Morocco Part 1: Casablanca

Hello Again!
One month later, I am finally getting to my Morocco blogs. It's fun to look back on everything I did in this North African country. 

Casablanca: June 4-6, 2010
After a week in Madrid, it was time to change locations for the second half of our USD MBA trip. Mabela and I wanted to get a jump start on Morocco, so we planned a quick weekend visit to Casablanca. This was my first time in Morocco, as well as my first time in Africa. (The rest of our classmates took an organized group trip to southern Spain, where we had both already been, and the plan was for everyone to meet up in Marrakesh on Sunday.)

When the two of us touched down in Morocco for the first time, we both experienced some culture shock. I had been to one partly Muslim country last year, Malaysia, but I knew Morocco would be quite different. Morocco is 95% Muslim and 5% Jewish, so I figured we would see a lot of traditionally dressed Muslims, and we did!

Mabela and I dressed conservatively for our trip, but we still encountered many strange and curious looks. We made our way to the train station in the airport to get into the city, trying not to stare at all the covered faces. Casablanca is the main international airport as well as the main business and commerce city of Morocco. Right away, we had a difficult time communicating with everyone. Morocco has 2 official languages: Arabic and French. We speak neither! Sometimes Spanish would work, since Casablanca is in northern Morocco, which is close to Spain. The two countries are only separated by about 15k of water. We bought two train tickets to the Casa Port station, and the adventures began. We ran to the train station, hoping to make the 7pm departure, but the train was just leaving as we arrived. Trains depart to 2 major train stations every hour, Casa Voyeur and Casa Port, so we had to wait for the 8pm train…Then, it didn’t help that we got on the WRONG train at 8pm! *Flash back to Vietnam 2009 when Nicole & I slept through the wakeup call on our sleeper train & got stuck on the train heading back the wrong way! So not good with trains!*

Back to Casablanca...Everyone in the station was boarding and there was limited signage so we followed along. After we were well on our way, the train personnel came by to check our tickets. After looking at mine, he began speaking dynamically to me in French.  I don’t understand French, but I was getting the feeling that he was trying to communicate “wrong train.” Luckily, a young man behind us got up to help, and luckily, he also spoke French, Arabic, AND Spanish. He translated for us, and we figured out that we should get off at the main stop – Casa Voyeur, and take a taxi into town. The other option was to switch trains somewhere else, but after passing several remote, sketchy looking small stations along the way, we decided to go with option one. It was nearly dark at that point, and the language barrier would have made things too difficult if we got lost.

We negotiated a price of 20 dirham with our taxi driver to get to our hotel. (The exchange rate is $1 = 9 dirham.) Immediately, I felt far, far away from home. As we began our drive to the other side of town, I looked at the people covered from head to toe, the deteriorating buildings that looked straight out of a movie filmed in the Middle East, and the cafes filled with men only. Culture shock!

We arrived to our hotel safely, and found that it was in an old part of town. We didn’t know any better and had just booked a cheap hotel near the “city center.” (This was the OLD city center.) The staff was very friendly, and the service was excellent. My only complaint was the lack of English spoken by the staff. I thought for sure it would be different at a hotel! I guess we chose the wrong place, but Mabela and I got by. We had modest accommodations, but we shared the same restaurant and lounge with a nicer hotel next door. Our first night, we dined on pizza and salad nicoise. Actually, pizza wasn’t even listed on the French-only menu, but I think it’s a universal word. Vegetarian is also similar in French as it is in English, so I was content when our vegetarian pizza and tuna salad arrived without a problem. I slept well that night, and didn’t hear too much from the nightclub downstairs. Earplugs are key when traveling!

We awoke to a call from a university professor that resides in Casablanca that was scheduled to speak to our USD group in Marrakesh on Sunday. We originally got in touch with him in San Diego to share a train or car ride with him from Casablanca to Marrakesh, and he was calling to check up on us and make sure we arrived safely. He said he would show us around Casablanca later that day, so Mabela and I made our own itinerary for the first half of the day. After a light breakfast, we got a map from our non-English speaking receptionist, who circled some of Casablanca’s highlights on the map. It took us a while to get our point across, and in the process, I made up a new word: “tourisimo!” Mabela laughed at me, and I laughed when that was the word that made him get out the map. Really? Tourisimo?

