Trip to Morocco

(This is an edited version of an email I sent to my friend Kayleigh on May 14th)

Let me try to give you an insight of my trip to Morocco. I got there on Wednesday April 18th. I flew with my friend Victoria (who goes to Providence College) from Paris to Madrid and then from Madrid to Marrakech (one of the main cities in Morocco). Marrakech is absolutely crazy! Forget about Times Square and the high speed of NYC... Here you have donkeys used for transportation; motorbikes, bicycles, motorcycles, small trucks, and some cars that would run you over if you don't get out of the way on the very narrow streets; then you have some people with small monkeys, others playing music to dancing snakes, dozens of orange sellers, small souvenir shops all over the place, noise, noise, noise, and a bunch of confused tourists that try to keep up with the pace. All the locals are trying to sell you something, and they speak to you in like five different languages at the same time. It's also hot and dry. As you can imagine, our first few hours in Marrakech felt very intense. But despite the overwhelming atmosphere, Victoria and I managed to get to our "riad", a traditional Moroccan house with an open space in the middle used as a kind of resort. About 4 hours later, Katie (who goes to Amherst) and Sam (a girl who goes to Bates) joined us at the place.

With Sam, Katie and Victoria on the roof of Gilles' riad

The next day we went to Essaouira, a beautiful city on the west coast of Morocco. Around 5:30pm, we met up with Gilles, the tour guide we had met about a month before when we went to Provence (I talk about him on an earlier post). Gilles took us to his riad, and OH MY GOD... What an amazing place! He bought this HUGE riad that has like 12 rooms an 4 floors plus a two-level roof where you can chill and sunbath. It is very beautiful! We couldn't believe it when we got there. It was around 6:00pm when we got there, and after we settled down, we went to a sea front to watch the sunset. The ocean was so vast and magical. The waves were large and powerful. The wind blowed vigorously. And suddenly, in slow motion, the big, orange sun disappeared behind the horizon. It felt like a movie. 

Sunset from the seafront

We spent fours nights in Essaouira. In the mornings, we would normally go to the beach, which was a 10-minute walk from Gilles' place. I could write so much about each day, but I'll limit myself to one or two main things about each one to keep it relatively short. The highlight of the first day was definitely the sunset I already wrote about. The second day, I rode a camel for the first time (on the beach!) It was really cool. That night, we met two girls and a guy from the US who were studying abroad in Morocco for the semester. We ran into them at a cafe, and then met up for dinner in a very cheap Moroccan place. Then we went to a bar on the beach. Then we drank some wine under the stars. Then we went to a Moroccan club. It was a lot of fun! The third day, I saw the Barcelona vs. Real Madrid soccer game at a restaurant on the beach. I went with Sam and some Moroccan people we met earlier in the day when we were making a sand camel on the beach. Although Barcelona lost 2-1, I really enjoyed the atmosphere! The fourth day, we met up with the same Moroccan friends for drinks on the roof of a bar. Then we went partying on the same club we had been to two days before. We danced non-stop for like two hours. Great night! The last day, we went souvenir-shopping, and left Essaouira around 2:30pm. I will go back to that place one day. I hope!

Sand camel with Moroccan friends

So it's April 23rd and we're back in Marrakech. That night, we met up with 4 other girls who go to Tufts: Jen (who is also in Sweet Briar), Caroline, Christine, and Lane. We went for dinner together and stayed at a very beautiful riad that night. The next morning, our adventure to the southeast of Morocco began. We had found the trip "Hello Sahara!" online about 2 months before, so we didn't really know what to expect. But at 7am, Khalid (the tour guide and driver) and Mobarak (second driver) went to pick us up and we left Marrakech in two big SUVs.

Okay, it's really hard to continue telling the story now because we did so many things in 4 days! We visited some cities and several small towns, but I can't remember all the names. I think I'll just try to give you a general idea of the trip. We drove for hundreds of milles each day, which gave us the opportunity to closely experience Morocco and its people, food, nature, and many other aspects of the culture. The landscapes were absolutely breathtaking all around. Once again, I'll tell you a couple of things of each day. The first day we went to Ouarzazate, one of the main cities in the region. On the way there, we saw the High Atlas Mountains, which are the highest in Morocco (they even had some snow on the top!). We also went to the place were they filmed Gladiator. That was pretty cool! We spent the night at a riad in the Dades Gorges, a beautiful canyon that reminded me of the Grand Canyon. 

