The Beginning

             The apartment that I am living in this year is really great!  It is pretty big and it is in a safe neighborhood, which is comforting.  All of the apartments have one or more balconies and none of the windows have screens, and people hang their clothes across them or from the roof.  Since the windows have no screens, I am slightly worried that a bird is going to find its way in some day soon.  I suppose we will cross that bridge when we get there!  A few bugs have managed to find a way in, but not too many. 

            One interesting part of the apartment is the shower.  There is no door, nor is there a shower curtain, nor a place to install either of those things.  The tile around the small square shower area is only raised about one inch from the ground, therefore the water goes all over the bathroom.  I guess this is a typical shower though, but we have to clean the bathroom every day.  Ugh.

            After sleeping for about 14 hours my first night, my friend and I made our way to Aswaak Alsalaam, the Moroccan equivalent of a Wal-Mart.  I was really glad to find that this kind of store exists because I was not sure if there was going to be a place like that that here.  We have been taking taxis to various places, and I have been practicing my Arabic.  The taxi drivers are really impressed when I even attempt to speak Arabic, because interestingly enough, I do not look like the typical Arabic speaker since I have brown hair, fair skin and freckles.

            Last night we went over to my professor’s brother’s apartment about 300 feet away and ate a typical Moroccan meal cooked in a tajine, which is a pointed pot to cook a stew-like meal.  We arrived at about 9:00 PM and ate sometime around 11:00.  This is because it is currently Ramadan and Muslims are supposed to fast during the sunlight hours.  Once the sun sets, they can eat, and many of them eat 3 meals throughout the night.  We ate in typical Moroccan style, not using forks or knives, but instead using bread and our fingers to scoop up the food.  It is important to only use your right hand because the left one is considered unclean.

            So far, everything seems to be going pretty well.  The language barrier makes things a little difficult, but we are managing to get by.  I have been learning so much in such a short time, and things constantly surprise me, such as the stores do not sell some things like milk, but they do carry High School Musical and Disney princess backpacks.  Well, that’s all I’ve got!!  We are going to watch Friends now!