Leslie in Morocco

For those of you who didn't see the interview I did for my friend's blog, (it can be found at http://engagementchicken.wordpress.com/2013/07/22/graham-in-cameroon/), this will be a new idea.  Thanks to my grad school, I have a lot of friends in the Peace Corps and in various NGOs throughout the world right now.  My friend in the Peace Corps Ukraine had an idea to interview all of the people she knows in this kind of work to see the differences between what they do, where they live, what they eat, etc.  I thought it was a great idea, and promptly asked if I could steal it.  Luckily, she is such a nice person she said yes.  So here is the first interview with my friend Leslie, a Youth Development Volunteer with the Peace Corps in Morocco.  Enjoy!

With one of my favorite little guys in the next town over. Anytime he sees me he runs up to kiss both my cheeks, then takes my hand and walks me to wherever I'm going. SiMohammed is five years old.

Tell me a little bit about yourself. 

I was born in Boulder, Colorado, and grew up in an old mining town outside of Boulder, Lafayette. I did my B.A. in Political Science with a minor in History at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado. When I was entering my senior year of college, I decided to study abroad in Morocco. Before that, I had been planning to take the LSAT and pursue law school, but living for a few months in a developing country completely changed my life. I found a passion for gender development, especially in the Arab world, so as soon as I returned home in December 2009, I decided to apply for both the Peace Corps and graduate school. I was accepted into the University of Denver's Josef Korbel School of International Studies where I am currently finishing up my M.A. in International Development with a regional emphasis in the Middle East North Africa.

  Outside of work interests, I love cooking and baking, and have developed a huge passion for it during my Peace Corps service. As a woman, I can’t really be out at night, so spending an hour or two a night preparing dinner then eating it on my rooftop with a book and a glass of wine has definitely become one of my favorite parts of the day. I try to be as active as possible, and especially love yoga, kickboxing, and hiking whenever possible. Thanks to my parents very sweet gift of a new kindle before Peace Corps, my childhood love of reading has taken on a whole new meaning, and I go through several books each week/month now depending on how busy my work schedule is. I have more free time now than I probably ever will again until retirement, so I do my best to live fully and make the most of each day here.

Leading a hike during one of the spring camps I coordinated this past April.

What country and sector are you serving in?

I am a Youth Development Volunteer serving in Morocco. I am primarily placed in a Nedi Neswe (Women’s Community Center), under the direction of the Moroccan Ministry of Youth and Sports. My site is Midelt, located in the large valley between the Middle Atlas and High Atlas mountain ranges. It mildly hot in the summer (100-120 F) and very cold and snowy in the wintertime. There is a lot of greenery, but otherwise it looks a lot like New Mexico or Southern Colorado here. 

Teaching English music vocabulary at Springcamp while I was still in training.

Describe a typical day.

There really is no such thing as a "typical day" for me here, but it is somewhat regular depending on the season. Due to the heat in the summertime, I wake up early, around 8am so that I can get out and run all of my errands before it gets too hot. I am typically home by 11am. The afternoons are too hot to do much-especially since electronics overheat and can’t run this time of day-, so I usually eat lunch then nap, read, and do some cleaning. Thanks to frequent sand storms, I have to sweep almost daily to keep from having a coating of dust on everything in the house.  In the later afternoon, I go back out to run any other errands I missed earlier, usually play with the little kids in my neighborhood, then go over to my host family or another friend’s house in the community for dinner. I am with my host family more than anyone else, because I never have to explain or justify myself, my actions, or debate politics or religion with them; they just love me for who I am. After dinner is over around 10pm, I walk home (about a 40 minute walk), and spend the evening exercising, sending emails, and watch a tv show or movie before going to bed around 1am. I should also probably mention that being a Muslim country at a time when Ramadan falls over the summer means that pretty much every association I work with is fully closed during the summer months. As Ramadan moves back into springtime, this will probably change for future volunteers.

In the wintertime, my schedule is kind of the opposite. I still wake up around the same time, but it takes a lot longer to get going because of the cold. Because of the way buildings are built here, there is no insulation or built-in heating system, so my house usually runs below freezing all winter long. In the mornings I eat breakfast and check emails wrapped in a blanket and four layers of clothing before heading out around 9:30am. Most mornings I either visit one of our local associations or work with the pre-K kids at my women’s center teaching art or yoga. I come home for lunch most days (except for Friday and Saturday which are always spent with the host family). In the afternoons, I am usually teaching a cooking class or working out at the local gym (designated “women’s hours” are only 3-6 Tues, Thurs, Sat.). I typically teach English at two or three different associations in town in the evenings (6-9), because high school students here are in school until 5:30/6pm every night Monday-Saturday. The evenings are very short because of the cold, so I try to eat and go to sleep as quickly as possible once my little propane-powered heater sufficiently heats the area next to my bed.

