GCP Jordan pics

From the Carpathians to Timisoara

Jumping atop the Carpathian Mountains above Castle Bran.

Click on this image (only this image) for animation.

Ascending “Dracula's” secret passage in Castle Bran

Crossing academic borders with students at Moise Nicoara High School in Arad

Traditional Romanian dancing with Business/Economics students from Polytechnic University of Timisoara

We were invited to karaoke with students from Timisoara

It took a Madonna song to get everyone singing together on stage.

Dance class in Chile

At Universidad Mayor

Just a few quick photos before we head to bed in Bran, Romania (Outside of Brasov). Tomorrow we're off to see Castle Bran and take a cable car ride up the mountains if weather permits. We'll be in Arad on Thursday and Timisoara on Friday and will keep in touch then. Please feel free to leave any comments or questions for any of us traveling!














Christina is pictured taking a photograph of a statue in the city square.
















On the plane flight from Bucharest to Iasi, Larry (bottom right) and Kaitlin(just above him) go beyond borders and strike up conversation with their romanian neighbors on the flight. Larry can be seen working through the language barrier with his new friend Silviu.

Here we are in Sighisoara at a medieval town with the hillside in the background.

We are all pictured at A.I. Cuza University where we met with the Director of the University as well as several faculty who gave tours of their departments.

Kaitlin celebrated her birthday on Sunday in Bucharest and got chocolates from the group as we sang her happy birthday in Romanian.

We've got a photo of our dessert after dinner in Bucharest. Papanasi: Large donut like pastries with rasberries, rasberry sauce and icing. So good.

FINALLY

SOOO, I JUST figured out my old password to my log-in for the SU Abroad... I had lost hope, and decided to go ahead an start anew... creating another blog of my own of BLOGGER... SOOO

Here's the website to my past two blogs:

http://moonmeetsamar.blogspot.com/

I have my own blog, but will try to do both...

EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL here is Cairo! Wishing everyone "warmth," and glad to hear all the trips are off to a great start!!!

Kim*

GCP Jordan Update

From: Miles Davis - project leader
Sent: Sun 3/8/2009 10:56 AM

We have landed and on way to hotel. Everyone is really excited and having an great time despite long flight and lack of sleep:-)

GCP MALI UPDATE

Project leader Bethany Galipeau left a brief phone message Saturday, March 7, 6:30pm EST to say all is well and they have safely arrived in MALI.

GCP Chile Update

The group arrived in Santiago safe and sound.

GCP Vietnam Update

Hi from Hanoi,

We all got here safely! All flights were in time. We landed at 10:10 PM, local time. Everything went smothooly. No one got sick, just a little bit tired after a long trip. The weather is fine about 60F, no rain. Tomorrow, we will have a city tour during the day and water puppet at evening.

...we would like to thank to all of you for all the work you've done to make this trip happen.

Diep

GCP Romania Group Has Arrived!

Hello back home to everyone in Winchester and beyond!

After nearly 13 hours of traveling forward in time we arrived in Bucharest, Romania at 2-ish in the afternoon on Saturday. The flights were great and everyone is thrilled to be here. Most of us are taking a 2-hour nap at the moment before we head out for a late afternoon tour of Bucharest followed by dinner at a traditional Romanian restaurant. Tomorrow is a full day of events ending with a flight to Iasi. Check back to hear from us Sunday/Monday!


--GCP 2009, Romania Travelers!

Shenandoah University Global Citizenship Project 2009 underway!

Friday, March 6, 2009: 4 GCP groups were successfully transported to Dulles Airport:

* Vietnam
* Chile
* Romania
* Mali

Saturday, March 7, 2009: early afternoon the GCP Jordan group will be on their way!

Saturday, March 7, 2009: (9:30am EST): GCP ROMANIA has arrived safely and soundly and are in Bucharest. All is well as they begin their journey through Romania!

We will be posting information from the leaders and groups as we receive it.

