Going Off the Grid

Yesterday, I stepped back into Rabat’s bright lights and blaring sounds after a week living off the grid in a rural Moroccan village called Ait Ouahi.  Although it is only located about three hours southeast of Rabat, the village seems worlds away.  To provide some context, the nearest town to Ait Ouahi, a little outpost called Oulmes, has a population of under 10,000 people, many of whom work either in agriculture or at the local water-bottling factory.  About 15 minutes away from this tiny town’s center begins a windy dirt road and the entrance to village life.  For six nights, our group lived with families in Ait Ouahi, joining in their daily exercises and learning about rural issues.

Unlike our homestay arrangements in Rabat, where each Moroccan family hosts only one student, we were placed in groups of two or three for our week in the countryside.  Since many of the families spoke only Darija or Tamazight (a Berber dialect), having more students per household was helpful for communication and general support.  Throughout the week, I shared a family and many unforgettable experiences with my friends, Alex B. and Alex V. 

Chickens in our yard

Our father, Ahmed, had worked briefly at the bottling plant but preferred the freedom of farming to the factory’s strict rules.  Although he had only attended school through the 6^th grade, he spoke four languages, including French, fluently.  His wife, Zahara, was more difficult to communicate with using words; still, I felt a certain connection with her.  Growing up, she had two mothers and one father.  She didn’t know her birthday because at the time, no one in the village kept such detailed track of time.  She had a fantastic sense of humor and made some of the best bread I’ve ever tasted.  We had two host brothers, Durees and Murad.  Both of them were in their late 20’s and worked long days as taxi drivers in Oulmes.  One of our host sisters, Mena, was 21 and engaged, waiting to move to Tangiers with her husband-to-be.  The other, Maryam, was 18 and finishing her schooling near home.  She said that the most frustrating thing about living in the village is the lack of access to university education, and she hoped to live with her aunt in Italy in the future.  I feel very fortunate to have again been placed with such a fun, easy-going, caring family, and I know that my interactions with them shaped my village experience in a positive way.

Casual goat herding

Mostly, we spent our time in the village not doing, but being.  With the exception of some organized conversations with the local people, our time was our own to spend observing and interacting with our families.  When it was sunny, which was unfortunately not the norm, Maryam took us to explore the countryside.  Situated near the Middle Atlas Mountains, Ait Ouahi is a sight to behold, filled with sloped pastures, secret waterfalls, and far-off peaks.  Our family’s garden was reminiscent of Eden, possessing dozens of forms of life, including apricots, almonds, cherries, apples, oranges, eucalyptus, figs, olives, beans, and a variety of herbs.  Outside of the gate roamed their chickens, sheep, goats, cows, donkeys, and turkeys.  Further in the distance, crumbling ruins of abandoned homes made perfect places for exploration.  These old homes were signs of the past decades’ exodus of people to the cities.  Ahmed and Zahara’s daughters are among many youth seeking a different life, a trend that makes me wonder what the future of such villages will be.

A little patch of our family's garden

On the rainy days, we had plenty of time to relax.  Huddled by the fireplace, I completed more pleasure reading than I have in many semesters.  We made Moroccan-style pancakes, called bahrain, and then ate them with butter directly from the family’s cows.  When we felt stir-crazy, we walked with Mena and Maryam through the misty, muddy land and down to a river that had formed following over 24 hours of steady dampness.

Rainy day snacks

I don’t want to make village life sound too ideal.  The week that I spent in Ait Ouahi was one of my favorites so far this semester, and I could have easily lingered for the simplicity of it all.  However, people’s lives there are challenging in many ways, and it is not a place in which I would like to permanently live.  As with any other agricultural society, the economy depends on the weather, which makes each person’s livelihood unpredictable.  As Maryam mentioned to me, access to education is limited.  When we asked a group of local women what they thought about the new Moroccan constitution, which went into effect in 2011, none of them had even heard of it.  Traditional mindsets change at a slower pace.  Most households consider it shameful for women to engage in physical exercise or be outside after dark.  It’s a very different world, yet it exists only hours from where I sit now, typing this post with access to CNN, Facebook, and the rest of the outside world.

Learning Amazighi dances

With the village stay now finished, our group does not have any organized travel planned for the rest of the semester.  However, I expect to go with friends to Fes within the next couple of weeks, and I would also like to do some hiking outside of Marrakech.  Since I am officially at the halfway point of my semester in Morocco, I am also planning more seriously for my final month-long independent research project.  Once that time begins, the rest of the term will really fly, so I’m trying to take advantage of every minute!