Time flies!

I am writing this blog post from New York, where Justin and I have been spending the Christmas holiday with his family. It's so hard to believe that we have been back in the U.S. for nearly 5 months! I've been a bit delinquent on posting (it's on my New Years resolutions list to be more frequent!), so let me catch you up on the last few months.

New City:
We're now settled into Washington, DC where we are slowly but surely getting used to life there. It's a slower pace than New York City and certainly very different from Morocco! The transition has taken a while but I think we are finally getting used to both life in the U.S. and life in our new city.

New Apartment:
After living in a temporary place for a month or so, we moved into a permanent apartment in the Columbia Heights neighborhood, which I just recently read has the largest concentration of returned Peace Corps Volunteers in the world! So I'm happy that we're in good company. It took a few months but we're almost fully unpacked and settled in.

New Jobs:
Justin has started back at school to get his PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland (proud wife brag: It's the number one program for this in the country!) and he's doing really well and enjoying the work. I am working as a Marketing Manager at an amazing education technology company called EverFi. The company creates interactive, web platform-based programs to teach critical skills to students that might be missing from either the school or their home (for example, financial education for high schoolers or alcohol abuse prevention for college students) and partners with corporations to bring these into schools free of charge. It's very much a change from my days working in corporate advertising, and I love coming to work knowing that my work has the potential to enrich and improve people's future prospects.

New Year:
Now that we are finally feeling more settled, I'm so excited to begin the next year and to see what adventures are ahead! From our home to yours, wherever you may be in the world, wishing you a year filled with learning, wonder, and beauty. I look forward to continuing to chart our journeys in 2014!

What we've been up to, and post-Peace Corps updates

It's been a busy few weeks! How have they been busy, you ask?

Travels with Liz and Dave
The same morning that we said goodbye to my brother Neal and future sister-in-law Erin in Casablanca, Justin and I rushed up to the Rabat airport to meet his sister Liz and brother-in-law Dave. They visited during a school holiday in Morocco, so we were able to take some time to travel around with them to a few places: Rabat, Meknes, Azrou, Fez, and of course Tiflet. A few photos are below, and look for future blog entries about some of our travel experiences!

Dave and Liz in our riad in Rabat.

In Rabat's Kasbah, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

Justin and me in a beautiful old Koranic school in Meknes.

Liz and I try out Moroccan style scarf-wrapping in a cooperative in Fez.

Justin and me in an old Koranic school in Fez.

Dave shows off his scarf-wrapping, in Fez.

Liz and Dave, at a beautiful outlook en route to Azrou.

Justin and Liz in the Chellah in Rabat.

Springtime in Tiflet
Even though we were traveling, it was very much a working holiday! We have lots of exciting plans for the coming months, and now that we're back in Tiflet, expect more posts soon as projects come to fruition. Meanwhile, spring has (finally) arrived in Tiflet with beautiful sunny weather every day! And with that beautiful weather, I have proven myself as a gardener. Check out my handiwork:

I harvested the spinach to make a birthday pizza for Justin, at his request. But I've planted a new round and am keeping my fingers crossed that the green thumb wasn't just beginner's luck :)


Women's Leadership Workshop
One of the projects that I had been preparing for was a women's leadership conference in Rabat, that a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer planned along with a Moroccan NGO called "Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc."  I brought 2 women from my site to the training, and I stayed for the weekend to help the Volunteer. Being around this group of 20 women, of all ages and backgrounds, from small and large towns across Morocco, was absolutely inspiring. Here's a photo of all of the workshop participants and the trainers:

Post-Peace Corps Plans
I haven't really written much about it on this blog, but post-Peace Corps plans have been a topic of much discussion, consideration, and anxiety for Justin and me, really since before we even came to Morocco. One of the things we knew we wanted when we left the US was change, and Morocco has given us plenty of that. As we think about returning to the US, what seemed impossibly far off when we first got here is now surreally close, and we’ve finally decided to continue that theme of change by readjusting back to life in the US while at the same time integrating into a new community, the Washington DC area. Granted, it won’t be nearly as different from New York as Morocco was, but will certainly be quite the change from our lives now! We’re confident that our skills and experiences from integrating into a new community here in Morocco will serve us well as we return and reintegrate in the US.

