Hey...a few things that have caught my attention in recent days:
"Even as Africa Hungers, Policy Slows Delivery of U.S. Food Aid"
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/07/world/africa/07zambia.html?hp
I think its time for some letters to Congress people...
Also, in reading up for a paper on economic development in Africa, I again became aware of the issue of blood diamonds and multi-national companies effect on the developing world. This is a really great article from Dollars and Sense magazine: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Africa/Continent_Crisis.html
For more info, watch the movie that came out last fall Blood Diamonds, or check out these links: http://pcrproject.com/blog/2007/03/03/the-war-over-diamonds/
http://www.time.com/time/2007/diamond/
Peace!
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Friday, April 06, 2007
Maunday Thursday
I realized recently in one of my e-mail correspondences that I've been in a different place every year for Lent, Holy Week and Easter (ah, the love of a student) for much of my recent past.
Three years ago I was a senior in high school celebrating Holy Walk with my family at home in Indianapolis...two years ago I was in Valpo in the beautiful Chapel of the Resurrection for Easter morning complete with balloons...last year I was in DC going to Resurrection Lutheran with dear Karen Kunze...and now I'm in Morocco. It makes for a somewhat jumbled sense of tradition for Lent, as the past four years have brough at lot of different experiences during this season (dealing with senioritis and worrying about college, being a freshman at VU, interning and living in DC) and a lot of different traditions for celebrating Holy Week depending on which community I've been in. However, though sometimes I feel like I haven't really learned to really celebrate Lent as well as I should, there is a sense of beauty of having bits and pieces of all those places, communities, and traditions with me as we enter the weekend of Maunday Thursday, Good Friday, and finally Easter.
This evening, the AUI Christian community gathered for a lovely Seder meal and footwashing service that really brought back into the present in terms of experiencing the end of this Lenten season and moving toward Easter.
There's a real beauty in celebrating a Seder meal on Maunday Thursday because it reinvokes the Jewish tradition of celebrating passover and allows us as Christians to sort of reexperience the Last Supper in a way we usually can't because we've lost the knowledge and traditions of Judaism. But tonight I just found it very powerful to hear the passover story through the tastes and textures of the wine, bitter herbs, matzah, and egg...and powerfully startling to be reminded how shocking Jesus' words and actions would have been that night so long ago...pronouncing the bread of affliction as the bread of life, the last cup of wine as the cup of the new covenant, and then getting down on the floor to wash his disciples feet...
This was an especially powerful moment for me; after our Pastor Karen had just finished talking about how shocking it would have been for the disciples to have their master kneel before them to wash their feet, how it simply was not done (which has special resonance for me here in Morocco because i'm much more aware here than I am at home, of the actions and words that are simply not cultural acceptable or even thought of)...which was a real reminder of how powerful that action was, and how much that simple action has really affected our tradition. So, it was even more beautiful a few moments later when I watched as Amy, a cute 5-year old with bright blonde ringlets, excitedly knelt on the floor to wash her mother's feet, beaming with delight. To her it was most certainly not a faux pas, but a natural and fun thing to do! For Amy, there were no boundaries and certainly no wariness about taking off her shoes and having someone else wash her feet.
That dichotomy was just really cool to think about, how Jesus' washing of his disciples feet was really the highest service and honor and yet showing love in a natural, childlike way. It's like when we wash each other's feet we cannot but realize each other's humanity and vulnerability, we cannot act without some love and compassion...at least I'd like to think so.
The whole evening was just a very hospitable, warm service with the Seder meal in the middle and certainly a beautiful collection of random wanderers amidst Morocco...African students visiting for an intervarsity conference...AUI professors and students and their families...workers at the local Christian orphanages...outside the warm little room few people even know that its Holy Week here (which seems a far cry from growing up as a PK during which it seemed like spring break always seemed to revolved around church and holy week) and few know the tradition of Easter. And certainly, even the traditions of celebrating Holy Week differ a lot within our little ecumenical community (complete with Catholics, non-denominational Christians, Methodists, Mennonites, Baptists, Orthodox..), although luckily for me feels very much like home...a jumble of traditions, songs, and people (just like the past few years) but with the same base of scripture, reverence for God, and an earnest attempt at finding the meaning within our traditions.
God is very much in this place.
