I’m not much of a city girl but I did appreciate the way of life in Rabat. The city is big but not as big as Casablanca. Even though I only traveled to the countryside once on a visit to Walili I felt very much at peace there, despite the blazing heat. There were goats, cows, donkeys and h...orses everywhere. Olive trees were in abundance as well.
Traveling in Morocco I found to be very easy – it was nothing to hop on a train and be in another town after an hour or so. The trains were efficient and reasonably priced. Another means of travel that I utilized quite often were the Petit Taxis, which are a different color in every city (that was pretty fascinating to me). Besides the Petit Taxis, are Grand Taxis and the Tram. Grand Taxis are really uncomfortable but really cheap, they’re really old luxury sized sedans that uncomfortably fit six to seven people. Unfortunately I didn’t travel get to take the bus anywhere.
Generally people in Morocco are very nice. I met so many people and asked even more for help. Moroccans are a people of many tongues as none of them are monolingual. Just about everyone I met spoke at least two languages, Arabic and French, then other times there’d be those who spoke four or five. And even if they were not fluent in other languages they spoke bits and pieces. Also a lot of people didn’t mind helping, as I was lost or confused a lot. At my school Qalam wa Lawh I met an abundance of people from all over the world – Indonesia, Italy, Latvia, France, Canada, Spain and Japan. Everyone was really nice.
I struggled very much with the food in Morocco except for when I ate at a restaurant, but even then it was a bit difficult since all the menus were in French. At the school there weren’t very many options for me aside from the breakfast options. I did have couscous once before Ramadan began and it was pretty good. There were a ton of sweets though and I enjoyed almost all the sweets I ate there, with the exception of a few things that were just way too sweet. I guess Moroccans have a big sweet tooth.
It was also my first time having Mint Chai since I didn’t ever make it to Arabic club. I’m not a big tea drinker I don’t typically drink hot teas unless I’m sick, so the hot mint tea was really
different for me. I liked it a lot but it I could never drink it right away like others.
Qalam wa Lawh was a quaint school with a charming garden located in the neighborhood of Souissi. My arrival wasn’t at the best of times because it was the middle
of a semester, so I spent it with two teachers, Sumaya and Nawal in beginner level 2. The classes were complementary and this arrangement of classes worked very well for me. We did grammar in the morning and the afternoon class concentrated heavily on speaking and comprehension.
Because I was taking intensive courses I was in class from eight thirty am until four o’clock pm. This was not something that I was used to but adjusted to rather quickly. I enjoyed the time that I spent in these classes, and found both of these teachers to be very helpful. After this semester I was promoted to Beginner III with two new teachers Hicham and Taoufiq. These men were fantastic teachers. In Hicham’s class we went over grammar and spoke a lot not about anything in particular. Taoufiq’s class was heavily focused on grammar and it was four hours long – so we learned a lot. I feel like because I was taking intensive classes and we went over something new every day, had homework, and presentations to prepare for I wasn’t able to retain as much as I would have liked. Overall I did learn tons of new vocabulary, gain a better understanding of patterns and how roots worked.
From the time I got to my boarding area in Charles de Gaulle to standing in line at customs in the Rabat Airport I felt like I was about to enter a completely different world that I wasn’t sure if I was ready for. Everyone around me was speaking Arabic, and I couldn’t understand a word they were saying. Over the next six weeks I ran into trouble often but I’d like to believe I handled it quite well. As my Arabic skills and confidence with the language grew the more I tried to solve my problems in Formal Arabic. By the end of my six week stay in Morocco I had learned a great deal of grammar and how to better comprehend. Also I’d like to believe I left this experience with a greater understanding of Moroccan culture on a personal level. I learned how people deal with things, help people, greet people, and generally interact with one another. Also I got to know a bit of myself while abroad and I learned that even when I’m not quite sure what I’m doing or where I’m going that I’m still able to push through and succeed, even if with the help of a few complete strangers.
Traveling in Morocco I found to be very easy – it was nothing to hop on a train and be in another town after an hour or so. The trains were efficient and reasonably priced. Another means of travel that I utilized quite often were the Petit Taxis, which are a different color in every city (that was pretty fascinating to me). Besides the Petit Taxis, are Grand Taxis and the Tram. Grand Taxis are really uncomfortable but really cheap, they’re really old luxury sized sedans that uncomfortably fit six to seven people. Unfortunately I didn’t travel get to take the bus anywhere.
