Frere Jacque in Morocco

It's the weekend - time for an adventure away from the classroom. I am sharing a place with 3 other women about two hours down the coast in a small beachside town called Ouidilia. Something like that.  The internet service is very slow, so I won't be posting much today. We had fun on the way as we drove along the Atlantic Ocean for miles. We saw our first camel and a man urinating behind a skinny tree. Half the time, we didn't know if we were really on the right road.  (En shall Allah) It all turned out well in the end.  We found cafes that actually served women! I have a picture of the "Tomato Beach" cafe. We had coffee and hot chocolate there since it became overcast this afternoon.

Tonight, we went to an old, french hotel and had all kinds of weird and unusual fish. The waiter, who was very proud of his English, kept bringing fish with eyes and fins both large and small. I don't think we realized what we had ordered in french. The table next to us was filled with loud, french Moroccan men. They were trying to connect with us, and we all even sang Frere Jacque together. However, we declined to involve ourselves further than to exchange pleasantries and to mention we were teachers. They said, "Bon Courage!" which means, you are brave. Do they know about the seventh graders?

I really enjoyed coming upon the pottery here that is from a place called Safi. I appreciate the carving on the  clay's surface and the deep colors of the glazes. Here is a picture of a goblet in our place that I'd like to buy from the owner. The locals keep saying I need to go to Fez for pottery. I'd love to get to Safi as well. It is at least another hour south; maybe another time.

The mosquitos have begun zeroing in on my laptop, so I will close for tonight. We hope to explore El Jadida tomorrow...another town along the shoreline with remains of a 16th century Portuguese settlement. Morocco has had all kinds of colonizers!

Goodnight from the lovely, eastern side of the Atlantic.

I miss America tonight. It may be hard for you all to understand, but we do have an awfully nice country.

The view out our front door in our place in Ouidilia

Post Script: The beach parties are in full swing at 1 AM in the morning....no sleeping so far tonight. I wonder where a quiet getaway in this country might be?????

And, while I am thinking about it, today, a travel mate said to me that I came up in her class's conversation. She told her class she could not draw well when drawing something for a math problem. Her students said, "Oh no, the art teacher says everyone is an artist because they were created by an artist God and we all can create." I guess they are listening:-)