This trip was obviously a special one to me for many reasons.
One, I was able to cross going to Africa and visiting Morocco off my bucket list.
Go to Africa, Visit Morocco
Two, I got to meet my family for the first time. I did not live with my dad growing up, and this is his side of the family. Now you may be thinking, wait.. what about the time you were in Paris to see your Grandma. Ok, true. However, I thought that my entire family consisted of only the grandma and aunt that I had met.
Boy, was I wrong! I found out in October of last year that I actually had two more aunts, and a bunch more cousins that are close to my age!
As my mom's side of the family is from Nebraska, they are all pretty white. Me.. not so much. I never looked like anyone and thought I was adopted for a while! I was very excited to meet the people that looked more like me!
I was very curious as to what my family was like and what to expect in anticipation of this trip. I mean, what in the world are you supposed to think about finding out about family members when you are 20 years old? Generally, you meet all your family at a young age and grow up around them. How was I supposed to act around these strangers that are my blood? Is it an instantaneous click, would it take time to get comfortable, would they 'shun' me because I don't practice Islam?
Well, it turns out that the 14 days I spent in my partial country of origin turned out to be an amazing experience. Obviously, I can't wait to go back!
The first day or two, there was definitely an adjustment period. As prepared as I thought I was.. I wasn't. I started noticing that some of the things I do, my family does as well. (The psychologist in me starting thinking that this would be a cool nature/nurture study). =] My cousins and I quickly became friends and it seemed as if we'd known each other for years, not days (except for the fact that we didn't speak the same language).
December 13th, 2013: Arrived in Casablanca, Morocco
Basically the second I got to my family's house, I was thrown into traditional Moroccan dress.
From left to right: Nawal, Hanane, Aunt Karima, Amal, Aunt Fatia, me, Fatima Ezzahra, Imane
Meet my family in Morocco
ONE of the FOUR dishes of the meal that night.
The front of the mosque near where my family lives.
This mosque has a call to prayer five times a day, the first call to prayer is at 6 am. The morning after I arrived, it woke me up and I had forgotten where I was. I was a bit freaked out that morning... I had just seen the movie Taken a couple weeks before. The next day I was ready for it though.
Friday is the holy day, and they have Quran readings at noon. We walked passed during dismissal. Notice these are all men, women have a separate entrance and worshiping area.
The Tramway opened in December 2012, I got to ride it while it was still new!
My cousins from left to right: Nawal, Fatima Ezzahra, Me, and Jihane.
This was my first day there, and my luggage got misplaced so I am wearing my cousin's clothes.. I don't normally dress all chikibiki [arabic for fancy]. =]
Our family kept saying that we looked liked twims [twins in arabic].
I think we could pull off dizygotic. What do you think?
Hanane
The futbol tiran [stadium]! The color on the seats is part of the tifo [mosaic] for the big game on Sunday between Wydad [red] and Raja Casablanca [green]. I was going to go [women get in free], but it is unsafe. This game was heated because both teams are from Casablanca and they have been known to throw rocks and break the windows of the bus. The game ended up being a tie [1-1]. Maybe this time, I'll get to go. And I just missed the
Fifa Club World Cup!
At 17! This 'city' is 17 kilometers in between Casablanca and Mohammedia (where my other cousins live)
The beach in Mohammedia
Love the palm trees
Traditional dress
What are the odds?!
That is where the bride and groom would sit. Apparently, weddings last for hours and span over days.
Moroccan sitting room
They arrange furniture to accommodate for many people.
It is not uncommon for 7+ people to eat at any given meal time.
My 'uncle' Abdeljalil.
Apparently, he liked my grandpa so much that he took his last name and is considered part of the family.
The Hassan II is the largest mosque in Africa and 7th largest in the world.
Hassan II also boasts the tallest minaret in the world and a capacity of 105,000.
Inside
This fish was caught earlier that morning. Perks of coastal living. =]
The food.. I'm probably going to have to dedicate an entire post to food once I'm reminded of how delicious Moroccan cuisine is. I can't wait to eat cous cous!!!
Atlantic Ocean at dusk
Escargot.. not my thing.
Chicken and potatoes though.. This was probably my favorite meal.
So much so, that I learned how to make it here!
My name in Arabic, in henna ink.
Get a henna tattoo
Funny story: When I got back to the states, I went to work (at a nursing home) and one of my residents asked: "Did a dog poop on your hands?"
Rooftop view from my cousin's place. One of my favorite locations.
This is also a wonderful place.
Ismail and I went into the ocean in December. We froze. It was kind of a bad idea.
Oh well. At least we got a good picture and story out of it.
I made my cousins some "American food." I made chicken snack wraps for them.
French monopoly dominators!
Jihane, Nawal, me, and Fatima Ezzahra trying to stay warm at night.
The Mediterranean climate brings cold nights.
Nawal, Jihane and I
Getting that upper body strength workout in.
My last meal in Morocco. :(
One last group cousin picture!
Ghislane, Fatima Ezzahra, me, Ismail, Nawal, Jihane, Abdel Hamid and Imane.
"Three words synonymous with travel?"
-unknown, language, excitement
I love this mini description!
The batbike my cousin Tarik built! His son Nial is in the brown coat.
Riding the batbike in downtown Paris!
Do you see how red my nose is?
I still have a lot to learn about Morocco, but that's what travel is for, right? I'm sure I'll take away just as much on my upcoming visit as I did last December.
My stats as of December 31, 2012:
