Day 12 – Madrid On our last day, we took a morning flight back to Madrid, Spain, all of us fatigued but still infused with the excitement of our learning and cultural experience from the last couple weeks. We checked back into to same familiar hotel we first stayed at when we arrived almost two weeks ago. It felt funny to me because it seems like we have been traveling much longer than that because of all the non-stop activities…
Day 11 – Oujda Today is the day of goodbyes- the hardest part of every adventure but every story has an end. The feeling in the air was solemn but almost reassuring. Although we all know we had to leave our new families, we didn’t leave empty handed. The memories and friends we’ve made will last us forever. Each gateway student had a special day with their Moroccan families. Some visited the beach, others visited the market, and we all…
Day 10 – Oujda The day started with a traditional, leisurely Moroccan breakfast consisting of a cheese omelet, pastries, bread, cheese, cookies, coffee and mint tea. As I sat drinking my tea, I had no idea what the day truly had in store for me, but I looked forward to embrace all of it as I have every day throughout this entire experience. The day was filled with exploring some of the historical areas and buildings of Oujda. We began…
Day 9 – Oujda After our Moroccan style breakfast, we all headed to the Ecole Superieure de Technologie, to visit some companies around Oujda. The first business we visited was SQLI. SQLI is an international services and consulting group which is dedicated to the world of digital. They specialize in digital and social marketing, ecommerce, data marketing, UX, consulting, Big Data solutions, and mobile solutions. They assist various companies and brands in defining, implementing, and managing digital solutions for a…
Day 8 – Oujda/Berkane /Saidia Early this morning when I gathered with my fellow student travelers-American and Moroccan alike-I stated, “In case I forget to tell you later, this was my favorite day so far.” I had no idea what the day held for us however, or how true my prophetic words actually were at the time–all I knew is that my toes would be in the sea before nightfall. This is always some of the best “medicine” for my…
Day 7 – Oujda Today we went to visit Ecole Superieure de Technologie, Oujda. Our host families dropped us off bright and early. We all gathered in the conference room for introductions and an informational meeting. We were delighted with the warm reception we received. They catered in an extraordinary lunch with big platters of traditional foods and Moroccan tea. Professor Rahhal from EST, Oujda gave us a tour of the higher school of technology and the national school…
Day 6 – Fez/Oujda Today we left Casablanca It was a late night and an early morning but luckily most of us were able to sleep on the four hour train ride to Fez. Upon arrival to Fez we were greeted By Mr. Rahhal and 7 students, each one of them was extremely kind and helpful, they immediately helped us with our bags and lead us to the bus they had brought for us. The first place they took us…
Day 5 – Team Casablanca Today was our “project day”. We’ve been preparing for our interview with a local business since the class began, and today all our research and preparation came to fruition. Because of the festival of Eid, we had many challenges finding a business that was open and willing to meet with us on their day of celebration after Ramadan. However, our tour guide seemed more than willing and happy to tell us all about his business….
Day 4 – Casablanca As we are led through the maze of small streets off of the main square of the medina by Youseff, the guest manager of the Riad Bensaid, to the awaiting taxis to depart Marrakech, it is with many mixed feelings. I think we all fell a little in love with the underlying charm of the city, despite the cultural differences we experienced. I am seeing Morocco through innocent eyes, an open mind, and with no expectations….
Our first adventure of the day was a visit to the famous Jardin Majorelle. It took French painter Jacques Majorelle about four years of passion and dedication to create this enchanting garden in the heart of the “ Ochre City”. Yes Saint Kaurent and his friend Pierre Berge discovered the gardens in 1966, during their first visit to Marrakech. The garden at that time was in declining state and the designer decided to buy it to avoid its sale to…