Gnagua performance

This weekend during our trip to the Sahara we had a stop at a local show. It was a performance group who sung and danced to a style of music called Gnagua folk music.

This was the first group of non-Moroccan Africans our group has really come in contact with and it was the best part so far.

When we arrived we had tea and waited for the performers to come out. As we waited beautiful children kept popping in and out just to catch a glimpse at us!

When the group finally arrived they started with songs of praise. They really sounded like negro spirituals, but since they were in Arabic I'm not sure. I'm pretty sure I heard "Allah" which is definitely God so I'm sure they were praise songs.

But the songs are not what almost brought me to tears. In all honesty, it was actually the energy of the group. Seeing them be so united and joyous even though there wasn't much there was so different. I know a lot of Christians, myself included, say they are so happy but then they are out looking for the next fix; a car, clothes, money, a significant other. But seeing these people praise with what they had was awesome. And they were just super nice!

Also seeing people who actually look like me and my family was refreshing. For a few moments I was wondering do they feel as sorry for me as I do for them? I mean coming from some privilege, when I see certain things I feel guilty. But then I thought how they must have seen me; coming from a materialistic world and not enjoying the most natural thing in life: simplicity.

I don't know if anyone else in my group had any of these feelings but I know that experience in particular has definitely made this trip worth while, and a lasting impact on my life.

love,

Deveney

Sand, flies, camels, OH MY!

This weekend was probably the biggest excursion of my trip and it was to the largest desert in the world, THE SAHARA!!

Let me just say, I'm in no way an out doorsy type of person, but I loved it!!!

So it started with a 9 hour bus ride that was spilt on the first day. We stopped at what is known as one of the nicest hotels in Morocco on the first night. It was nice, it had air conditioning so home girl ain't complaining!

The next morning we left bright and early and went to the different tours around the Sahara.

We stopped in a small city for a small walk through of old burbur neighborhoods and saw the most adorable kids. That is until one of the little girls ran up on me, grabbed my braids, and yelled "Rastafarian!"

Then we talked to them for a whole; actually more like listened since I had no idea what they were saying, but I know it was mean and degrading because the guys were too embarrassed to translate for us.

After leaving there we headed to the Gnagua performance which was do amazing it has it's own post!

Then we finally reached the Sahara! It was nothing but sand on sand on sand for miles! Before we actually arrived it rained for all of 3-4 minutes, which was actually a blessing in disguise but we didn't realize at the time. It was a blessing because since the sand was a little compacted, when the wind was blowing all crazy (which it did for most of the night) the sand didn't blow in our faces or my hair :)

We got to pick our camels, and mine was a beautiful caramel mocha latte color (also the drink I was craving at the time) so that's what I named him. I just called him mocha for short, and good thing for it because too many times I had to yell his name to tell him to slow down (which he had no intentions of doing).

After the fairly painful ride of screams, we arrived at our camp site which was beautifully set up. We had tea (yea, even the Moroccans in the desert drink tea!) and climbed the tallest dune in sight. It took me about 23 minutes (the average was probably 5 without my time included!) but that's irrelevant because mama didn't raise no quitter so I made it up!

The pain in my calves and shortness of breath was not worth the sight ONLY because it was so dark nothing was visible.

You're probably wondering, couldn't the stars and moon light the sky. And you're right, if the stars and moon were visible through the smug clouds, which they weren't.

I star gazed (actually just imagined more than 3 visible stars in the sky) until about 4am then took a quick nap before waking up at 5 to see the sun rise.

My thighs were so sore from the first ride that the second time they went half numb, which was fine until I had to get down to watch an imaginary sun rise.

You guessed it! It was so cloudy less that 12 hours later that the sun never actually rose, but the sky magically became lit. At this point, I really didn't care because I was so tired I just wanted to get in the car and sleep.

We got back to the camp and ate breakfast. Then headed out back to the city to pick up our van and go back home! I really enjoyed the trip even with all the flies on everything, sand in the food, and nearly broken femur!

Next weekend is Tangier which should be awesome! Can't wait to use a few of my Spanish skills, notice I said few! ;)

سلام

Deveney

FAQs

Q: Did you pee in the Sahara?
A: Yes I did, twice in fact!

Q: How did they prepare the food?
A: Your guess is as good as mine though I'm sure it has something to do with aluminum burners.

Q: What did you do until 4 am?
A: Other than imagining stars, played drums and tried to sing Arabic songs, huge fail.

Q: Was there really sand in the food?
A: You stop recognizing the small things when you're trying to avoid scorpions or thinking about how bad you're legs hurt
.
Q: Was it worth it?
A: If I could do it again tomorrow, I would be on a 9 hour bus ride!!!


