Moroccan Cultural Explorations

While I worked a typical 9-5 Monday to Friday, time after work and on weekends were free for us to explore the local community and Moroccan culture.

Rabat Explorations

While in Morocco, I lived in a Riad in the Old Medina of Rabat with other individuals who were completing other internships with the Moroccan Center for Arabic Studies including NGO Journalism, Medical Shadowing, and teaching English opportunities. At various times throughout my trip, there were 5-12 people staying in the Riad, and after work we would have dinner together and then take group walks through the medina, to the Kasbah, and near the water front. I rode the little blue boats to the neighboring city of Sale that was just across the river, played yard games with the local school children, visited the local shops daily for bottled water, went to community-wide concerts on the waterfront, and visited national sites like the Hassan Tower.

This was my very first meal in Morocco. It was tajine kafta, a popular dish in Morocco, with an assortment of fruits and vegetables. Alongside the meal, was a traditional Moroccan mint tea that is made with green tea, an variety of mint herb leaves, and lots of sugar.

While in Rabat, I also got the chance to meet a few of the local children who spent the summer learning English, and was invited to partake in a Friday tradition of gathering with friends and family to eat couscous, a traditional cultural dish in Morocco with vegetables and lamb meat on the inside, getting henna, and dressing up in a Moroccan kaftan.

Other Moroccan Cities Explorations

My first weekend in Morocco, I travelled with the group to Tangier and Tetouan, northern cities in Morocco. In addition to French and Arabic, many of to local people in these cities also spoke Spanish. With Spain just a 30 minute boat ride away from Tangier, and the occupation of Spain in these regions, there is a lot of Spanish influence in the food, language, and architecture. It was amazing to get to travel and see the variation in Morocco culture between Rabat, which is more to the West, and Tangier.

In Tangier, we walked around the city and sightsaw. We also visited Hercules Cave, which looked out into the Mediterranean sea.

In Tetouan, we visited lots of historical monuments, the King's Palace, and the archeological museum.

On second weekend in Morocco, the group went to Chefchaouen (aka The Blue City), another northern city. This city had the majority of its buildings and streets painted blue to represent the sky for the large influx of Jews that migrated to this city at the start of WW2. While here, we visited the Akchour waterfall, walked around the insanely beautiful city, and watched the sunset near the Spanish Mosque.

On m third and final weekend, the group and I went on a 3-day West Sahara Desert Tour. This was by far the best weekend trip I have ever gone on in my life. For this tour, we were picked up early in the morning in Marrakesh, so we got to spend the day prior there, and headed to the Sahara Desert. On the way there, the tour guide took multiple stops at ancient Berber, indigenous people of Morocco, villages, and I got to see how they lived their daily lives and the source of many deviations to the current day Moroccan cultures in various regions of Morocco. When we got to the desert, we then rode camels to watch the sunset from the sand dunes, camped out a few miles into the desert, had dinner and experienced traditional Berber drums and dances around a campfire. It was all so amazing to witness first hand.

In Marrakesh (City of Spices):

Fun Fact: In the popular tajine dish, there is a 37-spice blend mixture that is used to cook this dish.

In the Berber Villages:

In the West Sahara Desert:

Fun Fact: A head scarf, sunglasses, and long pants/shirts are needed to protect your head from too much sun and your arms, legs, and eyes from sharp sand blowing in the wind.