Three years ago I was a senior in high school celebrating Holy Walk with my family at home in Indianapolis...two years ago I was in Valpo in the beautiful Chapel of the Resurrection for Easter morning complete with balloons...last year I was in DC going to Resurrection Lutheran with dear Karen Kunze...and now I'm in Morocco. It makes for a somewhat jumbled sense of tradition for Lent, as the past four years have brough at lot of different experiences during this season (dealing with senioritis and worrying about college, being a freshman at VU, interning and living in DC) and a lot of different traditions for celebrating Holy Week depending on which community I've been in. However, though sometimes I feel like I haven't really learned to really celebrate Lent as well as I should, there is a sense of beauty of having bits and pieces of all those places, communities, and traditions with me as we enter the weekend of Maunday Thursday, Good Friday, and finally Easter.
This evening, the AUI Christian community gathered for a lovely Seder meal and footwashing service that really brought back into the present in terms of experiencing the end of this Lenten season and moving toward Easter.
There's a real beauty in celebrating a Seder meal on Maunday Thursday because it reinvokes the Jewish tradition of celebrating passover and allows us as Christians to sort of reexperience the Last Supper in a way we usually can't because we've lost the knowledge and traditions of Judaism. But tonight I just found it very powerful to hear the passover story through the tastes and textures of the wine, bitter herbs, matzah, and egg...and powerfully startling to be reminded how shocking Jesus' words and actions would have been that night so long ago...pronouncing the bread of affliction as the bread of life, the last cup of wine as the cup of the new covenant, and then getting down on the floor to wash his disciples feet...
This was an especially powerful moment for me; after our Pastor Karen had just finished talking about how shocking it would have been for the disciples to have their master kneel before them to wash their feet, how it simply was not done (which has special resonance for me here in Morocco because i'm much more aware here than I am at home, of the actions and words that are simply not cultural acceptable or even thought of)...which was a real reminder of how powerful that action was, and how much that simple action has really affected our tradition. So, it was even more beautiful a few moments later when I watched as Amy, a cute 5-year old with bright blonde ringlets, excitedly knelt on the floor to wash her mother's feet, beaming with delight. To her it was most certainly not a faux pas, but a natural and fun thing to do! For Amy, there were no boundaries and certainly no wariness about taking off her shoes and having someone else wash her feet.
That dichotomy was just really cool to think about, how Jesus' washing of his disciples feet was really the highest service and honor and yet showing love in a natural, childlike way. It's like when we wash each other's feet we cannot but realize each other's humanity and vulnerability, we cannot act without some love and compassion...at least I'd like to think so.
The whole evening was just a very hospitable, warm service with the Seder meal in the middle and certainly a beautiful collection of random wanderers amidst Morocco...African students visiting for an intervarsity conference...AUI professors and students and their families...workers at the local Christian orphanages...outside the warm little room few people even know that its Holy Week here (which seems a far cry from growing up as a PK during which it seemed like spring break always seemed to revolved around church and holy week) and few know the tradition of Easter. And certainly, even the traditions of celebrating Holy Week differ a lot within our little ecumenical community (complete with Catholics, non-denominational Christians, Methodists, Mennonites, Baptists, Orthodox..), although luckily for me feels very much like home...a jumble of traditions, songs, and people (just like the past few years) but with the same base of scripture, reverence for God, and an earnest attempt at finding the meaning within our traditions.
God is very much in this place.
Monday, April 02, 2007
Exotic Touristy Marrakech
Virtually since we arrived in Morocco people (Moroccans and non-Moroccans alike) have always asked us, "Have you been to Marrakech, yet?"
It's basically like the Florida or LA of Morocco. Warm, full of tourists -Moroccan and foreign alike-, plenty of shopping, hotels, clubs, etc.
So, in honor of Mohammad's 147th birthday (aka in honor of having a 3 day weekend to endure the 7+ hour train ride both ways) a bunch of us headed south...well first north to Casablanca on the train and then south (don't try to figure out the logic of Moroccan trains, it just won't be pretty) to Marrakech this past weekend!