All is well, safe travels, bon voyage!

Jean C. Hayes, Global Education Coordinator
Shenandoah University
jhayes@su.edu
540-665-5460

bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui!

Wednesday 04. March 2009. 23:04

(Good News Today!)

I just found out this morning after Arabic that I was selected for the MENA scholarship again from SU. In other words, I’ll get to extend my stay in Morocco for the summer with AMIDEAST’s Arabic Intensive!!! I am so excited that I can’t even put it into words yet! As soon as I saw the e-mail announcing the scholarship again for the summer, I wondered if it’d be possible for me to be eligible again. While I didn’t want to take anyone else’s opportunity to study here on scholarship, I also felt that I truly could excel with an additional (& intensive) term since I’m already adjusted to the culture, classes, host-family, etc... Not to mention, it’s pretty difficult to grasp the language here as a beginner in only 4 months (in addition to 3 humanities classes & 2 other courses via distance ed. at SU). I see the other students here with previous semesters in Arabic at their home universities reallyyyy pushing forward here, & I want to do the same! All I have to do is apply through AMIDEAST, which should not be too difficult since they already have all of my information on file. I can even go home before the summer session begins if I want (I already have my flight booked for May 16th), but there’s only a week lapse before the summer session. So if I do go home, it will be a QUICK turnaround- just a day or two to bring summer clothes back & all necessary medications (considering there’s currently about $500 worth of my asthma/allergy medications will not be released by customs in Casablanca right now!...luckily I’m feeling MUCH better since last week...& without all the meds. that are being held...apparently the high quantities are considered “questionable” & customs thinks that I might try to distribute my medicine to others..at least they’re being cautious I guess lol).

Oh yea, everyone here is just as excited for me as I am! I’m really fortunate to receive this opportunity again. I hope that other SU students realize that our school DOES offer fantastic abroad-opportunities, they just have to go after them!!! When I think of it, I’ve been able to travel to Panama with GCP, study in Argentina for a summer session, & now study for 2 semesters in Morocco through SU. Each opportunity was through scholarship except the GEL program to Argentina.... I mean, it’s crazy! “Crazy” in a good way of course. haha
It’s somewhat strange; I feel like I was meant to be here in Morocco. :)

ANYWAY, the week is going by quickly since we have off for the Prophet’s birthday next Monday & Tuesday. I only have my 3 hr Amazigh class (my favorite class here actually) until 12:00 on Friday. Then I have off until the following Wednesday. Some people are going to France, Spain, & even nearby beaches or cities. I plan on staying here because I’m broke from spending all of my money on medicine (my parents too). It’s OK though because my Moroccan “boyfriend” (Mustapha) is visiting me from Marrakech since I visited him last a couple weeks ago. :) haha Who would have thought that I’d meet someone in Morocco?? Actually, there’s another guy (Azzdine) in Rabat who I hang out with too, usually just for coffee, but I only like him as a friend.. luckily, I think he knows that. It’s funny though because my host-sister (remember who is only 15) says that it’s “meshy mushkil” (“no problem”) to date both! ..since they’re in different towns & all... HA. I said, “la, la, la...mushkil!” (“no, no, no, it’s a problem!”). Anyway, Stof’s only staying until Sunday so I’ll still have a couple days off until school starts again...which is great for me to get some work done before midterms begin & even relax a little too.

What else?... Oh yea, I’m going to start teaching English once or twice a week at a school in Salee (about a half hour away). I’m really excited to teach here because I know the students are as eager to learn English as I am to learn Arabic & Darija!

