Women's Center Update

Here is the latest on the progress of the women's center.

Eid happened, and the world basically stopped. And the world will stay stopped for just a few more days. At that point we (association president and I) hope to sign with a contractor, and start building.

However, before Eid, we were lucky enough to make some great progress!

1. The "neddi girls" and I met about a week and a half ago to discuss women's center funds. While more money will go to the actual construction than we originally thought (blame it on the bad USD exchange rate!), thanks to the extra donations from wonderful people at home, we have an additional $2,000 for the girls to spend. Everyone agreed that we will use some of this money to buy crochet needles, yarn, fabric and thread for the handicraft room. The girls had the opportunity to throw out any ideas regarding the use of the funds, and we will make decisions as the completion of the center draws near.

2. 2 members of my local association and I met to discuss the contract we will need for the center. We are looking locally (in my site) for a contractor, and my association president is currently taking bids. While the contractor will be employed to make the construction happen, the association president and I will make all purchases and handle the finances ourselves. I hope to have a more thorough update on the contractor later this week.

3. I spent a morning in Tiznit, meeting with the Ministry of Social Development delegue, and the Ministry of Health. Both are pleased to hear that construction is to begin on the women's center. Sometime in the next 2 weeks I will bring an official request from the association to the Ministry of Social Development for equipment and machines. At that point, the delegue will schedule a meeting to discuss exactly what their donation will be. The Ministry of Health is sending equipment to my local health clinic to be stored for use in the health room of the women's center.

More to come!

Holiday Weekend

What a holiday filled weekend this was!

It all started, of course, with Thanksgiving on Thursday. Because Eid Al-Adha was on Saturday, Peace Corps put a travel restriction in place for all volunteers from Wednesday to Wednesday (which means I am still under house arrest). During Eid, people are traveling all over the country to go home for the holiday. Consequently, traffic is bad and there are many car accidents. Peace Corps (rightly so) seems to think it is better if volunteers stay home for the week. This travel restriction meant no chance of spending Thanksgiving with other volunteer friends. So, I celebrated Thanksgiving with my wonderful host family. Tuesday and Wednesday I went shopping in Tiznit and my souk for all the Thanksgiving ingredients I could find.

Thursday morning Najma came to my house, arms full of pots, pans, utensils, plates, and casserole dishes. My 2 saucepans and 4 plates were not going to cut it for our Thanksgiving feast. My wonderful host sister stayed in my kitchen with me from 9:30 until 2:30, chopping, peeling, cutting, mashing, cooking, frying, sauteing, and baking.

We started by making an apple pie. Then, we prepared the 5lbs of turkey I found in Tiznit, the green bean casserole, the stuffing, and last but not least, the mashed potatoes. I was a little nervous about everything being ready by 2:30 when my guests were expected; however, with Najma's expert ability to work incredibly efficiently in the kitchen, we had all the food ready a few minutes early.

While I forgot to take pictures of the finished products, here is the stuffing and turkey cooking!

My recipes and cooking schedule, posted in the kitchen.

My 8 guests and I thoroughly enjoyed our Thanksgiving meal, and I honestly believe they really liked the food.

Friday, after sleeping in to recover from Thursday's cooking extravaganza, I spent 5 hours baking Eid bread with Ijjou, Najma, and a few of my neighbors. My host family has this awesome outdoor oven used to make mass amounts of bread. The oven (heated by fire and clay) holds about 8-9 rounds of bread at a time, which is very convenient when each family makes 20 or more rounds of bread for Eid. I had a really nice time with them (as usual), even though I was told that no one will want to marry me if I don't learn to make bread faster. :)

As we finished up the last batch of bread, we made tea and bsis*, which we ate with hot fresh bread. It is hard to believe that this was the last Eid I will spend with my host family. I am definitely going to miss making bread with them!

