Arriving in New York City!

My summer is already off to a phenomenal start. After waking up at 4:30 to fly from Dulles International to JFK, and taking a long shuttle ride from JFK to Columbia University, I made it to NYC safe and sound.

Will, Nicole, and Jen (who work with I-EARN, our implementing organization) were right at the entrance of our dorm to greet us. I was the first one there, so I spent the first couple hours roaming around the upper west side. I got some really good pizza at Koronet Pizza and a smoothie at some sandwich shore, and read a few chapters of Reading Lolita in Tehran, the book I brought with me (shoutout to Lauren for lending it to me for the summer!)

Around 2, I headed back and found some of the other NSLIY students! First it was just Deja and Olivia. We explored the (drop dead gorgeous) Columbia and Barnard campuses while getting to know each other, sharing our awe and wonder to be in such a cool place. 

We met all the rest of the students throughout the day, and let me just say, THESE KIDS ARE SO COOL! They are from all over the country: Texas, South Dakota, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kentucky, New York, Alabama, Idaho, Wisconsin. Surprisingly, there are two other kids from my lovely home state of Maryland, and one of them (Andrew) will be attending the University of Maryland with me in the fall! 

After a very chill outdoor dinner of pizza and lemonade on a patch of grass on Columbia's campus, we went out for dessert in the city and I got really good tiramisu. 

For the rest of the night, we all just got to know each other. We talked about everything from college struggles to language learning to Joe Biden to finding dead bodies to selling camel milk (Don't ask). The other students are so friendly and funny. Everyone has been really easy to talk to and get to know so far. I can also tell they're all really intelligent hardworking just from what they've done in high school. 

As of right now, the summer already looks incredible. I can't wait to be surrounded by amazing students in an amazing country, learning so many new things every day! 

Some things I learned today: camels milk tastes horrible, and never judge a person by their Facebook profile. 

PS- after much deliberation, I decided to introduce myself as Chewey, seeing as there was another Olivia on the program. This will definitely make things less confusing, and I think it will help me feel more comfortable in such a new environment. 

Thoughts at 3 AM, Five Days Before Departure

I love DC. So much.

In between graduation and my departure date, I have been determined to squeeze as much time in with my high school friends as possible. I am essentially trying to fit an entire summer vacation into three weeks. We have done all of the touristy things in DC, from visiting museums to touring the monuments to going to a comedy show at the Millennium Stage to eating at Busboys & Poets.

The more time I spend in our nation's capital, the more I fall in love with it. It's strange, seeing as I have done all of these things before. But this past week, everything I have done in DC has felt much more meaningful, realizing that I have to leave all of my favorite things behind for a while.

Though I am beyond excited to get to know the capital of a new nation, and explore Morocco's own cultural landmarks, I am sad about leaving the wonderful place that I call home. I know, however, that DC will be waiting for me when I get back.

It's comforting knowing that I will be attending college at UMD, only a shuttle ride and a few metro stops away from DC and my lovely Bethesda home. I don't think I would have been able to adjust to both Morocco and an entirely new part of the US in the same year.

Respect to the other American kids traveling with me who are going to college far away right after returning from Rabat! I can't wait to meet them at our pre-departure orientation in New York City next week.

Here is one of my favorite songs by my favorite singers (Jason Mraz, of course) that sums up how I am feeling right about now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQwIxRcaYs

Travel is weird, y'all. I'm in for a wild ride.

Pre-Departure Language and Logistics

What have I been doing since I've been accepted? A few things...

-Going to my doctor to get all my required shots and prescriptions
-Signing forms and mailing them back to iEARN-USA, my implementing organization
-Emailing my program directors and reading the weekly newsletters they send out
-Learning Arabic!!!!

Yep, thankfully they don't send us out into Morocco completely clueless of the language. For the 5 weeks leading up to our departure, we have had weekly Arabic assignments. We have been studying the alphabet and numbers 1-10, as well as basic greetings and vocabulary. Thankfully, my Level 1 class at B-CC covered all of those things, so the assignments have mostly been review.

We also participate in at least two office-hour sessions before departure. Office hours are essentially a group video chat in which we go over the week's lesson and the pronunciation of all of the letters and words with our Resident Director, Nabeela. I have done one so far, and I will do my second one on Sunday, right before we leave.

The scariest part so far was the language placement test with i-EARN. I scheduled a phone interview appointment which would allow the program to place me in a language class that matched my abilitiy. My interviewer would ask me questions in Arabic and I had to answer entirely in Arabic. Even though she spoke beautiful, perfect Modern Standard Arabic, I could barely understand her. The worst part was that I didn't even know how to say "I don't understand!" So when she asked me something and I had no idea what she said, I just wouldn't respond. It was very awkward. About halfway through, I googled it, and now I know that "la afham" will be one of my most useful phrases during the first couple of weeks!

