Médina

Last night after the day's sessions ended we were allowed to venture out of the hotel and onto the streets of Rabat. A small group of us went into the Médina-- the old part of the city-- to the souk (open market), comprised of ever-narrowing alleyways packed with vendors of food, clothing, electronics, and various media...tarps laid out on the street covered in piles of shoes, dvds and jewelry...unrecognizable fruits and foods being cooked in pans of hot oil just inches away from passers-by. The alleys are complex and seemingly infinite; one in our position would be wise to avoid exploring too deeply, as we were advised. The shops were in the process of closing as dusk approached, their owners heading home for the nightly meal. I bought a bag of almonds with my newly obtained Dirhams (or "D's" as we sometimes call them). After dinner we went back for a bit to see the lights, smells, and newly invogorated people as everything reopened. This picture isn't mine, as it isn't recommended that we have our cameras out in public, but I found this one online:

I learned yesterday that our hotel is under heavy protection by order of the King for the purpose our safety. Apparently, at our final sites, each of us will have a gendarme (government military police officer) responsible for keeping an eye on us.

Tonight is our last night in Rabat. Tomorrow morning we'll ride by bus to Azrou and settle in for something like eight days before going to CBT (Community Based Training) in villages just outside of Azrou, living with our host families. I'm looking forward to getting out of the city and seeing the mountains of the Middle Atlas. It's still a big-ish city, but looks quite different, as seen in this photo of some random guy. Should be good. Also, they have monkeys.