I'm now in what feels like Tatooine from Star Wars. Minus the droids. Here in Morocco there is a popular robe called a jellaba, which is like a long bathrobe with a very pointy hood, which since it's cold here everyone wears, giving the place a very Star-Wars-ish feel!! They have a unique way of folding the hood so that the point sticks straight up, and when the jellaba is tan or brown or black I start looking around for C3PO.
Morocco is a place of contrasts. It's an odd mix of all of the countries I've visited this November...it is similar to Central Asia in the tea rooms where men sit for hours and stare out at the world, along with the Islam and hearing the weird call to prayer every morning. It resembles India when you go to the market, crazy crowds and tiny little shops, except that here you have whole skinned cows hanging up, which would never happen in India. Yet it is different from everywhere else too...French is the language of choice, along with Arabic, so I can at least read a lot of the packages, but it is a challenge because I don't speak French so I have to work on it. It's hard coming after India because not as many people speak English. Bargaining is intense here, with the difference between the original price and the settled price being about 100 dirhams (12 dollars) rather than just a few like in other places I've been.
I had an American-style Thanksgiving with the other expats living here, complete with turkey, mashed potatoes, and even a football game via the internet on a projector!!
My cousin has wireless at her house, so I am finally able to use the internet easily at home, a huge blessing for which I am truly thankful. It's nice to communicate so freely and easily again. They also have showers that are hot and do not come out of a bucket, and a hairdryer. Going out with wet hair is a big no-no here.
Fes is a very traditional city, with most women covering their heads and lots and lots and lots of mosques. Morocco is seriously Muslim. It has the third largest mosque in the world, which we visited in Casablanca. This feels more intense than in Central Asia, where only a few women veiled and which was a far more secular place.
There is pretty bad poverty here as well, with a very high illiteracy rate and tons of little slum villages, all of which rather surprised me. I hadn't expected this place to be so low on the development scale.
The people are very friendly, but after the rigid hierarchical politeness of India it takes a bit of adjusting and feels too loose and disorganized. The men are especially "kind" to unveiled women, shouting hello and trying to get you to talk to them. I understand why wearing a veil would just be easier if you have to be out in public!!
I only have a few more days left of such exotic travels, and then I'll be back to the USA, to pray and think about what is next in this adventure of Life God has given me!!!
Thanks for all your prayers, and please keep them coming in this last week of my travels, for protection, ease of travel, and that my connections home would be smooth!
