Marrakesh Mama: Soaring into 2017

I just love my Moroccan donkeys.

Despite the bad rap that 2016 has received, we had a pretty decent final week of the year in Marrakech. Brianna and I glided smoothly from our quiet Christmas celebration into "just another week" in Morocco. Santa Claus made a few more appearances around town, leading me to believe that he is more closely associated with the New Year's celebration here than Christmas festivities. But, to be honest, New Year's Eve was another non-celebration. We walked out of our apartment round 10:00 p.m. to assess the social scene in the center of town and decided we weren't missing anything. A larger crowd than usual gathered around the fountains in the main square, but it was 90% men, and most were just on their cell phones. We actually felt a little relieved that we could return to the warmth of our apartment and not feel as though we were missing the party.

Father Time?

The big celebration in Marrakech this week centered on the King of Morocco's presence in the city. He has been in town for the last ten days, so the streets are festive, and police and guards line the roads as he travels around the city. Brianna and I were out having a little celebration of our own because a brand new bakery had opened just around the corner from our apartment (reducing our 5 minute brisk walk for fresh pain au chocolat to a scant 30 second waddle), when we noticed that there were people gathering on the sidewalk, and, for the first time ever, there was no traffic on the street. Our mad sleuthing skills led us to the conclusion that his majesty might just be passing through. So, never ones to miss a rubber-necking opportunity, we joined the crowd at the curb and just waited. After abut five minutes, the lead vehicles sped through at Indy 500 speeds on a city street. We wondered aloud (to each other) if that had been the king. No one seemed to be moving off the curb though, so, taking our cue from those in the know, we decided to stay put. Five minutes later, we were treated to a slightly slower drive-by of a waving king. We cheered and waved with everyone around us and, then, proceeded on our way to the main square happily munching on our bakery treats. When we arrived at the square, we discovered that the king had been on his way to pray at the Koutoubia mosque, and thousands of people were lined up to catch a glimpse of him. Brianna set off to meet her friends, and I took in the excitement for a little bit longer with the happy crowd. It's not every day that you get to see a king, ya know.

The big excitement! New bakery!

Waiting for the king we think.

Yes! That's his hand!

Apart from the royal excitement, this week's milestone for me was the conclusion of the semester for my undergraduate students. Now, it seems, I will wait one month and, then, give them a final exam. I do not understand the logic of this pause, but it is apparently what the students were striking for a few weeks ago. This will be the next learning process for me - learning about creating, copying, administering, and grading hundreds of exams. I trust it will be an eye-opening experience if this week's flurry of Facebook messages is any indication of the end-of-semester confusion that exists for all. I have had five students contact me, so far, who have realized that they have been attending the wrong section of Spoken English (with a different professor) for the entire semester, yet they will need to take my exam. I trust this month will be one of cultural education for me.

Today, to usher in the brand new year, Brianna and I spent the day at Project Soar coaching girls through a new sports lesson that I have been working on. What a way to kick off the new year...surrounded by 60 energetic girls, playing in the dirt, under a cloudless sky with the snow-covered Atlas Mountains looming in the background. We've got nothing but positive Barakah heading into the new year. Here's hoping that 2017 finds all of you basking in positive juju too!