I also found out the mass times at the Catholic Church here so I’m excited because now I’ll be able to go every week. :) It’ll be interesting to see how the mass is structured here..it’ll also be interesting to see how many prayers I actually remember IN FRENCH. haha I don’t think it’ll be too bad though. :)

I think that’s it for now...it’s a little after midnight now & I need to read for my Contemporary Culture Class tomorrow. We have to decide on a paper/topic for our final presentation, and since we also have a “creative” option in lieu of the 15 page paper, I think that I am going to choreograph a dance & write a reaction. Afterall, I haven’t really been dancing here; I’ve only been keeping up with Pilates, Yoga, & stretching whenever I can. I am planning on joining the gym here in the next couple weeks though; I’m dying to take Oriental Dance classes!!! I mean.. they’ll actually be helpful with my presentation, right?? HA.

Ok, time to read & get to sleep (if I’m able to because I’m still SO excited about the scholarship)! The morning Arabic classes are rotating class times every week now, so I have 8:30AM class this week (back to 9:30AM next week)...which means that I have to leave my house 45 minutes- 1 hour early to walk to school in time... & unless it’s raining, I love the walk. :)

Bis’lehma (“goodbye”) for now!!!
xoxo

Update from Rabat, Morocco (SU scholarship student)

Friday, 27/02/2009

So this weekend is the group trip to Tangier; I’m at home in my bedroom in Rabat. I chose not to go on the trip since I’ve been sick all week. I went to my Arabic class on Monday morning, then didn’t go back to school until yesterday (Thursday). I basically caught whatever “cold” was going around the study-abroad group, in addition to struggling with my asthma. I probably was susceptible of catching the virus since I already had been on anti-biotics and steroids for my asthma, leaving my immune system weak. I’ve seen the lung specialist twice here now. Although I had been using my new nebulizer already, when I went to the clinic this past Monday, he gave me a breathing treatment and a corticosteroid injection. He also wrote me 4 Rxs for various medications. I haven’t picked them up though because I’m broke, and my parents just mailed me the rest of my medications, costing about $300. I hate to keep asking them for money for medical expenses & whatnot... Granted, healthcare over here is much cheaper than in the States. The difference though is that a patient has to pay up front in cash & then submit the claim to the insurance to get reimbursed later... so it’s been somewhat frustrating with that...

I don’t want to continue to get behind on my work, so I figure a weekend of rest (& catching up on schoolwork) is best for me. AMIDEAST is happy with my decision too as I would have been at risk since the group is traveling to other cities, besides Tangier... There would not be any medical clinics available, should something happen to me, while traveling through the country/mountains. The weather in Tangier/the mountains was supposed to be cold & raining throughout the weekend, and I definitely don’t need to add anything else to my illness. Luckily, I’m starting to feel “shwiya” (a little) better today...finally! haha

Anyway, it’s funny because I feel like I’m living in some sort of a vortex here or something. I’ve totally lost concept of time, particularly for those back in the States. For instance, Ash Wednesday occurred this week, which means it’s Lent already. I did not find this out until that day (luckily I found this out before I ate any meat on Wednesday). SInce I was sick though, I was unable to search out a Church to get ashes. I think this is the first time in my life that I did not receive ashes. Apparently there are a couple Catholic churches in Rabat; I hopefully will begin to go this Sunday. It means a lot to me to try to maintain my religious perspective here; although I definitely have become more open to Islam than I thought I would be. I like that people here are religious. I like that God or Allah something common in everyday conversation. There’s such a separation of Church & state in America, that I think it almost makes people feel ashamed to mention God so “no one is offended.” Yet here, one cannot even greet another without mentioning “hem-do’Allah” (thanks be to Allah) for the encounter. Even when departing from another, the typical response to “a bientot” (“see you later,” en Francais) is “in-cha’Allah” (God-willing). It just inspires me to witness people’s openness of spirituality here without any qualms to do so. This is why I feel motivated to practice my own religion here. I’ve found that, although as each religious faith thinks that theirs is the superior/Singular faith, people here generally are respectful toward others’ beliefs. If anything, Moroccans are delighted to see the outward faith of other believers. I almost feel more “proud” to be a Catholic here than in the States, because I feel a mutual respect here between Islam and myself as a Christian. I sometimes wish others could be more open to various religious faiths and beliefs, because in the end, we’re ALL part of one humanity.