The group

The second day we drove for hours through amazing mountains and canyons. After a few stops, we made it all the way to the Sahara! First time in the desert! It was astonishing. We went up the dunes in camels and watched the sunset on the top. Then we rode the camels back to the tents were we spent the night (right on the desert!) Can you imagine riding a camel under a sky FULL of stars? We were singing and talking and laughing, but after two hours, we had had enough of the camels. We finally made it back to the tents, where the local people and some other tourists were having dinner. We joined them, and a few minutes later, everyone enjoyed a singing and dancing session of Moroccan traditional music. Before going to bed, I stayed out and watched the sky for like an hour. I saw two shooting stars. So nice.

Sahara

The third day, the group split up because Jen and Christine were taking an early flight the next day. They left with Khalid (and all the luggage) and did an early version of the trip. I and the other 5 girls stayed with Mobarak. We actually went to Mobarak's house! Since we were staying at a resort not too far away from his house, he invited us over and we accepted. We met his mom, his wife, and 3 of his brothers. Can you imagine? This is a very humble family from real-life Morocco. They gave us tea and bread. And it turns out that Mobarak's wife is an expert in henna tattoos, so all the girls got henna tattoos on either hands or feet, and I got a small one on my arm. It was very cool! That night we stayed at a nice resort with a pool. Once again, I went to see the stars before going to bed. And another shooting star made the night perfect...

Last day of the trip. We went to Fint Oasis which, after the desert, was my favorite place. It was a valley with a gorgeous river. The mix of colors was wonderful: green trees and plants, brown-red rocks and mountains, crystal clear water.. And it was so peaceful! Then we went to CLA Studios in Ouarzazate, where they have filmed many movies like Gladiator and The Mummy. And after a few more hours of driving, we made it back to Marrakech. This was the end of the trip. It went by very fast, but we really made the most of every second. That night we went to one of the best restaurants in Marrakech and had a delicious meal.

The next day, Katie, Victoria and I left Morocco. They went back to Paris and I went to Madrid. I spent two and a half days in Madrid with Bela (my grandma) and Marisa (my aunt). We had a great time, but I'll tell you about it some other time. This is already very long. Hope you enjoyed reading about it!

Football avec Paris Université Club

(Este texto lo escribí el 4 de abril de 2012)

Desde que llegué a Paris, he estado jugando fútbol con el Paris Université Club (PUC), un equipo amateur que juega en una liga local. El equipo no tiene nada que ver con la universidad en la que estoy estudiando. Es un club independiente que encontré a través de una amiga que estuvo en Paris el semestre pasado. El club tiene más de 20 deportes y las instalaciones son de primera.

Yo estoy jugando en la categoría “Sénior”, que se divide en dos equipos: primera y segunda división. Desde que llegué, el entrenador de la primera división me incluyó en su esquema de juego. Los primeros 3 partidos jugué de defensa central. Los resultados de esos juegos fueron: victoria 2-0, derrota 2-1 (metí el gol del equipo) y derrota 4-0 (un partido desastroso). La semana siguiente me perdí el partido porque tuve el viaje a Provence con mi programa, pero perdieron nuevamente 3-0. Después de ese partido, el entrenador se dio cuenta de que había que cambiar el sistema de juego.

