Well.. I experienced the other two service learning sites and of course.. I fell in love with the hospital. The hospital is huuuuge and is called San Juan Dios and is based on the Monk religion. So there were a lot of people walking around in robes... very neat! The woman who showed us around, Pilar, will also be giving me my interview. After the interview I will get placed on a certain floor of the hospital. The hospital is brick and also has many peaks and domes.. when you first walk in
it seems almost like a really fancy hotel. (nicer than any hospital I have seen in the states actually) This hospital is for terminal illnesses so the floors consist of things like cancer patients or patients on life support ventilators. In the ground floor there is a children's program for kids who have had accidents and are re-learning to use motor skills or basic every day tasks. Unfortunately we don't get placed there because they said the children get too attached.. and I know I would be attached to them. I won't know exactly what I am doing until my interview is complete.
So.. after I get back from Morocco I will be going in for my interview with Pilar, hopefully my Spanish speaking and listening skills will be in tip-top shape!
I still enjoyed my first visit on Monday.. so another gal named Brielle and I (we both want to be PAs) asked our director Veronica if we could split our time between the hospital and the institution.. she said yes! whoo hooo :D ...so in two weeks we will be officially starting service learning :)
AND orientation is over.. thank goodness. Those 5 hour long night classes were just not my thing along with the 2 hour meeting in the morning. We had our final 4 hour exam this morning and I now know the classes I will be taking.. totaling at 21 credits! Which may sound horrible but I'm already done with 2 from orientation.. I get 2 for service learning (going, and papers) 15 for regular classes.. 1 for Granada Seminar.. 1 for phonetics.. done! It won't be bad at all. :)
Also in my free time I went with some friends to watch the BIG soccer game between Barcelona and Madrid which was a blast because the people here get Soooo into it! Then after that we went to a discoteca called Granada10... literally the coolest place I've ever seen. It reminded me a little of the reception area Amanda had for her wedding only it was veeerry tall and bigger. It had stairs and different levels with couches and a huge screen with DJs at the front. I was told it used to be an old theatre for plays and such. It was great! While there I met 3 men my age from Ireland (lovedd them) and another guy who lives with them from Australia.. and I also met some girls from England! They are all here studying as well. So in one night I was hanging out with people from the US, Holland, Spain, Ireland, England, and Australia. haha I can't believe how much bigger my world has become.. what a blast!
However with all the fun I've been having I think it may be wearing me down even though I am trying to get enough sleep. Today I am sliiightly sick.. I think due to changes in my environment. In Spain, or at least Granada everyone and their dog smokes. My host father smokes aaa lot.. like right at the dinner table and so I am constantly breathing it in. I'll prolly have a grey lung by the time I'm back in the states I swear. However, I have no choice but to deal with it and I think because of this I have a sore throat and well just feel kinda crappy.. like an irritating cold. A lot of others seem to be having similar symptoms with the same speculations.. who knows! ha. Another thing that I'm getting used to in Spain besides the normalcy of smoking is the constant displays of public affection. So common.. like all the time in public places in the middle of the day... often more than kissing; puke. BUT It's something culturally different and it's something I'm trying to cope with. Otherwise.. things seem relatively similar thus far other than the food, language, and type of home (mostly high rise apartments) of course.
TONIGHT at 6pm.. We take a boat to Morocco, Africa!!! Needless to say I am STOAKED!
I feel like I'm living in a dream and someone is about to pinch me to wake me up... This experience is absolutely life changing already. I'm sure Morocco will be even more so.. considering their lives are very very different than ours. Below I copied and pasted a note about our leader, differences in culture, and our itinerary for the time we spend there. :)
We are split into 3 groups and my leader is Justin Davis. Our Morocco trip is from Jan 28th - 31st.
About Justin: I came to Morocco as a Peace Corps Small Business Development Volunteer and I now live an hour outside the Imperial city of Meknes. I'm originally from Iowa and graduated from the University of Iowa in 2005. Before joining the Peace Corp I worked in Management/Sales in Raleigh, North Carolina. I've had the opportunity to enjoy some unique experiences in Morocco and I've been fortunate to be able to establish many friendships with Moroccans throughout the country. My time here has been very rewarding and I look forward to sharing my experience with you.
While there we will be living with a host family with 3 other people... they will feed us and we will be able to stay there in a room. If they are willing or have a shower, we can take a one at their home otherwise...
