Somewhere in the Middle

I’ve been drifting between moods for a while now.  I contemplated starting this post with all the things I hate about what’s happening in my life right now but as you can see, I'v chosen to the cheerier route. 

I miss home :( … I'm sure this goes without saying. I’ve been trying my best however, to feel better… I will admit that I could try a little harder.

For days on end, I’ve been listening to the sultry, sad, bluesy melodies of Adele and that has done nothing to me but start a bawl-a-thon (I’m very in tune with my emotions… no apologies will be made for feeling feelings) but now I’ve changed my genre and Paramore’s alternative lyrics and beats aren’t really helping me that much either.  I’m looking for a healthy selection.... like something lying in between all of this. I miss home and there’s not much I can do when the feeling comes to me but at the same time, I should be enjoying the wonderful experience that I’ve been blessed with.  Do know that I am very grateful for this opportunity; but a girl has the right to feel how she feels… right? 

Adele’s songs of love lost, missed opportunities and feeling strongly for the "one who will never be" have been therapeutic in the sense that I get to sing along and get my emotions out but at the same time, they just make me... well... sad L. The worst part of this whole thing is, in a weird way, feeling sad is sort of my comfort.  Sounds crazy?  I’m on a quest to find something that reminds me of home but at the same time, not make me yearn for it so much that I reach the point of flooding my bed with tears.

I spoke to my sister and 3 year old nephew about two days ago.  He was so excited to talk to me and tell me that I was on the plane; count with his fingers, fiddle with the computer like a big boy, show me his school shoes (and his round belly) all while searching up and about the computer to find out exactly where I was hiding :D. I mean, how is aunty talking to me on this device right?  The kid has a right to know! 

I love him so much ♥  Then the same day, my mum calls and I speak with a nice lady from church who has always had a soft spot for me and vice versa.  Adding insult to injury, I spoke to my sister who just had a baby three months ago (I missed it L) and she misses me and said she should be sending me new pics of the baby soon…(sigh).  What an eventful afternoon my eyes had!  I held it together for as long as I could… I really tried. 

Good news is,  I should be heading home in a few short months, given that the rise in fuel prices doesn’t choose to foil my plans of freedom and spiritual redemption (i.e. regaining my sanity by hitting the concrete at V.C. Bird International Airport). 

In other news… I worked out for the first time in 4 months!  It was good but not as rejuvenating as I thought it was. I lost the vibe in the midst of setting up.  I was able to bear thorough it to the end. I did some yoga with my friends for about 20 minutes then I ended with a few abdominal exercises (do I sound too technical saying abdominal and not abs like the rest of the world?).  I’m feeling better about myself today but the sadness still lurks.

Before I go,  I want to say hi to my readers in Germany, Malaysia and Singapore.  It's pretty cool having readers from these countries… well at least to me!  Germany, I see you! You’ve been here quite a few times too!  Nice having you and I do hope that you will come again! Feel free to leave a “hello” for me in the comment box if you ever show up again or even email me (den4268@gmail.com).

A bientôt!  (That means “see you soon” in French or “the language I SHOULD be practicing” as it has been referred to lately.

Ooooohhh ooohhh oohhh!!! Say hello to my new teddy bear :D (I got him under special circumstances thanks to the creepy guy in the store)

 He doesn't really have a name yet. I’ve been trying out a few but none are really sticking...especially the first one (which, btw was a girl's name until I realized his features were more on the masculine side :D)  What do you guys think I should name him? 

Disaster Knows No Boundaries

I've always been traumatized by the occurrence of natural disasters.  The only natural disaster that I have ever really experienced in my life were mild earthquakes and hurricanes-not at all the "disastrous" kind. For that I am so grateful.

I'm sure everyone has heard about the great misfortune that has occurred in Japan today.  If you haven't yet, then I'm glad that you will be learning something from me, irregardless of the fact that it comes in the form of bad news.  From the reports that I've been following (sorry if I come off all "journalisty") a 8.9 magnitude earthquake preceded an equally destructive tsunami (23 foot wave) in bringing devastation to the people of Japan.  Some 200 to 300 bodies were found and hundreds more have been reported missing and are mostly likely feared dead.

This probably goes without saying, but my heart as well as the hearts of so many people across this great planet, goes out to the people of Japan but I'm sure that just like me, there are also many others who just wish to find the right words to express how we really feel.

Funny enough, I was just chatting with my friend Janene about the importance of not giving too much importance to money before going online and being greeted by this unfortunate news.  On an episode of one of my favourite tv shows (NBC's Community), guest star LeVar Burton (the guy from Reading Rainbow) tells Britta that she's stupid with her money because she was willing to give up her last $216 dollars to pay him to stay around long enough for her friend Troy (LeVar's biggest fan) to find the guts to actually say something to the man instead of stare at him with a dumbfounded expression.  Anyway, I was saying that I may be stupid with my money too as I may have done this in the past and my still do that from time to time.  In brief, I was just saying that some of the things in life that we put so much value to are really not worth the time and effort we put into them... like obsessing over money. Now I'm not saying that I should run around spending money like an idiot but at the same time, if I'm having a bad time and I want to treat myself and/or my friends because I think it will cheer me up, then I'm gonna do it!

I mean, life's so short and obsessing over the little things and even some of the big things, in truth, it's just that... obsessing over them because they really only add or take away as from our lives as much as we want them to or allow them to.  Do you understand?

I've been lucky this far in life to have never experienced such a great, personal tragedy but who knows when my time for this great suffering will come? Who knows?  So I have pledged my life to enjoying it irregardless of the bad times.   It has been hard since I came to that realization a few years ago (especially since I've been here in Morocco) but it's something that I'm working on seeing to fulfillment.  Life's too short and I want to make sure each occasion I get to enjoy it is duly seized.

Who's with me?

I hope we will all take some time to say a prayer or express our concerns for the people in Japan any way we see fit. Not as an empty display but out of genuine love and compassion...

Love is a Losing Game

Hey guys.  First off, do allow me to apologize for not having updated my blog for quite some time. I know that you, my very few but still valued and loyal readers have probably been wondering why this was so. 

First reason, I’ve been missing home badly and have been hiding away in my hole for a little while – terribly unhappy and pretty much uninspired.  My second reason however, is the one that has had a greater role to play in my absence and that is the fact that I decided to pay my internet service provider for services that have yet to be rendered.  I went in to their offices the other day with my Caribbean flare (not the good one) held under wraps but I can’t be sure that this will be the case the next time around.  Anyway, I’m here now.

You would remember that my last post was on Valentines’ Day and was all full of love and what not.  When I decided to start this blog, in the back of my mind but in very bold letters  it was well noted that I WOULD NOT TURN MY BLOG INTO THE OLE’ HIGH SCHOOL JOURNAL.  What that means is that I have no intentions of lacing it with stories about this boy, that boy and how much I loved, lost and have missed out on love.  I made another mental note that the Valentines' Day post was an exception; after all, it WAS Valentines’ Day and I didn’t want to come off as being bitter. This time however, I have no plausible reason for this post and I have no intentions of giving any explanation to myself or anyone else. 

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve never been in love but I have dated quite a bit. My moments of doing the dating dance were never anything really serious (at least in my mind) but there have, without a doubt, been feelings involved.

I was watching a cute, little documentary called Paper Heart the other night. This documentary was about a young woman who “didn’t/doesn’t believe in love” and was travelling across America, trying to find out what LOVE means to the rest of the world and what this whole phenomena is all about. So she interviewed couples, each giving their take on relationships and ofcourse, LOVE (and TRUE LOVE at that).  I could relate with this poor girl’s confusion about the whole concept of love but unlike her, I do believe in love and TRUE LOVE doesn’t seem impossible to me either.

I think that the common misconception that we all have is that love/true love is measured by time and although that does have a role to play in everything, it’s not the definitive factor.  What I mean is, we think that when we fall in love and think it’s true love, we intend for it to always last FOREVER.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, I mean who doesn’t want to love and be loved by the love of their life for the rest of their lives right? At the same time however, should things not go the way we want them to go, that should not give grounds to saying that you didn’t truly love the person or that they didn’t truly love you right back. It also isn’t grounds to say that it wasn’t true love. 

True love, in my untrained eyes is based on how that person makes you feel, how you make them feel and the genuine, unquestionable existence of a passionate, strong, and pure bond between the two of you that is unlike anything you’ve ever known.  My opinion, as an inexperienced young mind in this matter of love is that we can find true love with more than one person in our entire lives.  It’s just a matter of finding the true love that encompasses everything that you need.

You know that you can love someone so much and they can feel the very same way about you but you’re just not meant to be?  Does this mean that what you have isn’t true love? 

Amy Winehouse (one of my all time favourite voices to listen to) has a song that sums it all up; Love is a Losing Game.  That’s just what it is.  Amy may not be the best person to take love advice from (if you know about her, you would know what I mean) but she’s so lyrically, and melodiously correct.  When you love, you lose a lot.  You lose your mind, your pride, your heart, your life; all of this can be looked at in both a positive and negative light. Just think about it!  The love that an old couple, having been together for fifty or so years, has shared can be the very same, genuine love that a couple having been together for a year or less would have experienced.  Should the second couple decide to end their relationship after the year or whenever, does this mean that they didn’t have TRUE LOVE?

I love someone.

I literally woke up to this revelation one morning a couple months ago.  Now, I’m not crazy. It did just come to me as I slept, trying to avoid the morning before me.  I know without a doubt that I love this guy but I haven’t said anything to ANYONE about it until now.  Is this an effect of growing older?  I don’t feel the need to rush to my closest friends with the news.  Then again, there are so many reasons for this.

I love him. I seem to not be able to stop saying it (I don’t even know why I’m saying this), however, I’m not quite sure that I wish to do anything about it.  I don’t know exactly why I love him but I do.  He’s not my “type” per se and we’re just friends.  I don’t know what is going on inside his head but the heart knows what it knows and feels what it feels.  It’s more of an emotional connection as opposed to a physical. Don’t get me wrong, he is a beautiful man but I’ve dated a more handsome guy in the past. That’s how I know that it’s real.  I always knew that I would feel love when it came but it’s not that easy to explain. I could think to blame being so far away from home, missing my family and my dogs and my friends as the reason for my feeling this way about him but it was just before I got to Morocco that I realized how I felt about him.  That’s quite a long time to keep it a secret.

I’m not so much afraid of disappointment as I am terrified of commitment.  Does that sound stupid?  It kinda does to me.  I wouldn’t care as much if he doesn’t feel the same way about me as I would should he feel the same way about me.  I doubt either of us is ready for any type of commitment (especially given the fact that he’s nowhere near Morocco) and although it’s not very impossible, I’m not quite sure if I want to try.  But it never hurts to try… right?

A few things could happen;

1.    I could tell him how I feel and find out he doesn’t feel the same way... loose a friend because things get awkward.

2.    I could choose not to tell him how I feel and risk the chance of losing him because I move on very fast lately.

3.   I could tell him how I feel, he feels the same way, we try a relationship and we fail.

4.   I could tell him how I feel, he feels the same way we agree not to try and never know what could have been.

5.   I could tell him how I feel, he not feel the same way but says he’s willing to try and I lose a friend because his “pity” insults my pride.

6.   I could tell him how I feel, he feels the same way, we fall hopelessly in love and loose ourselves in each other.

…

Love is a losing game

Forgiving & Forgetting

Forgive and forget.  

I have always found this whole concept of forgiving and forgetting pretty intriguing and awfully confusing.  I'm sure I'm not alone here.  Am I?

I mean we're all faced with dilemmas at some point or another, be it with our friends, family, peers or sometimes even random strangers, where we can either choose to forgive someone who has wronged us and move on with our lives OR we could stay pissed forever and hate every waking minute of the rest of their lives.  

I am unsparingly and incomprehensibly torn on the matter.  You see, I find myself to be a very forgiving person who can still hold a mean grudge - quite the paradox isn't it?  Does this mean I'm not forgiving?

A few days ago, I was enjoying an afternoon with two friends of mine and we ended up talking about past relationships. For someone who has never had a serious relationship in her 20 years of living I  have quite a lot of interesting stories to share about the men that have been in my life.  Now this isn't about them per se, but they were kinda what inspired this post. 

I am still single so it's quite pointless to say that ALL of the "relationships" briefly referred to above did not have happy endings. From one lying, manipulative jerk to another, I have bounced around (not in a skanky way of course)  the dating scene and trust me, I have been forgiving! If only you all knew the guys I've dated :S

You see, I've always told myself that although guy X was not the one for me and may have ended up to be a complete A-hole, I can still give a friendly hello from time to time should we bump into each other, sometimes even a hug!  There have even been instances where I have actually hung out with one or two of these guys after the fact i.e. doing something to offend/upset me to the point of ending "whatever it was" that was going on between us and making me not wanting to see their face for as long as we both shall live. 

He knows what I'm talking about

I look at it this way; each of these relationships helped me to grow in some way or form.  For one, they have taught me what I absolutely DO NOT want in a boyfriend and each experience has been with a different person which means different personalities (and some similarities), thus allowing me the opportunity to learn to deal with different character traits.  Trust me, there have been some challenges but I made it out okay for the most part.

My friends have gone through earfuls of rants about which guy just knows how to get under my skin, guy B having me completely confused about one thing or the other, guy F not being the one for me and my not knowing how to break it off.  I look back at each of these guys and I smile ( and say a few choice words) but they truly weren't all THAT bad.  

But as much as I like to say that I've forgiven these guys, or anyone else who has seriously wronged me, there is just no way for me to confidently say that I've forgotten what caused the rift between us in the first place. Does this mean that I haven't truly forgiven? - Here lies my problem.

Yeah, beats me too

There are other people who prance about the place and seem to genuinely have  the gift of forgiveness or what not but what I NEED to know is this; have they TRULY been able to forgive and have they eliminated EVERY morsel of hate/anger that may have built up inside them after being wronged?  Or are they as confused and pretentious about the whole thing as I am?  If the former is the case, I truly want for one of them to teach me how it's done :(/clunk me over the head with the "forgiveness" mallet.

For me, it is pretty easy to stay upset at someone for weeks or months and in severe situations, years! But there is a point where I just think that being mad is stupid and although I don't screw my face up when I see said person(s), I don't really care to say anything to them ever again. I SAY it's because I have forgiven them but I really don't think I have.  I mean, I don't really HATE them anymore but I don't actually LIKE them either :S This is so HARD!!!!!!

It's pretty clear that when a serious, major dispute has occurred, odds are things between the parties may never be the same again but is there a way to forgive and forget without there being any underlying tension or distinct awkwardness? How do you know that you've actually come to the point of forgiveness? When you can give the person a genuine hug or compliment or some other greeting?  I don't think I've quite acquired this part because my mind tends to flash back.

Is this the same way for people whom we've offended? Clearly I have offended many-a-man/woman and child in my lifetime.. What?  I'm not perfect. 

I'm on a soul searching mission (then again, when am I not?)  and genuine forgiveness is one of those things that I need to contemplate some more.  

Wish me luck!

♥Love is in the Air♥

It's Valentines' Day again! The day that all the bitter people of this world love to hate :D.  Although I've never really celebrated Valentines' Day - on account of the fact that I've never had a valentine - I actually look forward to it each year.  Why?  It's pretty simple.

I wonder, on whose doorstep will this little fella end up?

This is the time for over-sized, over-priced teddy bears, balloons, red roses, chocolates and whatever else it is that people usually get/give while proclaiming the "love" between themselves and the "lucky" gal/guy in their life.  But why is it that I look forward to the bliss that is other people's lives? Well, as much as you would like make that gesture where you're sticking your finger down your throat to force yourself to gag - or whatever "hip" thing the young people are doing nowadays to show their disapproval - (wait, we still say "hip" right?) you know that deep down in that muddy puddle of a heart of yours, it often makes you want to smile or even say something nice like; "Awwee, how sweet... Suck it!"