OK, I think that is it for today...I’ve mentioned 2 of the 3 things “never” to talk about: money, religion, & politics (I already mentioned politics in a previous blog). Yet I think that it’s not so much about what one should not discuss, it’s a problem of ignorance (defined as a lack of knowledge or information...not to be defined as “rude”) and openness toward the “other.” Perhaps blogs like these can open up some minds and perspectives toward acceptance of various cultures, beliefs, and traditions. If not, that’s OK too... after all, there is nothing to lose...only insight to gain.

culture shock

Friday, 20/02/2009

My first few bouts of culture shock occurred Valentine's Day weekend. 

It started when I plugged in my nebulizer and it fried because of the voltage difference. AMIDEAST first sent me to a doctor (who only spoke French and Arabic). She simply listened to my chest and said to keep taking my medicine. She also gave me a card of where she “thought” I could purchase a new nebulizer. Her thoughts were incorrect. On that Friday I made an appointment with the lung-specialist. I never thought I’d be so happy to hear the words “lung specialist” and “speaks English” as much as I did. Getting there was a bit tricky as no one from AMIDEAST went with me. Granted, I’d like to think I’m becoming well-seasoned with the taxis in Morocco, but this drive was somewhat stressful. I told the driver the street and all of a sudden, he stopped and said, “safi?” (enough?). We were at the end of the street; I didn’t even know we were on the street because it was on a different side of town! SO I told him the number of the building and he had to drive the whole way around again, which cost me an additional 10 dirhams (dh). The only problem with this of course was I had borrowed $200 dh for the appointment from Diana and only had enough change for the cab (the 1st time around). The fact that I was 30 mins late for the appointment didn’t help either. I called the doctor’s office to say that I’d be late and my lack of French/Arabic clashed with the receptionist’s lack of English. When she put the doctor on the phone, he said, “I don’t speak English.” Since I was fed up with the last doctor not being helpful to me because of the language barrier, I shouted, “what?? You’re speaking English now!” He said, “I know, but I only know a little.” I was thinking, ugh, not again.... I also thought, what's an asthmatic to do in Morocco besides go to the hospital?? People here do have asthma &/or allergies, right?? lol It was the 1st time I misses having the "luxury" of US healthcare....

Anyway, I got there OK, called & vented to my friend Hannah, then saw the doctor. He didn’t speak much English, but luckily, asthmatic terminology is keef-keef (the same). At first, as I was still flustered, I said that I just needed to know where to buy a nebulizer. He made a call for me and gave me the address to a local medical supply store. After hearing that I had pneumomediastinum in November, he insisted on checking my lungs with his stethoscope. He then wrote me a Rx for the equivalent of Prednisone & another for a personal nebulizer. He said that he will work on his English for me, should I have to return. He must have liked me (or felt sympathy for me) since I was $10 dh short of the $200 dh (because of the cab) when I had to pay for the visit afterward. I said my khem-do’Allahs (“thanks be to Allah”) like none-other after I left. Of course, I had to navigate my way home as I didn’t have money for a cab. 

I stayed at Hannah’s that night- we chilled with her host family, ate couscous, and watched Aladdin. It was great! My 1st sleepover in Morocco...& we watched Aladdin! hahaha Talk about cliche! I definitely saw the movie in a totally different context since I’m in Morocco. I love how Disney movies are just as much for adults (with particular references) as for children. 

The next day was Valentine’s day and I felt bad because I “stood up” (more or less) my Moroccan friend Azdine several times throughout the day. Hannah and I overslept  & I ignored all of Azdine’s calls because I was so tired (even though I originally had got up at 8:30 AM, and as no one else was yet awake, I went back to sleep). Azdine wanted me to travel to Casablanca with him & his friends. Since I didn’t get to do that, I said I’d meet up with him in the evening...but that didn’t happen either. lol 

Hannah & I had this “plan” to get our hair done, go out to dinner with the rest of the AMIDEAST crew, and then go out either to a party with some other students or to a club...