SHOWERS: You will have the opportunity to go to the "hammam", the traditional Moroccan public bath house, on your second night in Rabat. If you really need to shower before then, your host families can make that option available to you, but we find that most students decide to use the public bath only. For the public bath, women here wear just underpants (no tops) but if you're uncomfortable with that, you can choose to wear a swimsuit. Generally, students decide to "blend in" and just wear underpants, but you won't have any problems wearing a swimsuit if that's your preference. For guys, you will also wear underpants in the hammam.
Also a clear difference is the attire.. which includes no cleavage/tank tops for women nor above the knee shorts for girls and guys. Additionally, the leggings and T-shirt look that is popular right now in Europe and the US is not really appropriate here. If you're going to wear leggings, please be sure that your top goes down to your knees, like a dress or a long sweater (cover your butt!).
Four Day Program - Itinerary Example
Day One ALGECIRAS - TANGIER - RABAT
9:00 Boat journey across the Mediterranean Sea from Algeciras, Spain to Tangier, Morocco
9:30 Visit of the women's center DARNA and informal conversation with Moroccan students
about cultural diversity, education and woman's rights in Morocco
12:00 Lunch at women's center DARNA
Afternoon:
13:30 Drive to Asilah along the Atlantic coast
15:00 Walk through the Medina (old town) of Asilah
16:00 Drive to Rabat (3 hours)
Evening:
19:00 Meeting of the home stay families (Three students will stay with one family.)
20:00 Walk through the Medina of Rabat in small groups
20:30 Dinner with home stay families
Individual Time (showing pictures, visiting other families, going to a cafe, etc.)
Day Two RABAT
8:00 Breakfast
9:30 Facilitated discussion “West and Islamic worlds - images about each other”
11:30 Visit of the Roman ruins Chellah and the Mausoleum of King Mohammed V
Afternoon:
13:30 Lunch with families
15:30 Exploration of Rabat's Andalusian houses in the Kashba and the street life in the medina market. Individual options: to spend time in the art museum or gallery, at the ocean or in the gardens of the castle. (This afternoon will be spent in small groups to create space for authentic experiences of the place and for personal connections. Two American students will be accompanied by one or two Moroccan students from AMIDEAST/Rabat University. )
18:30 Meeting of all students at the Oudaia gate
Evening:
19:00 Conversation with a Peace Corps Volunteer about living in Morocco
20:30 Optional hammam (traditional baths)
22:00 Dinner with family
Day Three RABAT - RIF MOUNTAINS - CHEFCHAOUEN
7:30 Breakfast
8:00 Drive to Rif Mountains
12:00 Walk in the Rif Mountains to a family in a mountain village (approx. 30 minutes)
Afternoon: (This is a personal visit: we will keep an eye on time AND be flexible for experiences.)
Lunch in the house of a family and conversation about education, simplicity of life
and economic challenges of rural areas in Morocco.
17:30 Drive to Chefchaouen
18:30 Short walk through the medina of Chefchaouen with some background information about its
Moorish and Jewish inhabitants and its historic link to Al Andalus.
19:00 Settle in hostal
Individual time for exploring the Medina (We will experience both how beautiful
Chefchaouen is and how damaging tourism can be.)
Evening:
20:30 Special celebration dinner in the Medina of Chefchaouen
22:00 Social time on the roof terrace: to share images and thoughts from our journey. (30 min)
Day Four CHEFCHAOUEN - CEUTA - ALGECIRAS
7:00 Optional: Walk through the Medina / looking down at Chefchaouen from outside the city gate
8:00 Drive through mountains, fields and cities to Ceuta (2 hours)
Breakfast on the way
11:00 Crossing the Moroccan - Spanish border
14:15 Boat journey across the Strait of Gibraltar (1or 2 hour time difference)
15:30 Good bye in Algeciras, Spain
Sooo that's pretty much the scoop on life right now! It's going to be a busy time!
Orientation is officially over, headed for Morocco tonight, and who knows what it will bring me :)
OHHHH & a couple side notes
1. Kelsey and I discovered a great Mexican restaurant so we can finally get our taste buds on some tacos and chips and cheese!! LOVE. :)
2. Heather is sending me the third Hunger Games Book!! Whoo Hoo THANKS! :D
3. I got to eat kettle chips with lemon juice in the sun near palm trees yesterday (heaven?)
4. If you want more info about our Morocco trip.. this is their site http://www.moroccoexchange.org/moex_intercultural.php
....I'll blog again when I am back in Spain... Ta-Ta for now!
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