Now here’s where you come in, dear readers. I plan to return to the marketing/advertising world and am seeking opportunities as a Marketing or Brand Manager in the Washington DC metro area in late summer/early fall. If you are involved in the marketing/advertising scene in the DC area, know people who are, or your company is looking for a new marketing person, I would be immeasurably grateful for any and all tips, leads, referrals, or introductions! The same goes for any insights on places to live in the area. Click here to view my resume, or here for my LinkedIn profile, and read a bit more about my marketing and advertising background. And you can be sure that we’ll be experiencing as much as we can of this amazing country as our remaining time ticks by - and of course sharing it here! 

Doorways of Fes

Greetings from Fes! Justin and I are finishing up some tourist/tour guide time with his sister Liz and our brother-in-law Dave. Full blog post on their visit coming soon, but in the meantime, I was struck by the beauty and variety of many of the doorways in Fes. Enjoy :)

 

  

 

 

 

Family and Travels

Well, I'm back in America now.

April Fool's!! Yes, I know that I'm a few days late, but I've been busy. Speaking of America and being busy, just what have I been doing??

As you can see by the lookers in the photo above, I've been spending time in Morocco with my big brother Neal and my soon-to-be sister Erin! Here's a bit about what we've been up to. Justin and I met Neal and Erin at the Rabat airport and brought them to Tiflet for a night. They experienced the ambiance of a small town, enjoyed some Moroccan mint tea and traditional breads with our host family, and chowed down at one of the restaurants in exciting downtown Tiflet.

Neal and Erin had booked a 10-day tour which started in Marrakech, so from Tiflet, we journeyed with them to the other side of the country to spend a bit more time together. And while Justin and I have been to Marrakech a few times now, there are still sites we have yet to see and lots that keep changing! On our own (while Neal and Erin were with their tour group), we visited the beautiful Majorelle Gardens along with a Berber Museum, which really impressed us with the quality and quantity of information offered about the Berber heritage in Morocco. And with Neal and Erin, we got a second opportunity to see the El Badi Palace, which since our first visit has been restored in several new places, some of which we hadn't even been able to visit before. It was really amazing to get to literally experience the restoration on our visits. And we got to eat some new Moroccan foods, namely the "tangia," a local Marrakech specialty that is cooked similarly to a tagine, in a clay pot but more of an urn shape and typically cooked by burying in hot coals for many hours. Like a tagine, the meat cooks low and slow, creating a very tender, juicy dish.

After a few too short days with Neal and Erin, we waved goodbye as they headed off with their tour group. We'll meet back up with them this weekend at the end of their tour and can't wait to hear about their Moroccan adventures! In the meantime, enjoy a few photos from Marrakech, at the Majorelle Gardens and the El Badi Palace.

 

Ringing in an exciting new year

It's hard to believe that an entire year has come and gone! As we move towards 2013, I can't help but reflect upon the past year and think about how much has developed and changed. This time last year, Justin and I were new residents of Tiflet, knowing a handful of people, not sure about what we might plan or accomplish during our time in Morocco, and certainly very nervous about our new lives. Today, we have established strong relationships with people young and old in the community, we have developed some great programs, and we now look at each obstacle and challenge with confidence and readiness. And another big difference from last year - I haven't broken any bones!! 

In looking back on some of the goals that I set for myself at the end of last year, I wanted to call out a few for which I am particularly proud of my progress:

1. Take better care of myself
Coming out of a year in which I broke bones in both my hand and leg, I wanted to make sure that taking care of my health became a priority. And I am happy to say that I have made amazing strides. In November I had a mid-service physical check-up and the doctors reported that I am in great shape - not only that, but I have lost 44.5 pounds since I came to Morocco! This has come mainly from exercising regularly and eating lots of healthy vegetable-rich meals that we cook for ourselves.

