Skype for life

So, I know this is a duh moment. But I loooove skype! I was so scared it would be too complicated for my technologically impotent self. But, imagine my surprise, it’s actually so so simple! If even my mom can figure it out and, together, we can talk online for free, I say it may be the best invention of my life (or at least of my life via Morocco). Last night, I was able to talk to my best friends AND see their beautiful faces and it was so lovely… It just made me feel like I was there with them and it did WONDERS for my homesickness. Okay, honestly, I haven’t been feeling too homesick—nothing like the way I felt in Costa Rica (I learned a lot during that trip; I know how to combat most of those feelings this time around). But nonetheless, there’s still always going to be a since of “ugh what am I missing, and whhhhy am I not there to be a part of it?”—at least for me. But being able to talk with my core-fourness yesterday was simply fabulous! I really wish I had invested in a webcam prior to leaving, but I can probably buy one here or use one at an internet café. And I will do that next time for sure!

I’m starting to really think about the Individual Study aspect of my semester because in reality, it’s right around the corner. I need to chose a topic that interests me enough so that I can be happily occupied with it for 3 solid weeks, BUT I also want to make sure I’m doing something that still takes advantage of being in Morocco (not something I could just as easily write in my school library) and that is a subject somewhat outside my comfort zone. I feel like I’ve done a lot of research about education, social class, and politics over the past few years at Oxy and that’s because those are the topics that interest me! I tend to avoid the subject of gender in the US because, on the contrary, it doesn’t interest me. I usually find that topic unnecessarily overacted and frankly, extreme feminism annoys the poo out of me. BUT the subject of gender in Morocco is muuuuch more interesting and dynamic. So, right now I’m thinking of doing research along the lines of women’s rights/liberty in Morocco—possibly concentrating on dress and the head scarf. We had a lecture today about traditional Moroccan dress, and the hijab—or head scarf—has a fascinating history and the reasons women wear them differ from person to person. I think it might be interesting to dig into that. Maybe dig into certain reactions different “looks” get. I sure know already that the fact that my head is not covered and that my t-shirts show my arms, I get more cat calls than a woman covered from head to toe in a hijab and jilabba. (A man tonight followed me all the way home—speaking in French the entire time although I was very clear in telling him I did not speak French—and then asked to take me to a café. When I said no thank you, he tried to settle with at least taking a picture with me. I obviously said no again, this time not being able to help laughing in the same note. A picture? I think he thought he earned a picture because he stalked me ALL the way down the street… hahahah Don’t worry it sounds more sketchy that it is. This is honestly the way men and women meet in Morocco… the taboo that is associated with this kind of behavior in America is definitely non-existent here. The phrase “sexual harassment” did not even exist in Arabic until like 5 years ago. As a plus, though, the amount of French I am somehow now able to comprehend on a daily basis is improving at an incredible rate!) Anyway, it might be fun and very telling to do my own little experiment wearing different outfits that range from scandalous to completely covering my face….hmmm so many options! It’s hard when I’m literally given nothing to even start with! Haha Who knew I would WANT more direction and for my professors to give me limitations.