Ok, so I'm guessing this is Blog number 1. I'm not sure about this whole "Blog" thing, but I figure its well worth the try. It might mean that the lazy side of me comes out and I stop sending out mass e-mails. We'll see though.

I think that I'll start this Blog with going back tracking a few weeks in September. I had my birthday, an exciting event, but not the most remarkable age. I then randomly bought a plane ticket to Casablanca, Morocco. And I think that's where I'm going to let my adventures begin.

Casablanca, Morocco:

I went to Casablanca with my friend Daniel. It was a rather random/last minute trip, but well worth it. I found Casablanca exciting (actually I can't really think of the right word), but very different from any other place that I've been to.

The things I noticed about Morocco (mainly Casablanca)

1. Punctuality: We bought our train tickets for a train that was suppose to depart the airport at 16:50. We thought not bad, because it meant that at 17:30 we would be in Casablanca city center. Right? Wrong!! The train came about 15 to 20 minutes late, and that really shouldn’t have been a big surprise (because my flight to Casablanca was also 30 min. delayed and I was flying with Air Moroc). The train ride was hot, humid and it stunk. No windows opened, so no fresh air was circulating through the hot, humid, smelly train. Big bummer!! The train ride took way longer than we were told it would. Maybe around 18:00 or 18:30 we finally got to Casablanca. What a surprise we were in for.

2. Taxis: At the train station we were asked if we needed a taxi to take us to our hotel (it was more like they insisted that we need a taxi, because no matter how many times we said no, they kept persisting that we needed a taxi). So why not, right? We needed to find our hotel, and we were both a little tired, getting hungry and ready to put our stuff down (not that I brought that much stuff, but Daniel on the other hand packed for about a month with 6 different pairs of shoes). The taxi ride was, um, CRAZY!! Taxi cars were built about in the 70’s only the front windows roll down and there are no, I repeat, NO seat belts in the back seats. Actually, we found that the taxi drivers got rather offended when Daniel (who always sat in the front seat) tried to use the seat belt that was there. The taxi cars were very dirty, small, and not the most comfortable ride. Hardly any taxi driver knew where we wanted to go, so we were the ones that had to direct the taxi drivers. Weird? The first few Taxis that we rode in didn't have meters so the taxi driver would just through out a random amount. We were so naive that we didn't even try to argue the amount. We just gave them the money, grabbed out stuff, and quickly went on our way. The dashboards of every car was turned into this sort-of alter, with flowers, pictures and sometimes Arabic prayers were written down and places there. Some of the 'alter' looking dashboards had stuffed animals, pillows and other random stuff. Never figured out why they did that, if it was just for decoration, or if there was really a meaning behind it all. When Daniel and I finally started getting Taxies that had meters we found that we were being charged way too much. But hey, we were the naive, white, tourist that these people milk for money.

3. Cleanliness: Casablanca was a very dirty city. After a few days of exploring the city, Daniel and I were able to find the nicer parts of the city, but overall the city was disgusting. When Daniel and I got to our hotel (Hotel Ramada) we got our room, the first thing that Daniel did was look to see how clean the bed was. And to our big surprise the sheets were so gross; it looked like they hadn't even been washed after they last guest. Daniel went down and got us another room. Other than that the hotel was pretty clean, and I felt that I slept pretty well while staying there. The city was kinda like what you see in movies of poverty stricken areas in Africa; old buildings that were falling apart, the smell of urine and old rotten meat that lingered in the air and the dirt and pollution that hung in the air. There was trash all over the streets, and I felt that I was walking in a dumpster while walking the streets. We did find clean places to eat, and enjoy ourselves, but it was a relief to get back to Germany where things were really clean, on time, and I could also speak the language.

4. Culture: Morocco has been greatly influenced by the French people. Almost everyone spoke French, although I didn’t and Daniel new enough to get by, but some things were still rather challenging. There was a great influence of Italian food in Casablanca as well, but I think that the influence of the Italians is everywhere. I wasn’t able to understand their culture that well because I didn’t have an insider to fill me in on things such as school, work, religion etc. I wanted to figure things out, but I was unable to. It seemed that there were just people constantly sitting around and kids always playing in the street, so I wonder how strict the school system is, and if it coasts money to go to school. Lots of beggars came up to us asking for money, and when we were buying things we had to bargain. Kinda fun to hear how much they want to charge us, and then for me to say how much I think that it’s worth and then they work their way down as I work my way up. Over all I thought that the people were happy. I felt that they just seemed at peace with their lives.

5. Things that struck me as odd:
a) Hot Milk: I don't mind getting steamed milk in the middle of winter, but I noticed that "hot milk" was the way that milk came. Daniel ordered a coffee and it came with a bit of milk that was of course hot. At the continental breakfast that our hotel offered I was going to eat a bowel of cereal, so I found the container that was holding the milk. Yeah, so I thought the milk was cold, and when I took my fist bite I was in for a big surprise. Müsli with 'hot milk' the best thing in the world, right?
b) Satellites: I wish that I could have sat at one building and counted all the satellites that were on the roof. By far too many! On the roofs of every building there were, I would say, over 100 satellites, along with 1 or 2 and sometimes 3 satellites hanging off. It was rather amusing.
c) The 'fresh' Orange Juice: Oranges must grow plentifully in Morocco, or somewhere near by, because oranges were the "fruit." Orange juice always came freshly pressed, my favorite, and was delicious.
d) Driving Skills: Ok, they actually have amazing driving skill, with no system. You will be on a two lane road and they will make 4 lanes. People just kinda wonder into the streets whenever they feel necessary and so cars are not only dodging other cars that are coming from all different directions, but they are trying to dodge the people and other random things that make their way into the streets. Crazy, crazy drivers!