Heartbroken!

Today was a great day at school! We had a great time in the classroom, we were learning and laughing...the perfect combination! And exactly what I needed because I came home to a tragedy!

On Mondays we have a house helper come. Say what you will, but it is awesome to return home to a clean apartment, clean laundry, dinner in the oven, everything tidy, and clean laundry (yes, I said that twice. It is my favorite part.) But, today that wonderful feeling was replaced with disappointment.

When I was little (age 3ish) my grandma made a little pillow for me that I have taken everywhere...camp, college, Morocco. She made me new ones to replace the original when I was 16. Instead of replacing, I kept them all! So now I have 4 small pillows (combined they are maybe the size of a normal pillow). Or should say had...

Apparently, our house-helper did not approve of my dated and faded childhood relics. She Cut the fabric off the pillow and I can only guess she threw it away because I have searched every drawer and shelf in this apartment! She was so kind as to leave the inner pillow but that is not the same.  I have had that pillow since I was 3(ish)! And it's not the fluff inside I am attached to. It was the soft formerly-blue fabric with small pink kittens (again, I was 3). And, now it's gone!!

I understand it is a pillow and this is slightly ridiculous. But it really is more than that. I have had this pillow for 20+ years and it is a constant reminder of my grandma. I feel like a part of home was taken away today. And at this point, I don't part with things from home lightly.

Also, I could go to the dumpster and search for the 'pillowcase'. However, I am also the one who cleaned out the refrigerator this morning and I am well aware of what was in that garbage.  Even if I did find it in there, it would never be the same!

It may be silly for an almost 24 year old to be so sad over losing her little pillow, but I really am a little heartbroken!

À la ferme

I am pretty sure Old McDonald has never had a farm quite like the one the second graders went to on Friday! The farm is designed for school groups and families hoping to experience and learn about the goings-on at a farm.  It has some typical things, like cows, donkeys, hens, chickens, and lots of different gardens. It also had some unexpected things like two camels, emus, a dog living on the roof, and this weird hen/duck like creature I thought for sure was going to attack one of my students. (For good reason, the boy was picking on it). The additional animals confused my kids a little and they kept saying it must be a zoo instead.

We got on the bus first thing in the morning and my students' biggest question was "can we eat snack now?" We never have snack at 8:15 in the morning, and I wouldn't really have cared except for the fact many of them had been telling me they get sick in car. Nothing strikes fear in me like hearing students talk about getting carsick right before our one and half hour bus ride! I made it explicitly clear there was to be NO eating on the bus! I did however neglect to ban sunscreen. And with five minutes there was sunscreen everywhere!!!!  Also, they have no idea how to apply sunscreen. That was fun. Madame B (the French teacher) and I were up front with the driver since there weren't anymore seats back with the kids. So eventually, she and I ignored the cream-covered faces behind us and enjoyed the ride.

When we arrived at the farm, the first activity was a welcome snack. Thankfully, because my kids were starving (not really, since half of them sneaked a snack on the bus). They each got a pancake and cup of juice. Attika (the Arabic teacher) grabbed the other teachers and said the farm employees would take care of the kids and we needed to follow her. We went to our own little tent where we also received a snack and, of course, tea. Moroccan hospitality is nothing to joke about! Madame B explained what the kids would be doing for the day as we sipped our tea. I watched the farm workers herd my children into a barn while the other two classes went to their first activity. I felt too odd being on a field trip with my kids, and yet being nowhere near them! I excused myself and chased after them to take photos and watch my little city-slickers milk a cow!!

Watching my kids interact with a large cow was hilarious! Some of them have farms here in Morocco and most of them have been around sheep and goats, but milking a cow is quite different! They so wanted to do it, but they were terrified at the same time. The best part was their face after trying to milk the cow. They had huge smiles full of pride or they were totally disgusted and couldn't get away fast enough!

After milking the cow, we moved to a bread making demonstration. She explained everything in French/Arabic, but that didn't stop the kids from asking me "what did she say?" to which I smiled kindly and said "I honestly have no idea what she said!" Surprisingly, I did follow the demonstration, but I think it's because I have seen/made bread before. They started to feel the heat and notice the bugs at this point and were very eager to move on to the next activity.

The third rotation was pottery making! Each student got a small chunk of clay to play with. They also got a chance to try the pottery wheel. Getting their hands dirty isn't exactly their favorite thing to do! But they still got into the clay and most enjoyed it.