What really goes off the cute-o-meter for me are the DIY V-day projects that the little ones get to spend the majority of the day working on.  I mean, don't you just miss those days of innocence and genuine, untainted love?  I can just see them now, sitting in preschool or kindergarten with piles of arts and crafts equipment; an endless supply of red, pink, and white paper, glitter, glue, scissors, markers, paint; drawing and cutting out hearts and writing a million "I love yous" on the million cards they made so that each family member, neighbour, teacher, stranger, friend and pet was sure to get one.  Oh sweet childhood!  Where have you gone? But enough reminiscing for now!

And what about the endless supply of love songs that you remember in time for the annual Valentines' Day playlist?  Actually, in Antigua, this goes on for the entire month of February.  I am a lover of most things musical and Valentines' Day always reminds me of all the loving music that this cold, cruel world has to offer.  I usually spend FOREVER trying to download EVERY single song I hear; songs which never cease to remind me of how much alone time I will be treating myself to on this day for lovers.  But pity me not! My love life isn't as boring and hopeless as I make it sound... it's a little better... I hope :S

How cute!

I know that we've all had friends ditch us on the weekends or years at a time in the name of  "love".  They either claimed to have been in love once, twice or thrice or are still masquerading about the place proclaiming their love for (insert name here).  As annoying as it may get sometimes, I'm sure we're all pretty happy for our friends and have even wished to, for even a brief moment, feel as much love for someone as have described.  Please note that if you've had that feeling of undying love before, this does NOT relate to you!

Many of us like to think that love is not important; that it's juvenile; that we should be concentrating on attaining world peace, ending world hunger, discontinue female mutilation in African countries, stop the killing of dolphins or getting the global economic crisis in order... Whatever you're into.  But anything, just anything else but obsessing about some gal/guy or another.  But the truth is, love is so much more than just kisses and roses and teddy bears and free sex or what not.  How do I figure this when the only love I've ever experienced has been between my family, friends and my endless quota of pets?  I honestly don't know!  I just feel it is... you know?

We don't encourage that around here... "that" meaning the bitterness that would make one want to kill poor cupid

Now I'm not talking about the movie love that always has the same or similar lines and direction and sometimes cast, but the real deal; the kind of love that sometimes turns into the making of a good movie :D  The kind of love that you can't explain, can't write about, can't sing about because it's so big and no words would ever do any justice to the concept that is this love.

So this year, I'm on a mission to get to know love for myself.  I think I've postponed getting to know love long enough and I'm ready!  Now I'm not expecting it to come in time for me to have a date tonight but whenever it does, I'll be waiting with open arms, ears and an open heart.  I'm guessing love lurking somewhere around here...like a ninja!  Just waiting in the darkness for the next hopeless soul to attack :D

Happy Valentines' Day Everyone ♥

A-Trekking I Will Go!

Day 2

Ifrane


With each rotation made by the wheels on the bus, Ifrane seemed to get colder and colder but with all the excitement (and gallons of pee) building up inside me, we couldn't have been travelling at a slower pace.  You see, ever since I applied for this scholarship to Morocco, I've been hooked on this particular school.  It's an American type school where the students have the option of being taught in English and they offer pretty awesome courses! I was told that we were GUARANTEED a tour of the school when we went to Ifrane, so just try to imagine for a second the "OMG!!! OMG!!!! OMG!!!!! kind of excitement that was bubbling up in this tiny little body of mine.

I could hardly contain myself when, after sitting in this bus FOREVER, I saw the school's sign.  Destiny a-hoy!

Ok... now try to imagine me fighting to contain my rage when the buses just stopped outside and NOBODY was getting off the bus and heading to the entrance :S... Including the person who confirmed that "Yes, this tour will happen, for sure!"

Yep! ( That's to confirm that if you guessed I was lied to once again, you are 100% correct).  Could you believe this?  Had I not slept well the night before, I would have gone bonkers on "the ones who shall not be named" but I just pouted a bit, held my tongue and tried to stay calm.  Apparently, their request to see the school was not granted (if a request was made at all) and when they decided to roll up with one hundred of us to this school, the request was doubly denied or... you get the picture.

Now this is where things start to get juicy - for lack of a better word.