This is where my 2nd bout with culture shock occurred:

In a nutshell, the ATM ate my debit card. The irony is that my mom had just deposited money into my account the night before for my medicine & whatnot; since the bank was closed, I couldn’t go inside to try and retrieve my card. This seriously upset me mostly because no one around me understood me when I tried to tell them that my card was stuck in the machine. Hannah & my host-sister Lilia were with me when I “lost it.” Lilia even translated to all of the people in line that the ATM was broken, but one lady in particular had to try to jam her card into the ATM to figure it out herself. Meanwhile, I gave into impatience & had a "mini-fit" in the streets. I knew people were watching (& therefore knew I was American), but I didn't care.  When I went back inside to my apartment, my host Dad said I could get my card from the bank Monday morning.. but that if I didn't get there early enough, the bank would send it to Casablanca... I thought, great, just what I wanted to hear.

Looking back at these incidents a couple weeks later, I realize things weren't as bad as they seemed. I'm seeing the lung specialist regularly; I also got my debit card back. :) 

I actually feel like this trip is changing me in so many ways, I can’t explain it. I find that with each trip abroad I learn more about myself- internally and, of course, culturally. I’m not sure what I want to do after my "graduation" in May, but I think I must travel (if I can afford it). This trip is helping me to see the “other” as I’ve never seen before. So much so that the line differentiating me from the “other” is diminishing.... how cool is that?

1st 3 weeks in Morocco!

