SIT Study Abroad: Morocco: Migration Practices and Impacts

I remember my friend's birthday party. In a country where women cover up while outside and often wear veils, Samantha's birthday party was an opportunity to see women be free. In the home, her twin host sisters orchestrated a night of belly dancing mixed with hip-hop that kept us all dancing for an amount of time I can't remember. With Moroccan cookies and peanut butter and jelly as our snacks, we had a good time together, learning moves from each other and acting crazy. It was something you could never discern from outside the home, and it was beautiful. I wanted a program that would show me "the real Morocco." With the school located right in the old city, the home-stay aspect, and excursions as part of our study, SIT seemed like the whole package.

The country is amazing. SIT is disorganized. The professors weren't prepare ahead of time for class. But it's worth doing.

The point of this program is not to be academically rigorous. Rather, it is to experience life within a different society, and culture. The ISP period allows you to go in-depths in an academic area, but it is more important (and the goal of the program) to understand and explore the contradictions between our ideas about the MENA region, and what Morocco actually IS. The program presents these issues through the scope of migration (within Morocco and outside Morocco). My living situation was great and in general Moroccan families are very warm, generous and inviting. However, they have a very different concept of "private" space, so if you are a person who desperately needs time alone, you would be best served going to a cafe or a park rather than home. Sexual harassment in the street is a very unfortunate reality. As a foreigner, it is difficult to immerse yourself totally (especially since the program is run independently of any Moroccan university) and without prior Arabic experience. However, if you try, you can learn Dariga, appreciate the culture, although I would refrain from calling it "immersion" as you will always be marked as an other (that is, unless you "look" Moroccan) which tends to make things like taking a cab more expensive. This program's administration is fantastic, and was always receptive to questions and concerns. Souad Eddouada is brilliant and Asmae Haddaoui is one of the nicest people I've ever met.