I love my Moroccan Dad.
Aziz knew I was coming home early today because of lectures finishing at 12. So he’s arranged with a friend of his to take me to the Medina! I’ll get to see the Tanneries, the Kairaouine Mosque, and other stuff. I’m really excited. Shame I don’t have a camera.
Sleep. Sleep.
Sleep.
I need it, again. What exactly is it about this country which deprives me of my sleep? I actually have no idea, but the point is I need it. I got very little in the end last night, just due to general…stuff. People talking, books wanting to be red, bites wanting to be scratched (but I didn’t because I don’t want attractive scars).
Today it was up early for class. We learnt some verbs and I enjoyed it. I enjoy everything here really, and the only thing which dampens it for me (bites excluded) is when other people aren’t enjoying themselves and feel the need to whinge and moan about it. Then we had grammar, where I found something interesting about the marking style of Si Zaim. If you write the wrong answer but correct yourself, he’ll still mark it wrong. Time to get a pencil and rubber I think. Even so, I got 29 out of 35, which is of course not to be scoffed at. Even if I should have had 30.5. But whatever, I know which bits I did wrong or right.
I have this in my head today. And I’ve been reading my friends blog. I’ll have to ask if I can show it to you guys, he does creative writing and his feelings about Morocco are very perceptive. I’ll ask him later.
Today has most definitely been a day of two halves. If I thought I could explain in in football commentary form, I would, but the fact is I’d seem stupid because I know nothing about football, and anyway it hardly works in writing.
Basically this morning was awful. I had a bad sleep, got up late, had greasy grass pancakes for breakfast and then couldn’t get a taxi. Got to school just in time to be told we are the weakest group in 15 years, and to do some complicated grammar. During the break of this lesson I also ended up in an argument about the teaching at home. I had thought it was ok (probably due to coming from a school where language teaching was non-existent) but I have now been informed in no uncertain terms that I am WRONG in this assumption and our teaching was in fact APPALLING. And no, that is actually a fact, not an opinion…
SO whatever.
I tried to post all of that earlier, in a really depressive way, but Blogger decided not to let me. Here was the turning point of my day. I worked on some homework over lunch, listened to music and chatted, and felt really good by the time Dareeja started. I enjoyed the lesson, and then got Si Zaim to check my homework in the break which was really good for me as an extra help. Then I got a taxi fairly quickly after class, and spoke exclusively in Dareeja for the first time. It went like this
Me: ?عندك الصرف
Him: ياح عندي. شوقرا.
Me: شوقرا اسيدي
Me: = D
If you didn’t understand, never mind. It’s not interesting for anyone except me. Then when I got back I understood what Mounia was saying too. Score.
All in all, the fine points in the second half more than make up for the scattered approach and poor performance in the first half.
I have noticed this week three major things which annoy me about people, specifically those I am learning with.
1) I find people who drag the class really annoying. That is not to say I dislike them as people at all, but sometimes it is just irritating to have to go over the same point time and time again. Especially if they act like a spoilt little child about it, which some people have a tendency towards.
HAVING SAID THAT, these people are often so helpful. They normally ask questions which I think I know the answers to, and so when I find I don’t know the answer, it’s helpful to have it gone over.
2) At least as annoying, if not worse than people who don’t know anything, are the people who think they know everything. News Flash, you just don’t. Stop acting like the teacher is either
a) A total idiot
b) Wasting your time completely
You are not better than the rest of us just because you learn a bit faster, and there is no reason to ruin our learning experience by being so high and mighty. Again
HAVING SAID THAT, I know I can sometimes be this person, especially if I am in a bad mood. Again, it’s not a personal thing, these people are always really nice, it’s just an attitude thing.
3) People who act like you are special. Yes teachers, this is mostly going out to you. I’d like to think that it is clear to you that I am not mentally handicapped in any way and therefore if I get something wrong, looking at me in a pitying way will not explain my mistake to me. If I just guess until you are satisfied I’ve not learnt anything.
This section also applies to those people who laugh at other students when they make a mistake. It’s rude, I don’t laugh at you when you do something stupid so you have no right to laugh at me. Plus, I thought you were an adult by now, so you really should be past this.
Let me add a proviso to all this. I have never met anyone I truly disliked. It’s only ever people’s attitude which gets up my nose, especially when I know it is so easy to just be kind and polite. Come on guys, don’t be in any of these groups, people will start to hate you.