The hotel concierge assured us it was ok to walk to our first stop, the medina, which is the oldest part of the city that is completely surrounded by a high wall. The night before at dinner, we spoke to some Australians who had already spent a day in Casablanca, and they said to take a taxi everywhere. Many of you know I am “cheap” while traveling, so we decided to walk. My observations: there were men sitting and smoking in cafes everywhere, there were a few covered women hurrying around the streets, it was not a nice area of town, and driving in Casablanca looked crazy. After countless stares, we found the medina and entered the old city walls. Immediately we were approached by a man dressed in white from head to toe, who spoke amazing English! He said he wanted to show us his shop, but actually, we ended up getting a full tour of the medina. We knew we’d have to tip him in the end, but we didn’t mind. We felt more comfortable having a tour guide at this point.

There were many more locals than tourists inside the old city walls. We mostly saw jewelry, clothing, and art shops, as well as a local food market. The food street felt particularly narrow and crowded, and it reminded me a little bit of what I saw at a local Cambodian market, only much smaller. I enjoyed looking at the spices and olives, but didn’t enjoy witnessing a live chicken chopping directly to my right. I’m glad we had a light breakfast!

Mabela and I ended up purchasing 2 things each inside the medina walls: a painting, and a necklace. Today, I am happy with those purchases. Negotiating for the paintings took some time, however, and I was definitely sweating by the end of them. Mabela and I naturally played “good cop, bad cop” during the negotiation process, which is exactly what the store owner and our tour guide were doing to us, I am sure. Our guide spoke to the owner in Arabic, telling him our prices and vice versa. The shop owner started out at 1600 dirham ($170) for two paintings. I was shocked at this ridiculous pricing and came back at 500 dirham ($55) for the two. The back and forth went on for a while, and I kept trying to “leave” until we ended up getting both for 600 dirham, or approximately $33 each. I’ve found pricing to be completely different than what I expected it to be in Morocco. Many things are priced actually very similarly to the US, and nothing was as cheap as Southeast Asia.

At the end of our tour, even after negotiations, I still think we overpaid the guide for two necklaces and for his time. I was a bit fatigued from our last negotiation, so I was just ready to move on.  Our next stop was the 3rd largest mosque in the world - Hassan II Mosque! (Mecca is the largest.)

We negotiated our taxi price for the short ride to the mosque (from 30 dirham down to 10), and were immediately amazed by its presence. The mosque is huge and is partially situated over the ocean. The building itself is huge, and has the highest minaret in the world at 200m or 689 feet!

We took a guided tour (in English!) and were amazed to hear some of the facts. The mosque only took 6 years to build (1987-1993), cost over $800 million to construct, and modern technology is incorporated throughout the structure. The massive doors weigh tons, and are raised like garage doors to open electronically. The roof can also slide open electronically to the heavens. They only do utilize these features during very special Islam times of worship, so we didn’t get to see these aspects in action.  It's also important they keep the mosque closed since it's on the beach. We saw the elevator that takes the women up to their worship area! So different than any mosque I have ever visited. It is huge inside, and all the beautiful intricate carvings were done by hand. There are several huge chandeliers that can also be raised and lowered electronically. There is an area in the middle that fills up with water. There is a lower level with all the baths and hammams. Overall, this was one of the most impressive religious structures I have ever seen.

After our tour on our way out, we had some awkward encounters with foreign men who wanted to come and talk with Mabela and me. Perhaps I should say they attempted to talk to us because their English was so bad, and/or they didn’t speak Spanish either. One thing we both understood before we left was the invitation to go have couscous with them at their mother's house. ("She makes the best couscous in all of Morocco!) Yeah right!  Get lost. That was my first experience with a bad Moroccan pickup line, and in Marrakesh, they only got worse.

What do you think when you hear the word Casablanca? Most people think of the movie, so we couldn’t leave Casablanca without dining at Rick’s Café. A woman noticed an opportunity, and opened the nice restaurant and bar in 2004. It was designed to look and feel like the restaurant in the movie, Casablanca. We were greeted by a door man in a tux, and all of the wait staff was dressed to the nines. It was a white tablecloth restaurant as well, so we dined well that day. The prices were comparable to the US, and the food was excellent.