Paris Université Club – Séniors 1

La semana siguiente, jugamos con un sistema 3-5-2 (antes estábamos jugando 4-4-2) y la cosas empezaron a funcionar. Yo era uno de los dos delanteros. Ese partido empezamos jugando muy bien. Al final del primer tiempo estábamos arriba 1-0, pero en verdad debíamos estar ganando 3-0. Yo tuve dos ocasiones claras de gol, pero un chute lo pegué en el palo y el otro lo mandé directo el portero. En fin, salimos al segundo tiempo confiados y, en menos de 3 minutos, nos clavaron el gol del empate. Eso nos descontroló por completo. Unos minutos después, ellos tuvieron un tiro libre al borde del área grande. La barrera se movió y el chute llegó al fondo de la net. El partido ahora estaba 2-1 a favor de ellos. Aunque quedaban 40 minutos de juego, nosotros no creamos muchas ocasiones de gol claras por el resto del partido. Y, así, perdimos contra un equipo notablemente inferior. Fue frustrante.

El siguiente partido fue este fin de semana que acaba de pasar. Después de tres derrotas seguidas, llegó el momento de despertar. Nuevamente, jugamos con un sistema 3-5-2: Guillaume (portero); Joel, Kader, Nicolas (defensas); Agip, Moustapha, Abdel, Agibou, Ousman (medios); Youssef, Federico (delanteros). Ese día se celebraba el 50 aniversario del club y teníamos como 50 fans y ex-jugadores viendo el partido. El clima estaba alrededor de los 15 grados centígrados. El ambiente no podía ser mejor.

Desde el pitazo inicial, nosotros tuvimos el control del balón. A 10 minutos del comienzo, Youssef me dio un pase al vacío, yo luche por el balón con uno de los defensas rivales y, entre el área grande y el área pequeña –ligeramente hacia la banda derecha– pegué un remate rastrero que entró por el lado izquierdo del portero. 1-0 a favor. Buen comienzo.

El dominio absoluto se mantuvo a medida que el partido avanzaba. Youssef metió el segundo gol en el minuto 20 y el tercer gol en el minuto 30. Y para cerrar el primer tiempo, Agip metió el cuarto gol en una jugada individual. Así, nos fuimos al descanso 4-0 arriba.

La foto de la victoria

En el vestuario se sentía la energía y la confianza. Esta vez, no íbamos a dejar escapar la victoria. El segundo tiempo fue importante para asegurar el resultado y para demostrar que sí podemos jugar 90 minutos de buen fútbol como equipo. Después de varios intentos, yo metí el quinto gol en el minuto 65, siguiendo un pasé al vacío de Joel. Y en el minuto 75, metí el sexto gol del equipo después de una jugada individual espectacular de Ousman al costado derecho. Mi primer “hat-trick”! Todo parecía indicar que íbamos a mantener el 6-0, pero a dos minutos del final, el arbitro pitó un penalti para ellos y el partido terminó 6-1.

De verdad nos hacía falta una victoria así. La celebramos en grande en el vestuario y luego nos tomamos unos tragos con los ex-jugadores y fans del club. Espero que mantengamos el buen ritmo por el resto del campeonato.

Weekend in Provence

Last weekend, 20 of the Sweet Briar students went to Provence on a trip organized by the program. We had a great group of students and an equally great dynamic duo leading us: Moïra (one of the Sweet Briar secretaries) and Gilles (the guide for the trip).

We met up at Gare de Lyon at 6:30 am. The TGV (high-speed train) left the station at 7:07 am, and almost 3 hours later we got to Avignon. A private bus was already waiting for us and we went straight to Uzes. This small town didn’t have much to do or see, but we walked around the town’s market and enjoyed the nice weather. Three hours were more than enough though…

Our next destination: Pont du Gard. I didn’t have many expectations about the bridge. When we got there, I was amazed by the magnitude of the monument and stunned by its architecture. Plus, the river and the mountains made a beautiful landscape. Pont du Gard is, without a doubt, one of my favorite places in France so far. Gilles told us about the history of the bridge (the construction may have taken place between 40 and 60 AD) and we all took many pictures. What a fascinating place!

Pont du Gard

Back on the bus, we headed towards our hotel in the city of Arles. Before we got there, however, we stopped in two bridges to take pictures. The second one was the Pont Van Gogh, where we had one of the funniest moments of the trip. Sam, one of the girls, attempted to climb up the wooden bridge. She went up really fast and seemed to be reaching her goal, but suddenly, she started falling down in slow motion… “Oh, my God! oh, my God…”, we could hear her whisper. In a matter of seconds she got back to the ground and her foot got stuck in a very narrow opening at the bottom of the bridge. The people closer to her burst into uncontrollable laughter. “I can’t get it out!”, she whined sarcastically. Finally, she got out, we got back on the bus, and, a few minutes later, we arrived in the hotel.

