Final Project

My final project for WPI and this study abroad experience can be viewed here: http://mollymeandersmorocco.wordpress.com/

Ifrane

 

Ifrane, Morocco

I have been living in Ifrane, Morocco for two months now - so I figured it was about time I write about where I live and not just where I travel. Ifrane is sometimes referred to as "little Switzerland". The temperature here can vary greatly being hot enough in the day for shorts to cold enough at night to require a hoodie and blankets! Pretty much reminds me of being home in Erie, except Ifrane actually has an excuse for this weather - being up in the Atlas Mountains. The town is quite small and when viewed from outside the town - all the buildings look exactly the same. I love the marche where I would go get food. Everyone was very welcoming and loved when you tried to speak even the smallest bit of Arabic. One of the meat guys got to know me and would almost have chicken cut up and ready for me by the time I had walked down, picking up vegetables along the way. I appreciated having "home base" in this small town where people were very friendly and at least during the day I felt perfectly fine going out on my own. It was also nice that home base was much cooler than the weekend trips - down out of the mountains it could be scorching in the sunlight, but in Ifrane it was comfortable.

After moving on campus it was interesting to see how the campus dynamics differ here as compared to in the United States. The standard food at the grill at WPI consists of chicken, hamburgers, and hot dogs. Here that list also contains Shawarma a slow roasted lamb meat served in a pita type of bread with lettuce and tomatoes. Also, as I have discussed in other entries, the times of meals differ greatly here and the afternoon snack is a much more 'structured' item of the day. In the US, we may snack, but in Morocco the afternoon snack is a daily event that happens between 5 and 7. It is amazing how the cafe at school suddenly has a huge line at 5PM. Additionally, this snack usually consists of a corn bread type item, msmen, or tarts/cakes. Other than that, the afternoon snack does not differ much - a very different concept than in the US. The cafeterias here open 2 hours later than they do at WPI - a cultural difference I hadn't though of until I tried to get dinner at 6:30 and they still weren't open! I am currently sitting in the cafe here at 11:30 at night and yet again it is bustling with people getting coffee or a snack. I am fairly sure that if I was sitting in the campus center at WPI right now instead it would be nearly deserted. In class, I feel like the students are much more actively engaged - possibly because college here is far from what it is considered in the US and for most families here much more difficult to obtain the finances. Also, there is a curfew on campus and gender separated dorms. Entering an opposite gender dorm is strictly forbidden. Campus security has drug dogs and search a random building every night. Rules are much more strict here, but conform with the social norms of the Moroccan people. Another thing I never would have thought of, but we were told when we got here, is the idea of eating food in class. I guarantee if you walk into a big lecture hall in the US there will be at least a handful of students snacking on something during the lecture. In Morocco, food is meant to be shared, which is exactly why meals are served in a central plate. The idea of taking food to class here is absurd, just like the idea of having food just for yourself. 

I greatly enjoyed my time here in Ifrane and will certainly miss it from time to time. I am so grateful for this opportunity to study in Morocco for 2 months. It is an experience from which I have grown and will forever be a part of me.

Erfoud and Tafilalt Oasis

Merzouga, part of the Sahara desert, was the backdrop of a wonderful sunrise camel tour. After getting up at 4AM, we drove into the desert on incredibly hard packed ground. Arriving at our location, the stars were still visible in the sky above. We got on our camels and rode off into the sunrise, which was a spectacular view. Our tour guide showed us the beetles that live in the sand and eat the camel poop - or as he liked to call it "the chocolate of the desert".

This weekend we stayed in Erfoud, a town in the Meknes -Tafilalt Oasis  An oasis is a completely man made location, not a natural phenomenon like most people believe. The Tafilalt Oasis is one of the largest in the world and when viewed from above looks like a river of palm trees through the gorge. To much surprise, sometimes within the oasis, it is possible to forget that you are in one; not everything in this area is green - in fact there are many places that look almost like the desert. What makes this location an oasis is the fact that there is growth here where without human intervention there would be none. Khettara feed much of the oasis with water; khettara is an system of subsurface channels which bring water from aquifers at the base of the Atlas Mountains and from shallow water tables. 

One interesting story from this location was about a US Army Corps of Engineers project which implemented new canals in the area, but caused massive social implications. In one village in Erfoud, a canal system was put in place to bring water closer to the village, but the canal did not enter the walled boundary of the village. In a very conservative village such as parts of Erfoud where almost every woman wears a burqa, the job of collecting water had to be passed from the women to the young girls, because the women could not leave the confines of the walled village. Because the young girls had to spend so much time walking back and forth to get water, even with the new system, many had to leave school in order to ensure their family obtained water. Erfoud and the Sahara region in general is a well known location for fossils. I got the chance to see some of them being cleaned in order to be sold. The fossils that come from this region were incredibly neat to see. 

Marrakech

Marrakech

Saddian Tombs

Fig trees outside tomb

Inside mausoleum 

Outside, tombs of servants and soldiers

Inside mausoleum 

The Saddian tombs are from the Ahmad al-Mansur era around 1600. There are approximately sixty members of the Saadi Dynasty here. Outside of the mausoleum, soldiers and servants are buried. Much of the architecture here is reminiscent of the Alhamra in Spain as much influence came from this area as refugees moved from Spain to Morocco.

El Badi Palace

Sunken gardens

Where the King would have sat

Pool and sunken gardens

Atlas mountains in distance

Citrus trees

The El Badi Palace was commissioned by the Saadian Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur in 1578. The courtyard consists of pools of water and sunken gardens, so that the fruit was at the height of the people. The king often sat in his throne in the room seen across the pools of water. He would be surrounded by fountains and water. The "plumbing" of this which was under ground can be seen in the picture above. This was to symbolize his power over water in this arid climate. 

Ben Youssef Madrasa

Wall decorations

Where students sat for teaching

View from room to main courtyard

Being the largest in Marrakech, this is the largest Islamic college in Morocco. The college was founded in the 14th century and was closed in 1960. Students could be housed here if necessary. Students would sit and listen to the books of law from teachers which must be memorized. Much of this decoration was also highly influenced by Andalusian art.

Royal Palace Agdal

Carp and gardens in distance

Irrigation system in the gardens

Olive and citrus trees

Carp in the holding tank

Holding tank and gardens

The palace is home to the oldest gardens in Marrakech. The holding tank for water, which lies above ground, is fed from khettaras, a system which enables water to be brought down from the high Atlas Mountains. The holding tanks are above ground, so that the gardens may be irrigated through natural gravity. The citrus trees are located closest to the holding tanks since they require the most water, then olive trees follow. Next, the palace gets fed water, and if anything remains, it travels further to the residents of the city. Carp occupy the holding tank which makes for an exciting visit to the gardens - and reminded me of home.