We couldn’t decide what to do for the rest of the day until the professor called, so we went back to the hotel for a soda and to rest. The professor called and said he would pick us up to drive us around the city and take us to dinner. It felt nice to have someone the university trusted to show us around by car…We actually go to see the nice part of Casablanca that we didn’t realize existed! After a relatively short drive along the coast and past the mosque, we began to see nicer buildings and some western influence. McDonald’s was the first sign. Next we drove past a cinema with the 2nd largest movie screen in Africa. The professor jokingly said that Morocco always tries to get ranked somehow. As we drove further away from our hotel, it kept getting nicer and nicer until we were finally in the new “city center.” Note to anyone who travels to Casablanca – stay in the NEW city center! It’s much nicer. There were nice shops (Zara, H&M), luxury hotels, and fine dining restaurants. Basically it was a world of difference from the old Casablanca, and I am very glad we were able to see that area.

Another interesting note from our professor was that we were definitely staying in a hotel in the “bad” part of town. He said he wife was even afraid to drive by herself in that area. It’s funny to look back on it and laugh now, but I will definitely be informing STA travel of this since they recommended the hotel. The 3 of us went to a nice Moroccan restaurant on the coast for dinner, and let the professor order things for us to try. I actually liked most of it, especially the first course. Everything I had was seafood, but this was the last time I enjoyed seafood on the trip. I generally prefer to stick to a traditional vegetarian diet rather than a pescetarian diet when I travel. Countries have different ways of preparing meat and seafood, and it usually doesn’t sit well with me. At this dinner, however, it was good. We had good food and good conversation. Mabela and I learned a lot about Morocco, US and Morocco relations, and the Muslim culture.

The next morning, the professor picked us up and we drove in his car to Marrakesh to meet up with the rest of the students. The drive took a little under 3 hours. 

Next blog - Marrakesh!

Asia Regresa a Madrid!

To all my friends & family,

My MBA summer study abroad blogs are finally ready to be posted!  There will be 1 for Spain, and 1 for Morocco.  Thanks for your patience, and enjoy!

Madrid: May 31 – June 4, 2010

The only 2 foods I love in Madrid are gazpacho & Manchego cheese!

The day before Memorial Day, I kissed Jeremy goodbye (to leave home and travel yet again) and boarded my flight to Madrid.  As most of you know, this was my second time in Madrid, since I spent an amazing semester studying there in 2004. (Thanks, Dad!)  My classmate Jessica and I arrived bright and early at 730am Monday morning, and rushed through customs to grab taxis to make it to class on time at 1030am. It felt really good to be back in Madrid! My Spanish came back more quickly than expected, and I was able to communicate with our taxi driver just fine. My other good friend and classmate, Mabela, was generous enough to ask her parents to host us in Madrid. Her parents are from Mexico City, but they also own a home in Madrid since Senor Diaz works there part of the year. By coincidence, we were all in Madrid at the same time, so Jessica, Mabela, and I stayed with her parents! They were incredibly nice and generous hosts, and I really enjoyed my time with them.  It was far better than my USD undergrad host mom experience. :)

Jessica & me at Mabela's parents' place

Jessica and I had fun practicing our Spanish with them too. My favorite miscommunication was over a nice dinner when Jessica said “Siento embarazada” which literally translates to “I feel pregnant.” What she meant to say was“I feel embarrassed.” Haha. Sometimes literally translating from one language to another just doesn't work out.

Dinner with Mabela's parents

Most of our time in Madrid was packed with class from 10-1, lunch from 1-230 (which is way too early by Spaniard standards), class from 230-530, and then either a school activity or free time. Therefore, there wasn’t much time to explore the city by day, and we quickly turned into night owls. Madrilenos (people from Madrid) are still very much the same as I remember them from my time there in 2004. They enjoy taking extra long meals that consist of jamon (Spanish ham), manchego cheese (what I live off in Spain), olives, and olive oil, as well as smoking cigarettes, and partying until 6am. Needless to say, none of us got much rest in Madrid!

