First Field Trip, Rabat

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Here are pictures from the first field trip we took. They are from Tuesday, May 26. Everything was impressive and interesting but I kept finding myself thinking of the learning process involved in a field trip. Middle school graduation marks the end of the field trip's golden years and I don't think I think this might have been my first field trip since high school. For the most part the pictures do the trip justice. Minus the explanation of what you are looking at, an album of pictures is roughly the same thing. So what is the vale of a field trip?

I think the value of an educational field trip on the college level goes beyond simply viewing and asking questions. In my mind the real benefit of travel is learning to enjoy something foreign with the people who call it home. Instead we spent the afternoon looking at buildings, gardens, and fountains. So how do those connect? I think they connect in the process of recording one's thoughts (like right now and when reviewing the pictures). It is mostly in retrospect that these buildings start to take significance. For example now I come to see how important a King's tomb can be to a country or the beauty of architecture far different from the Lawn or D.C.'s mall.

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Photos

Close up, artsy photography
I actually took this picture because I love the shade of Morocco's royal green. And besides, where what would a photo album be without one inspired close up.

Man walking by fountian.
It is hard to see his shoes but after visiting a leather shop in Fez I too am now a proud owner of this traditional Moroccan footwear.

The Royal Palace
The Royal Palace of Morocco's King, Mohammed VI.

The Flag of the Royaume de Maroc
This is my favorite picture so far, probably because I love the Morocco flag and this really captures it's colors.

Girls with palace guards
You can't help but imagine that you are in Aladdin with scenes like these.

L'Etoile de Maroc
This is the star at the center of the Moroccan flag from the detail on the side of a Mosque. A Moroccan flag is definitely on the souvenir list.

Shade
A sunlight alleyway outside a mosque. Palace grounds in Rabat

Advertising, Gmail, and Castles.
For some reason I expected advertising to be different in Morocco but have found it to be pretty similar. While this is your standard screen changing billboard, the big streets still have lingerie stores with suggestive pictures, store front windows are just as colorful, and Mcdonald's has managed to plaster ads for something called a "Gambas burger" all over town. I also find it funny that these trucks have the Gmail logo on their rear.

Mohammed V's Masoleum
Outside the beautiful resting place of the King who liberated his country from French control.

Detailed Stone Work.
It is stunningly intricate artwork like this that you find all over Morocco. This is outside the Mausoleum.

King Mohammed V
The King's final resting place, along with a brother and an unknown family member.

The Mausoleum's Ceiling
The entire inside was adorned with the a beautiful pattern of stone, gold, and cedar wood. The luxurious gleam lent itself well to candle light but not so much to a camera flash.

Le Tour Hassan
This is one of the oldest structures in Rabat, next to one of the few remaining walls that together were supposed to form an accompanying mosque. Here is a picture that gives a good sense of both the tower and the neighboring Mausoleum, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rabat_Tour_Hassan_Mausolee.jpg

Monsieur Roger
Roger and the wall. As you can see, we had a beautiful day for the Rabat trip.

The L'Oudaya Garden
We stopped to smell the flowers and have mint tea in a seaside cafe.

L'Oudaya
The small winding streets of the oldest part of Rabat.

The Group
As you can see, I don't like asking people to pose for pictures. Occasionally I just snap shots that happen to have people in them. Haha, but in truth there is a great group here with me.

The Beach at L'Oudaya
Pretty good waves. Roger, Dylan, and I are going to investigate surfing soon.