There are so many variables affecting my schedule on a daily basis, but this should give you a general idea :)

At springcamp, I didn't bring any fancy Moroccan clothing, so one of my students mothers actually came all the way to the youth center to bring this oufit for me. The Takshita, which these girls had to tie me into, has three pieces, and is worth four months of my rent here.

What's your living situation like?

I live in an apartment by myself in an older neighborhood in the center of Midelt. My house was built about 8 years ago, and this apartment has only been lived in by PCVs. I have a shower, half of a Western toilet (toilet without the tank), a propane water heater, and the house is almost completely furnished. Volunteers here are responsible for finding their own housing, and my rent and utilities account for a little over half of my monthly stipend.

Part of my kitchen.

What are you working on right now?

Right now we are pretty much shut down for the summer. I am starting to plan a women’s health project for this coming winter. I have organized several women’s empowerment workshops in the past, so I am now hoping to create a workshop serious promoting women’s health. The workshops will inchallah cover AIDS awareness and prevention (my area has a large prostitution industry), basic hygiene and nutrition, and the importance and proper technique of self-breast exams. I am hoping to coordinate this to coincide with World AIDS Day in December, so that the workshops, which will take place in three different towns in my province, will culminate in a 5K run/walk and certificate ceremony to involve the whole community.

Finishing up the mural I designed with some kids in the neighborhood. This was my first big project in site last Ramadan.

Favorite way to kill time at your site?

In my free time I love to cook and bake. I’ve used it as a way to get to know my neighbors, students, and even total strangers in the community. It has helped me to integrate, blow off stress on a regular basis, and pack on the pounds to keep warm in the winter. Cafes are a very male-dominated area here, but I miss being able to go to a coffee shop and read like I did at home so much, that I do it anyway. I’m constantly being stared at (like groups of men turning around their chairs to obviously stare for hours), but I just put in my head phones and open a book. I also like to see it as a slight jab at the vicious misogyny dominating Morocco.

Teaching some of the women how to make a lemon yogurt cake.

Most common misconception about Americans?

The greatest misconception about Americans on the part of Moroccans in my experience has been the assumption that all Americans are white and Christian. Morocco is a very homogenous society (ethnically, racially, and religiously), so most Moroccans have a very difficult time comprehending the immense diversity in America, or how big the United States is for that matter. Many minority volunteers here, particularly Black and Asian volunteers, are constantly being told that they are not “really Americans.” For reasons we don’t really understand, all black volunteers are thought to be “real Africans,” and are met by shouts of “Senegal! Senegal!” even though many of them are actually of Caribbean descent and have been “American” for generations. Asian-American volunteers are also all thought to be Chinese due to similar stereotypes. Because of my mixed background, I often pass for Moroccan. As a result, I am constantly being forced to defend my “American-ness” in ways many blond, red-headed, or generally light-skinned volunteers are not. I have had numerous instances of being asked for my Moroccan national card even while a police officer or border patrol officer is holding my American passport. They continuously ask if my parents are Moroccan, or at least my grandparents, because there seems to be some need to explain how I could possibly be American but not “look American.” Most times other volunteers and I try to take it as a learning opportunity and an opening to better educate our hosts about the United States, but sometimes the racist and judgmental way it often comes across can be very obnoxious and difficult to deal with.

Trying to keep warm in my house while my family visited.

Most memorable illness or injury?

There have been way too many to count. One of the worst was getting strep throat in the middle of a summer camp I was running for 80 kids at my local youth center, in mid-July. Sweating out a fever in the Moroccan summer heat is definitely one of the most uncomfortable experiences I have had to date.

What will you miss most about your service? 