OK, so I haven't made a "blog" yet & i've been in Morocco for 3 weeks now.....Granted, I've written in my journal several times, I simply did not know where to start with posting my thoughts/experiences publicly. hmmm.... where to start..... I suppose the beginning with Orientation week, jam-packed with activities, "Survival Moroccan Arabic" classes, and tours around Rabat. We also stayed at Hotel Oumlil during orientation before we moved in with our host-families one week later. My room-mate was Sarah Ullman, a former child-actress apparently. She was very kind and the sound of her laugh always made me laugh..she actually reminded me of a friend back in Johnstown who I had ballet with named Jenna:) I did feel bad though as I am a self-proclaimed "morning person" and she is not. I'm certain I woke her up every morning when I got up (even though I often woke up Before my alarm went off....it's like she could sense my eyes had opened & then she would stir in her bed. I guess not everyone is a heavy sleeper like me)....
Again, I felt bad, but I like to enjoy my "me time" each morning before the day begins. haha I think i take after my Dad with waking up early because he never sleeps in much either.... I met some great people/friends during Orientation. 2 girls in particular share a great love of coffee with me. Their names are Hannah & Katie. Hannah is Persian, is from Miami, and has the same exact voice as Autumn Apsey (a nice reminder of my dear friends at SU); Katie goes to NC State, is from Ohio, and has a voice/personality of someone I know but I still have yet to figure out who it is that she reminds me of! Either way, we hung out one of the 1st days in a cafe & i know who to call upon should I want to go to a cafe & b.s. &/or do homework. 
it's raining today...pretty dreary outside actually. I hate the rain. The weather here's been OK, chilly outside some days...sunny others....& raining the rest. The difference though is that the houses/apartments here do not have central heating; so while in the states, one can stay warm inside, here that is not the case. In fact, it often is cooler Inside my host-family's apartment than it is outside! Layering up at night with thermals, sweats, & 2 pairs of socks clearly has become the norm (underneath 3 blankets) ha.  Speaking of my host-family....i LOVE them! They are so sweet and probably would do anything for me (or anyone for that matter). Apparently Rose (another SU student) stayed with the same family when she was studying here at AMIDEAST last semester...talk about ironic! Anyway, my host-sister, Lilia (15 yrs old) speaks English (as well as Arabic, Darija-the spoken Moroccan Arabic, and French), so that has helped bridge the language barrier between me & the other family members. My host-brother Nadir (12, soon-to-be 13 yrs old) only knows a handful of words in English, most of which he picked up from me...I intentionally speak English to him as a way for him to learn haha not that that helps me any with my Arabic, Darija, or French, but it does help with various hand signals & "body language"...for instance, he now knows how to say, "I. will. kill. you." quite well. HAHA seriously though, we really do exchange words/phrases a lot...I'll say something in English & he'll give me the equivalent in either Darija, Arabic, or French...the french-english dictionary of my host-sister has become quite helpful to say the least. haha Then there are my host-parents: My host-mother Siham, and my host-father Saiid. Siham is a French teacher for 3-4 year olds (who probably know more French than me) and Saiid is a bank teller at BMCI bank here in Morocco. Saiid knows some English here and there; Siham not-so-much....but it's fun trying to bridge that language barrier once again with my host parents as we exchange various translations in our respective native languages. I always know when my host-mother wants to address me, because she pauses, smiles at me, & says, "uh...La-gr-an!"...a friendly pronunciation of my name with a clear French R. Back to my host-Dad... he loves watching National Geographic because he likes animals...especially crocodiles, snakes, and lions as it seems. :) I always hear him say "wowww" when he watches all the exotic animals move/attack on tv...it makes me stop to question why i do not watch the same thing with such curiosity and wonder anymore...like i've somewhat lost that sense of awe when witnessing acts of nature and life... 
Other things: We all have been assigned language-partners to assist us with our Arabic/Darija and likewise, to assist them with their English. Mine is named Manal, she's 22, and from Marrakech. So far, we've met up for coffee a few times at the cafe next to AMIDEAST. We've also gone bowling at the "MegaMall," and I've gotten to meet her cousin and some other friends as well. She's studied English for 5 years and I'm truly impressed with how well she speaks. That's the thing about here...it seems as though students/people are truly passionate (or perhaps interested) in learning other languages. I mean, I studied 4 years of French in high school (all honors classes & including independent study my senior year), 5 years of Spanish (including a semester in Argentina), and 3 more years of Latin in grade school....yet, am I fluent in any of those languages?? No. The cool thing about here is that you can go outside from the classroom & "practice" whichever language you're studying at the time. Needless to say, it's difficult to leave class & speak French on the streets in Winchester, VA....But here, people at least know Arabic, Darija, and French...Next comes English, and even Spanish &/or Italian for some. I can't imagine such fluency in the States....It almost makes me jealous that the people here were raised to speak so many languages....then again, the irony is that it seems as though "everyone" is studying my language of English. So the argument of course is, 'why bother learning another language when they're all turning to mine??' My answer is because 1) i enjoy learning new languages 2) by learning a new language, one can "pick up" a piece (small as it might be) of the language's culture, and 3) various languages expand one's thoughts, knowledge, and (clearly) can lead to new experiences. Or of course I could say that I'd like to learn other languages simply because.. I already know English :)  