We arrived after a stifling train ride (7 hours in a 2nd class train with little air flow at every stop...just not fun) and got checked into our hotel, the Ibis Moussafir which was basically the Ritz in our eyes. The rooms were clean, the tv worked and even had BBC World in English, the bathroom was downright SPARKLING with little shampoo/conditioner packets on the sink, and some of the rooms even had (wait for it, wait for it) an extra toilet paper roll! Now granted, it was about on par with your basic Holiday Inn room in the states, but it for us students...AMAZING! We stay at the cheap, basic hotels (a bit above the Motel 6 types in the states) around Morocco...and well, they work but you certainly leave feeling a bit dirty. Often because you don't dare go in the showers! Needless to say, waking up to a clean roomy shower was the most amazing way to start Saturday!
Saturday we then checked out of our Ritz...post-Spring break we're all eager to save our dirhams and so we found a different hotel that cost us less than our one night at the Ibis for our two remaining nights! Granted even the Ibis was the equivalent of about $30 per night...lol.
Saturday, we explored the famous square of Jemaa El-Fna where there were women doing henna, guys carrying around snakes with their mouths superglued shut, men selling AMAZING fresh orange juice for 3 dirhams per class (about 25 cents), and plenty of beggars or people wanting to sell you one thing or another. El-Fna opens up into the souks... which are a tourist and merchants paradise...tourists get a taste of all the fun Moroccan medina stuff - the bedazzled shoes, tea sets, rugs, baskets, jewelry, touristy t-shirts, scarves, jalabas, etc. The merchants get to charge insanely high prices for the unknowing tourists who 1) may not know to bargain or 2) may not know what to bargain down too. Thus they weren't too happy when we students come in and scoff at their prices after being here a few months, say we live in Ifrane and study at Al Akhawayn, and bargain like Berbers. Ha ha...I went down a whole row of scarf shops before I got 5 scarves for 120 dirhams! It was a fun time...
Beyond shopping, the rest of the weekend included going to the biggest night club in Africa! Saturday night with the girls, going to the Menara gardens (where it is said that the Almohad sultans would come to the Menara pavilion for their illicit affairs and then would throw their concubines into the lakes the morning after), eating at Pizza Hut (yay for Supreme pizza with fake-but-yummy pepporoni), playing spoons in our sketchy hotel, and seeing the King!
As we were making our way to Pizza Hut from our hotel Sunday afternoon we notice that there were crowds of people out on the sidewalks behind gates and were like "Shnoo?" (What in Arabic)...we slowly figured out we might have a king sighting (since he was in Marrakech for the holiday), so we took up shop right across from the koutobia (famous mosque in Marrakech)...and waited...and waited. We watched the military police come out and choose random posts around the crowds and walk seemingly aimlessly around. The rolled out carpets in preparation...it started raining so they rerolled them. Janiters came out to brush the rain out of the gutters that the king would step over. And still we waited. Out came a bunch of men in red uniforms with cream colored jalaba capes and blue hats...men in suits kept walking around and greeting one another...security men talked on their walkie talkies...streets were blocked off. And still we waited. Finally more military police came whizzing down the street and soon we had our own police officer who came over and nonchalantly talked to us (he knew English surprisingly) about Marrakech and the coming arrival of the king. And still we waited. He assured us that the King would come soon.
And then...it happened! Down came a fancy smancy car with the king standing up through the sun roough in a white jalaba and red fez type hat (without the tassle) waving to the crowds. Surrounding his car and behind for about 200 feet were cars upon cars upon cars in his entourage! It was crazy! All arriving at the koutabia for afternoon prayer and some type of ceremony I believe.
It was really great. And totally made my day...okay I lied, it totally made my trip to Morocco...to see King Mohammad VI (or M6 as we affectionately call him) in person just across the street! Sadly, no one was allowed to take pictures as it is illegal. Silly security state. But it was very cool nonetheless. And we were excited that we randomly came out just in time as when he was in Ifrane a month or so ago he didn't make any public appearances so we didn't get to see him.
Ah, good times had by all in Marrakech.
And then we endured the 7+ hour train ride home, no less painful. Grabbed a taxi from Meknes and back again to Ifrane. To the ever-awaiting homework and Holy Week.
It's basically like the Florida or LA of Morocco. Warm, full of tourists -Moroccan and foreign alike-, plenty of shopping, hotels, clubs, etc.
So, in honor of Mohammad's 147th birthday (aka in honor of having a 3 day weekend to endure the 7+ hour train ride both ways) a bunch of us headed south...well first north to Casablanca on the train and then south (don't try to figure out the logic of Moroccan trains, it just won't be pretty) to Marrakech this past weekend!