Generally people in Morocco are very nice. I met so many people and asked even more for help. Moroccans are a people of many tongues as none of them are monolingual. Just about everyone I met spoke at least two languages, Arabic and French, then other times there’d be those who spoke four or five. And even if they were not fluent in other languages they spoke bits and pieces. Also a lot of people didn’t mind helping, as I was lost or confused a lot. At my school Qalam wa Lawh I met an abundance of people from all over the world – Indonesia, Italy, Latvia, France, Canada, Spain and Japan. Everyone was really nice.
I struggled very much with the food in Morocco except for when I ate at a restaurant, but even then it was a bit difficult since all the menus were in French. At the school there weren’t very many options for me aside from the breakfast options. I did have couscous once before Ramadan began and it was pretty good. There were a ton of sweets though and I enjoyed almost all the sweets I ate there, with the exception of a few things that were just way too sweet. I guess Moroccans have a big sweet tooth.
It was also my first time having Mint Chai since I didn’t ever make it to Arabic club. I’m not a big tea drinker I don’t typically drink hot teas unless I’m sick, so the hot mint tea was really
different for me. I liked it a lot but it I could never drink it right away like others.
Qalam wa Lawh was a quaint school with a charming garden located in the neighborhood of Souissi. My arrival wasn’t at the best of times because it was the middle
of a semester, so I spent it with two teachers, Sumaya and Nawal in beginner level 2. The classes were complementary and this arrangement of classes worked very well for me. We did grammar in the morning and the afternoon class concentrated heavily on speaking and comprehension.
Because I was taking intensive courses I was in class from eight thirty am until four o’clock pm. This was not something that I was used to but adjusted to rather quickly. I enjoyed the time that I spent in these classes, and found both of these teachers to be very helpful. After this semester I was promoted to Beginner III with two new teachers Hicham and Taoufiq. These men were fantastic teachers. In Hicham’s class we went over grammar and spoke a lot not about anything in particular. Taoufiq’s class was heavily focused on grammar and it was four hours long – so we learned a lot. I feel like because I was taking intensive classes and we went over something new every day, had homework, and presentations to prepare for I wasn’t able to retain as much as I would have liked. Overall I did learn tons of new vocabulary, gain a better understanding of patterns and how roots worked.
From the time I got to my boarding area in Charles de Gaulle to standing in line at customs in the Rabat Airport I felt like I was about to enter a completely different world that I wasn’t sure if I was ready for. Everyone around me was speaking Arabic, and I couldn’t understand a word they were saying. Over the next six weeks I ran into trouble often but I’d like to believe I handled it quite well. As my Arabic skills and confidence with the language grew the more I tried to solve my problems in Formal Arabic. By the end of my six week stay in Morocco I had learned a great deal of grammar and how to better comprehend. Also I’d like to believe I left this experience with a greater understanding of Moroccan culture on a personal level. I learned how people deal with things, help people, greet people, and generally interact with one another. Also I got to know a bit of myself while abroad and I learned that even when I’m not quite sure what I’m doing or where I’m going that I’m still able to push through and succeed, even if with the help of a few complete strangers.
يوم الاثنين أنا يأكلون الفطور مع حبيبي. مشيت مع الكلاب في الصباح قبل العمل. يوم الثلاثاء درست أربعة فصول اللياقة البدنية. التقيت العديد من النساء اللواتي وسأعمل مع لمدة ستة أسابيع. يوم الاربعاء أنا تحدثت إلى صديقي على الهاتف. انها السفر إلى أتلانتا. يوم الخميس عملت حتى ثمانية وشاهدت التلفزيون ليلا. يوم الجمعة أكلت عشاء الدجاج. قرأت كتاب "علم اليوغا." يوم السبت شاهدت فيلم مع حبيبي. ذهبنا إلى النوم في وقت متأخر من تلك الليلة. يوم الاحد أنا تنظيف بيتي والعشاء المطبوخة. وأود أيضا أن تدرس فئة اليوغا واحدة في فترة ما بعد الظهر.
ReplyDeleteAmber Augustine