chaouén (those of you who thought I was drunk saying this word the other day, try pronouncing it out loud without sounding drunk). Anyways, it was one of the most beautiful and unique villages I've ever seen. All the buildings, doors, trim, rocks, stairs, etc. that were in reach of a paintbrush, were painted in a shade of blue. It was so colorful and lively! If something wasn't painted blue, it was either white, brown (because it was wooden) or black (from metal). Reasoning behind blue which could be useful... apparently mosquitoes don't like the color blue, and since they live in a very humid region, of course they will do anything to repel the mosquitoes.

The view from outside the village.

 Inside of the village, we stopped at a little store where they hand made and sold blankets. It was an amazing technique, and each blanket usually took days to make.

A store full of different types of herbs for cooking.

It was a short weekend filled with lots of interesting information. Like most other trips, I learned more than I could learn in a textbook, just by visiting and seeing firsthand what the culture is like. 

Thanks for reading, have a great week! :)