Pay Day in Morocco

Returning home after a trip to the bakery.

What a good day I had today. Not that it didn't have funny quirks and glitches, but all in all, it was a really pleasant day. My dad called, and it was so nice to see his face and hear his voice. He has been cheering me on for a long time, so it was great to Skype with him and with Janet, his really kind wife. He even got to meet Jill. He called right after school, and I got to show them all around our apartment via the internet. Amazing to be talking from Morocco to Salt Lake City, Utah! Way to go, Dad on using Skype!

Pay Day!

Today was the day I went down to an office, I think it is a finance office, but that may take a little more time to figure out. I had given my paycheck to a gentleman in that office, and I had been told to return in two days time to receive my cash from him. Cash here comes in a light brown envelope with nothing but the amount written on the inside of the envelope. No bank insignias or official looking slips. Just hard cold, large piles of cash. The money is a little inflated here, or just different. I was walking around with all this cash just hoping I'd make it to a place where I could lock it up! Next month - direct deposit!


School was excellent today. I was able to type out some curriculum ideas, hand in a info page on Art at my school for curriculum night, and teach some classes with lots of really interesting and polite children enjoying art. Some of the kids are real internationals who have lived all over the place. They really do know French, some English and lots of Arabic. They amaze me.

Italy? Morocco?, women want choices

I had a good conversation with some middle school students about the Koran and the Islamic faith. I enjoyed listening to their passion for their faith, and I saw that they were just as passionate as I am for mine. I was respectful of them, and they were respectful of me. I was thankful to have had such a nice conversation, and we all had a good laugh when I mentioned I was from Seattle and a student said I looked nicer than Bill Gates. I said it was because I am half Italian. I taught them how to say ciao, and then we all parted saying ciao!


Jill and I ended the day with paying our landlord thousands of dirhams (money IS inflated), had a great walk on the beach, and enjoyed caprise salad and vino for dinner again tonight. The BBC even stayed on for a full 1/2 hour while we ate dinner, so we know: President Obama is trying to broker a peace treaty with Palestine and Israel, the miners in Chile are still trapped, and there is some cricket match fixing going on out there in cricket world.

Time for Decaf!

And, I hear it is raining in Seattle! I don't miss the rain, but I miss everyone. I wish I could bring you all here. You'd be fascinated at life here....the Ramadan month is quite something to be in the midst of. And to have a make-shift mosque right below our windows is a really amazing experience.


Also, I am remembering more French, and I am trying Arabic every day. I think I am going to take Arabic two afternoons/nights a week if I can. I'd like to be able to say more than I currently can, even when getting out and about or buying things at a hnoot (little neighborhood store). 


That's all for tonight...time to stoke up the French press for some decaf. I still love my coffee!