Today, we left Tangier and embarked on another journey to Chefchaouen. This city felt much different compared to what we have seen already in Rabat and Tangier. The women seemed more outgoing and contemporary, the colors of dyes were brighter, and there were more trash cans and fewer beggars. The project that I am currently working on for Global Studies is researching expatriate writers who have found solace in the country of Morocco; these writers range from Edith Wharton to Jack Kerouac. While the research that I was doing was mainly based in Tangier, if I were a writer looking for inspiration in Morocco, I would find Chefchaouen.
This trip has not been the easiest adjustment for me. It has pushed me past my limits of comfort by completely immersing me in a culture that I felt I had an understanding of, but I really do not. In all the complexities of this culture, it can be seen as dirty, disrespectful towards others of different nationalities, and lacking ambition among its people. However, this would only be scratching the surface of a rich and rather poetic culture. The music, the food, the way that people find meaning in religion and natural beauty surrounding Morocco is unlike any other. Paul Bowles once said something along the lines of, “If any country has been westernized that has once had a rich and fulfilling culture, it is now a wasteland.” Morocco is not a wasteland. While, yes, people can say that Morocco has been Westernized to some degree, it is not by any means found a root in Western living, which is not something I have ever experienced in my travels before.
Do I wish I could have a break from vegetarian tagines and have less bread? Absolutely. Do I wish I didn’t need to see beggars or smell anything in the streets that wasn’t pleasant? Yes. Do I wish I didn't see trash on the ground and have to step through mysterious liquids as they crawl down the streets? Definitely. But, would I change this experience in for sitting on my couch, eating a fresh salad while watching the Bachelor? It is tempting, but no. It is in our comfort that we stay the same as we always have been. I will return from Morocco with a curiosity for what else I have not seen before, and if nothing else, I will be grateful to have had this type of experience.
So, as you guessed it, I will rise another morning, excited for another excuse to eat fried bread and jam with some Moroccan coffee, feeling the only comfort of my day, until I go outside and grab life by the bootstraps and head to Fez.
Signing out,
Charlotte
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