Vanessa Santana

As with any study abroad, there comes a time to say goodbye. Although today was not our last day on the trip, it was our last chance to take time to appreciate the company, friendships and memories we have made with one another before the chaos of the journey back home.

If you've ever been to Meknes, you know the Medina is a must. The Medina is a bustling square in Meknes filled with vendors, shops and everything and anything you could want.

A group of the students, me and some locals took today, our free day, to venture out into the Medina to look for last minute souvenirs and treasures. I'd like to note that looking for something in the Medina is never just an 'in and out' process that your dad requests when going into Walmart for butter. Going into the Medina is an adventure in and of itself. The streets become mazes, with walls composed of shoes, clothes, tapestries and anything else able to be sold The streets vary in noise -from music to hammering- and smells from meat, spices and old clothe. The Medina is not a high end mall, but rather an upscale shopping plaza that's environment could never be replicated.

I should add that the Medina is notorious for bargaining. You must must must bargain at the Medina. The bargaining is a culture. It is a language of the Moroccans, one that must be learned to navigate the merchandise and laws of the Medina. Without it, you may walk away with a rug for 600 Dirham, when in fact it's only worth 200, or with it, walk away with a tapestry being sold for 800 Dirham to walk away with it for 180 ( true story!).

This dinner being our last one together, absolutely required some dressing up. We had some dresses, and running up and down the halls asking for hairspray and straighteners! At not too long past 8:30 we began our dinner at a single long white table, dressed in glasses and cutlery for the 24 students, 3 Purdue teachers, Moe, our guide, Yayah, and Daniel, both a part of the ISA staff, and two Moroccan locals. Our dinner consisted of, of course, a three course meal that we have been pampered with throughout our stay in our hotel.

The most important part of our dinner, however, was not the meal or the fancy table clothes, but the speeches given by each and every individual at the table. Now, these speeches weren't those given at a soccer banquet, but rather filled with the emotion and sentiment given at a wedding by the best man. Personally, I am not one for public speeches, but I mustered the courage to thank everyone who came along the trip, those who made our trip possible, and to every individual on the trip for contributing to my experience abroad.

Needless to say there were tears, as we know one tear opens the gates for the flood works of everyone in a one mile proximity. The night ended with a group picture (That I missed!), and many others by instructors, and other students.

I'm in the middle of Colin and Nathan

A smaller group picture

Farewell Dinner Group Picture that I missed

Daniel Cervantes

As the inevitable end of this trip came today, I began to reflect on how amazing and how eye-opening this trip has been on my life. As someone who has never been abroad, this trip has passed expectations. No one could ever prepare me for what I did and saw on this trip. No one could have prepared me for the glorious overview of cities, remarkable cultural architecture, a wonderful array of cuisine, and the feeling of freedom as you stand over the edge of a cliff to see the world beneath you. Tasting salt water in your mouth for the first time is a substantial instance in someone’s life; the experience is unpleasant but you accept it because it’s a once in a lifetime moment. I feel like that sentence encapsulates the overall ideal of this trip. You may not like everything that you encounter, but everything is a learning experience and a chance to learn something new.

 Something more important than what I saw on this trip is what I did on this trip. I flew on a plane for the first time. I bought souvenirs and found zany antiques for my friends and family back home. I learned to make Paella, a cultural dish of Spain. I kayaked in the ocean with my instructor and managed to crash into a cliff. I learned to wrap a turban/scarf. I experienced a sandstorm and rain in the Sahara desert, at the same time. I visited the third biggest mosque in the world and learned about the Muslim religion. I visited an orphanage and disability center in order to spread love and bring a smile to the kids there. Despite all of these incredible activities, the most important thing I did was meet and spend time with locals. The people I met have made an everlasting impact on me, and I can’t wait to see them again one day.

