Things here are going well. There are four of us trainees here in a small town in the Azilal region of Morocco. I'm learning to speak Tashelheet, a Berber dialect. My host family is great. My host father, Brahim, is a factory worker in Casablanca and will be leaving to go back to there now that the end of Ramadan is over. My host mom, Hafida, is a wonderful hostess and is always going out of her way to make sure I'm comfortable. The whole vegetarian thing is not really understood here, but my host family has been great about making sure I always have plenty to eat.

I have four host siblings. Hasna is 19 and a real sweetheart. She speaks Berber and French and is great at pantomiming things so that I understand. My other host sister Hanan is also really sweet. She is 18 and always wants to hold my hand or link arms. The two boys, Hakim 13 and Zouhir 10 really like the card game "Set" that I brought. Despite my lack of language, we usually are able to understand each other.

Besides the family, we have many pets. A pidgeon lives in the kitchen, on top of the cabinet. There are two donkeys, several sheep, chickens, turkeys, a few cats and a puppy named Booby. I have my own bedroom with a fairly big bed. The bathroom is outside and I'm getting used to using it and the Turkish toilet.

Our language training is going fairly well. I can form some basic sentences and the language teacher said my accent is okay, other than the "r" sound, which is similar to the German one. I'll work on it and will hopefully get it down. I have set a goal to get to at least the intermediate level in communication by the end of training in November.

I hope all is well at home. Please email or write when you get time.

Hi from Morocco!

I made it safely to Morocco! Our flight was great. We flew Air Maroc, so it was a good intro to Moroccan culture. Luckily, the flight was only half full, so I got two seats to myself and was able to catch some sleep. We arrived in Casablanca about 7:45 am local time, cleared customs, then got on a bus and drove 2 1/2 hours to a small seaside town outside of the capital, Rabat. We're less than a block from the ocean, which is very nice. A few of us took a walk on the beach today and it was very pretty. Supposedly, this area of Morocco is known for its surfing, although we were told that we wouldn't have time for any of that.

We're staying at a hotel that reminds me a lot of youth hostels in Europe. I'm in four person room, with common bathrooms and showers in the hall. Everything is very beautiful. They ceilings are very intricate carvings and there is a very pretty blue mosaic fountain the center of our hotel. Our meals are served in a dining room, sort of family style. They place a large platter of food in the middle of the table and everyone serves themselves from it. I think its probably a nice transition to what I've heard is traditional Moroccan meals, where everyone shares the plate in the middle of the table. I'll know next week, when I start living with a host family.

Its currently Ramadan in Morocco, so the meals are spread out a little bit to accommodate those that fast during the day. Dinner tonight will be at 8pm. In fact, the normal Moroccan business day is from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, then a few hours break, then work until 8:00 pm. That will be a big adjustment for me, since I'm used to working 7:00 am to 3:30 pm. Adjusting will be a challenge, although sleeping later will be nice.

The Moroccan trainers that I met today were very nice and I think will be a great asset as I try to learn the language and culture. The two I spoke with had never been outside Morocco, but they spoke English very well. They said they learned a lot by working with the Peace Corps volunteers. They practice their English while we practice our Arabic/French/Berber dialects. I will definitely rely on their judgement on what to wear and if its appropriate to cover my hair. Most of the women seem to do so, but I want to check with the trainers before I start doing so. There may be something that I don't understand.

Our first full day of training is tomorrow. We start at 9:00 am, when we meet with the Peace Corps doctors to update them on any changes to our medical file. Then we start on the culture and Peace Corps policies. There is a lot to learn. These next three months are going to be very intense.

I'll try to post pictures later this week. Now, I'm off to my room to start on all the paperwork we got today.

I'm Leaving On a Jet Plane

Tomorrow is my last day in St. Louis. Leaving is definitely bitter sweet. Its hard to say good-bye to all my family and friends, but I'm very excited about starting this new journey. I've been trying to fit everything that I need into the two bags I'm bringing and pack up everything I'm not. My sister has been great about letting me leave my extra stuff in her garage and my furniture in her extra bedroom. I was told to try to pack as though I was going on a two year camping trip. Since my living conditions could be anything from a place without electricity or running-water to a place with central heating and several bathrooms, I think that was good advice.

Last weekend, my wonderful family threw me a great going-away party. It was so much fun! I had friends from work, college, and even elementary school come. Added together with my enormous family, it was a big party. It was a wonderful way to say good-bye to everyone. My relatives even got together and got me an Amazon Kindle, so I could bring a lot of books with me. It was a great present and I'm sure it will be invaluable when I'm there. Plus the wonderful cards, gift certificates, and photo albums were great too! My mom even spent hours putting together an incredible scrapbook with pictures from the party mixed in with scenes from my childhood. It was a great gift and will be a wonderful talking point when I get to Morocco.

I have been packing and repacking my things for several weeks now (which my sister Emily has teased me about to no-end....what can I say, I can't help planning ahead. I'm a nerd about stuff like that.) It is incredibly hard to pack for two years! I asked everyone I could for advice, and read all sorts of books and blogs on Morocco. I'm sure I'll be surprised by what it is actually like there, and that I'll have packed things I don't need and forgotten things I would use. As my friend Courtney, who is in the Peace Corps in Kyrgyzstan, told me "Don't worry, Anna. No matter how prepared you are, there are always surprises." I'm trying to keep that in mind and try not to sweat the small stuff so much.

I've also set things up to be pen pals with all three fourth grade classrooms at my mom's elementary school. I went and talked to the kids last week and told them a little bit about the Peace Corps and what I'd be doing in Morocco. They had some funny questions and some very insightful ones. One classroom even asked me about ten questions about what socks I'd wear and how Moroccan socks are different than American socks. I told them I'd have to let them know once I got there.

This will be such an adventure! Morocco, here I come!!!!