Classmates Matt, Mabela, me, and Cary

We had many memorable nights out in Madrid, so I’ll paraphrase. USD hosted a dinner for us at a Spanish restaurant, and I cannot even recall how many courses were served. It was the longest dinner ever! I told them I was a vegetarian from the beginning, so I had many variations of vegetables soaked in olive oil while everyone else enjoyed red meat. Honestly, the best part was the unlimited red table wine. A few courses in, we were all feeling the love.

After dinner, we went dancing at a local disco nearby. Most people left at 3am, but Mabela, Jessica, and I stayed out until 4am. Somehow I'm able to stay out late when partying internationally. When in Rome…or cuando en Espana as we liked to say.

Matt and Mabela, and Noah and Jessica having fun on the dance floor

One day we had a company visit to Santander Bank. I felt like I was in the future because we were greeted by Ferrari robots and high-tech décor. They also spent their money on a huge private art collection, a golf course, shopping center, and more. Kind of like the Google campus, but with the feel of a bank. Does that even make sense?

The Spain/Morocco crew

After the tour, we went to the Prado museum. Even though I had been there before, you cannot visit Madrid without visiting the Prado.

Asia & Jessica outside the Prado

Another memorable night in Madrid was the infamous “all-nighter,” aka the longest day EVER. After 3 hours of class in the morning, we took an organized bicycle tour around Madrid. We got a lot of funny looks since most people in Madrid either walk everywhere or take the Metro. It’s not like San Diego where bicycles are common. Regardless, it was nice to be reminded of all the main attractions in Madrid, like El Palacio Real, Plaza Mayor, El Parque Retiro, and more.

After the tour, some of us attempted to start our papers that were due at 10am the next morning. Even though we didn’t finish them, we still had to go out, of course! We started with a traditional tapas dinner with Spanish beer and wine, before heading to the Penthouse, a rooftop lounge, and then El Kapital, a 6 story Spanish night club.  Needless to say it was a late night, and we were able to hang with the locals.

In closing, I still have my love/hate relationship with Madrid. I LOVE the people, the language, the culture, and the city. I hate the excessive smoking, and the bad food (in my opinion). I feel very fortunate to have visited Madrid for a second time in my life, and hope to return again one day soon.

The 3 roomates sipping Spanish vino on Mabela's deck after a long day of classes

The Taj Mahal is Incredible!

THE TAJ MAHAL
Words cannot summarize what I saw and experienced at the Taj Mahal.  I was struck by its presence and beauty.  Described as the most extravagant monument ever built for love, many have tried to sum up its beauty - 'a teardrop on the face of eternity,' according to an Indian poet. I agree, and I hope these photos can do it a little justice. 

Part of the experience was the difficult trip to New Delhi, and then to Agra, which I definitely want to fill you in on.  It was more than worth it, though, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. That being said...Who wants to come back to India with me someday?? It's a magical country, and I would highly recommend this experience to anyone with a passion for travel and an open mind.

Our tour guide had my camera for a lot of these photos, and he did an amazing job! I also got professional pics which are larger prints already in a photo book. I never want to forget this trip!

Wednesday night, five of us departed Bangalore on Indigo, a budget Indian airline, while other four left on a nicer Indian airline.  Abishek from Ripples had warned my consulting group of excessive fog in New Delhi for the past few weeks, and he told us to be careful.  Not only were planes not landing, there were four train accidents in the past 15 days, and several car pile ups.  I was worried we'd encounter some fog, but I never though we wouldn't land...Luckily, we had a gutsy American pilot (random) who said while en route "I WILL land this plane."  It was probably the longest landing ever. Fog everywhere, no visability, and then finally, we hit the runway with a thud. Success! I still couldn't see out my airplane window, but I was excited we were in Delhi.  I'm pretty sure most American airlines wouldn't have let us land in thoses conditions. We must have landed in a field far away because we probably rode the bus to the terminal for about 15 minutes, or maybe that just had to do with the excessive fog.  For the first time, it was cold in India, about 48 degrees. 

We claimed our baggage and went outside to meet our ride. There were a few men holding signs with our names on them.  They said our friends never landed and were rerouted back to Bangalore! So crappy! Apparently most flights were turning around. We were one of the lucky (or crazy) ones that actually landed.

