S.E. Morocco

So today is the Muslim New Year. Today begins the year 1432. What is interesting is that nobody in town knew that today was the new year until last night. At about 9pm my host family and I were watching some TV when the show was cut short and a frozen image of a minaret came on the screen with a scrolling message. I couldn't read it but my family said "oh tomorrow is the new year! I guess that means no school tomorrow!" And that was it. Today I was supposed to start teaching English at the Dar Chebab too, but it's closed because of the holiday. I even saw the Moudir of the Dar Chebab yesterday and we had a long talk about my beginning today. I guess people really do fly by the seat of their pants here. I'm glad I didn't have anything really important planned. I wonder if transportation is affected....

So my host mother invited me to go to Oujda with her this weekend. That's the next closest full-fledged city. It's about 5 hours away. I'll be meeting my host mom's relatives and it should do wonders for my language.

My language is coming along well. I always understand worse in the mornings, but by mid day I'm doing fine. I feel like I can communicate without much trouble. I'm not doing anything like having philosophical discussions but maybe with some time. My newest language achievement is that I can now understand Moroccans when they are talking to each other! This means I'm understanding at full speed and not just at poor-American-can't-understand-me slow motion speed. Hopefully improvement continues. My weekend in Oujda where I'm not escaping to the solitude of my room will be great.

About Money:

So as PC Volunteers we're paid just a living stipend. I remember my mother referencing a college friend who joined the Peace Corps and was so not interested in material goods that he actually returned from Peace Corps WITH money. Well, I'm starting to think that I may be like that. In comparison to AmeriCorps I'm living the high life! That's not to say they're paying us too much, but that I have gotten so good at saving money that I just don't spend any of my PC money. Plus, everything is so cheap here. I may only be making equivalent to $250 a month but here're some examples of what things cost:
I could buy all the food I need for a week for about $6.
A cup of coffee costs $.50 at a restaurant. And I don't ever go.
This internet cafe is costing me about $.75 an hour.
My rent in a 2-bedroom apt I'll move into on Jan 1st. is $75 a month -- and that is money I'll be given in addition to my living stipend.
Yesterday I paid a man about $0.60 to cart a bookcase from one side of town to another in a wheelbarrow-like cart.
A night in a decent hotel in Errachidia (my stopping point for going anywhere) is about $8. I could go as cheap as $4 and still have a halfway decent hotel room.


So I'm feeling like I'm living the luxurious life (relative to Peace Corps). I'm sure I'll learn to spend money again as time goes on. I can't imagine how much I'd have if I lived in a smaller city where there wasn't even anywhere to spend your money.