I survived the placement test, however, and I think I managed to squeeze in some decent sentences about my favorite foods and activities to do in the summer and winter time. Thank you Sayida Habash!

Now, all I have left to do is brush up on my vocabulary, finish a couple loads of laundry, make photocopies of my passport, and I should be set to leave on Wednesday! I didn't know it was possible to be so nervous and so excited at the same time...

Packing

One of the first things that crossed my mind after I found out I was a finalist was: what do I wear?!

I have never traveled outside of the United States, let alone to a North African, Muslim-majority country. I knew that I had to dress more conservatively, but wasn't sure how to balance modest dress with such warm weather.

Luckily for me, Unique Thrift, Forever21 and Target had my back. I found myself three lovely maxi skirts. Skirts are great because they cover my legs, but they are also loose and breathable and flowy and fun. The fabric isn't too heavy so I definitely won't get too hot. I also have a few loose, flowy, fun patterned pants that I am planning on wearing.

I bought a few nice 3/4 sleeve blouses to wear. I couldn't find any full long-sleeve shirts, since I was shopping in the summer time, but from googling pictures of tourists in Morocco, long sleeves don't seem to be a strict requirement. I'm bringing a couple of high necked T shirts from back home as well.

From what I can tell, the dress rules are relatively loose for tourists/Westerners. Western women are not expected to cover their heads, ankles, or their arms. They are, however, strongly encouraged to cover their shoulders, cleavage, and thighs. I want to be as respectful as I can, so I will probably dress on the more conservative side. I'll take cues from my host family.

To be honest, I have always liked longer, looser clothing. To me, it is far more comfortable and appealing than short, tight, revealing clothing. I have a feeling I will fit right in with the more modest dress style. I can't wait to buy a skirt or a djellaba, the Moroccan all-purpose dress, in one of the souks in Rabat!

Here is a list of some of the other things I am bringing:
-sneakers and flats
-Tissues and hand sanitizer
-A journal
-A copy of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (one of my favorite books, set in Morocco!!) and Yes Please by Amy Poehler (life advice from my favorite actress to be read when I am craving some good English)
-A deck of cards
-A 110-220 volt converter and a European plug adapter
-A money wallet to keep my debit card and passport in
-My Arabic notes from my Level 1 class at B-CC
-Still debating whether or not to bring my laptop....I probably will, I just have to make sure to be extremely careful with it. If I bring it, I probably will try not to carry it outside of my host family's home.
-toothpaste, deoderant, and my preferred face wash (they said to buy most toiletries in Morocco, but alumni recommended getting these items in the US because they might be different or hard to find elsewhere)
-Gifts for my host family! (I got a mug, magnet, photo album, and key chain from the American History Museum in DC, as well as a UMD T-shirt and some homemade soaps and lip balm from the Bethesda Farmers Market. I'm currently working on mix tapes of my favorite music for my host brother and sister)

What is this blog about, anyway?

Hello and welcome to my blog! Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for following me on my exciting adventure to Morocco this summer. Now, why on earth am I going to Morocco? Glad you asked!

About a year ago, I was talking to the lovely Noa Gur-Arie, a friend of mine from B-CC. She told me about her yearlong exchange with the Kennedy-Lugar YES program. She lived in Morocco for a year and had so many good things to say about the program. Sadly, it was too late for me to spend my senior year in Morocco, but I asked her if she knew of any summer programs. She mentioned NSLI-Y, a program that does summer as well as year-long exchange trips to Morocco.

After that conversation, I was so intrigued that I decided to do some research.

The National Security Language Initiative for Youth, aka NSLI-Y, is a scholarship given by the State Department for high school students to travel abroad to study critical languages. You can read more about it here: http://www.nsliforyouth.org/

In my program, I will be traveling to Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to learn Arabic. I will take classes at the Qualam wa Lawh Language Center (http://www.qalamcenter.com/), and I will live with a host family.

Personally, I have been fascinated with Middle Eastern history, Islamic Culture, and current events in the region for the past couple of years, and learning Arabic would complement those interests perfectly. I hope to study international relations at the University of Maryland in the fall, and eventually go on to work with refugees. Fluency in Arabic will be crucial to my success in all of those areas. NSLI-Y seemed like a great way to learn the language, get a head start in college, meet new people, see the world, and experience new things!

So long story short, I applied for the program, got selected as an alternate (put on the waitlist), and then on the last possible day that they could notify me, I found out that I was a finalist for the program! And here I am today!

Any alternates out there who are reading this blog- there is hope!!! Do not give up! You can make it!

I'll post soon with updates on my preparation and pre-departure process! T-minus 5 days until I leave!