The next part of our adventure was the ride to our hotel...bad fog and little visability. I was remembering what Abishek had said. He specifically told us not to get in a car in the dark when it is foggy. Well, we weren't about to spend the night in the Delhi airport, so we put our trust in our driver, and made it back to the hotel in one piece. I didn't see New Delhi that night. Even though we didn't get in until 2am, the staff greeted us with friendly faces, flower necklaces and fresh juice.

630am we were up and had breakfast on the rooftop of our really cute hotel. The service was incredible, and the breakfast was tasty, and free. By 730am, the five of us loaded our mini bus to the Taj Mahal! We felt so bad for the others that didn't make it in because we were told we couldn't wait for them if we wanted to see the Taj Mahal. This was a Thursday, and the Taj is closed on Fridays. I knew they had to be devasta.

Even though it was only 200kilometers away, the ride to Agra was supposed to take anywhere from 4-5 hours. The crazy driving and traffic scared me, as usual, but I was in good company and was really excited to see the Taj Mahal!  I finally got to see New Delhi as well because there wasn't as much fog. It is really, really underdeveloped. Definitely the poorest place I've ever been. I didn't realize Bangalore was so "nice" for India. Now I know.  A young girl that works at the hotel (about 16) came with us as our interpreter/connection to the hotel. She was so sweet and shy. It was her first time to the Taj as well. We made a rest stop at McDonald's and let me just say that I was completely impressed that half the menu was vegetarian! I couldn't resist, so I ordered a "McVeg." It was pretty good actually. I love India. They really understand me. :)

Several hours later, we arrived in Agra! The town survives off tourism. In an attempt to preserve the Taj Mahal and reduce pollution, since 1994, they no longer are allowed to have factories or polluting cars near the Taj Mahal. We picked up our tour guide and then took transportation to the entrance.

The first thing you see is a large reddish/brown building and courtyard covering the main event. We took some photos in front of it and hired our professional photographer.

Then, we made our way through the fort, and caught our first glimps of the Taj Mahal! I was starstruck. It was so magical.

Needless to say, everyone was impressed, and we took tons of photos. There were beautiful pictures of the extravagant monument.

There were group photos...

There were individual photos too. Lots of those. I liked posing like a princess!

And there were roommate photos...

This is taken from the Taj Mahal, looking back over the gardens, to the entrance.

Directly inside the Taj Mahal, there are replicas of the tombs.  Visitors are no longer allowed to see the real tombs downstairs, (due to vandalism). The walls are beautifully covered in semi precious stones, and they light up in a beautiful way when they are hit with light. Along with other couples, we found out that Will Smith proposed to his wife there! I just kept thinking, would it be possible for me to rent this out for my wedding? Haha. I wish!

We didn't leave until 6pm because we got caught up shopping in a marble store. I made one large purchase on this trip and bought something that will last a lifetime and always remind me of India! Our ride back took 6 hours, and it was definitely the most intense road trip I've ever taken. The fog visability was dangerously bad, but our driver was confident in his driving abilities. I had to make a rest stop halfway through, and they basically took me to an Indian trucker stop. I was escorted to the woods, basically, to the scariest bathroom of all time. The "room" was a dirt floor covered by a sheet instead of a door. Awesome! The rest of the trip back, we played "would you rather" to entertain ourselves. The game went something like this: Would you rather __________ or live in that bathroom for a day?  It was that bad. Needless to say, we made it back safely and will never forget our trip to the Taj Mahal!!  I definitely want to visit it again one day.  I'm sad to leave India tomorrow, but excited to get back home as well. I could definitely travel for a living.  See you soon!

India! (Finally!)

Hi Friends! 

Our welcome to India ceremony...

I cannot believe that 11 days have already passed since my last blog, and for that I am sorry!  We missed out on a few days in Hong Kong, so I'll try to fill you in on that later.  For the past 8 days, I have been busy exploring Bangalore while simultaneously working on a consulting project for a local company here.  It's difficult finding a travel/work balance because the last time I travelled, I had no obligations.  This time, I needed to prepare an amazing presentation and report for Ripples Learning Services, in order to help them gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace. I am already seeing the benefits of hands-on consulting experience because I am learning a lot. We just finished our presentation this morning, and the company was really pleased! They want to stay in touch and work with us while we're at home, too.