We arrived after a stifling train ride (7 hours in a 2nd class train with little air flow at every stop...just not fun) and got checked into our hotel, the Ibis Moussafir which was basically the Ritz in our eyes. The rooms were clean, the tv worked and even had BBC World in English, the bathroom was downright SPARKLING with little shampoo/conditioner packets on the sink, and some of the rooms even had (wait for it, wait for it) an extra toilet paper roll! Now granted, it was about on par with your basic Holiday Inn room in the states, but it for us students...AMAZING! We stay at the cheap, basic hotels (a bit above the Motel 6 types in the states) around Morocco...and well, they work but you certainly leave feeling a bit dirty. Often because you don't dare go in the showers! Needless to say, waking up to a clean roomy shower was the most amazing way to start Saturday!
Saturday we then checked out of our Ritz...post-Spring break we're all eager to save our dirhams and so we found a different hotel that cost us less than our one night at the Ibis for our two remaining nights! Granted even the Ibis was the equivalent of about $30 per night...lol.
Saturday, we explored the famous square of Jemaa El-Fna where there were women doing henna, guys carrying around snakes with their mouths superglued shut, men selling AMAZING fresh orange juice for 3 dirhams per class (about 25 cents), and plenty of beggars or people wanting to sell you one thing or another. El-Fna opens up into the souks... which are a tourist and merchants paradise...tourists get a taste of all the fun Moroccan medina stuff - the bedazzled shoes, tea sets, rugs, baskets, jewelry, touristy t-shirts, scarves, jalabas, etc. The merchants get to charge insanely high prices for the unknowing tourists who 1) may not know to bargain or 2) may not know what to bargain down too. Thus they weren't too happy when we students come in and scoff at their prices after being here a few months, say we live in Ifrane and study at Al Akhawayn, and bargain like Berbers. Ha ha...I went down a whole row of scarf shops before I got 5 scarves for 120 dirhams! It was a fun time...
Beyond shopping, the rest of the weekend included going to the biggest night club in Africa! Saturday night with the girls, going to the Menara gardens (where it is said that the Almohad sultans would come to the Menara pavilion for their illicit affairs and then would throw their concubines into the lakes the morning after), eating at Pizza Hut (yay for Supreme pizza with fake-but-yummy pepporoni), playing spoons in our sketchy hotel, and seeing the King!
As we were making our way to Pizza Hut from our hotel Sunday afternoon we notice that there were crowds of people out on the sidewalks behind gates and were like "Shnoo?" (What in Arabic)...we slowly figured out we might have a king sighting (since he was in Marrakech for the holiday), so we took up shop right across from the koutobia (famous mosque in Marrakech)...and waited...and waited. We watched the military police come out and choose random posts around the crowds and walk seemingly aimlessly around. The rolled out carpets in preparation...it started raining so they rerolled them. Janiters came out to brush the rain out of the gutters that the king would step over. And still we waited. Out came a bunch of men in red uniforms with cream colored jalaba capes and blue hats...men in suits kept walking around and greeting one another...security men talked on their walkie talkies...streets were blocked off. And still we waited. Finally more military police came whizzing down the street and soon we had our own police officer who came over and nonchalantly talked to us (he knew English surprisingly) about Marrakech and the coming arrival of the king. And still we waited. He assured us that the King would come soon.
And then...it happened! Down came a fancy smancy car with the king standing up through the sun roough in a white jalaba and red fez type hat (without the tassle) waving to the crowds. Surrounding his car and behind for about 200 feet were cars upon cars upon cars in his entourage! It was crazy! All arriving at the koutabia for afternoon prayer and some type of ceremony I believe.
It was really great. And totally made my day...okay I lied, it totally made my trip to Morocco...to see King Mohammad VI (or M6 as we affectionately call him) in person just across the street! Sadly, no one was allowed to take pictures as it is illegal. Silly security state. But it was very cool nonetheless. And we were excited that we randomly came out just in time as when he was in Ifrane a month or so ago he didn't make any public appearances so we didn't get to see him.
Ah, good times had by all in Marrakech.
And then we endured the 7+ hour train ride home, no less painful. Grabbed a taxi from Meknes and back again to Ifrane. To the ever-awaiting homework and Holy Week.
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