Impressions of Morocco

I've been putting off writing about it because there is so much to say, I don't know where to begin. I was a little nervous to travel to Morocco (not just because I saw Babel) because I didn't know what to expect when travelling to a Muslim country. I read a ton of conflicting information about dress, customs, and overall safety. As soon as we arrived in Marrakech and I saw the throngs of European families running around with young children I figured I had nothing to worry about. Here is a small summary of my experiences and impressions: Dress: Being a Muslim country, the majority of women were covered to some extent. Pretty much all of the women we saw were covered from wrist to ankle, and most had their heads covered. Some of the older women had an additional scarf tied over their faces, but this was rare. The few women I saw without their heads covered usually had an overall wealthy and modern look to them. We were told that more and more women are covering their heads since the aftermath of 9-11 to show solidarity with their people in an increasing ant-Muslim world.

Religion: We heard the call to prayer 5 times a day, wherever we were, but rarely saw people stopping to pray or entering the mosques. Like religions around the world, Islam has followers of varying degrees of faith and devotion with common social ties. The king is taking active steps against fundamentalists that promote terror, by requiring all imams (priests) to study at the same state-run Koranic school, and closing the mosques to post-prayer preaching, which tends to be where the fundamentalists spread their thinking.

Politics: While there is voting and a type of parliament, the king has absolute power over country. The new king is considered very progressive and has worked to make Morocco a better place for women, the poor, and touri$t$.

Food: Delicious!!! Lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, couscous, fresh bread, and meats. Most of their food is prepared in a tagine, a crock-pot of sorts, that steams and infuses the many delicious spices. The french influence also guaranteed some delicious pastries and desserts. Mint tea was served everywhere we went. One of our guides joked that Moroccans drink mint tea like Americans drink Coke.

The Berbers: The Berbers are the original inhabitants of Morocco. The name most likely comes from the term barbarian, but they aren't entirely sure. These people live mostly in the mountains, are Muslim, and tend to be looked down-upon and mistreated by the main, Arab population. When the French occupied Morocco, they never had complete control of the Berbers, who were able to maintain their independence by staying remote in the mountains.

Shopping: Every large town has a medina, an old, walled town. In these medinas are homes, mosques and souqs, or markets, where they make and sell just about everything. There you will find towers of spices, carved wood, leather and fabric goods, shoes, scarfs, metal lanterns, chandeliers...you name it. The souq winds around like a labyrinth, with vibrant colors and vivid smells. You have to dodge the flying sparks from the people welding metal and the motorcycles and donkeys passing through. Everything is cheap and you're expected to bargain hard for each thing. The bargaining was so intense that we ended up buying much less than we expected because it took up such a large amount of our time. Also, I worried that everything I took home would look like junk, once taken out of the intoxicating environment of the souq. Now that I have my little Moroccan treasures home, I wish I had bought more.

Transportation: CRAZY!!! I was scared to death on the drive from the airport to the hotel. There appeared to be no rhyme or reason to the way they drove, in addition to the roads being filled with mopeds, bicycles, donkeys, etc. We saw families of four piled on to a single motorcycle, young children sitting in baskets strapped to bikes. It went way beyond the lack of car seats and seat belts. You have to dart across streets like you're playing frogger because the traffic never stops. We travelled in Land Rovers with our bags and bikes strapped to the top, and eventually I got used to the different pace.