I want to share SO many things about India with you, but for the sake of my time and yours, I am going to make this entry simple.  I will post photos, captions, and some thoughts and observations about Bangalore, India.  You can also check out photos of me on Facebook.  My travel companions have tagged me in many photos. 

I am getting ready to pack and check out for our trip to New Delhi tonight! Tomorrow I will be at the Taj Mahal! There will be lots of pics from there too, but you might not see them until I get home on Sunday.  Enjoy the photos, and I'll see most of you soon!

Bangalore, India: Asia's Initial Observations
- Shake your head "yes." Shake your head "no." Now, imagine shaking your head yes and no at the same time, in a kind of side to side motion. This is how Indians say "yes." Confusing? YES!

- Driving here is crazy, the craziest I've ever seen! The lanes are completely ignored, and cars, motorcycles, and "rickshaws" weave in and out of traffic, tailgating, and repeatedly honking their horns as if to say "I'm here!" Our taxi driver honked over 130 times on our ride to our hotel! (Yes, Dad, I counted!) It's nearly impossible to cross the street without cursing and praying for your life at the same time. Drivers do NOT yield to pedestrians here, and I've almost run into cars or been run into several times. Somehow, it always works out. The sidewalks aren't much better. There are random potholes, so you must watch your footing and avoid walking around at night. It's an obstacle course!

Bull Temple, where we again got the red dot on our heads. The bull is carved out of 1 stone!

- There is trash everywhere here, adding to the underdeveloped appearance of Bangalore aka Bengaluru as known to the locals. Technically, it was renamed Bengaluru in 2006, but I've only heard some people call it by its proper name.

Fresh fruit and flowers are sold at a local street market.

- Cows, lots of cows, roam the streets of Bangalore. Someone told me that they all have owners. They just roam free during the day and return home at night.

- The smells in Bangalore aren't as intense as I imagined. I actually like the smell of Indian food, and I LOVE the taste of it even more! It's much easier for me to eat in India than it was for me in Hong Kong. I want to learn how to cook Indian food when I get home too.
Sugar can juice is a popular drink here. It's a bit too sweet for me.

- The nightlife here is fun and interesting. Everything closes at 11pm, and dancing is only legal in clubs, however. Can you imagine if someone told you it was illegal to dance in your favorite bar? Needless to say, I did a lot of dancing in my seat, hoping it was legal. We made it to a nightclub once, and danced under a huge tree, under the stars. So cool! Our hosts/new local friends took us there.

- Our first bar experience was at the 13th Floor, on MG Road, the happening street in Bangalore. We also made new friends there, and they took a few of us out to a Tandoori, all you can eat style dinner.  The spiciness hasn't stopped me at all here...Thanks for the killer tastebuds, Dad!

- The daredevil in me decided to ride on the back of a motorcycle. Scary, but fun and worth the experience! Photos on Facebook.

- I ate 2 meals with my bare hands, Southern Indian style. The first time, it was for lunch, and we literally ate off a banana leaf! So cool! It's tricky eating rice with your bare hand, especially when I had to do it right-handed only. (As in other parts of Asia, the left hand is considered dirty here. Not fair!)

- The second time, it was at our final USD group dinner.  All you can eat Southern Indian food + bib + no utensiles = a happy Indian mess.

- More on food...Indian coffee is very good, but sweet, and served in a tiny glass. People stand outside tiny cafes and enjoy conversation and a cup of brew. Indian breakfast is also quite tasty! Our hotel (guest house) serves us free breakfast daily, and there is always a new Indian dish to try. On our tour of South Bangalore, we got to sample breakfast from a very local cafe that is infamous for its homemade breakfast. There is a sauce man under the tree that will pour you more of the spicy green sauce if you walk up to him with your plate. (No pictures of the sauce man allowed, unfortunately.)

- Centrum Electronics Company visit. Gracious, last minute hosts. People here are very accomodating. I don't think they ever say no? I've only heard that word once here, even when people actually mean no. The povery level is apparent and sad. At the same time, everyone seems so happy here. This is a view outside a high tech company's office window. The pollution here makes it very difficult to breathe (and not develop a bad cough!)

- The school children here are adorable. My friends have pics of me with them on the steps. I need to get those.

Last group photo from Bangalore! Outside the government building, where "Government's Work Is God's Work"

xoxo
Asia