This is a pic of me in my turban! More to come, really though!

MONKEYS!!!

Well not much to really say, other than I got to feed the cutest, undomesticated monkeys in all of Morocco!

Only a few pics, more to come hopefully!

Inshallah,

Deveney

July 4th!

This was the first of I'm sure many holidays away from my family, and I must admit I was a little worried at first.

Firstly, I was still in class and that's just unusual, and secondly I'm obviously not on America so I wasn't in the "American spirit" being surrounded by red, white, and blue. But the day went on anyway.

The Americans at school planned an American cookout to commentate this day of independence and the party was great. We had burgers, the closest thing we could find to chips, watermelon, and candy. Finding the sides was probably the hardest part since all the stores carried Moroccan brands, or other brands that were I'm French.

We listened to American music and even had karaoke at the end, and it was honestly a good time.

I think everyone at some point should experience a holiday away from home because it shows you that your small world is exactly that, small. I think celebrating my country's independence in such a conservative country was the perfect first experience. And it reminded me that though I am still a minor and I don't even have all my rights yet, I'm still more liberated that women and some men twice my age. And showed me how grateful I am to be part of a country like that. We have our problems, but let's be real, they are not as bad as they could be.

I can't wait to continue my travels and see the world, but most importantly to continue to see my own world change.

Love,

Deveney

PS: I know I've been saying pictures will be up soon, but my camera is super stupid. So really check my Facebook later this week!

OBAMA!

No, this is not an entry endorsing our president for another term, but you vote for will matter!

Anyways, this is the word yelled at me multiple times this past weekend at Fez. Our weekend excursion started Thursday morning after leaving our on-country orientation site. We rode a few hours to get to Mecka which had beautiful mosques and a busy medina. The place was buzzing with men trying to sell anything from bracelets to drugs, and knock-off snake charmers who wanted a tip for putting a snake on your neck (which we all know I was no part of!!) after our busy day and buying so essentials for my dorm room, we got back to the hotel which was the first air-conditioned place since we arrived on Morocco. It was very much needed; I couldn't take a shower without drying off, and immediately being covered in sweat again.

I enjoyed the Mecka, and then we headed off to Fez, but not before stopping at some of the oldest ruins in Morocco created by the Romans. The guide told us they date back to the 11 th century I think. They were beautiful and quite impressive. Hot tubs, sewers, pimp houses, they had everything before we ever were thought up!

Once we got to Fez we had lunch at a beautiful restaurant with couches as the seats. So you can eat, get the itis, then head out all before it's too dark out! We saw a few landmarks like one of the 11 gates to the largest medina in the world! We also got to see one of the king's palaces, but only the outside. We then went to the top of the hills to see the medina from atop but since it was so hot our out door adventures were cut short and we went to dinner and back to the hotel.

Saturday by far was the most interesting and aggravating day. It started with tours of the medina full on. We saw a scarf and knitting shop; they made everything from bed spreads to scarves and it was really awesome. We then went to the leather tanneries. It smelled soooo bad, but my bags were worth it ;) lunch was so good,at another beautiful restuarant! Then we went to the herbalist who sold a lot of cool oils and washes. Theses were the best parts! The flip side of this all was having kids and adults the same yelling "Obama" every time they saw me! Also creepy men saying "husband" whenever the girls walked by. But by far the funniest moment was when our tour guide asked anybody with colored skin where they were from. One girl says "India" another says "Pakistan". Then she looks at me and says you?
Of course I say America and she blushes and says "oh, oh sorry" and grabs my face to apologize. It was quite hilarious. Then at the leather shop the salesman kept calling me "sister" so I finally asked him why. He says "not because of your skin, but for more respect" I think he was just trying to make a sell, it worked though.

The best part of this trip has been the people though. Monica and Ava are two girls that I am really bonding with. Mohammed is our calligraphy teacher who is like a father figure, he wants to help us bargain and show us around, such a sweet heart. Ryan is a guy from my trip who is truly hilarious! Overall we have a fun group and great leaders. This weekend was really a fun bonding trip. Pictures on FB soon if I can get near a computer!

Love,

Dileelah (Arabic name)

Micheal Telo

Last night I met my host family and surprisingly it wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be. I have a host mom, dad, and 3 siblings. 2 sisters and 1 brother. They all seem pretty sweet although I can't really communicate because they speak little english and I speak little Arabic. It's very challenging!

But my host dad and I found a way to communicate through Google translate (thank God for google!). He was so sweet about everything and even showed me pictures of him at my age. He called himself a hippie :) haha

My host mom reminds me of my real mommy :) she works at night, and she is a caterer for weddings I think. Because weddings are always at night here. She is very stylish and just wants to make sure I'm comfortable.

