It has been almost two months and we have been so busy settling into life here that I have not spent any time updating you. Life here is very different, but we have started to pick up the daily rhythm of the city and are adapting well.
We knew that we were jumping continents, cultures, and we were bound to have a little culture shock, but so far we have been enjoying the steep learning curve. I am not sure where to start so I will just tell you about some of the different aspects of life here and promise to blog more regularly (I really do mean it, I promise)!
One of the many things I like is the late night culture here. Most restaurants do not start getting busy until after seven PM and I am still amazed at the amount of young children out after eleven PM eating dinner with their families. I do really enjoy this aspect of life. In Taiwan I was always worried that the places I wanted to go to would be closed because many places closed around eight or nine in the evening at the latest. As more of a late night couple, this has been a beneficial change for us. The food should have its own blog post (I will start it this week), but if I had to summarize for you it is everything we wanted it to be.
We have been quick to make friends. Our friends all speak French with a little English, several African languages, and Darija (the local Arabic dialect) mixed in. It is clear that we need to learn more French to communicate better in Marrakech overall, but there is a small amount of English spoken for tourists that makes our lives a little easier. We are using language learning apps like Duolingo and are trying to translate small texts daily from English to French to help us speed along our language progress. It is fun, but I am finding that even the slight help that knowing some Spanish has given me, the pronunciation is so much more difficult! Imagine looking at a word and then not pronouncing the entire ending of the word. That is my impression of French, except when you do pronounce it. A language of exceptions, but who am I to complain? English does the same. Despite that being said, I am actually enjoying the fact that we really do need to learn French. It was so easy to get by on minimal Chinese in Taiwan, but here we do not have that luxury. J’espère que je parle français très bientôt. My brain often hurts after hanging out with our new friends, but it is clear that we all love each other so that helps when we are not sure what each other is talking about. I find I laugh a lot.
Our apartment is nice and starting to feel more like home despite the emptiness. The building did not have an available one bedroom, which is what is written into my work contract, so we are in a two bedroom (not complaining). They said that if a one bedroom opens up during the school year they will help us move, but for now we are in a two-bedroom. Many in the school said that we will most likely be here till next school year.
The architecture and details in the ceilings, moldings, and archways is very visually appealing. The walls are a an off white you might even say pale yellow color, which adds some warmth to a vast expanse of empty walls. The furniture in general is very low to the ground. Sesame for instance can put her head on the bed when she wants us to know that she would like our attention. She also has taken a liking to the old beat up futon that was one of the two furnishings in the living room. She knows she is not allowed on the furniture, but apparently even she is aware that the futon is not in good condition or she is protesting the lack of a proper dog bed.
The school schedule is very different and is taking some getting used to. They run a 7 day schedule, so throughout the week students are going to their day one, day two, day three, etc… classes. Everyday the schedule is different and on Wednesday’s there is a shortened day (by one hour) for staff PD. If your confused… don’t worry I look at the multi-page schedule taped to the wall of my classroom everyday. I hope to get the hang of it by the end of the year.
School doesn’t start until 8:45! I literally wake up everyday after the time I would have to arrive at school in the states. I have a few new classes that I am teaching, so I have been working really hard to ensure that I spend the time to make engaging and fun lessons for the students. The entire social studies department turned over, so it has been challenging, but the benefit is we have the opportunity to establish some strong norms and procedures as a department from the beginning of the school year.
My co-workers as with any international school are an interesting eclectic bunch. Many of them are from the States, but there is some Australians, a Belgian, Canadians, English, French, a Romanian, and many local staff. The students are also very diverse. My students here remind me more of my students in the States than my students in Taiwan. I have local students, Americans, French, Spanish students, etc… My classes are much smaller than in Taiwan. My largest class here is 19 students and my smallest class is just 6! My class of 6 is a very funny bunch and I make them all sit in one large group, so it
doesn’t seem as small.
I have a few throwback posts that I wrote on the plane rides traveling here that I will work on editing and posting this week. My love letter to Taiwan and my favorite beach town posts are coming soon. With much more about Marrakesh/Marrakech (English/French spellings) and Morocco to come! Till next time. Peace, Love, and Glitter 😛 Or should I say au revoir.
Ikimashou? 