“Please don’t come back as an Extremist” (My first post)

This quote from someone who will remain unnamed describes an all-too-common reaction when I tell people I’m going away to Morocco on exchange. The most common question I get is “why Morocco” or “why not somewhere like England or France”. Truth be told, that’s where I thought I would end up.

When I first started looking at exchange, Morocco was never even an option. I had my heart set on England or Scotland- the more typical or “safe” exchanges. Places where you would get a little bit of culture- different accents and cool buildings- but didn’t have to worry about the language gap or any sort of culture shock.

As I started looking further into exchange however, I reexamined what I wanted out of it. Going away for a whole year, I wanted something that would change the way I saw the world; change how I saw myself in the world. I started being a bit more adventurous and looking at countries like Spain or France- places where there was a language and cultural barrier but western liberal democracies. Places which were diverse but still perceived to be safe.

The more I looked however, I realized that this was the only real chance I had to experience something different. Think about it, you can’t ever again say “oh I’m just gonna go travel and study abroad, but please don’t fire me”. The “real world” doesn’t work like that. This is only real chance I will have to spend a whole year in a different country and really attempt to understand it. I did not want to stay in a country which I knew was a safe place, I wanted an adventure- somewhere that would plunge me into the deep and force me to learn to swim.

Of all the options available to go, I kept looking at Morocco. I knew next to nothing about it other than where it is and that it is a Muslim country. After looking into it further, I found it was where my heart was set on. While Arabic is one of the major languages in the state, it is dialectically different from almost anywheres else. Colonized mostly by France, the latin alphabet became integrated with Arabic, as well as words from (obviously) French, Spanish (partially colonized by Spain), and many Berber (tribal) languages creating the dialect of Darija. Additionally, Morocco has a vibrant local culture which includes (apparently) good food and warm people. Just the food alone was enough to convince me that Morocco is the place for me. Lastly, the school at which I’ll be studying has about 240 students TOTAL! That’s the size of most of my lectures here. It also is focused on current challenges in The Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). Something I’m really interested in.

Now, as I sit in Stauffer Library in Kingston, Ontario writing this (and procrastinating doing real work), I know that this time next year I will be 5000km away from some of the best people I’ve met over my time at Queen’s and 8000km away from the people who raised me and who have always been there for me, my family. It’s a scary thought but one which motivates me to cherish every moment I have left in Kingston and to really appreciate my time back home in Calgary this summer because come September, I’ll be packing my bags for eight life-changing months in Morocco!

Hope you stick along for the ride- I promise it will be an adventure!