Been too long!

It’s been a long time since my last entry. So much has happened since then I’ll try to cram it all in now. Let me see… what is the easiest way to do this? I know! Poor grammar and incomplete sentences!

December started with a trip to Fes. One of the oldest cities in Morocco. It was nice, but I’m still partial to Marrakesh. Decided to travel from Fes to Marrakesh on a souk bus (the kind that stops like a taxi)… I was on the bus for 12 and half hours. Never again! NEVER will I do that trip on a souk bus.

I found out that I would be getting a site change. My program staff and I discussed at In-service training about me switching sites due to lack of work in site. So when I found out everything was approved, I was super excited. After Fes… it was packing time! Yuck… and soon being in site became really awkward. Knowing I would be leaving soon for England and then be moving after that. I wasn’t very social with my community in the last week or two before leaving for my trip. Also I was way too distracted and excited to leave, I couldn’t even try to think about work or studying language.

Left for England the 22^nd! The snow did not ruin my plans, thank goodness! I flew out of Marrakesh into Gatwick, where my bestest bud Chloe met me. My whole visit to England and staying with Chloe and her family was great. If Illinois is “home” and Morocco is my “2^nd home” then I’d have to say Durrington is my “home away from home”. Chloe and I were busy almost every day and it was so nice having plans and work. Sigh. It was a nice taste of what life used to be like…

So what did I do in the UK? So much! I was able to volunteer at a day camp for special needs kids where Chloe works. Then peel vegetables for a Christmas lunch for the homeless and then help serve food. All of my good deeds were because of Chloe! Had an amazing Christmas dinner with the Ellis family. They made me feel like part of the family. Shopping, Harry Potter, London, Science Museum, Pubs, Mexican food, New Years in Bristol, clubbing in Brighton… It was a much needed break from Morocco. I’m in love with the UK and hope to someday be there for longer than just a few weeks.

I flew back to Morocco on the 4^th and was a little less than excited. As I waited for the bus to come to the airport, I met an American about my same age. Her story was pretty fantastic. She had been living in Southern Spain and traveling around Portugal for the past three months. She was going to spend about three weeks in Morocco, traveling around on her own. It was like looking into a mirror if I had worked my butt off the year after I graduated instead of just waiting for Peace Corps. Her plans were to travel for about a year until her money ran out. Needless to say I was envious of her. It also got my wheels spinning… who says I still can’t do something similar? Right?

I stayed in Marrakech for a few days before heading back to site. I needed to slowly, mentally prepare myself for the move and make sure all was in order.

The stress I experienced up until the move was pretty intense. I had less help from Peace Corps than I was hoping for and had to rely completely on my tutor in Ouaouizerth. I was really nervous and worried that my truck driver wouldn’t show up, because the concept of time and meetings in Moroccan culture is not quite what Americans are used to. They are much more relaxed when it comes to times and getting things done.

With all my worry, the move went rather smoothly! It turned out my truck guy’s job is actually to move people! And I thought my tutor said it was an old guy who was a friend of the family. But he knew what he was doing, so he brought a friend and with the few volunteers that helped we had my apartment cleared out in less than 20 minutes. The whole move was finished before 10 in the morning! I did feel bad that my first time back to site was the time I was clearing everything out and leaving, but we did it early enough that most people didn’t even know. Also unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to see my host family, but alas… we never had the best relationship. I’m sure I’ll be visiting my old site at some point…

So now what? Now I’m moved and unpacked…. And! Before I left for the UK I had the hopes of starting health classes at the youth center or teaching English. But… now… I’m finding my transition a little harder than expected. I haven’t been able to find the motivation I was hoping this move would give me.

My head is in the clouds… dreaming of other countries… of other possible plans for the future. For now… I’m in Morocco working my way through my 1TB hard drive full of movies and TV… still crossing my fingers that lightning will strike and my purpose here will reveal itself. In the meantime… I’ve planned a few long weekend excursions, Madrid at the end of March! (only $60 round trip) and Rome at the end of April. Who knows where I’ll be in May and June? Time will tell.