Words and images from my service in Morocco — Fantasia

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Fantasia

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Fantasia is a traditional horsemanship show that is common in regional and local festivals throughout Morocco. Teams consist of approximately 10 riders. The goal is to charge together at the same speed and, towards the end, simultaneously fire their muskets.  The crux is to coordinate the speed of their horses and the shots.  

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Fantasia is immensely popular in the country. Performances can easily draw several hundreds of people and the atmosphere turns very festive because people sing and play instruments as the show unfolds. A performance can last up to two or three hours.

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Seeing the horses approach at full speed is frightening and exhilarating!

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Ahwash, folk music from southern Morocco
Ahwash is a musical performance consisting of several people, 20-25. Those who play instruments sit together in the middle while those who sing hold hands and move sideways around those playing instruments. I have been here in southern Morocco for more than a month and half and I haven’t heard much Western music around. It seems that even young people don’t listen to it that much.  Overall, people in this region of the country are very proud of their culture and don’t hesitate to let you know that they are Berbers (Amazigh), not Arabs. A couple of times a week I get asked if I speak Tashlheet (the regional Berber dialect). Locals insist that I must learn it since it is the local language.
Peace Corps will later give me the opportunity to learn Tashlheet. In the mean time, I continue to meet with my language tutor about twice a week to keep improving my Arabic. I do think that I still need to feel more comfortable with Darija before moving on to Tash.

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You know you are in Morocco when: after watching a football game at a coffee shop, you get up from your seat to leave and pay for your sandwich to find out that the guy who was sitting next to you and whom you had befriended had  paid for it. Not only that, he had already shared half of his tray of fruit with you.

Hospitality is taken seriously here in Morocco!

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Hospitality in Morocco

Volunteer Matthew Rogers shares the tradition of tea in Morocco as key to hospitality. This video was submitted in the 2017 Peace Corps Week Video Challenge.

This is a short video by a fellow volunteer about tea and hospitality in Morocco. It is simply impossible to overemphasize the importance of tea on daily life here.

Check out similar videos on hospitality from other Peace Corps countries:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM0oh3lEA63HASpphcwVbsr1XvMi374Qb

morocco hospitality

Last Sunday, I finished a week-long training in Tamazight, the dialect of Amazigh spoken in my region of the country. Linguistically, Morocco is a very complex country. Its two official languages are Fusha (Standard Arabic) and Amazigh. French is practically a de facto official language as well. Amazigh was recognized as an official language only a few years ago, and it is actually divided into three regional dialects: Tarifit in the Rif mountains of northern Morocco; Tashlheet in the southwest; and Tamazight in middle and southeastern Morocco.
The sessions were a bit harder, even more frustrating, than expected since they were mostly in Moroccan Arabic. So I really had to make an effort. However, I do feel satisfied because I now know a few phrases and a bit of vocabulary. I am planning to start actually learning a couple of months down the road, once I feel my Moroccan Arabic is much more solid.
During the week of training, we had a free afternoon and a group of us decided to visit Ait Benhaddou, a typical old desert fortress, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Several movies have been shot at the site including Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Gladiator (2000) and Babel (2006). Moreover, on the evening before training was over, we had an Ahawash (folk music from southern Morocco) performance.

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Ramadan

The crescent moon has been spotted! Thus, the holy month of Ramadan (the month of fasting) will start tomorrow here in Morocco. Fasting during Ramadan has been among the most compelling and thought provoking experiences I have had while serving in the Peace Corps. It helped me realize that I have been fortunate enough to take food and water for granted every single day of my life. I am now able to appreciate a glass of water as never before. رمضان سعيد

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