Days One and Two

Hi everyone! I am in Morocco! I landed yesterday at 1pm in Moroccan time (6 hours ahead of New England). I am with 34 WPI students total, 25 on IQP (junior year project) and 9 doing their humanities project, which is what I am doing. We are living in a dorm in a wealthy area of town. We moved into our dorm (I share a room with 1 person) and then headed to dinner, featured in the 5th picture. Moroccans eat dinner late at night, usually around 9 or 10pm. We ate a bit earlier because we all were exhausted from our flights, so we got home at about 9pm. Today, January 12th, was orientation and tour day! We began the day with an orientation about Moroccan culture, food, and safety/security. Lunch was couscous, vegetables, and chicken with Moroccan cookies and tea for dessert. We ate in a family’s home in a traditional guest sitting room. Following lunch, we went on a tour around Rabat. Our first stop was a walled part of the city with beautiful views (the first, third, and fourth pictures). The second stop on the tour was the King’s work palace, different from the palace he lives in, and it was very interesting to see the different guards in place around the palace. There were guards from the Navy, Army, and Air Force protecting the palace. Our final stop on the tour was the mausoleum where King Mohammed V and King Hassan II are buried, as well as Mohammed’s other son. Hassan II is the current king’s father, and Mohammed V is the king’s grandfather. Outside of this mausoleum is an unfinished mosque, where the roof was never put on. It is filled with columns (like the one I am standing on), and at the opposite end from the mausoleum is Hassan Tower, which is what I am “leaning on” in the picture. Our group came back to the dorm around 6pm and were set free for the rest of the night. The rest of the students doing their humanities projects in Morocco and I went shopping at Marjane (the Walmart equivalent) for some essentials before setting off for dinner. We walked around our neighborhood and explored for a bit before deciding on a restaurant. I ate a full meal of meat, bread, and avocado juice (surprisingly delicious) for $6 American dollars! I am now safely in my dorm, tucked in for the night. B’slama (goodbye) everyone! I’ll update again soon.