Im in Africa?

After 3 hours of waiting at the Philadelphia airport I am finally in Morocco! It has been great so far, everyone is very courteous and our program coordinators are great. My compatriots in this venture also seem pretty cool, so on the whole it has been a very good experience. I am still getting used to using the Arabic keyboard on the computer provided by the hotel, so youll have to forgive the lack of apostrophes and the short messages (for some reason, I have figured out just about everything else about this keyboard except for the apostrophes...) First impressions upon arriving at the airport: it is a lot warmer here, the people are friendly, the roads are crazy (trying to cross is taking your life in your hands sometimes), and there is an ocean! It hit me as we were driving by the coast in our bus that I am actually on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean; it is a very surreal feeling and just a little disorienting at first. However that feeling goes away when you fully take in the coastline in all its beautiful glory.  Upon landing I had originally asked myself: what in the world am I doing here, in Africa and in Morocco? But luckily that soon went away, and I was able to appreciate everything around me.

As for the SIT group as a whole, everyone seems nice (despite the jet lag and being tired from traveling for 24+ hours) but there are about 54 of us between the two programs, so to say we stick out like a sore thumb would be an understatement. Just imagine 54 white and mostly females walking in a pack down the Rue London in Rabat. We ventured into the Medina (the old city) this afternoon to go to our very informal beginning to Orientation week in the Center for Cross-Cultural Learning. I was immediately blown away by the spectacular houses and the narrow walkways of the Medina; it ends up being much more serene than the newer French Quarter where our hotel is.  One of the biggest advantages of being in the Center for Cross-Cultural Learning is that the terraces look out onto absolutely stunning views of the Atlantic and the river that separates Rabat from its twin city, Salé.  I cant wait to sit up there and study (aka just enjoy the view).  Thats all for now, but more (including pictures) will come soon!

The Countdown Begins...

Welcome to my blog!
It's just a little over a week before I get on the plane in Philadelphia and begin my trip to Morocco.  I'm getting more and more nervous as my departure gets closer, but I know this will be a great experience and I can't wait!  I'll update my progress as things come along, but for now I must go and find where in the world I put my backpacking backpack...