My arrival in Morocco happened to coincide perfectly with an expedition called, “The Arab World: Beyond the Headlines” that UBELONG was hosting. Recall that UBELONG is the social enterprise supporting my stay in Morocco. Because there were a few extra spots left on the expedition, UBELONG invited Deena and I to participate. The expedition introduced us to a few other amazing volunteers:
*Cedric: UBELONG Co-Founder and Expedition Leader
I was excited to meet Cedric, who seems to have accomplished so much at such a young age. After leaving a promising career in corporate business, Cedric turned his talents to creating a social enterprise connecting aspiring volunteers to global projects in developing countries. His passion for community empowerment is evident in the way he connects with grassroot organizations in the 30+ countries he has visited. But perhaps my favorite moment with Cedric was when we bonded over our “rebel” phases of high school.
Adrianna: UBELONG Expedition Leader
Native to Portugal, Adrianna speaks many languages, which allows her to cultivate relationships with a diverse range of people. For instance, she introduced me to her “leather guy” in Rabat, who offered me a very good price for a quality camel-skin jacket. She also happened to be my style icon while in Morocco due to the effortless cool she maintained despite loosing her entire suitcase to an airline mishap. Who knew that knit-sweater she rummaged from a second hand souk in the medina would look so hipster??
Caity: MPH graduate, mac and cheese connoisseur and the recipient of my frustration when life in the Maghreb got too hard.
Caity began her volunteer experience with this expedition, but like Deena and me, she continued to serve on a volunteer project for five months. In fact, most of the time, Caity and I were the only volunteers from UBELONG/Thaqafat. When new volunteers did arrive for one or two weeks at a time, we welcomed them with Moroccan hospitality but rarely got an opportunity to get to know them on a more personal level. So the two of us—in Mario and Luigi style—ran around the country together, dodging perilous taxis, uncovering a turtle shell or two, collecting Dirham coins, consuming avocado juice “power-ups,” and traveling from sandy beaches to snow-capped mountains to sun-dried deserts in twenty-four hours.
Check out her super awesome travel blog:
Kitchie: Communications Officer at the World Bank, native Filipino and avid adventurist with unbounded optimism.
When someone you meet briefly invites you to visit them next time you are on the other side of the country, the polite thing to do is smile and say, “That would be amazing!” acutely aware that you will probably never see that person again. However, when Kitchie invited me to visit her in D.C. after our 10-day Expedition, I knew that I would make time to see her again. With an infectious smile and refreshing enthusiasm, Kitchie is so much fun to be around!
Lois: Poly-sci student, native Ghanaian and quite possibly Gertrude Bell reincarnated.
Independent and culturally sensitive, Lois navigated Morocco with relative ease, picking up on Arabic phrases and cultural cues with maturity well beyond her twenty-something years. After the Expedition, she spent some time successfully traveling around Morocco by herself! Lois is also incredibly patient; she did not flinch after a full week of pronouncing her name wrong! (For the record it is “loys,” not “lo-is.”)
*Wendy: Graphic designer, thirty-years young and a compassionate soul.
With a keen eye for design and an aptitude for business, Wendy was a perfect fit for the women’s empowerment project at Au Grain de Sésame, where Moroccan women seeking economic independence make recycled crafts for sale. Furthermore, Wendy’s compassion for others inspired the group to reflect on our own relative privilege in a country where some families live in dirt-floor shelters made of cinderblocks and clay.
*Deena: MFA candidate, teacher extraordinaire and my tether to American sensibilities.
Since Deena had already spent two months in Morocco, she was our resident “expert” on navigating the busy Rabat medina. And for the two months our residency in Morocco overlapped, I had an amazing roommate who shared my love of Disney films and Milka chocolate bars. Deena and I also shared an appreciation for Moroccan teatime, in which we sometimes indulged twice a day! Because I consider Deena to be a part of my “Moroccan family,” you can read more about her in my previous post: “Meet my host family.” Also, you should definitely check out her Tumblir page, which features the MANY stray cats living in Morocco.
*Dewey: Avid photographer, gun activist and certified hypnotist.
A little rough-around the edges, I wouldn’t have expected Dewey to join a volunteer expedition in Africa, but boy would I have been wrong! In fact, this was Dewey’s sixth(?) time volunteering with UBELONG. Since he’s retired, Dewey has been expanding his horizon in places like Vietnam, Laos, Peru, etc… Furthermore, it takes a brave 60-something-year-old man to join a group of seven young women for a ten-day project in a foreign country.
* Photo Credit: Caity Blake (including cover photo)