Fashion and Textile Design
J A Y C E A R N E T T E
#2
November 15, 2017
Views of my beautiful town.
I am so happy with where I am- my physical space, my mentality, my faith. Time is moving fast and slow simultaneously, and I can't wrap my head around how I got here. "Why did you join the Peace Corps" is a question I've been asked approximately 57.2 million times, and I've come up with 57.2 million different answers. How did a fashion design girl end up in Morocco, playing with kids and eating enough bread to feed an army? To be honest, I don't know the answer, but somehow I was lead to this beautiful place and allowed a wonderful opportunity for growth.
My Community Based Training Group
I have been living with my host family for 6 weeks. I have attended weddings, baby celebrations, holidays, etc, and I feel a part of the community more and more with every passing day. There are 4 other Peace Corps Trainees with me, along with our Language and Culture Facilitator.
We arrived in Casablanca, Morocco about 6pm, loaded buses and drove to our hotel in Harhoura, Rabat. We settled in with a delicious moroccan meal, and headed straight to bed. When we awoke the next morning, and could see clearly in daylight, we realized that our hotel is right ON THE BEACH (Atlantic)!! I then took some snaps of our accommodations--we will stay here for the first 10 days.
Our hotel is v, other than the fact my room has no hot water…I figured this out when I jumped into a very COLD shower (my family knows that I am NOT a fan of cold water). However, Peace Corps continues to iterate that we must go with the flow, adapt, and be resilient. And that we are required to have grit, determination, and commitment. So i just kept telling myself, "I'm flexible, I can endure hardship, RESILIENCY!" I survived--and am thankful for running water.
Views of my beautiful town.
Sunrise over the mosque.
My host mama's name is Zhor and my jddati (grandmother) is Fatima. They take such great care of me, and have made me feel like I am truly part of the family. They don't speak English, and I only know a VERY limited amount of Darija (Moroccan Arabic), so communicating mostly looks like a game of charades. Learning the language is humbling beyond compare, and their patience with me is beautifully encouraging. In addition, Moroccan hospitality is unlike anything I have ever known. We eat with our hands from one large communal plate, and my 'mom' is always pushing the biggest and best part of the dish in front me. They ALWAYS put the guest first and will not let them leave the house until they've been pampered and properly fed. They are also the most relentless food "pushers", saying "kuli, kuli, kuli" (eat, eat, eat) when you slow down or stop eating, and even if you are fuller than you've EVER been before (like your gut is about to explode), they somehow get you to take 2 more bites.
We eat couscous every friday.
Fatima and Zhor.
Kaskrot at a friend's house.
Fire during Ashora.
The food is delicious, and occasionally I get to try new foods and eat things that I never imagined I would. My first experience with this was during the holiday, Ashora, which is celebrated on the tenth day of Muharram across the Muslim world. In Morocco, Ashora is more of a cultural celebration that includes LOTS of water and LOTS of fire. During the day, kids fill the streets and have massive water fights, and at night they create large fires and shoot fireworks. Luckily, I got to be a part of the action, soaking kids left and right with buckets full of water. However, I also seemed to be the main target...water flying at me from all angles- I even had water dumped on me from rooftops and 2nd story windows! Regardless, it was one of the MOST FUN days I've had in Morocco. For dinner, I gathered with my neighbors to eat couscous- which we eat at least once a week- however, this time I didn't recognize the meat that sat atop the dish. At first, I decided I was only going to eat the vegetables, but reminded myself that I should try EVERYTHING once. A few bites was all that my body would allow, and I found out the next day that I ate SHEEP STOMACH for the first time (and perhaps the last...).
I am currently living in a very small town called Ben Smim- approximately 600 community members, and it is my home until the end of November when I am *hopefully* sworn in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV). Until swearing in, I am considered a Peace Corps Trainee (PCT), and September-November is called Pre-Service Training (PST) and Community Based Training (CBT). SO.MANY.ACRONYMS.
Zhor's cow. I drink fresh milk every morning!
The people of Ben Smim are incredibly kind and the town is GORGEOUS. We are surrounded by mountains and hills, and even on the occasional rainy day (I think it has rained 4 times since I have been in Morocco?) the area is still stunningly beautiful. Ben Smim is one of the smallest training sites, but because of it's size, I have been able to integrate quickly into the community. I say hello to every person I pass and am greeted with kisses on the cheek from women and children.
Me and my new friend, Fati, at a wedding parade.
Precious adorableness.
My day to day schedule looks something like this:
7:30am: WAKE UP
8:00am: EAT BREAKFAST (bread or millawee with cheese and jam)
8:30am: GO TO CLASS
8:30am-12:30pm: LANGUAGE TRAINING (Moroccan Arabic- Darija)
12:30pm: GO HOME
1:30pm: Watch Turkish soap operas dubbed over in Darija and EAT LUNCH (usually chicken or beef tajine with potatoes, vegetables, and bread and fruit for dessert)
2:30pm: NAP
3pm: RETURN TO CLASS
3-6pm: LEARN MOROCCAN CULTURE NORMS/ Maybe teach an English Class
6-6:30pm: WALK AROUND Ben Smim with other PCTs exploring new places/ play soccer with the kids
6:30pm: EAT KASKROT*
6:30pm-8:30pm: WATCH TV/ Hangout with family and new friends
8:30pm: EAT DINNER (pasta, soup, or tajine with bread and fruit for dessert)
9:30pm: WATCH THE NEWS
10pm: 'GO TO SLEEP' (I usually read, journal, and watch a movie/tv show on my laptop before I fall asleep)
*kaskrot is a 'snack' between lunch and dinner and usually consists of bread, cheese, jam, mint tea, etc...and sometimes SFENGE!!!!!!!!- my new favorite food. There is a man that travels from a near by city and makes/ sells sfenge on the street. It is basically a donut, but so much more delicious. I could sell the recipe to Krispe Kreme and become a katrillionaire.
MILAWEE!!!!
Mohamed making some delicious sfenge.
During this Pre-Service Training, we worked with the youth population of Ben Smim on various activities to help us (Peace Corps Volunteers) better understand their community and to help them identify changes they might like to see. It was a very insightful project, and it gave us an awesome opportunity to meet community members.
It's hard to believe I only spend ONE more week with my host family, and I am dreading the goodbyes. These people have taken in a stranger and have treated me like a daughter. They have fed me, protected me, and loved me well, and THIS is one of the many reasons I joined the Peace Corps- to meet and learn from people with different experiences than my own. I am SUPER excited for what lay ahead, but it will be difficult to move on from the Ben Smim community that welcomed me to the beautiful country of Morocco.
--JAYCE--