Pont Van Gogh

After one hour of resting, we walked as a group to a very nice restaurant, where three tables were already waiting for us. The food was delicious! So was the wine… Half way through the dinner, a Gitano guy with a guitar walked in the restaurant. He started playing some songs in Spanish, and that’s when the night really began. This Catalan guitarist had a lot of energy and charisma. Gilles, who was just beginning to show his youthful spirit, didn’t waste time and started singing (or improvising) with him. Then I and the other Latinos joined, and suddenly, the party was on! Almost everyone danced and we all had a great time!

The night continued at an Irish bar, where we celebrated St. Patrick’s Day! We had some beers, which mixed with the wine we had at the restaurant, stimulated great conversations. Luis, Marcela, Alexandra, and I had a big discussion about Latin American politics. Others met some French people. Then we ran into the guitarist and his family. All of this happened in the outside of the bar, as we wanted to take advantage of the nice weather. But later in the night, we went inside the bar, where a live band was playing mixed music. We resumed the dancing that had started at the restaurant. It was so much fun! At 2:00am, most of the group got back to the hotel.

Sunday morning, we met up for breakfast in the hotel at 8:00 am. We ate a lot! Then, led by Gilles, we went out to discover the history Arles… First, we went to the coliseum, which is one of the biggest coliseums of the Roman Empire (only second to the one in Rome). Luckily, it remains almost intact. Then, we went to the Roman Amphitheatre, which has unfortunately been destructed throughout the years. Only a few original structures remain in place. But they have a well-made virtual reconstruction of the place, so we could at least imagine how it looked like centuries ago. The history behind these monuments is truly fascinating!

Katie, Moïra, Fede, Sam, and Victoria at the coliseum

When we got back on the bus, we headed to our final destination of the trip: le Palais des Papes. What a huge monument! Gilles gave us a very interesting tour. Each chamber has a lot of history: the bedrooms, the living rooms, the dinning hall, the kitchen, the chapel, the cloister, the list goes on and on.

We really enjoyed the visit, but the way back to the bus was the most enjoyable part of the day. It was 3:15 pm and our train back to Paris was supposed to leave at 4:08 pm. We didn’t have much time. Some people went the wrong way as they left the palace and we had to wait for them. Then Gilles didn’t know the way back to the bus. We ran one way; then back the opposite way. We went through a few alleys. We laughed and ran, laughed and ran. 3:30 pm and we kept running with no path. Finally we saw a sign that indicated the way to the Pont d’Avignon (the famous bridge). “That’s it! That’s the way!” said Gilles. We kept running and laughing, and finally got back to the bus. Luckily, the train station was only about 10 minutes away. We got there comfortably, and three hours later, we got back to Paris.

Running back to the bus!

The two days in Provence went by really fast, but it seems as if we were there for a whole week! I learned many things during this trip, and I remembered one irrefutable truth: no matter where you go, traveling with friends is always fun!

Haciendo conexiones

Dos encuentros espontáneos = dos nuevas amistades.

Primero: Hace 3 semanas estuve en Italia porque tuve vacaciones de invierno. Me fui con Marcela, una amiga venezolana que también está aquí en Paris por el semestre. Visitamos Turin, Pisa, Florencia y Venecia. El viaje estuvo increíble! Al regresar a Francia, tuvimos que agarrar un autobús desde el aeropuerto de Beauvais hasta Paris (eso le pasa a los novatos que viajan con la aerolínea Ryanair). El hecho es que en ese autobús, Marce y yo conocimos a Nazim Nachi, un chamo de Argelia que vive en Paris desde hace varios años. Nazim estaba regresando a Francia después de dos semanas de vacaciones en Barcelona. Los tres hablamos todo el camino en el autobús. Venezuela, Argelia, política, Paris, viajes... fueron algunos de los temas de conversación que ayudaron a que el tiempo en el autobús se pasara rapidísimo. Al llegar a Paris, intercambiamos emails para seguir en contacto. Unos días después de conocernos, agregué a Nazim por Facebook y dos semanas después (o sea, la semana pasada) cuadramos para salir. El viernes pasado me encontré con Marcela, Nazim y una amiga de Nazim en un bar irlandés. Los cuatro pasamos como dos horas en el bar tomando cerveza y hablando de la vida. La pasamos muy bien! Quedamos en vernos otra vez más adelante en el semestre.