After having felt the rejection of the decade, we sauntered down to the Centre Ville in Ifrane. I don't know what it was, but I seemed to attract a ton of attention there.  First, I'm standing with my friends and this group of adolescent arab girls pass by wanting to touch my hair and take my picture.  Being the paranoid person I am, I refused.  Then again, had they been polite, I would not have been so ready to decline.  Then they proceeded to touch my hair... or so I was told.  My friend saw it happen but I didn't feel it. I was probably too busy trying to decide what I wanted to eat...

THEN...

My friend Janene and I had to go back to the bus because she wasn't in the mood to deal with the cold.  On our way back, I (the one whose internal compass is outta wack) passed the bus unknowingly... taking poor Janene with me.  Big mistake.  We're "cornered" by a group of teenage arab boys.  My spidey senses knew that something was about to go down.  Luckily, the disappointment from not being able to see the school and having to still be on that hell ride that was my tour bus had me jammed with fumes ready to be released.  I was ready for a fight.

So these boys surround us and start shouting things at us in arabic.  Ok, that may sound a little dramatic but they were intimidating none the less. They didn't speak much french so I couldn't figure out what in this world they were saying BUT I am an excellent reader of facial expressions and other forms of body language and I tell you, they were up to no good, those boys!

Janene's mad, I'm PISSED and an argument begins.  They wanted to take our picture, we refused...they couldn't take a hint though! I mean, NO is pretty universal.  They kept following us as we tried to find our bus.  Touching my hair, trying to hold on to us and getting on every last nerve I ever had. Then I did it... I had to do it... I shouted at them.  Now I don't usually do this but come on, it was necessary in this situation... wasn't it?  Janene even had to push one boy against the bus when he wouldn't get out of the way and the polite request for him to "excuse" himself didn't work.  Sounds scary doesn't it?   I'm only 5 ft and a few inches but I was definitely about to get my Hulk on.  It would have been an unfair challenge for them... hehehehe.

So we finally get past those annoying boys (who took the liberty to taunt us on the outside of the bus window) and we're greeted with even more amazing news.  Our great trip planners need for us to pay extra money to go to the mountains because there was absolutely no snow anywhere else in Ifrane.  Now if I'm wrong, you can say it to yourself as you read this but if you're planning a trip on the premise of seeing snow... shouldn't you be sure that there lies the possibility of this being able to come to pass?  I mean, check a weather report!   If there was ABSOLUTELY no snow a week before the trip in January wouldn't you think that it was time to start thinking about informing your travelers that the trip will have to be taken a step further (to the mountains) so that the necessary finances can be arranged before.  What if we all decided to leave our purses at home?  What would have happened?  We would have been disappointed for the billionth time in two days! I tell you, these people hold records in my books.

Now focusing on the better parts of this fiasco of a trip... I am proud to report that I was able to overcome my fear of horses.  Prior to this, I was pretty terrified of the idea of getting too close to a horse or even worse, riding one!  Yep! I, Den Whyte, opted to not only take a picture with the horse but to actually go for a ride xD.

How excited do I look?  

My horse was so sweet and gentle and he dodged all the branches (unlike Onica's ... I mean another person's horse which kept taking her right into the branches hehehe).  My horse handler was pretty friendly too and his English was on point.  I don't mean to sound ignorant or anything but of all the English speaking Moroccans that I've met, this young man's English was the best I've heard since I've been here and he handles horses!!!!!!  The people in the banks don't even speak that clearly!  I mean, I knew he would have to know a bit of English since it seems he sees a lot of tourists but I mean, he needs to move closer to me... I need a translator!  I pay pretty handsomely!

All in all, I enjoyed being on the road with my friends and although I will never be taking this particular trip again, I'm pretty glad I did.  I got to see what Morocco is like outside of Rabat and I got to eat some of the best croissants ever!!!!  I also learned some very valuable lessons, when I visit these towns again, I will definitely be taking the train and some music!  Now a few more pics from the trip to Ifrane:

Onica joined me on the horses! 

Me winning the snowball fight :D

Guess who?

A-Trekking I Will Go!

Meknes, Fes and Ifrane
Day 1 (cont'd.)

Sorry it's not rotated :(

Fes

The ride to Fes was breathtaking!  The Moroccan countryside is something that will render you speechless.  I really appreciate the backdrop of lush green landscapes and neatly arranged farming lands and hills and mountains of endless green.  We never got to Fes until around 7 something/8 in the night and when we got there, we were less than pleased.

