Morocco

This past weekend I went to Morocco! We landed in Casablanca, and had planned to take a train overnight to Marrakech. However, when we got there, they told us the trains were not running. We scrambled around for a little bit, then we finally found out a bus that would get us there that night. We quickly went to the Hassan II Mosque, the second biggest in the world after Mecca. It was absolutely gorgeous; I could only use my disposable camera as my canon is not working : (
With our changed plans we could not spend that much time there, and we got to Marrakech a little after midnight. We took a taxi (which, by the way, you negotiate prices with, as you do with everything here) to what we though was close to where we were staying. After walking around a little, though, it was clear that we were in fact not. So, we took another cab to where we actually were supposed to be. None of us know French, but luckily, one person traveling with us speaks Arabic; he is Lebanese, so the dialect is significantly different, but it is enough to get by. The taxi could not go through the narrow streets so it dropped us off where the central market is held. We were instantly approached by little local boys doing cartweels and asking us for payment. We were supposed to try to call our Riad to have them bring us to them, but none of our cell phones work and all the pay phones required a calling card. We tried asking a local if we could use his phone in exchange for a few Dirham (Moroccan currency); that didn't work either, and he insisted on bringing us where we needed to be. It was pretty shady, and we knew that we would have to end up paying him, but at this point we had no choice. We were led through tons of turning tiny streets, and finally made it there. We gave him and some other local that had tagged along a few bucks, and went to our Riad. A Riad is exactly like a hostel, but it has a little central courtyard. It was super nice and pretty, and we got unlimited hookah and awesome mint tea. We were also lucky that we were able to stay the first night, was we weren't supposed to arrive until the next.
In the morning, the manager of the Riad showed us around the area and taught us exactly how to find our way back, which was really nice. We walked around the old city, saw the mosque, and shopped. I bought a lot at the markets; haggling is a part of their culture, and most were happy to. The food was great and cheap.. we ate a lot of cous cous and eggplant and kebabs from street vendors. At night, the center square is full of food stalls, and everyone begs you to come to theres.. Some get actually angry when you end up at another stall. The sweets were also awesome. Everyone asks you for one thing or another; they are either selling things, or want to paint henna on you, or let you take a picture with their snake or monkey.. Luckily, unlike a group of girls I know who went before, we didn't receive crude cat calls. We were with a couple guys, which definitely made the difference; I think the worst I got were constant hellos in Chinese and Japanese and being called flower.
That afternoon we went to Palais Bahia; it was nice, but the market was more impressive.. We were going to go out in the new city that night, but we didn't feel the need to, and were spending so much on shopping and our excursion the next day that we decided to wait until Madrid for nightlife.
The next day, we took a trip to the Atlas mountains. We saw a traditional Berber home and rode camels! Then we went on a hike, which we expected to be low key, but turned out being for real.. Of course, none of us had proper shoes.. But is was still awesome and gorgeous; it was nice to be out of a city.
That night we did more eating and shopping, and scrambled around a little trying to find out how to get back to Casablanca the next morning. We were able to figure out the bus, and everything went smoothly on our return. Coming back was difficult, though; all of these little trips are such a tease! I get a small taste of vacation, then I'm back to school.
School, by the way, is horrible right now. It has not gotten easier, and by now, I am at a loss. I don't know how to do better, and I don't really think I care. It is a shame that this is really putting a damper on things. As much as I love it here, I am ready to go home and not have to deal with Spanish class. It is also a shame that I usually love school; I am used to being enthusiastic about class, and here, it is simply a chore. I just hope this doesn't drag down my gpa; it is really not something I obsess over, but this seems like a silly thing to mess it up over.