First Day of Class and Meeting the Family

Yesterday morning I left Hotel Olympic for my first two hour class of the day at 8:00. My class has four students including myself and we have a great teacher. Our instructor's name is Ahmed. He is a a large man with a large beard and always smiling face to match. I also met my classmate and roomate, Johnny, that I would be living with while in Fes. My second class of the day is at two, so I have a four hour break each day to study, have lunch, and see the city. My lunch break yesterday found a vendor who sold 8 dirham sandwiches, which is about one US dollar. And a liter bottle of water is only around 4 or 5 dirhams, so fifty to seventy-five cents. After eating lunch and exploring the area around the school I headed back to ALIF for my second class. I have two classes a day with the same students but a each with a different teacher. Our second teacher has yet to introduce himself. Yeterday we were caight up in the world of Arabic and ran out of time amazingly. He is a well spoken older Moroccan man, but his English has hints of his British education. He is very entertaining as well and a great educator, who we learned also teaches English.

Once class was over it was time for me and John to catch our cab (petit taxi) to meet Jemel at our new home for the six weeks. The short 5 minute ride takes us to the edge of the new city and the old. A short walk through some narrow streets takes us to a small courtyard surrounded by the walls of packed apartments where we meet Jemel. Recognizing us, he does a small dance and introduces himself with much enthusiasm. Jemel is a well dressed for his neighborhod and of average stature. He walks with a small limp and seems to be well respected as a leader among his community. John takes me up to the new apartment as Jemel leaves to teach a private music lesson. I learn that Jemel has a wife and two children who live with his mother while he finishes moving in to the new house. The door opens into a living room with a large skylight and impressive ceiling. From there you can access the kitchen, bathroom, and three bedrooms. I settle in and me and Johnny discover the roof of our building while waiting for Jemel to return for dinner. From the roof you can see the old city and mountains surrounding Fes, the view is quite impressive. At 9:30 we have dinner which consists of tanjin chicken, saladm bread, and cantalope. The food here is very good and so far unintimidating. Night has come and it is time to rest for our early morning wake up from our rooster alarm.