*bsis. Anyone trying to gain wait? Yes? If so, make bsis. Bsis consists of flour, butter, a little salt, and eggs. It is DELICIOUS, and probably the best weight-gaining food out there.

Saturday morning, my host family slaughtered a sheep and 2 goats for the Eid celebration. This is done in honor of Abraham, who was willing to sacrifice his son for God, before God told him to sacrifice a sheep instead. Although Muslim families all over the world practice this tradition, people celebrate in very different ways. Some families give all the meat to those in need, while some (like my host family) eat every last organ, and have enough meat to last them for 2 or more months.

Here's the poor guy a few minutes before sacrificing time. He had no idea what was coming.

And here are his intestines. Yummy!

While the animals were being gutted and all that jazz, Najma and I started making liver and fat kebabs. Mmmm good.

I had a very enjoyable day with my host family; however, I can safely say I will not mind if that was the last sheep stomach I ever eat again in my life.

Now that Thanksgiving and Eid are over, Advent begins! Last week I decided it would be nice to have an Advent wreath this year. Unfortunately those aren't exactly readily available in rural Morocco. So I decided to make one! It isn't so much an Advent wreath as it is an Advent row...but I think it gets the point across. Plus I did my Christmas decorating! Too bad there was no eggnog and homemade Mom cookies.

Not an REI Girl

So. I am a Peace Corps Volunteer. I bathe with buckets of water. I use a turkish toilet. I sleep wherever....floor, ponj, bed, anywhere. I wash all my clothes by hand. I don't wear make-up.

But I am NOT an REI girl.

It has taken me almost a year and a half to realize this. When I was packing for Peace Corps almost 2 years ago, I felt the need to leave all my cute clothes and jewelry and everything at home...and go shopping at REI. Since I've been here, I've felt bad painting my nails and blow drying my hair from time to time. REI girls don't paint their nails and blow dry their hair after pouring buckets of water over their heads to bathe. They suck it up and leave the girly stuff behind.

But, I am not an REI girl.

So I've decided to stop feeling bad. Now I paint my nails with no shame, I wear jewelry all the time, I trim my bangs, I blow dry my hair, I wear mascara when I teach, I always put lotion on my hands so they stay soft, I wear perfume once in a blue moon, and I try to look cute sometimes.
Is that so bad?????

Today, I even bought a purse!

I was on a hunt for Q-tips, and what did I find instead? A store with an honest to God purse display! Like a real purse wall. Stuffed with tissue to look nice and all. Now, I would say this store owner did a LOT with what he has to work with, which is knock off brand purses. I was just shocked. Absolutely blown away. This is the first time I have seen such a display in anything but a fancy rich-people boutique since arriving in Morocco.

I just showered the store owner with compliments, explaining to him that i worked for a "tahanut lli iznza lsac irghlan" (a store that sells expensive purses ie Coach) in America and that I am extremely impressed by his marketing and visuals.

I looked about about 50 purses, and I swear, if I still worked at Coach, I would hire this guy on the spot. He kept bringing out similar purses in new colors and styles for me to look at, and led me to a, get this, FULL LENGTH MIRROR so I could check them out. He even tried to "add-on" by showing me small luggage. I mean, we are talking all out phenomenal salesmanship. Almost brought a tear to my eye!

My purse ended up costing 100 dirhams (Like $13). And it is just SO cute.

Did I mention, I am not an REI girl?

Buta Saga

And here is what happened last week. (Besides fully funding the women's center!)

In order to appreciate this story, it necessary to understand how money works here. Basically, credit cards are useless. Even in a big city like Agadir, I can't use my credit card....well, anywhere. So when I need money I need to use my Peace Corps bank card in Tiznit, and make sure to take out enough to last me until my next trip to Tiznit.