After the rotations, all 60 kids were ushered into a small room to watch a video of a cow being born. At this point, it was 70 and sunny, with no breeze (which is a constant since we are so close to the ocean in Casa), there were flies everywhere and they really were hungry! So, watching a cow being born was not exactly high on their list. Eventually, the students got up and walked out of the room and back toward the playground/open field. Lunch was served shortly after.

They went back to the small tables and each received a spoon for the large dishes of couscous being served. Lunch was served two and half hours later than we usually eat and they were so hungry even my picky eaters were making do! Again, the adults were served away from the kids and while we ate, the children ran wild. Seriously, they were everywhere! But, no one else seemed worried, so I sipped my tea and ignored the chaos around me! 

After lunch, we boarded the buses (just what I wanted to do with my 19 couscous stuffed kids!). I was hoping the ride back would be quieter but, oh no! One or two fell asleep the rest made up for their silence 10 fold! And felt the need to reapply sunscreen (or just smother their faces in it). Again, Madame B and I ignored them and we fell asleep! My roommates and I have decided I have travel narcolepsy...I will fall asleep in a car (or train or plane). every time. Even if there are 19 crazy kiddos screaming behind me.

We got back to the school 4 minutes before dismissal. I am not really sure if they all got to where they needed to be,  but 20 minutes later they were all gone! Overall, it was a really fun day! I think the kids really enjoyed it and I can't wait to hear more of their thoughts on Monday.

IRELAND

The nice thing about living in Morocco is that it is so close to Europe!! For our last break of the school year, five other teachers and I headed off to Ireland. And it was amazing!

Our flights there were a little tight but we made it and arrived in Dublin Saturday night. Stepping off the plane into an airport where I could read every sign and understand almost every conversation around me was almost overwhelming! We didn't really know how to get our hostel for the night, but since we could read signs and ask other people around us it was easy to figure it out. (Hearing/Seeing English just may have been my favorite part of the trip!)

Megan, Cherith, and I by the rope bridge

First thing Sunday morning we went on a bike tour of the city! I think am going to do these more often when I travel because it was a great way to see different sites, we got some tips from locals, good exercise, and it oriented us to the city (kind of!). Dublin's city center was surprisingly smaller than I imagined, but like most European cities, it had tons to explore. We spent the rest of the day wandering the city. Sunday night, Cherith and I went to a comedy club in one of the pub's....If you ever go to Dublin, check out this show. Best part...it was free! 
 
On Monday we left on a tour of Northern Ireland. We stayed in Belfast the first day and were educated on some of the tension that still exists in the Northern Ireland. I honestly had very little knowledge of Ireland's history but the tours we went on were really informative and interesting. The city is divided by a huge wall and each side keeps to their own- except for the stray rock or object tossed over.

Rope Bridge

Giant's Causeway

Tuesday, we went to the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge and the Giant's Causeway! Both on the Northern coast, both beautiful! I even enjoyed the drive to the these places. Plenty of green pastures and cozy little homes. Sheep that were actually white and fluffy! Horses that did not look like skeletons. It was great to be in the country again! It was also considerably more cold there than in Morocco...but again, being from Michigan, it felt like home! I think I enjoyed the chilly weather a little too much!

Galway

After exploring the coasts, we landed in Derry (or Londonderry) for the evening. Another divided city, but this time by a river. We explored the city and crossed the Peace Bridge connecting the two sides. The next day we headed down to Galway, but sadly we were only there for a few hours before leaving our tour and heading back to Dublin.

Thursday, some of the girls I was with went to the Cliffs of Moher on the Western side, but I stayed back to see more of Dublin. It was a rainy day, which we really upset about! It had been blue skies and beautiful up to this point. We ventured out in hopes of seeing all the major things in Dublin. But since it was Cherith and I, it didn't take long to get lost! Thankfully, we could just ask anyone for directions because they understood us and we understood them! (Really, this was a big deal!)

Rainy Day in Dublin!

Churches! (not mosques!)

We did manage to see most of the things we wanted to see until our feet couldn't handle it anymore! We opted for a relaxing night of going to bed early! (lame, I know, but it was our break too, not just a vacation!). Friday was our last day in Ireland, and most of us went to the Guinness Storehouse...when in Ireland, you know! It was a pretty typical brewery/tour but it did end with an awesome 360 degree view of the city! That was pretty cool! After the tour, we hunted down all our favorites we can't find here in Morocco to stock up on! We got some pretty funny looks for being so excited about pop-tarts, reese's, and Subway but when it's been months since you've had one it totally worth it! Even if you don't really like it, you still get excited! Friday night, we went on a Musical Pub Crawl. We got to hear some old Irish tunes from the 'only real pubs' left in Dublin. It was a nice way to end the week!