So here we are, in beautiful Fes - tired and aching from the long bus ride - and we end up stopping in front of this very questionable "hotel" in an equally alarming neighbourhood. Yikes! It was just for the night so we didn’t think much of it but we hadn’t seen the rooms as yet and little did we know that we were out for a RUDE awakening!  

Before we had the privilege of even seeing as far into the "hotel" as the waiting area, we were hit with some awfully disappointing news, and the worst kind too; and I'll tell yah, I was NOT in the mood for any of this!  You know the kinda news that would make a traveler go bonkers and shoot evil glances and snares at anyone who dares to utter so much as a syllable because they had been on a long journey and were hungry and tired and EXTREMELY disappointed after seeing that the hotel they would have to stay at had no stars to its name ? Well multiply that by six because they told us that our rooms were being divided into groups of SIX!!!!

Now this would have been less alarming if they hadn’t informed us beforehand that it was going to be two people to a room.  I have little patience for these kinds of things becase what I hate more than a poorly planned trip is being lied to by the arrangers of a poorly planned trip!  So I refused to speak to anyone and EVERYONE got the stink eye.  It gets better! (please note that this is sarcasm)

We get to the room and the list of possible things to be mad about gets much longer;

1.      Beds were harder than the ones in Rabat which already felt like rocks.
          There was no heating

3.       It was freezing cold outside and it felt no different inside

4.       There was no hot water

5.       There were no regular toilets (google Arab/Chinese toilets)

6.       They expected me to bathe over the toilet mentioned above with cold water

7.       One of the pillows reeked of skin infection

8.       I opened my window to be greeted with the view of a shanty town

Now I know this may make me sound like an uppity bitch but a girl needs what a girl needs.  I’m not used to certain luxuries back home but then again, the conditions are far different.  Like, it wasn’t necessary for me to have hot water at home but when the weather is 6 degrees celcius and lower, hot water is kinda required.  Do I ask for too much?  So like the true westerners, my three travel buddies and I decided to fork up some cash and pay for better living conditions.  

Some people were offended because WE decided to use OUR money and move to a BETTER hotel, but it’s not our fault that we wanted to bathe in hot water and sleep in big, comfy, warm beds now is it?  We were much more at ease in the morning. Besides, they wouldn’t have liked having me around any more than they already didn’t, had I not had a good night's sleep:S. 

But getting to the other hotel was by no means a walk in the park.  We had to walk around to find one. Luckily we had dinner at this restaurant where there was a cashier who was very friendly and helpful.  He steered us to a pretty decent hotel and was very good for conversation.

Hot chocolate after dinner... yummy!
(We were having a distinguished pinky drinking contest hehehe)

When the first hotel had no rooms, we made our way to a second. When they had no rooms, we made it to a third.  The third had rooms but we never got our rooms until quite a while after. Apparently, you need a passport to book a hotel room in Morocco and Kim and I had conveniently decided to leave our passports behind in Rabat.  We had to journey to three different police stations in search of a letter that would allow us to get a room without them.  Luckily, there were some guys on the trip who were driving and they were helpful enough to take us around to the police stations.



Let’s just say, by the time we got the rooms, it was well into the night and we ended up spending only a few short hours in the warm, comfy beds.

Those few short hours were worth it because I was in no way or form willing to risk pneumonia and back aches in the cold, hard beds from before. 

A better view from the better hotel the next morning :)

Kinda blurry but it's not my fault ... or is it ;)

Next day, more drama.  The wonderful planners of this ultra mega awesome trip decided to add a passenger or two from Fes to come along on the trip to Ifrane.  Yet again, without notifying the drivers!  Needless to say there was much commotion.   Boy, if my mother heard about this!

By then, I was past the drama so I just ignored what was going on. Besides, I had a good night’s sleep and no one was going to have the satifsaction of spoiling my day. Well with the exception of my personal body guard whom I did not request.  He had been monitoring my every move from the minute we left Rabat until we returned and he would be so kind as to take a seat beside me when the person who was sitting next to me decided to get up.   The saga continues!!!!!  Ifrane here we come!