So I took out 400 dirhams about 2 1/2 weeks ago (approx. $50), thinking that this would definitely last me until my next trip to Tiznit. Well, then I ended up spending a bunch on art supplies for my middle schoolers, buying a lot of food to host some Peace Corps friends at my house, and paying for my water bill etc. Then, last Weds, i realized I had just 25 dirhams (enough for my taxi ride to Tiznit), and 10 dirhams to last me until I make that trip. We are talking about $1.25 to last me oohhhhh, about a week and a half.

Now, I had some vegetables and milk and dry grains in my house, so I wasn't too worried about food. But then I was heating water to bathe, and 'lo and behold my buta gas ran out. And it was cold-ish and almost dark. That meant no hope of getting my host dad to bring a new buta up from souk that evening.

So I went to my host family's house and they, being the kind folk they are, gave me a mini-buta gas to use that night until my host dad could bring a new buta up from souk the next day.

The only problem is, buta gas tanks cost 40 dirhams, and I had only 10!!!! So the next morning, I went to my fav. store guy, who also happens to be my buta gas guy. And I was like, "OK, so here's the deal....." and basically told him I have no buta and no money to pay for a new one.

And that ultra nice guy told me, "No problem, pay whenever you can."

Isn't that tooooo nice!?!?!?

So I got my buta gas. Yay! And I'm going to Tiznit tomorrow and will be able to pay him back. Later I was in another store looking at hand cream, but it was too expensive for my 10 dirham budget. The store guy immediately told me to take it, and pay for it whenever I can.

Can you even IMAGINE that in Chicago or Schaumburg? I walk into a Walgreens, and um, I'd like this lotion, but I don't have any money.............the clerk would laugh in my face!!!

It is times like this that I appreciate being in rural Morocco SO much.

Loss

It is with great sadness that I write this post. And I don't mean to bring everyone down; to the contrary, I believe that all of your thoughts and prayers can benefit the many people going through such a difficult time right now.

On Monday, Peace Corps Morocco lost a cherished volunteer. Soyoun was a Youth Development Volunteer in the Zagora region of southern Morocco. She had been serving in Morocco since September 2008, and was loved by her fellow volunteers and Moroccan friends.

While I didn't know Soyoun personally, she was a member of our Peace Corps community, and left a family mourning at home, and a country mourning in Morocco.

Please, add Soyoun's family and friends to your prayers today, and keep them on your mind.

FULLY FUNDED and then some!

FULLY FUNDED

You know what that means? FULLY FUNDED? It means that some amazing people, some family, some friends, some acquaintances, some colleagues, some former professors, some friends of friends, some great organizations, and some people I don't even know saw the value of constructing a women's community center for my village, and donated over $7000 in ONE WEEK.

That brings the total donations to $16,902! It is ABSOLUTELY incredible.

On Saturday, one AMAZING woman from church and her family hosted a great fundraiser for the women's center, collecting even more by providing henna tattoos, hand massages, and manicures! My host sister and host aunt and I had the opportunity to talk to folks at the fundraiser, and it sounded like everyone had a great time!

Sandy, my mom, and Sister-Steph cooked some great Moroccan food to share at the fundraiser. I'm so impressed, and so were my host aunt and host sister!!!! Pictures to follow.

In addition to all this, we have $3,500 from USAID to make the women's center even BETTER.

So, BASICALLY, what I'm trying to say is that PEOPLE ARE AMAZING.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE WOMEN'S CENTER IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! You leave me and the girls of my community absolutely speechless. Or maybe not quite speechless, because clearly I have a lot to say. :)

Tea, Tea with Jam, Jam and Bread!

Well I'm just happy as can be this morning. I woke up at 6am this morning singing "tea, tea with jam, jam and bread. dun dun. tea, tea with jam, jam and bread...." Who can identify where THAT is from???

So I made myself some tea, tea with jam, jam and bread, and continued on my merry way. Earl Grey tea from home, apricot jam, and great homemade wheat bread from my host aunt!

Ok, so maybe I didn't drink my tea out of a china tea cup, and have berries sprinkled around me...but you get the idea!