Segundo: Este fin de semana estuve en Provence (al sur de Francia) en un viaje organizado por mi programa aquí en Paris. En total éramos 20 estudiantes, un guía (Gilles) y una de las secretarias del programa (Moïra). Visitamos Uzès, Pont du Gard, Arles y Avignon y la pasamos excelente. Honestamente, algunas de las ciudades no eran tan interesantes, pero lo que le dio el toque especial al viaje fue el grupo de gente. Y es que viajar con amigos es sabroso donde sea..! A pesar de que el viaje duró solo dos días (una noche), tuve la oportunidad de conocer muy bien a Moïra y, más aún, a Gilles. Moïra ha estudiado literatura y teatro y se quiere dedicar a la actuación. Gilles ha hecho mil cosas... Estudio Matemática, Economía y Ciencias Políticas, y se ha dedicado a ser profesor en Francia para estudiantes que vienen de intercambio de universidades americanas. También organiza viajes y es guía turístico/histórico en Francia, Marruecos, España, Italia y algunos otros países. La verdad es que ha viajado por todo el mundo. En el tren de regreso a Paris, estuve hablando con Gilles y dos amigas (Victoria y Katie) todo el camino. Al llegar, Gilles y yo teníamos ganas de seguir hablando y quedamos en vernos esta semana. Así que esta tarde nos encontramos en su casa/oficina y salimos a almorzar en Saint Michel. Las conversaciones continuaron. La pasamos muy bien!

En fin, dos encuentros espontáneos me ayudaron a hacer conexiones con dos personas muy interesantes. Nazim y Gilles son unos tipazos que vale la pena conocer. Espero seguir encontrando gente valiosa por ahí.

A explorar me voy

Ya llevo más de un mes y medio en Paris. 

Durante las primeras semanas, tuve tiempo de reflexionar profundamente y escribir detalladamente sobre mis experiencias en la ciudad. Escribí "capítulos" con descripciones elaboradas, para en un futuro recordar las cosas tal como las viví y para que mis familiares y amigos se enteren de mis andanzas del otro lado del charco. Últimamente se ha hecho más difícil mantener ese ritmo. Escribir es un gran placer, pero es a la vez un sacrificio, ya que cuando escribo dejo de hacer otras cosas. Y entre la universidad, el fútbol, las tareas, los paseos, las caminatas, las salidas con amigos y hasta algunos viajes que he hecho recientemente, no he podido sentarme con calma a escribir un próximo capítulo.

Por eso he decidido empezar este blog. La verdad es que quise empezar un blog desde que llegué a Paris, pero lo estuve dejando "para después" por varios días y semanas y al final lo olvidé. Una vez que empecé a escribir sobre la experiencia en forma de capítulos me cegué a las demás opciones. Hoy, sin embargo, me di cuenta de que si no buscaba una alternativa, todas las cosas que se me vienen a la mente diariamente se desvanecerían con el tiempo. Así que retomé la idea del blog y, sin pensarlo dos veces, me puse a escribir lo primero que se me vino a la mente; es decir, esto que están leyendo ahora.

No sé con qué frecuencia escribiré en este blog, pero por lo menos ya hice lo más difícil: empezarlo. Es un nuevo experimento para mí. Se aceptan comentarios, preguntas, críticas, observaciones, saludos, etc, etc, etc. Y quién sabe... Quizás el blog se extienda por varias semanas, meses y hasta años.

A explorar me voy.