long weekend in the desert

This is actually from a few months ago when I went down to Erfoud in the southeast for a super bowl and birthday party. One afternoon we went out to the dunes of Erg Chebbi for the sunset. That lake isn't always there but last year the region had major floods; I really like the contrast of the water and sand dunes. This is the kind of postcard Sahara scene that a lot of people think of when talking about Morocco. But it's a different world from where I live in the Middle Atlas - the geographic diversity here (in a relatively small area too) is amazing. I'm glad I got to visit the edge of the Sahara, it was a fun time and quite warm in the middle of the winter!

waterfall hike

Earlier this winter I went hiking with my sitemate (whose primary mission was to catch insects) and his host brother and cousin to a cool waterfall a few hours out of town. It has been a very warm and mild winter without all the rain and cold of last year - that won't be a good thing for agriculture here come springtime. We had a nice time hiking, but this was no ordinary hike. For lunch we brought a full size clay tajine and salad serving platter. It was delicious however. We'll continue to take advantage of the excellent hiking weather!

the adventure of the cats and the sheep's intestine

A daring and exciting mission from l3id - the festival of the sacrifice. Warning to vegans/vegetarians/people who are freaked out by gross things.

Preparing for the attack and looking suspicious




Got a freebie = big confidence booster




People aren't paying attention - thieving time, mission accomplished




It's all mine




Not so fast.....




Need to fight it out, tug of war style




But in the end everyone wins and gets to enjoy delicious raw sheep intestines

to New York for Christmas

For about a week and a half I was back in the USA for the first time in over 15 months. I had a great whirlwind trip visiting family and friends all over New York. I also got to enjoy lots of things I had missed like sushi, cheese, pork, bagels, hot showers, bookstores, driving, etc....


Christmastime in New York City was really cool (actually unseasonably warm). I also enjoyed a bit of reverse culture shock my first day back when I was in the city. I heard people speaking English and I thought they were talking to me, plus it was actually strange to not have people staring at me. I had fun staying with college friends in the hip East Village.




Ice skating at Bryant Park




The Chrysler Building




The center of the universe (Times Square)






Vanderbilt Mansion in the spectacular Hudson Valley






The Esopus Creek in the Catskills




I was quite surprised and excited to see a donkey and sheep in uptown Kingston (turns out it was the living nativity scene at the Old Dutch Church). I really hadn't expected to meet the two most common animals I see in Morocco on this trip.




With Grandma and Moroccan pillow




It's almost Christmas - with my uncle, aunt, and cousins at home




Getting into the holiday spirit with some friends




Christmas morning with the tree, presents, and cat




Our traditional french toast Christmas breakfast




The cats like the wrapping paper more than the presents




Mom's surprise Middle Atlas gift

mid-service medicals in Rabat

We recently had to go to Rabat for a few days for our mid-service medical exams - it was my first time back to the capital city since we arrived in Morocco almost 15 months ago. A lot of our time was spent going around to different labs, to the dentist, and to the Peace Corps medical office. I'm glad to say I've made it through my first year without any big problems - no TB and no parasites! In our free time we got to eat at some of Rabat's delicious restaurants and also got some shopping done. I was also happy to take advantage of Peace Corps' excellent library. These are some photos from an evening walk around Rabat's old medina.

presentation at the dar chebab for World AIDS Day

On December 1st we had a presentation/discussion on AIDS (or SIDA as it's known by its French acronym). A cool thing about this was that a lot of it was run by the students themselves in addition to several adult participants. Three of the students presented facts on AIDS including a definition, transmission, prevention, and treatment. My students who came to summer camp and participated in AIDS activities there used that experience to help here. We did an activity (the one with red and clear water in cups) to demonstrate how HIV/AIDS spreads and to show the effectiveness of preventative measures. Everyone also took home a rather good and simple brochure explaining all these things with illustrations and written in Arabic and French as well as information on how and where to get a free anonymous HIV/AIDS test. The hope is that they will share their knowledge with friends and family. After the presentation there was a question and answer session that turned into a discussion/debate on many related (and controversial) issues. It was interesting trying to follow it as it went between Darija (Moroccan Arabic), FossHa (Standard Arabic), Tamazight (the local language), as well as the occasional French and English thrown in.