The First Third (and a bit)
It has now been just over three months since I first arrived, tired, stinky and luggage free, in Rabat. Here’s a quick look at how things have been.
1: School: Wow that was fast. First semester (with the exception of two papers) is officially over. The six courses I took were, for the most part, interesting and I feel like I learned a lot. This is especially true in terms of…
2: Language: This has been a struggle. This semester I took classes in both Modern Standard Arabic and Darija, Moroccan Arabic. What’s the difference? A LOT! Modern Standard Arabic (written arabic) provided a lot of the basis for Darija, as in we learned how to write all the letters and some basic grammar structures which exist in both. Darija, was basically a crash course on all the vocab needed to survive in Morocco. We learned a million different words for daily life, but having zero Arabic before coming, it was a bit hard to follow. Thankfully, it’s starting to come along and I can have some basic conversation in Darija with the cab driver and bargain better now.
3: Bargaining: One of the biggest adjustments for me has been trying to do groceries. We’re lucky that there’s a souk (outdoor market) super close to our flat, but far enough that it isn’t noisy all day and night. Basically they give you clear vegetable bags (like in North America) and you fill them up with the fruits/veggies that you want. The difference is the food is sitting in wooden crates in the middle of the street and the price isn’t labelled. Once you get as much as you need, you take it to the guy at the scale, who weighs it and gives you the price. Then you haggle a bit over how much to pay. It was a huge shock initially because we would get ripped off consistently, but we learned how much we should pay.
4:Settling in: It’s been a struggle to settle into Morocco- because it’s culturally and linguistically very different from Canada. That being said, a number of small things have helped me feel more settled here. I’ve been able to have conversations in darija with cab drivers and not totally embarrass myself. I’ve made some really good friends since I arrived, who have made me feel so welcome. I’ve been able to sit in a smokey cafe and do work and only be slightly bothered by the smell.
Most importantly, I’ve accepted that is not, and will not be, better or worse than Canada. This is a hard one to explain. People say that when you go to a new country, you initially fall in love with the culture, because it is new to you. Then you begin to miss home and dislike the culture, because you miss things about home and how things work there. Then, at some point, you stop comparing your exchange country with home. You learn to accept that you will not become a part of that culture, and that it will not be like home. There will be things that change you and there will be similarities to home, but on the whole, it will just be different. I think I’ve hit the final stage. I have come to terms with the idea that I am not and will not be Moroccan. Morocco has undoubtably changed me, and will continue to change me, but at the end of the day, my perspective on the country will be that of an outsider.
And on that note, some huge news: I just booked a one way return flight from Barcelona to Rabat, meaning that I’ll be exploring Spain on my own for about 17 days this January. I’m also looking for input on places to go and things to do, so if you have any ideas, please let me know!
Finally, no post would be complete without a photo, so here’s one of me in a Moroccan Djellaba, courtesy of my friend Mohammed Ali, and of course the Snapback