I will miss the people more than anything else. Moroccans are the kindest most generous people I have ever met. Anyone, anywhere, anytime here will happily take you in off the street, bus, or wherever they happen to find you, and bring you in to their home right on the spot. There, you will be fed, probably bathed, and face such intense hospitality they will beg you to never leave. The work has been rewarding, but it is my relationships with my students, friends, neighbors, and my host family that have had the greatest impact on me. I have made it a point to get to know people I interact with regularly (my spice guy, tailor, teleboutique owner, juice-man, etc.) on a personal basis. In return, I know that I will always be taken care of, and I have absolutely no reservations about asking for help from someone here the way I may hesitate in the United States. I also think knowing me as a person has had a much greater impact on Moroccans' perceptions of America and Americans than any of the work I have done, so for that I am grateful.

What won't you miss?

I will not miss the horrible misogyny, patriarchy, and blatant sexism I face here on a daily basis. I feel that everything I do or rather can or cannot do in both my community and the country in general is determined by my sex. I have had countless problems with men in the community either not taking me seriously just because I am a woman, or sexually harassing me in situations I would have never had to deal with in the United States. I have become much more vocal and responsive about the street harassment within my own community, but I believe Morocco still has a very long way to go. The harassment often feels not only uncomfortable, but degrading and dehumanizing. I have been followed and harassed verbally or occasionally even inappropriately grabbed by groups of young boys no older than 10 all the way up to men old enough to be my grandfather. I think part of the problem is that culturally, Moroccan sexuality or really any interaction between the sexes at all is so repressed, that men are often looking for any kind of outlet at all, even the slight power trip that comes from harassing a woman on the street for two seconds. It is a serious problem that Morocco will need to seriously address as it develops, and the part of living here that I will definitely not miss at all.

My pre-schoolers showing off some of their art!

Favorite local holiday?

My favorite and also least favorite holiday in Morocco is Ramadan. The holy month of Ramadan begins on a different date each year, and the last few years while I have been here it has fallen over the summer. During Ramadan, it is illegal to eat or drink publicly between sunrise (around 3:30am) and sunset (around 7:30pm) in Morocco. Although the fasting is difficult especially with the heat, Ramadan is my favorite time of year here because it is all about food and family. Ramadan is a special time, and most people who have moved away to work (usually young adults working elsewhere to support the family) all come home, which puts everyone in a good mood despite the hunger. Being a month long, it can be a bit tiresome towards the end, but it ends with a big celebration after the last day with everyone wearing new clothes and eating special foods, which makes the month of fasting feel worth it and rewarding in the end.

What has been your greatest challenge so far?

Bureaucracy+ Sexism=Exhausting Combination.

What places have you traveled to or would like to travel to during Peace Corps?

Since I lived in Morocco before coming here as a Peace Corps volunteer, a lot of my travel has been to places outside of the country rather than inside. So far I have been to Portugal, Spain, and France. I will be going to Greece at the end of the month, and back home to the United States to see my family in the fall. There are still a few places I’d like to visit in country before I finish here: Chefchaouen (my favorite town in Morocco), Ait Benhaddou (famous old kasbah, used for filming Lawrence of Arabia), the Spanish cities (Sebta and Melilla-still officially Spanish territory) and Agadir. Unfortunately all of these places are far apart from one another, but hopefully I’ll find a way to see them all before I leave.

Swearing-In, May 23, 2012

How have you changed during your service?

I thought I knew what I was getting into with PC service because I had lived in Morocco before and knew the culture well, but the truth is that nothing can really prepare you for Peace Corps. Living here, I have become more patient than I ever thought possible. I have literally sat and watched paint dry for hours while waiting for someone to show up to a scheduled meeting with me. I have learned how to blend persistence and flexibility in order to get things done in a very ego-driven bureaucratic environment. Most of all, I feel like I have learned to really take things as they come. I never know how anything will go, how people will react to things I say or do, or who will be in any given place, but learning to accept and embrace that has helped me to have some of the greatest experiences of my service, and I will keep the memories with me forever.

Posing with some of the girls in my last Women's Health and Empowerment workshop in March. The ribbons on our heads say "Women's Day 2013: Stop Sexual Harassment"

Do you have any post Peace Corps plans?

I have not quite figured out what I plan on doing after Peace Corps just yet. I could see myself possibly pursuing work at the federal level with either Department of State or USAID. I also think I would be very happy [though obviously habitually poor] doing non-profit work with a smaller organization. I have about nine months left in my service now, so around the New Year I am planning to start making some of those big decisions about where to live and what kind of jobs to look for, and hopefully at least have the outline of a plan when I head home next spring.