That’s what I’m eating. It’s not great (and NO, not that kind of grass. I mean like green, eaten by cows grass). I want to leave it but I know Mounia made them specially. She forced me to eat them.
Have you noticed I’ve been posting much less often? I think I might be running out of things to say. Also, I always do the same thing, and I feel like ‘Oi wented to clarse an oi dided my works’ is not a satisfactory blog post.
Zaimisms? I think so.
Nations that they sit and drink some tea and decide to be united. You guessed it. This is Zaim’s personal take on the UN.
English yes we respect this language so they have a verb ‘to have’ so good for them. Arabs don’t have ‘to have’. Don’t know how they manage in all honesty.
I don’t want to cry now, after lunch yes, but not now. This is interesting. Zaim told us that if we laughed in his class he would leave because he hates laughing and that he would throw his son out of the house for laughing. Then he told us it would make him cry. From these two comments I gather we can laugh, but only after lunch. Go figure.
Also I had two more tests and they were fine-ish. We’ll see when I get my results. Later I have a fun post on what I think of certain groups of people. It might become a tradition because I have many opinions on the subject. S’laters.
All photos courtesy of my lovely friend Natalie because I stupidly don’t own a camera. Enjoy, I know I did.
| Sexy pool |
| Chilling with people…can’t be bothered with names |
| I’m on that middle camel |
| Obligatory Shadow picture.. |
| My camel train again |
| Sunset |
| Drumming |
| Dancing |
| The stars. I stared for hour at this.. |
| Camp in the morning |
| Sunrise |
| Getting home in the morning |
| OHMYGOSH CAMELS |
So, I still haven’t found any pictures to steal. Don’t worry guys, I’m working on it.
In other news…there really isn’t any. It’s amazing how much today has felt normal, probably for the first time since I’ve been in Fes. All I needed was the trip away to realise how comfortable I am here.
I did get badgered by the taxi driver today, who thought he could charge me 20dhs for an 8dh trip. I told him exactly where to go with his expectations (in poor Arabic) and paid him 10dhs (because in fairness to the guy, he did at least miss out on all the traffic)
That is literally all I have to say. Oh, that and my socks aren’t sad anymore as I need them to cover my bites on my feet. I’m not sure if they’d be happier about that or sadder, since they might be getting bled on from where my shoes rub a little bit. I’m sure they’re happy enough though.
Guys, I’m back!!
Ok, so maybe it’s not quite that exciting, not for you anyway. For me, it’s great because I have soooo much to tell.
After my classes from 8-12 on Friday (oof) we hopped on our mini-bus and travelled for 7 hours. This included such fun activities as ‘The Animal Game’ in which Team America faced The British Empire. I’d love to say we won, but I’ll settle for it being a fix, and us being unfairly outnumbered by the Americans. Still, good way to make friends. Then we arrived (finally) here. It was stunning. We went late-night swimming until 12.30 and then sat on the roof of the guys bungalow until about 2 just chatting and looking at the stars (and smoking, but I didn’t join in on that bit)
The next day we had a good breakfast before moving on to here. Again stunning, here we got just 2 rooms, one for the girls stuff and one for the guys stuff. We left everything unnecessary and after a quick lunch we hopped on our camels (OMGCAMELS) and went to the camp in the desert at Merzouga. My camel was a rebel and kept getting out of line, but I kinda loved him for that.
We spent the sunset at the berber camp, had a bit of food and then messed around on drums for a few hours. At about 10 some grumpy spaniard came and had a whine because we were being so loud so we toned it down. Lots of people dragged their mattresses out onto the sand to sleep under the stars. I just stayed out (with my new American friend Kenny) and we chatted. And I saw a shooting star. I made a wish, but I can’t tell you what it is, obviously.
This morning (being Sunday) we trekked back on the camels, had a bit of breakfast and then hopped on the coach for our 10 hour ride home. No great stories here because everyone was asleep prettymuch. I read my book mostly.
Oh and in case you were wondering, yes there are photos, I just have to steal them from other people before I can show you. I’ll have a post exclusively of desert pics. Oh, and in case you were also wondering about the title, here are two photos I took myself to explain it.
and in case I don’t see ya (which I won’t, obviously, Sahara)
Good Afternoon,
Good Evening
and
Goodnight.
Seeya after the weekend guys and dolls.