So in my happy state, I thought I would take a second to thank everyone who is making this women's center a reality. The women in my community and I appreciate your generosity more than you can possible imagine.

Just think. Close your eyes and think that you are a 40-something year old woman. You have 4 kids.....2 of which never got to go to school because they had to help shepherd the sheep as they grew up. The other 2 are in school now, but you can't help them with their homework because, unfortunately, YOU never had the opportunity to learn to read and write. So you watch them struggle, helpless to relieve their frustrations.

You watch TV, but don't understand the language of the newscasters....you want to read the Bible (or in this case the Quran), but you don't know how to read. And you want more than anything to help sustain your family economically, but how?

Maybe you have a baby who needs to go to the doctor for vaccinations. But maybe you hurt your back from 40 years of labor in the fields, so it is too hard for you to walk the 3 miles to the doctor. And you don't have a car. And your husband is off in a big city trying to earn a living for you and your children. So the vaccination will just have to wait.

But thanks to the immense generosity of my wonderful family, friends, collegues, acquaintances, and people I don't even know, this will all change.

10 days!!!!

This morning, I received word from Peace Corps that USAID has approved my grant request for $3,500. This means we are $3,500 closer to being ready to build the Women's Center. This also means we have $4,300 left to raise. And 10 days to do it!!!

After 10 days, the project will be taken off the Peace Corps website, and will be considered closed for funding. We have decided to take whatever funds we have when these 10 days are up. This is to ensure project completion before I finish my service here in May.

HOWEVER, if we don't raise the $4,300 over the next week and a half, we will have to reduce some of the services we are planning on offering to the girls when the Women's Center is built.

For example, $4,300 could be the amount that funds the construction of the literacy room. Or the health room. If we don't raise these funds, one of the services of the Women's Center will have to go.

Please, share this need with friends and family and co workers and anyone who might want to donate in the next 10 days. Also, a wonderful family from CHS is hosting a Henna Party next Saturday (the 14th) to help raise some last minute funds. Contact my mom or sister for details!

Here it is, one more time, the link to Donate to the Women's Center.

The website will not reflect the $3,500 grant that was just approved. This is because it is a grant through USAID and not Peace Corps. Remember, $4,300 is the magic number to have a complete Women's Center!

Here are the girls standing on the land that will soon be the Talbrjte Women's Center!

Blueprint for the Women's Center

Random

A few random things today.

#1 Our Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, is in Morocco. She is here for a peace conference ending a week-long trip in the Middle East. Yesterday, the new group of Health Volunteers had the opportunity to meet her during their In-Service Training in Marrakech. I clearly left for Peace Corps a year too early. I could have met her!!

While she was meeting the volunteers, she acknowledged Muriel, the oldest volunteer serving in Peace Corps. Read about it at CNN.com!

#2. I miss Pumpkin Spice Lattes. This is my second year missing Pumpkin Spice Latte season and I just cannot believe it. FORTUNATELY, I can recreate other Starbucks lattes in my house. A certain guy named Wael sent me these Starbucks syrups.

The folks at Starbucks made sure to tell him that I have a month to finish the bottle of syrup after it is opened. Clearly, this is not an issue for me. I took this picture 2 weeks after opening the caramel syrup!!!

#3 I really enjoy trouble maker students. I can say this now that I'm done teaching for the day. Perhaps when this certain boy was acting up I wasn't as appreciative as I am now. But really. This certain boy brought a rubber bloody hand to class and tried to shake my hand with it. How clever! I mean, I had to confiscate the thing, but really I was impressed with this certain boy. In fact, that may be something I would have done in middle school........

#4 Chandler is getting very good at playing fetch. In fact, that is about all he ever wants to do these days. Recently I've been waking up at 6:30am to Chandler throwing his favorite fetch toy (one of my scrunchies!) at my face over and over again. I will make a video and post it soon! My cat thinks he is a dog!!!!