I wanted to tell everyone about my trip to Agadir last month but first whats been going on now...Not too much, about a week left until Ramadan is over and life will return to normal. Some days I actually sleep through the 3am wake up call which has been a blessing. I met up with some friends who I haven't seen since we left training in Marrakesh last weekend and had a great time. Temperatures are cooling down, as in daytime its only 100 and nights are really pleasant. It got down to 68 in my room this morning! And its started raining. Just a few nights with sprinkles lasting 10 min but considering it didn't rain all summer anything is appreciated.
At the begining of last month I want to Agadir to meet a volunteer who had just come back from his vacation in the states. We (my mom in America and I) had found him through a chat group and he had agreed to bring my computer back to Morocco with him. Yeah! I took the 5am souk bus direct to Agadir and was there by 2p. Really the best transportation experience I've had since our chartered busses to training. The bus only cost 100DH for a 9 hour trip but it ran smooth, had not strange odors, and even had working air! Truly amazing and appreciated.
Agadir looks nothing like other towns I've seen. Buildings are white (not peachy orange) and all cement construction. I took a cab to Marjan, a necessary stop in any major city, and then headed to the hotel. Once checked in I wandered the few blocks to the beach. The breeze was great and for a few min I really enjoyed myself. I thought 'maybe the harassment isn't so bad here because its all tourists.' I don't know who I was kidding but by even thinking it, I completely jinksed myself. Before I knew it things were as I should have expected maybe even worse. Harassment is a serious issue but one that I'd rather not go into further detail about. If you really want to know what its like, email me.
I walked the length of the beach and found a restaurant claiming to be a New York City Diner. The decor looked american enough and although I had pizza hut in mind I figured it was worth a try. The McDonalds hamburger a few weeks prior had not satisfied my burger craving at all. It turns out that the woman who owns the place is from new york and actually makes the hamburger patties. It was pretty freeking good I have to say. Reminded me of the burgers Clarissa makes, hers are still better of course but I think its as close as I can get here. I left happy and full and decided to walk to the other end of the beach enjoying the view and breeze. I inadvertently found myself in the middle of a few soccer games and many ping-pong games (w/o the table) but escaped unharmed. By the time it was getting dark I was exhausted and ready to call it a night. I briefly said hi to the volunteer and we planned to meet the next morning.
After I got all my computer stuff, and a jar of peanut butter!, we headed out for breakfast. Although it was beautiful I had to get back home and headed out for the bus station. This was a much more challenging and expensive trip than I would have imagined but eventually I made it on a bus to Marrakesh. Here is maybe my favorite part of the whole trip.
While my bus the previous day had been plush, the bus I found myself on was more typical. No working air, dirty, old, crowded, ect. There was a french family sitting in the back of the bus who thought that it was just too hot and insisted on opening the only window on the bus (as if it would really make a difference). I happened to be sitting the the aisle seat behind the window and was promptly pelted by wind. Really pelted. But I had my sunglasses on and was willing to take the abuse to appease the french family and be a little cooler myself.
But Moroccans are not ok with wind. Picture this...You are squished in the back of a taxi with 3 other people and its a 110 degrees outside. Not only is there no way to avoid touching the stranger sitting next to you, but you're sweating uncontrollably and everyone smells. Should your window have a handle(rare), you roll it down in hopes that you will survive the journey. If the taxi driver doesn't tell you to roll it up because of the gas millage (never mind the fact that his will remain all the way down the entire trip!) the person next to you will inevitably request that you roll it up because wind is bad. Some think it makes you car sick, others just generally think its bad. It is much better to suffer, windows closed in the 150 degree car. I don't get it.
I digress... back to the bus. So seeing as how the bus is mostly filled with Moroccans, you can imagine that the window is soon shut. A short wile later the French return to open the window. Again I am pelted by wind, and again it is closed. And again. I've accepted the sweltering heat of any travel experience here and thus can find the whole drama quite funny. The french with their exasperated complaints, and the resulting irritation of the Moroccans as soon as they've returned to the back. I don't speak french so I cant explain to the family that they should just give up. I just kept thinking to myself, 'honestly, they paid 6 euros for this ticket. Can you even buy a happy meal for that price? Do you really expect this to be a comfortable experience?' Give me a break. The tourists were surprisingly persistent an this continued the entire ride. I arrived in Marrakesh with my hair a mess but quite amused. I guess since I didn't care about the window either way it was fun watching everyone else freak out. Hey, I gotta get my amusement where I can.
I had some hotel issues when I had to stop the night because it was dark but the trip was an overall success. I now have my computer! There is more good news to follow but I think this is enough for today. I hope you enjoyed my trip as much as I did. Even if you don't think the bus experience is funny. Next time I'll tell you about the hike, and then Moroc Telecom adventures! Then we'll be mostly caught up. Until next time...remember, you get what you pay for, even in Morocco.
