The day before the camp!

Hamdullilah (Thanks be to God)! It's January and that means we have been rushing around in a flurry of activity preparing for the camp.  In the last two months, El Jallali Abdelaaziz (my counterpart) and I have been having meetings everyday, crossing our 't's and dotting our 'i's for this three day camp. 

This is a picture of me, my site-mate and my counterpart (Seated in front of the computer). 

Let's go over a checklist of all the things me and my counterpart have been doing.

• We've been talking to all the women who are: going to be counselors for the camp.
• I've been coordinating between all the Peace Corps Volunteer girls who want to be joint counselors activity leaders.
• We've been arranging spaces for all of us (that is a total of 85 people all told. I know the camp is for 50 girls, but that is plus 14 Peace Corps Volunteers, 3 kitchen people, 8 Moroccan Women Counselors, and a few members from the association that I work with.)
• We've sent out faxes and called local tv stations to get media to cover the camp.
• Gathered the permission slips of 50 girls and acquired the permission from their fathers (No small feat for girls from very small, conservative villages.
• Printed 100's of pages for girl empowerment workshops
• Finalized and handed out the order slips for the food for the camp (this seemed to take the most time out of everything else).

This is the majority of last week's activities. But let's also quickly preview the program for the camp:

This weekend on Saturday the 28th, all the Moroccan and American volunteers will meet before the camp so that they can become acquainted with each other and do a general introduction of activities, rules, and expectations of the camp.

Sunday, the 29th, is the beginning of the camp! The campers come at 10am, and then it's introductions, the outline of the camp, lunch, and then the workshops begin. The workshops on the first day cover a range of topics like women's rights, a personality test, and a guest speaker from an organization against violence. We're also showcasing the Moroccan and Peace Corps Volunteer film called, 'You Can Dream,' which interviews empowered Moroccan women who are working. 

Monday the 30th, is more of the same, but with a woman doctor and a midwife from the area who are going to talk about their experiences. There will also be workshops on health and a henna workshop!

Tuesday the 31st is actually a really fun day. We're having workshops on dancing and on how to make natural makeup. We're also having a party and an award ceremony for all the girls. My counterpart has also asked the children he works with to do a dance for the older girls. And then after that, the girls will return home. I think this camp is going to absolutely swimmingly. I am really excited and am keeping my fingers crossed. 

T-town is really pulling this camp off and I'm so proud to say that this project is not just a dream but an actual working experience for all the participants involved.

Wish me luck! 

 

Actually, this is gross.

So today has been stimulating and sort of soul crushing.

I mean, it started out alright. I came to Rabat this last week because I chipped a cap on my molar and had gone to see the dentist. I left this morning on the train and then transfered to a taxi in order to get to my friend's site. I got into the taxi with two seemingly very nice little girls and their dad. Now, have I actually ever told you what it's like to ride in a taxi in Morocco? Just in case I haven't, you're in a normal sized sedan, with 6-8 people in it. Usually 7, but in hard times, more. This means that you're usually squished either in between the driver and the stick shift (think: stick shift continually shifting where your hip is resting) or you're squished between a variety of fun people (think anywhere from big Berber mommas to very skinny men). It's a regular box of chocolates; you never know what yer gonna get.

Anywho, I thought today's trip was going to be a breeze. Two pumpkin sized children who were napping and the father was looking out the window. I wasn't smushed or bothered at all. I really only had a 45 minute taxi ride from the train station to my friend's town. Lo and behold, 5 minutes until my friend's town and tragedy strikes. Not only do I look out the window in my happy reverie to see an over-turned vegetable truck! but little squirt has actually dumped the contents of her lunch on my white pants. The only time I wear white pants in this country and it was disaster. I'm actually pretty confident that my wearing of the white vestments actually challenged the universe and the only thing the universe could do was but smite me in it's deeply self-pleasing and ego-centric way. You ever know notice how the universe only cares about itself? It's down right un-conscientious.

I do feel bad for the kid though.

So, anyways, after meeting up with Liz in one of my most disgruntled moods, I basically ran to her house and hosed myself down. Then I washed my pants with tide, then bleach, and then more tide. They are currently drying over the window. This is really an unfortunate matter concerning clothes here....I mean, either they're ripped, gross, or covered in God knows what. I really do think that dressing like a hobo here has its own sense of propriety. At least it's modest.