Greetings from Sunny Morocco! I have been here for almost two weeks and I am nearly through my first week of class. Things are going quite well. The first week here I spent in a hotel. We did some touring of Rabat and saw some of the older parts of the city. The first day we arrived there was an optional beach excursion (and of course I went). It was the city beach so it was very crowed. It was the first of many times that I truly felt out of place. Our whole group stood out - we were all pale and there were three blonds in our beach group. We got quite alot of attention... Another place we have visited (and gone back to many time) was the madina (the old part behind the walls) is my favorite. It is a bustling place full of people and donkeys and shopping and smells. On my journey around the city I visited chellah, which is the oldest part of the city, it is the area of the white and bright blue walls. It was a spetacular site, and very maze like, I will be returning here soon to explore more. We have also visited the old Roman ruins, which were beautiful. (pictures to come..as soon as I figure out how). On Sunday we visited a pottery "factory" for a lack of a better word. The owner of the shop showed us how to make the pottery, he was very talented and made it look so easy, which we found not to be true when we took our turn at the wheel.
I have been living with my host family almost a week now. It is starting to feel like home. The first few days were awkward as I learned what was expected and where things were and how to communicate. The daughter (15) speaks english very well, the son (12) speaks only arabic and french, the father speaks some english, and the mother very little english. So we speak in a mixture of their broken english and my broken arabic and use many gestures. They are wonderful people and very caring and are making me feel at home.
Today is the third day of Ramadan. There is a big change in the city during the day. Things are much slower and quiter. In the evenings just before the cannon sounds for iftar (the breakfast) it is like a ghost town. The night is filled with eating and visiting and celebration. Fortunatly my family does not expect me to stay up all night eating or wake up at 4:30am for a very early breakfast before dawn. It is not expected that nonmuslims fast, but to be polite we eat and drink discretely.
Over all things are wonderful here in Rabat...pictures and more updates to come!