We watched the Presidential Inauguration last week, and the other adjective I can use to describe the experience is SURREAL. Seriously, imagine about 28 of us crammed into our tiny Study-Abroad Room on the 4th floor of AMIDEAST watching CNN on TV while Barack Obama was sworn in as the next President of the United States. We all had to stand/sit/lie on the floor so everyone could see the TV all right. Some of us ordered pizza & brought snacks to enjoy while watching..making it a sort of "un-official" Inauguration Party. The cool part was that we E-mailed CNN.com to let the network know where we were "during the moment." To our surprise, our message was posted on the site (along with a picture) and friends/family/universities at home got to see a glimpse of us watching.. the whole way from Rabat, Morocco. Needless to say, I'll always remember where I was at, who I was with, and how I felt during that day. Even local Moroccans were excited for us, it seemed. Many of them, after finding out we're Americans, say "Obama!" ...I suppose as a way to relate to us and our country, which is cool.  
What else? I think it is safe to say that no blog would be complete without mentioning the food here... Breakfast- Breakfast is quite simple here. No heavy omelettes with hash browns/home fries, sausage, and the like...instead, breakfast consists of bread (basically a baguette-type roll) with Nutella, kiri cheese, or jam, and coffee (most homes stir instant coffee into hot milk, but luckily for me, my family has an actual coffee maker).  The bread might also be dipped into Argan oil- from trees found Only in Morocco, this oil I find to be much tastier than Olive Oil (although that often is the accompanying oil for bread). I of course have managed my own breakfast "recipe" by substituting my favorite peanut butter & banana sandwiches with Nutella and banana sandwiches! Peanut butter is not easily found here (if I had known that, I would have brought a 5-month supply of JIF), & when it is, only in small jars. Luckily again for me, our neighbors exchange student is from the States and was here last semester too- She gave my host family 2 family-sized jars of JIF creamy peanut butter! SOO my latest breakfast craze now include peanut butter, nutella, and banana sandwiches. :) hehehe Gotta make waking up worthwhile somehow! Onto Lunch- this is a variable meal for me since I have class. Typically, it's supposed to be the largest meal of the day here. But instead of going home, I usually go to the Hanut (or corner-store) next to AMIDEAST & get a piece of bread, a yogurt, and fruit (an orange, apple, or banana usually). Some days we go to a cafe and I might get an omelette (with Ketchup of course!), a panini, or even a small pizza. One thing i've learned is to STAY AWAY  FROM THE SALADS!!! Sure, the Moroccan salads that consist of chopped up potatoes, beets, avocados, and carrots are fine...but the ones that seem to resemble American salads (bed of lettuce topped with chicken, shrimp, corn, tomatoes, etc..), Beware!!! Granted, AMIDEAST told us this the 1st day we arrived; they also told us not to drink the tap water for at least a week....I did both. Last week (week # 3), however, I seemed to have my 1st bout with food poisoning, which I'm certain is a result from the American-esque salad as I felt sick shortly after eating it. I threw up violently for about 3 days before the various meds I got from the pharmacy kicked in & the "poison" left my system. I now have a strong salad aversion, understandably so.  Lastly, dinner. This meal typically is not eaten until about 10PM here. However, I'm convinced I'm not living with a Moroccan family as they eat at a "normal" time for us American folk- we're talking 5:30/6/6:30. Meals vary from couscous with vegetables & chicken (one of my favorites probably), to beef and potatoes, "tortillas" (omelettes, essentially), a spicy type of meatballs, Moroccan crepes with jam and honey, spicy chicken and rice, even spaghetti/pasta. Of course, silverware is hardly used (except for pasta/salads) and the meal is "scooped up" with bread as everyone shares from one large platter. Yes, bread. So if one is on some type of low-carb diet, he/she automatically fails within 1 meal in Morocco.  In between lunch and dinner, in a "typical" family setting (again, my family is the opposite, so this is rare for us), is "tea time." This is around 5 or 6 since dinner is not until later. So, you guessed it, tea is served with various breads/pasteries/cookies. The traditional tea is a green  mint  tea that is Overly-sweetened (at least  for my liking) with sugar. My host-mom sometimes makes homemade hot chocolate on the stove (with 1 milk chocolate bar and 1 dark chocolate bar), and that is equally as good as the tea if not better. :)

More to come later!

xoxo,

Lauren 

Shenandoah University student Lauren Pappas watching the inauguration in Morocco (from CNN) - check the link

iReport: The world is watching
Posted: 12:48 PM ET

It's a given that most people in the United States are glued to their TV screens right now, as President Barack Obama just took the oath of office. But the rest of the world is watching, too. We're receiving iReports from all around the globe.

A group of college students studying abroad in Rabat, Morocco, sent this photo of themselves gathered to watch the ceremony. "We had to beg to be able to set the television up and we are so glad we are able to watch," they wrote in their iReport.

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-187335