2. Explore and travel 

If you've kept up with this blog, then you have seen lots of travel-related posts. I'm happy to have had the chance to see many of Morocco's beautiful places and in the coming year, I hope to visit many more! (Going up to Tanger for New Year's, my first time up north, stay tuned!)

3. Develop a support network

Over the last few months, I have begun to develop some truly strong friendships in our community. And with these friendships, I have been able to learn much more about Moroccan culture and to teach about American culture. Beyond the support network in our community, I have developed a strong support network of Peace Corps Volunteers in Morocco and friends and family in the U.S. who have provided more love and strength than I could imagine. Please know that I am so very grateful for it! 

It's been a tough year, full of uncertainty, confusion, and disorder - but out of all this has come so much learning, beauty, and adventure - and I wouldn't trade that for anything. I cannot wait to see what the next year has in store!

From Justin and me, wishing you a year filled with learning, beauty, and adventure. 

I look forward to continuing to chart our journey in 2013!

Squeeeeeeee!!

Squee, \skwēē\

verb: To squeal with glee; from a combination of the two words.

noun: A feeling of excitement and happiness, such that one feels like squeeing.

I don't usually post much about my personal life on this blog, but for this one I just must share! See this little cowboy?

 

This is my big brother Neal (well, only a little over a year older, so not too big). And this is Neal and his girlfriend, Erin.

So what does my squeeing have to do with my big bro and Erin? Well, one week ago today, Neal proposed!! 

That's him proposing!!!

I am so, so sad to be far away from home when such wonderful things are happening, but Erin and Neal are planning a trip to Morocco in the spring and I'm very excited to get to spend some time with the two of them. And thanks to the wonders of Skype, I'm able to hear about everything that's happening and feel like I'm a part of it. AND next fall, I'll be coming back from the Peace Corps to a big fat North Carolina wedding - So what else is there to say but squeeeeee!!

Today is my birthday!

I am celebrating my (gasp) 30th birthday today in Morocco! 

I have been reflecting on the past year and how very different my life has become, and for sure the hardest thing about this birthday is not being able to celebrate with friends and family back in the U.S. But I feel so fortunate to have Justin here with me, and that we've been given the chance to build friends and family here in Morocco. And while it is undoubtedly very difficult for me to be away from friends and family (this day more than ever), I think that it is just as hard for those back in the U.S. It's not as easy as just picking up the phone, dropping a card in the mail, or meeting up after work to catch up... these days we have to arrange for Skype dates instead of simple phone calls, allow several weeks for mail to make its way here, and correspond via email and Facebook instead of chatting together over dinner or at the office. 

To all of my friends and family, please know that I am so grateful and thankful that you have adjusted your lives to keep me a part of them. Sending lots of love across the ocean today and on all days! xxooo

My parents visit Morocco!

Here's the second installment of updates from the last few weeks. After our regional meetings in Azrou ended, Justin and I hopped on a train to meet my parents who were arriving in Casablanca! They spent about a week in Morocco with us and we used the time to catch up on many lost months, with sightseeing, shopping, partaking in wonderful Moroccan food, and of course, enjoying lots of family time together. Hope you enjoy the photos from a week that went by far too quickly!!

Overlooking Rabat's Kasbah and the Atlantic Ocean

A Jewish synagogue from the 17th century in Fes

A break from sightseeing, and enjoying some mint tea!

A musician in Rabat's Kasbah

With a guard, in front of the Mohammed V Mausoleum in Rabat

A traditional breakfast food called "milwi" - very good!

Beautiful fountain

Mom and Dad in a garden in Rabat's Kasbah

Overlooking the Fes tanneries, where leather is dyed by hand! Quite a smell but really cool to see.

Close-up of blue dyed leather

Couscous!

I have developed an affinity for taking photos of beautiful Moroccan lamps :)

In front of the Hassan Tower in Rabat

Dad does his famous Weinrich act (pretending to run into something) in Rabat

A spread of yummy Moroccan salads!

Pouring tea

Doors to the King's Palace in Fes

Called "bastilla au lait," a very tasty dessert!

Lunch with our host family in Tiflet

My Moroccan and American parents together :)