'We must not be afraid to meet the other' - Morocco

I have so much I want to say about this experience, this experience I had that was unlike any other, that I honestly don't even know where to start.

I suppose the best place to start would be a bit of history and information about Morocco.

Morocco is a coutry on the northwest corner (edge?) of Africa. Historically, this is an extremely important bit of land, as it is on the African side of the Straight of Gibraltar (the shortest distance from Europe to Africa, with Spain on the European side). Many countries have fought over this land, and Morocco only recently got its total independence in 1956 and is now a monarchy of sorts. There is a pseudo-deomcratic government under the monarchy, but the heads of this government are appointed by the king, and therefore the king has ultimate power. The king is seen as a religious figure and it is a crime against the state to say anything bad about him. Morocco is an Islamic country, considered to be a part of the Middle East. It is also a developing country (2nd world, I suppose). The official languages are Arabic and French, although their Arabic dialect is slightly different than classical Arabic, and apparently difficult to understand if you only know classical Arabic, but most Moroccans know both, at least to some extent. Many Moroccans also know either Spanish (especially in the North) or English. Public schools are free, but if you live in a rural area it's difficult to get to school, so most people are either educated up through elementary school or have gone on to college. Since Morocco is a part of the Middle East, it is extremely difficult and expensive for them to travel to the Western world (to travel outside the Arabic world, they need visas, and with an Arabic background, those are hard to come by and extremely expensive), even for educational purposes.

The flag of Morocco is red with a green 5-pointed star in the middle, meant to represent the 5 pillars of Islam. Green is also the color of Islam. Once upon a time, there was a Star of David on the Moroccan flag due to the large Jewish minority, but after the creation of Israel, the population of Jews has greatly decreased and the flag has been remodeled to suit the vast majority.

Way back in the day, Morocco was the first country to recognize the USA as an independant nation. It's not extremely relevant today, but it's something that's interesting to know, I think. In order to be a nation, you simply need international recognition. Morocco helped us out back then.

Now, a bit about Islam and how it's treated in Morocco.

The five pillars of Islam are:
1) There is only one God (Allah), and Mohammad is his prophet
2) Pray 5 times a day
3) Fasting during Ramadan (Fasting lasts from sunup to sundown and usually there is a large feast after sundown. Fasting also is to include all forms of drinking, including water.)
4) Giving alms to the needy
5) Pilgramage to Mecca (if you can afford it and are able bodied)

These pillars are not musts, but they are what a ''good Muslim'' will strive to do in his or her lifetime. I also must note that these are the Sunni pillars, not the Shi'a pillars, which are slightly different.

I put these here for a few reasons. Most importantly, I think it's something people, especially people in the US, should at least be familiar with, especially considering US relations with the Arabic world. Secondly, to simply state what they are, and mention that they aren't a requirement. No one is mad if you don't pray 5 times a day, and most Moroccans don't except those that are retired and have the time to dedicate themselves to it. The call to prayer isn't a Stop, Drop, and Pray drill, it's merely a suggestion. Thirdly, to show these people's dedication to their religion, which I suppose when you don't have very much to begin with, is a good thing for them.

Also, I wanted to pay particular attention to Pillar 4) Giving alms. Even though Morocco is a devloping country with most of it's people living in poverty, the rate of starvation is extremely low. That's because anyone who really needs food or anything like that can simply go and ask a store owner or someone walking by. While giving money is rare, people will almost always share food. Additionally, if you are pregnant and you smell something appetizing, you are obligated to go and ask for some, and they will gladly give some to you, even if it's in someone's house. Therefore, women are generally healthy enough to have the child and the child is usually healthy.

So, now that I've given a basic rundown, I could go over all the amazing things we saw and did, like ride camels, eat DELICIOUS cous cous and chicken and raisins and caramelized onions and carrots and pommegranates and... and... and... so much good food...,
the trip to the Hammam (an Arabic public bath. Cleanliness is also an extremely important part of Islam and Islamic communities. Actually, sometime upon first arriving in Spain, I learned that it wasn't uncommon for police to check hands and feet of people in the Islamic quarters during the Spanish Inquisition to see if they actually converted. Dirty hands and feet and you were OK. Clean hands and feet... you're probably a Muslim.), the cultural exchange that happened in the rural village where we sang Lady Gaga's Bad Romance and they sang us a traditional song about travelling, my first henna tatoo (almost gone now... my hand just looks dirty mostly...),
all of that... But instead I'm going to make this a little deeper.

The Morocco Exchange program is about diplomacy. They believe that improving inter-personal relations will help improve inter-national relations. They are strong supporters of the Peace Corps and the Fullbright Scholars program for this reason. Right now, the world, especially the Western and Arabic worlds, live in fear of each other. What people fail to realize is that we're all just... people.

In Morocco, I witnessed people with next to nothing giving things to people that have even less. Yes, I heard the call to prayer five times a day. I saw some women cover their hair and wear loose clothing because they felt they should be modest. But I also saw women in stilletto heeled boots and structured jackets. I also saw couples holding hands, flirting, sitting on the wall overlooking the ocean. I saw a father chasing after his kids and a string of children playing tag in the narrow streets of Chefchaouen.

And know what else? Most of them are more angry about terrorism than we are.

Think about it. How do you feel about how the KKK has butchered the Christian bible? An extremist minority has become the face of what people think about Muslims, and most Muslims are furious.

After the 2004 Casablanca bombings, a movement started, called ''Don't touch my country''. Their symbol was a traditional hand with an outurned pinky and thumb (you've probably seen it. It's also a Jewish symbol meaning about the same thing)that symbolizes protection, with the Arabic script of ''Don't touch my country,'' and people marched out against them. That is not what they want to be associated with and they, to this day, protest against terrorism.

These are the things we don't see in the news... but we should.

Inter-personal relationships could possibly improve inter-national relationships because it might help eliminate the fear. They fear us. We fear them. It's all foreign, and somewhere in the translation, we forget that we're all just people.

We must not be afraid to meet the other.

Salem. Shallom. Hello.

We're not so different, in the end.