Lessons

The highlight of my morning was talking to three fourth grade classes at a local elementary school about life as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco. The students were very eager to learn more about Morocco, listening avidly and asking scads of questions. Perhaps the topic of greatest interest was Moroccan food, and several students reproached me for making them hungry with descriptions of rich tagines, sweet and savory bastilla, melt in your mouth mechoui, and light, fluffy couscous as only the Moroccans can make it. We discussed the parade of cultures throughout Moroccan history — from Berber to Phoenician to Roman to Goth to Arab to French and Spanish — and the rich variety of language and culture that has resulted. By mid-lecture, I had the students greeting each other in Arabic, with half of the room calling Salaam Alaykum and the other half answering Aleykum Salaam. Among the new ideas for many of the students were mosques, Islam, minarets, and the call to prayer. In addition, they were quite impressed by the Moroccan tradition of lavish hospitality. The last lecture concluded with students playing dress up with my djellaba and silhelm, and it is my hope that I gave them something to think about in addition to the Army, the fire station, and space camp.