Wedding Part II and A Few Other Things

I'm finally home and somewhat settled in my host family's house. Most of my things are still in another city, and I can't seem to get warm! I've never appreciated the warmth of a family pet so much! Oh, and I know I promised more about the wedding I attended so here it is:

OK, so not much happened on the second night! There was a bride, which was a plus in my opinion. The groom also attended, you'll be happy to know! The two arrived in a car in the courtyard of the hotel and were escorted, with lots of cheering, to two throne-like chairs under a beautiful metal canopy. There was a band, and lots of dancing. Some women danced and some chose not to. My host sisters were among those who did not, as they believe it is shameful (hshuma) to dance in the presence of men. Some women actually danced with men though! Whoa! But mostly the genders stuck to themselves.

At certain intervals the bride stepped out from the canopy, sat in a small cage, was lifted and carried throughout the dancing crowd. She waved a little like Princess Di. When she was set down, the groom was carried around. He actually stood up and did a little impromptu dance. Then they both left the courtyard and she came back in a new dress. Depending on the wealth of the family the bride will change clothes up to five times, sometimes more. What I remember most is that there was a lot of orange involved, and that it was too cold for me to sit out there the entire night. I understood why people danced despite the hshuma. However, I did get a couple of good pictures of my host family out of it. The first one is of my host mother, Zahara, with my host niece, Fedwa, and the second is of my with my host sister, Habiba. I couldn't have asked for a lovelier family.

Speaking of really lovely people, I also recently said goodbye to all of my new Peace Corps friends! On November 26th we all swore in as volunteers in Fes. Yay! But sad that we had to leave one another. There were definitely some moments when I wanted a little "alone time" but mostly I feel like my fellow volunteers are my family away from home. Here are a few pictures:


This is Jackie, my roommate for three months. She was the very first person I met upon arrival in Philadelphia, and she was an invaluable source of insight and support.



This is my CBT group from Ait Benhaddou! Mia, me, Mahri, Amina (our LCF), Megan, Kate and Anny. I miss them so! Every morning we debriefed about all of the wacky things that happened the night before. We struggled through Tashlheet together, and hiked the kasbah as often as we could. Reunions are definitely in the making.




I'm not sure I can say enough about these two incredible men, Matthew and Brian, so I won't try in this forum. Just know that I'm always safe and protected when I'm with these two.

The next two months will be spent living with my host family, implementing some development tools, collectively known as PACA, searching for a house of my own, and meeting the volunteers in my region. I'll also try to get back to answering all of the questions you've sent me. Happy holidays and lots of love from Morocco!

Wedding Part 1

"Part I," you ask. Yes, there are multiple parts to this story, and you're really only getting what I managed to pick up in a loud, crowded room with very basic Tashlheit skills. . . The second part will unfold tonight . . . And I have a feeling that both parts will differ from the nice description available at the link above.

Last night I attended the first night of my first Moroccan wedding. It was pretty spectacular. The town's women, dressed in some of the most gorgeous gowns I have ever seen, occupied the grand lobby of the kasbah hotel. One group of women sat in the center of the room and played drums, large and small. A second group of women rose to sing and dance in a circle. It was a sort of hand-clapping, shoulder-raising, hip-shaking dance. The movements were small, but the effect was grand as they moved slowly around the circle. The lighting was very poor but this should provide you with an idea of what was happening:



"Aren't there men in your town," you ask. Well, yes, of course, but they had been invited to attend the wedding during the day, and the few that were in attendance at night sat in another room eating dinner.

After some dancing (I joined in after much prodding from Rbia, my older host sister) the women were separated into smaller rooms with tables and given communal plates of chicken with tomatoes and onions and beef with prunes. We also drank Fanta. (I am nurturing a serious sugar addiction.) At the end of the meal, I noticed that I was the only who ate all of my food. Earlier I had noticed that my host sister, Jmeia, had served me less than the other guests, but I thought that was because I "eat in the time of a chicken". I was sooooooo wrong! The women were the ones who ate like chickens! And then they packed up the meat in plastic bags and put them in their purses. Whoa! That was not what I was expecting. I thought it had something to with not wasting food, which is a big deal here and deserves an entire post of its own. When Jmeia and I arrived home and she gave the meat to her mother and sister (who had not joined in the festivities) it all made sense.

Maybe now you're wondering, "Why haven't you mentioned the bride and groom?" Well, dear, reader, they weren't there. After dinner all the women gathered outside in the hotel's courtyard and waited for the "asli". Soon I saw a group of people approaching the courtyard with a figure in shrouded in a white blanket. It was the groom! And, no he wasn't wearing anything under that blanket (or so I was told). A man guided the figure to the center of the courtyard and had him kneel before a small table of burning incense and basil, and some other things I couldn't see or identify.

An announcer-type man placed a bright red basket on the groom's head, and people started lining up to give the groom gifts. The announcer-type man would announce the gift as well as the name and giver's relationship to the groom. Then he would place the gift (usually cash) into the basket. Large comforters, picture frames and other items that might have caused the groom discomfort were placed at his side. It was probably the best way to be introduced to the entire community at once. Seeing them be so generous en masse was really quite beautiful and overwhelming.

Tonight it's the bride's turn to be the center of attention. I've gathered that she will be lifted up on a chair, which is appealing for many reasons, none of which I can go into here. I will try to write some tomorrow, but as I will be traveling for the next three weeks straight that may be difficult. Obviously, ask me any questions you have! I'm sure I've left out a million things.

A New Home

After seven days at my permanent site, I'm pretty sure I'm in love. It's deserty; it's green; it's warm and chilly simultaneously - it's all the little contradictions of Morocco stuffed into a tiny, tiny town of about 700 people in the Ouarzazate region. Plus, my new host family has wireless, and I took a shower with a frog the other day. What's not to love? Did I mention that there's an airport about thirty minutes away? Ummmm . . . yes, that means you (yes, you!) should definitely visit.

Here are a few pictures of my new town:

What, exactly, is a kasbah?

Before you read this you should thoroughly review the lyrics of the classic song Rock the Kasbah by The Clash. Not only does it have a rockin’ beat, but also it provides a lovely description of what actually used to happen to kasbahs. (OK, fine it’s more of a metaphor, and the person who asked this question is a musical man so I thought I would relate it to music in some way.) The term kasbah refers to an ancient fortified city. They generally look like castles, are multi-layered, and come in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes entire towns are considered kasbahs and sometimes just a small area is. Wikipedia may have a different opinion but this is what I’ve learned by living near one for six weeks. I’ve also read that it refers to small structures that acted as military strongholds of ruling sheikhs or kings. Before a town or city could be officially conquered the ruler’s kasbah had to be destroyed, usually by means of bombarding it, or if you like, rockin’ it.

The kasbah with which I am most familiar is Kasbah Aït Benhaddou, which is the largest and best preserved kasbah in the entire Sub-Atlas region. If you climb to the top of it you'll have this view of the Dades Valley. Let's just say that it's gorgeous and I love it. It draws a steady stream of tourists (and by steady, I mean that it’s the most visited town in all of Morocco). Most of the town’s population lives just across the Ouarzazate River, where running water and electricity are readily available (though not every day and not all day . . . ) A few families still reside within the kasbah walls and make a living by charging unwitting tourists a fee to enter through their homes. There are two other (free) entrances to the kasbah, which the town hopes to develop into more official entrances that will charge fees that will be reinvested into the maintenance and development of the site. It’s a UNESCO site, so it’s well-preserved and well-advertised, but alterations are a tricky business. In other news, my new site has a kasbah, too! Yay! So the obsession will continue, my friends. I know you're excited!