So this one time, in Africa...

Indeed, I just got back yesterday from Morocco. I learned many things: that camels are very tall, Moroccan vendors are very pushy, and that I can survive with only a backpack for the entire weekend. And while it was not your typical leisure venue for vacationing, it was still an amazing trip; as I'm learning, part of seeing the world is having these amazing experiences that don't always translate as "good" or "fun." By no means do I want to discount the good people of Morocco, but I will say that their bathroom standards leave much to be desired.

So starting from the beginning: a madrugada awakening (which means "dawn" in Spanish, but I prefer to use madrugada because, to me, it holds the connotation of wanting to knife yourself because it's so early) on Saturday at 5 am, which is especially difficult because the sun doesn't rise until 8:30 in Spain. So I had breakfast by myself in the dark, triple checked that I had my passport, money, purell, backpack padlock, pickpocket-safe travel wallet, and garnier fructis mousse (i had room, don't judge), and hailed a cab (first time!) to get to our meeting point. It was quite bizarre waking up that early on a Saturday morning and driving through Sevilla - for Europe, 5 am is the hoppin'est time for bars and nightclubs, so there was plenty of activity going on that was continuing from the night before. Surreal. At the hotel where we met up, I found my group and familiarized myself with my surroundings. The entire group, consisting mostly of tired American students, 7 of which were from my program, a couple of nice Canadians, and some rowdy middle-aged Spanish women, boarded a bus for Cadiz, where our boat would depart in three hours. The boat was really awesome - basically like an airplane in terms of seating, only it was huge and had card tables and bars and slot machines. I could have stayed on that boat for a while instead of all the bus rides, but the Strait of Gibraltar is only about an hour's sailing distance.

Anyways, so we deboarded in Ceuta, an independent Spanish city in the north of Africa. It was AMAZING - all foggy and vegetational and whatnot, and I kept thinking, once again, of northern California. I really need to go to California after this trip. We got lunch at a tapas bar, some stellar ice cream afterwards, and then left for Tetouan, a city in Morocco where we would spend the night. Little did we know that our hotel was AWESOME, located right on the beach (they have beaches in Morocco?), and had a super chulisimo (legit) pool. So naturally my trip roomie and I threw on the suits and went down to the beach. Oh, side note - it is by far cooler in Africa than it is in Sevilla. What is wrong with the world?!

Upon arriving at the beach, we realize: NO WOMEN ARE WEARING BATHING SUITS. Como se dice Morocco foul???....we were stared at the entire time. so we huddled under our towels, cursing our program under our breath that they didn't send us a "norms of conduct in Islamic countries" leaflet. What do we know, we're just carefree Europeans!

The next morning we left for Shif-Chauen (sp?), a mountain village about 2 hours away. That was a really stellar drive - the views were incredible, and the town was really amazing too. All the buildings were white and blue, which apparently keeps the streets cooler and repels mosquitos. We toured a weaver's workshop, walked the tiny streets with our 4'5 guide who snorted some strange substance off of his hand every now and again, saw a million cats that look just like Cleo, and were stared at. We also used a bathroom that consisted of a small porcelain hole in the ground - these are the experiences that build character. While the rest of the bathrooms used on the trip actually had toilets, we all became accustomed to bringing Purell and kleenex to every bathroom, just to be prepared. They came in handy.

Next stop: Tangier, a larger and more urban city. We toured the cliffside, saw the point where the Mediterranean and Atlantic meet, saw the royal palace plot, and rode camels! They have such strange legs - when they sit down, they literally look like a human kneeling. It's super creepy. Then we got some time to shop in the streets - I was expecting more along the lines of handwoven handicrafts, but what we found was a knockoff market to rival New York. Because I didn't come to Morocco to buy fake Chanel scarves (which lots of Islamic women in the streets wore as head coverings, which I thought was pretty funny/an exemplary instance of Westernization/hybridization), I went off in search of other goods for which to barter. I did find a stellar leather purse for my hermanita's birthday - success!

The next morning we returned to Tetouan to tour the city, stopping at a famous pastry shop, a spice market, and finalizing our Moroccan adventure by eating lunch in a palace. We had couscous and potatoes and some sort of meat that was definitely not beef - it was good, but for all I know I could have eaten camel!

The rest of the journey went swimmingly, but my favorite part was the 2 and a half hour bus ride back to Sevilla - my trip roomie and I chatted the entire time with a 16 year old girl from Sevilla who went on the trip with her family. I don't even know what we talked about, but it was so much fun, and one of the longest interactions I've had with a Spaniard that's not in my family!

So, to sum it up: 1. My Spanish strangely improved this trip. I do not know how, but it did, and considerably at that. 2. I feel more Spanish after this trip - experiencing the same feeling of being an outsider in an Islamic country with all the rest of the Spaniards on the trip gave me a feeling of solidarity: that overall, western culture is essentially similar. 3. I experienced such extreme culture shock this trip, and I can't explain why - there were no horrible occurrences, nor did this come from anything concrete. It made me miss home, school, and Spain all at once, and it taught me never to take anything for granted. 4. I will never again say in a poly sci class that America does not have a dominant presence worldwide - I saw such westernization there, and it was refreshing and sad at the same time. It was a lot more touristy, less authentic, and more awkward than I could have imagined. 5. I now know that this will be the low standard (in terms of luxury) for all of my trips this quarter, so it's only uphill from kleenex and purell!