From Rabat to El Jadida - 3/14/13 Thursday, our travel-transition day. Kristen, Libby & I took the train south from Rabat to El Jadida. We rode 2nd class, which was not too bad and very inexpensive, really. As soon as we left the capital city we saw lots of agriculture, places of high poverty, some nice, modern looking farms and some great views of the Atlantic. Our host teacher, Mifdal Bouchaib, was waiting for us at the station and provided a warm welcome. I felt certain that this would be a great experience.

A visit to a private middle/high school in Sale (Rabat area)

Sale (Rabat area) visit to a Public School and District offices.We were all given the opportunity by the Ministry of Education to visit two schools in Rabat; one public high school and one private middle school. At the public school we were not shown any classrooms and only quickly met a few teachers and students. The school (as compared to American standards, even with one of our poorer schools) was run down and the grounds were in terrible shape. My first thought were about how the school I would visit would be like and how fortunate and blessed we are in America. On the other hand, the private school we visited was a vast improvement over the public one. At this school we were able to visit an English class where the students presented us flowers and they had prepared and all sang Katy Perry’s Firework for us. We were all thrilled and very impressed. This school looked very much like an American school, and even had a computer lab. However, the library was tiny and consisted of one large wall shelf in a hallway with a desk and computer. At both schools we had almost no time to visit with students, sadly, because the students were so hungry for dialogue and to meet with us. However, the principal of the private school did give me a big hug and sang part of “we are the world” to me. This made me a little emotional as it was special to me and really hit to the heart of why I wanted to have this experience and why it’s important. It was a good send off as we were all departing to separate cities and schools the next day.

Tolerance and Acceptance

We were told in our introductory history and culture classes about the rich diversity and tolerance for diversity of faiths and beliefs. I have found this to be very true and especially impressive in a mostly Muslim country. I found this ceramic piece on a pottery tour and thought it really represented this amazing thought. Also we all were taken to a Jewish restaurant for dinner (which featured amazing Jewish Mediterranean food). I hope and wish that other countries would look at Morocco and appreciate how people of different faiths can prosper in peace.

Learning and Exploring

We are learning and sharing about Moroccan culture, history and the education system from our incredible, friendly and informative Moroccan teachers Khadija, Hamdi and Kawthar. We also visited the US Embassy learned more about the mission of the State Department, the USA and our role at TGC teachers was really clarified for me. This was my first time visiting an embassy. It was an honor to be told that our role is to build and maintain people to people connections and relationships through education. This is between teachers, students and classrooms here in Morocco and it continues and grows when we leave and go back home.

First Impressions

Arrival at airport was interesting as we flew over goat ranch at end of runway, with no fences or security. The flight in was straight over Mediterranean and over lots of farms and rural homes painted read or pink. The passport control stations were mostly run by women, which I found interesting. We learned later that the King is trying to improve the gender issues in Morocco. Getting through customs and immigration was uneventful, but I did a loud passport stamp. The drive in the van together to the hotel gave us a chance to see crazy traffic, families out walking and playing on a Sunday afternoon as well as a taste of the architecture of mostly white buildings, with colorful paint on some.

Pre-departure

Today is my last day teaching my students for 2 weeks.   I am grateful to my administration and the district for allowing me to take part in this experience.  Thanks to my friend and substitute, Steve, for taking care of my students while I am away.  Most of all , thanks to my wonderful, awesome wife, Ingelaurie, for helping me shop, organize and pack. 

I look forward to meeting up with our Morocco cohort in Paris in only 3 days.

Bruce