GONE FISHIN'! Well, so to speak. More like grandkid/daughter hugging, card/game playing, visiting, swimming, etc! while back home for a couple of weeks! I've been warned by experienced PCVs that it isn't that easy to come back, but sure do need my family and friends "fix!"

Hot and dirty! Yesterday it got up to 95 in my house, and there was a huge dirt storm. I wondered why the skies had been hazy for the past week...thought perhaps it was heat haze, but now realized it was dirt haze. And of course, can't close the few windows I have or I would cook, so a layer of grit over everything. The neddy wasn't too hot, but later, only thing to do was to just lay down and read on a Tom Clancy novel, trying to take myself to another place! :) From what I understand, lots more of the same only hotter a month from now.

KARMUSA T NSARA. Fruit of the Christians. Apparently because the Spanish introduced it to Morocco during their time of reign here. During my morning walk the other day, a man approaching on the road greeted me, and held out the fruit of the prickly pear cactus (there are now stands on the streets with people sellling them). He brushed some of stickers off with a swatch of a tree branch, then took nail clippers out of his pocket, flicked open a little knife, and deftly peeled the fruit. He then offered it up to me. It was quite tasty, and a very kind thing for him to do. A bit farther up the road I spied a large turtle enjoying the same thing, using its front "paws" to stabilize the position of the fruit. Hadn't ever seen anything quite like that before. Then, at the neddy Friday, some women from a nearby douar came in to do some weaving of placemats (at my suggestion) and brought with them tea, bread, and some karmus, which we enjoyed. THEN, walking this morning, there was a man on the edge of the road picking some of this fruit, using a long bamboo stick that was split on the end, and string rigged up so the device could be used as a pincer. Wish I had my camera for that. But here are photos of our little tea party, as well as the women weaving.

In my blog a few days ago I showed photos of my friend teaching and one of the classroom in a nearby village. Here are a few facts about education in Morocco. Only 25% of children can read after primary school. 1/5 of middle school classes have more than 40 students. Basic education is compulsory up to age 15 but not enforced by law. Only 1 out of10 students go on to university level . A big part of the problem,as I see it, is the many languages they have deal with. Perhaps Berber dialect is spoken at home, Moroccan Arabic in the community, Standard Arabic in school, then they start learning French in the elementary grades, but have Arabized the teaching of math and science in high school. However, those disciplines are still taught in French in the university. Then, in most high schools, the student must also take another foreign language for two years. In my village, it is either English or Spanish. Most (all?) students here elect to take English, but I think their skill level is still pretty basic after two years.

And I thought I had it tough!

GREEN...a picture is worth a thousand words, and this one is no exception. To the right you can see a hill that shows a lot of erosion, next to a fence with trees on the right side. The trees are part of a large reserve that the government has set aside. There is a huge problem here with deforestation. The rural people have cut trees to use for wood to heat their homes a bit, to use for cooking, and to make furniture. They also pile up the many rocks and then plant wheat every year. Now there is an erosion problem. It seems that the solution is so obvious in a country where there must be at least 300 days of sunshine every year. I do understand that the King does have a solar project going on. I sure hope so. Just like anything else, it is a complex issue. What seems to be a solution now for some people creates a problem in the future for others.

Just a nice picture of a little road and olive trees that I liked and thought I would share. The other is a great little gate that captured my attention on my morning walk.

You'll need to click on this photo
of the hillside; it is an image of
shepherds abiding by their fields
by day. If you're wondering what
they sheep are eating, you're not
the only one! The remains of the
wheat harvest, is about it!

This is a typical property divider. A rock wall with bramble bush (for lack of a better name) then prickly pear cactus on top of that. These barriers not only define property lines,but work well to keep people/animals in/out. They are very astute about making sure that it is clear what is their property, just they are very careful to secure the doors to their homes. When I asked a local person about it, they said even though it is such a highly religious countrym there are those who are bad, and can't be trusted.

MARRAKECH. At the heart of Mrakech (how it's pronounced here) is the square called "Jma Fna", where there are many little shops selling all sorts of merchandise down narrow little streets. Here is one of the nearby landmarks, an especially tall mosque. If you click on the close up of the top, you can see the loudspeakers in the windows. That is so the call to prayer can be heard everywhere. In every town, there are numerous mosques, and sometimes the calls to prayer are done live, and other times they are recordings. Regardless, there is no doubt that they can and will be heard by all, no matter what time of day or night!
The horse carriage is a method of touring that I've not yet done; am saving it for when company comes. Occassionaally I do take a carriage from my bab( "gate" where I get out of my taxi) to jma fna for a very reasonable price, but it isn't a very far walk, so usually use my own hoofs. Not sure what it costs to just go around the city. The horses are equipped with rear-end bags to keep the streets clean. There are also tour busses that you can get on and off all day.

This is a place to eat that is featured in the Lonely Planet tour book, and the food IS good, and cheap. Note the old beggar woman in the foreground.

Here is a picture of tourists; they're
easy to spot as they don't

wear many clothes...at least compared to the general public!

Time for a little change in photos!
Here is a real cutie,
the daughter of one of the young women who comes to the neddy.

Am posting some notes I took after first arriving, and came upon one of the first things we were told, that still applies, and I think something for all of us remember about anyone from a culture different from our personal one: |don't judge behavior displayed, as the values represented go deep and are often beyond our immediate understanding, "