My host sisters are 15 and 9. It seems like the 15 year old is more like the nanny, because when I asked her (through google translate!) if she was the older sister she said "la" which means no, and went on to say other stuff but I couldn't understand. Ghita is 9 and such a little diva! As soon as she saw my hair she asked me to do hers like it. It took some time to explain that our hair isn't the same and I could do hers just like mine.

My host brother is 16, but like American boys a little immature, not in a bad way at all! Just that he seems to act younger. He does his own thing so I don't really see him much.

Micheal Telo sings the song that goes "ay fuedo fuedo, ay ay fuedo fuedo" I don't really know the title but the funniest thing was when this song came on and my littlest sister started going wild! It was so adorable, and then she started playing starships by nicki minaj and boyfriend by my fave JB! It was truly awesome and we had a great time. Music really is universal :)

First day of school is tomorrow and I'm super excited to get back to people I can communicate with, and to also start learning Arabic so I can talk to my family!

Love,

Silent observer :)

Few pics :) and descriptions

So here are a few pictures of my adventures today. First one is of the Qalam center where I will be studying. It's actually quite beautiful, and there are a lot of students from across the world who attend.

The second is the entrance of an ancient house in Sale, and how elaborate the architecture used to be.

The last one is of the beach in Rabat. There aren't many women on them because they don't go out to the beach often. It's the side near the Atlantic Ocean not the Mediterranean.

Day 1&2 in Morocco

The plane ride wasn't as bad as I thought, even if it was 8 hours. The fist of many "black experiences" to come was when a Latino women flying from Madrid, Spain to Casablanca was talking to another boy from my program in Spanish. I couldn't heard much, but I caught on to a few words. After the plane ride he told me what the talked about and the lady was asking where I was from. He responded "America" and she continues to say "no, she's darker so where is that from". He said again America like me, she's American. The lady had never seen a black person from America. It really made me think of how small some people's worlds can be, and how blessed I am to see other ethnicities and cultures from around the world.

Nonetheless, I'm having a wonderful time!! So far I have seen so many things! First off, the people here are so nice and welcoming, they literally will do anything to make you feel comfortable. And they have such physical proximity that it's ridiculous! It's so cool seeing people talk to each other here, very personal.

The food, as promised is delicious! For dinner we had lamb, which I have never had before and it was really good! The vegetables are so fresh and beautiful. For breakfast we had croissants and jam, which was fresh from they're apricots! Everything is so tasty. The only adjustment so far are the drinks. I love tea so that's not even a problem, but the water and juices are a little different but still so good (it's only bottled water here because the tap takes some major adjustments to your body).

If you were wondering, YES! IT'S HOTTTT!!!! The rooms at the camp we are at now don't have AC, but they do have a lot of breeze coming through for most of the day. Otherwise you just have to take it really slow so you don't over heat. There's running water at bathrooms and all the western traditions so it's not that different. The nights are the most beautiful because it's a cool 80 degrees and breezy. I really love it.

So far so good my way! I get to meet my host family Saturday which was switched from just a mom and dad, to mom, dad, 3 brothers and 1 sister! I'm so excited to meet them! This weekend I will be going to Fez, which had the biggest Medena (shopping market) in the world! Shopping is one thing I can and will do VERY well!

If there's anything you want or want to know you will have to email me at deveneybrown@yahoo.com! Or Facebook message me, I check every few days :) pictures to come soon!

Alhumdiliah!

Deveney

PDO

First days in my journey to the east and first stop was NYC. Such a big place with a different atmosphere, and smelly roads! But the view from almost anywhere is absolutely gorgeous.
Most of our sessions were standard protocol. My absolute favorite was hearing about "sexual harassment". Me, being the scaredy cat I am was all like "omg, I'm going to be pulled down some dark alley" when in reality they just mean cat calls. You know, like "hey ladies 😉" or really sly things. But the reality of it is, I've gotten worse than that just walking down the street in Durham! Not to say this won't be a completely different experience or anything, but I'm a little more prepared than I thought.

The web page to view this blog if you didn't notice is "black to the homeland" which I felt was an appropriate title since 1) I'm black and 2) I'm going to North Africa. I've asked my RD (resident director: lady who is American but fluent in Arabic and Moroccan culture) how it would be for me since I am African-American (Incase you were wondering!). She pretty much said there's race discrimination in morocco, and I'm just wondering will I ever catch a break at this point!? But, nonetheless I am do excited to be going to such a beautifully diverse place. Keep me in prayers, stay blessed, and stay tuned! Departure in T - minus 20 hours!!!

Love,

First time abroad :)