It was a reoccurring joke that people would lose themselves on this trip, some more than others. I can say that I did lose myself. I loved every moment of this trip, and I am forever grateful that I had this experience. Everything that I saw and did is important, but it is the love of the cities and love for the people that tie me to these places. I don’t know when I will have the opportunity to study abroad again, but I plan to relive my experiences by telling people about my journey. I want to thank everyone who made this trip possible, and hopefully one day we will all be together again. Inshallah!

Jay Snedeker

​Today we visited the orphanage. I had been excited to visit the orphanage ever since we left the disability center on Monday. I had already gotten over most of my nerves about what to expect and the fear of the language barrier, because on Monday we learned that language wasn’t even needed to make the kids’ day. We arrived and when I got out of the taxi, I could see the fence lined with the smiling faces of the kids waiting to meet us and spend the next two hours with us. Moe asked us if we want to do a tour like we did at the disability center or if we wanted to just dive right in and start spending time with them. We chose to just dive right in. They were all so nice and welcoming. They greeted us with smiles and handshakes As soon as we went in, the kids swarmed us and started pulling us off in different directions. 

I was pulled over into a big circle where they were playing some kind of volleyball game. Much like at the disability center, it was a way of interacting with them without needing language. It was a really fun game and I met several of them through that game. Two of the younger boys really took a liking to me and kept running over to me and hugging my waist or jumping up and wanting me to carry them. One of the boys had me carry him around on my shoulders for a while, as you’ll see below. I did notice that language wasn’t extensively required there, but there was more of a barrier today than there was at the disability center. The kids would come up to me and try to talk to me and I wouldn’t be able to understand them or talk with them, which I found very irritating.

Then towards the end I met a guy named Fahd. He also spoke English. That opened up a door which lead me to connecting with around 10 more of the guys because we all were able to communicate through Fahd. We all talked for a while and then they showed me around the building. They showed me their computer lab and their library and they were so excited to do so. Fahd and a few others have Facebooks, so we all added each other, so we can still keep in touch after I go back to America. I took so many pictures with all these kids and I will share a few with you. I am so happy that I was able to have this experience. It made me realize how lucky I am to have a family that is here for me and to have that form of a support system. There has been many life  I have learned and that I will never forget. Today was a really amazing and impactful day for me and I will never forget it.

Hannah Keith

Today began as any other day here in Morocco, we woke up, got ready, and headed to class. Today's lecture was on immigration issues across the Mediterranean. It focused on Morocco and Spain’s borders and how it has affected the people trying to migrate. Our guest lecturer, Dr. Mohssine Nachit, gave us all a new perspective on the difficulties of migrating from Morocco to Spain, which has impacted the increase in illegal Moroccan immigrants. This was an eye-opening and informative lecture that all of us really enjoyed learning about. We mentioned in our debrief session after the lecture that we all liked learning about this subject and felt like we could use this new knowledge in a positive way once we get back to the states. 

After class, we all had lunch and had a few hours of free time. A group of us went out to explore the area around the hotel and shop for a bit. It was fun to roam around and get to see the city of Meknes on our own. We went to a few small stores and we were able to talk to some locals. A lot of the stores weren't open, so we asked a local who could speak English why they were closed. He told us that in Morocco they close the shops for lunch time so that they can eat their meals as a family. In Spain, they do the same thing. I find it very interesting how these two cultures have some similar aspects that you wouldn't know about unless you interact with the locals and learn from them about their culture and how other cultures may have influenced them.

Later on, we all met up to go play soccer with our Moroccan friends that we met a few days ago. When we got there, we split into four teams of six to seven people and played on two fields. When the games began, so did the laughing. We all had a blast together on the field! Although I wasn't able to participate for very long because of my back, I still enjoyed watching my team and the others fight against eachother to score some goals. Everyone's competitive side was shining bright out on the field. I saw a lot of dodging, yelling, and falling among all of my fellow classmates. It was a hoot and a half! I loved being able to see everyone have so much fun playing soccer, even though most of them didn't know how to play or had never played the sport before. Although some won and some lost, we all had a great time together and we couldn’t have asked for a better day.