Saturday was just sad. We ate breakfast and headed to the airport. None of us were really excited to leave. I certainly wasn't! Everywhere we went there was such a peace and comfort.  Everyone was kind and cheery and funny! With an accent of course! It was the closest thing to home I have felt in a long while! I would love to return to Ireland....there is still more to see!

Mary and Co

My great Aunt Mary and her two friends ventured to Morocco and then on to Spain for a while.  I realized I have quite a bit of anxiety when people come to visit. I want whoever it is to enjoy and love Morocco but it truly is a diamond in the rough. Coming here without an open mind is probably not wise and knowing that my loved ones disapproved of my new home would be heartbreaking for me. Thankfully, Mary and her friends (Robbie and Mike), were awesome! They were no strangers to overseas travel and totally proved that by hitting most of the major Moroccan cities in three days!

They arrived early enough on Monday to meet my students. I gave them the tour of campus and my classroom and then the kids returned from gym class. Visitors alone are enough to excite my students...add candy to the mix and it is a circus! My Aunt brought each student a little Easter egg filled with American(!) candy. The kids kept saying 'Miss, your family is the best!' I heard that for the rest of the week! I felt awful getting them all hyped up right before French class, but she didn't seem to mind and was able to get them under control(ish).

Tuesday they went to Marrakesh. It's a three hour train ride (one way). I thought they would be home around 10:30 or 11 so when I woke up at 11:35 and found Mary's couch/bed empty, I was a little concerned. Like some overprotective parent I immediately began thinking of the worst case scenarios and the hope of falling back to sleep was Gone. I had no way to know where they were, no clue when/if they would be back, and worst of all no way to contact them! I tried telling myself they were perfectly capable of surviving Morocco and all would be fine, but still couldn't fall back to sleep. If that was any indication of what parenthood is like….ugh.  Finally, at 1:15 am, they bounded into our apartment not even looking tired! They had been fine all along, they just brought a later train home. All that worry for nothing! And within minutes I was OUT! :)

Wednesday they headed inland to Fez and I knew not to wait up for them. Although, they got home earlier that evening.

I was only able to get Thursday off (due to a shortage of subs) but it actually worked out well. They were slowing down a little bit from the first two adventures and I had to teach the next day so we took it easy and stayed (relatively) local. We went to Hassan II, the third largest Mosque in the world.  It is an amazingly beautiful and intricate Mosque. Since, that's really the biggest tourist thing in Casa we were headed to Rabat after that. Rabat is Morocco's capital city about an hour north of Casa.  I have only been there once- a very rainy day at the zoo! So I was excited to see more of Rabat. In an attempt to get directions to the train station we met a tour guide who offered to take us around for the day and return us home that night. Since I really didn't know where we were going and traveling with 4 is tough (small cabs only allow 3 people) we went with it! Probably the best choice of the day!

Ahmed, the guide, was great! He told all about Morocco, Rabat, and himself :)  He kept us laughing and busy for the day! We ate lunch right on the ocean, ventured through a blue-walled kasbah and some nice gardens, saw the mausoleum of Mohammad V and the unfinished minaret, cruised past the Embassy, stalked storks at Chellah (amazing ruins set on a hillside), a did a little souvenir shopping at a place in Casa before returning to the apartment. We did way more than I had expected to do and I have to thank God for a fun guide like Ahmed. He really did take great care of us. He even made the shop owner take me to an apartment next door to use a real bathroom instead of the squatty potty in the shop! He told me I have a family in Casa now ;)

I was nervous about leaving my students (this was the first time I had been gone for a whole day!) and showing Mary and Co. a good time. But in the end, I am so glad I got to spend the day with them. Other tidbits from the day: I got henna, involuntary, from a woman outside the gardens; A guard at the mausoleum decided it was okay to have a feelskie of my leg, which my Aunt and Robbie found to be Hilarious; Ahmed equated my challenging name to the word for Queen in Arabic, then called me 'the queen' for the rest of the day, he even introduced me as the queen to the shop people; One of the gift shop guys gave me a little jewelry box while we were in the store, it was awkward but I accepted it anyways...and then broke it in the van. There were so many other wonderful moments!  My stomach hurt from laughing and  my eyes were red from crying with laughter!  It was so comforting to have a piece of home here and to play tourist for a day! My kids were so right...I do have the best family!!!