Answering Amanda

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Thanks to my dear friend Amanda you get a break from hearing about my daily routine. She always asks very pointed questions and in an effort to answer some of her recent queries I will delve into some cultural topics.
Disclaimer: I am not Moroccan and have only been here for five months. I do not proclaim to know that much, but will try my best to explain what I have learned so far. Another problem here is that Morocco is very culturally diverse. Sure, they are all Muslims, but it goes way beyond that. This is a very culturally diverse country.
There is the difference between Berber and Arab, which is much more than just language. My town, Kelaa, is primarily Arab. The language on the street is the local Moroccan dialect of Arabic: Darija. I know there are people here who speak Berber because a fellow PCV who visited me got around just fine though she knows practically no Darija since she lives in a Berber community. My Berber is so non-existent that I think I have learned more Japanese living in Kelaa than Berber. Sadly, I know about as much about Berber culture. The stereotype I have heard about them is that they can fix anything and are incredibly resourceful.
But on to Amanda’s questions. As far as marriage goes, there are more cases than I can possible write about or know, but arranged marriages do still occur. They’re not that uncommon. Of course they don’t always go well, but neither do unarranged marriages when you think about it. Marriage here seems to me to be more of a social, religious and familial obligation. Couples are not supposed to be best friends and everything. Women keep their female friends after marriage and still spend lots of time with them, as do men. Marriages seem like partnerships, almost like an arrangement so each person has stability and dependency and gets their needs met.
I’m not saying I think they are relationships devoid of love, but it’s just such a different culture that I am somewhat at a loss to explain. There are many more things I don’t understand about how relationships here work than things that I do understand.
It may all sound boring and routine, but there are still some things that shock and surprise here. Marriage to first cousins isn’t that rare. I know of several couples that are first cousins. I kept my mouth shut as to what I thought about that. These are not small town uneducated people, but modern, educated professionals. I have no explanation for this one, except perhaps that it is more convenient and economical for the family to keep together.
Unarranged marriages can also seem almost arranged in a way also. I know of one couple who are some sort of distant cousins and met through the family. The first time they met they discussed marriage and the third meeting was to announce their engagement. It was all their decision and they said they were not pressured by anybody to get married.
Not that I think arranged marriages are ideal, but in defense if them I would like to say that it really depends on who is doing the choosing and what their motivation is. Not all parents here are just looking for a rich son-in-law.
Amanda also asked about health care. This is something I am still exploring. There is a hospital here in Kelaa, and there are several private clinics which I have heard can give better care, but are more expensive. I know the Moroccan government pays for prescribed medication for citizens, but that surgery is paid for by the client. The health system seems fairly good to me, but I know it is not perfect. What seems like a huge problem to me is a lack of education. There are lots of programs like Operation Smile (which repairs cleft palates on babies and children) and other free options for people which do exist in Morocco. The problem is people knowing about where to go for such services and even when they do know where to go, how to get there. Transportation seems so easy and cheap to me, but I know a train ride to Rabat is out of the question for many of the people who need such services.
As a Peace Corps Volunteer I really don’t need to worry so much. I have a physician on-call 24/7. My health expenses are covered. I am in an even better position than many other PCVs because I have health facilities in my town and am just an hour from a major city or a train to Rabat. That said, if I do get in an accident on my bike I am almost guaranteed to be medically separated (sent home) because of the nature of accidents here. Even with my helmet (yes, I do always wear it) I will more likely than not break a bone, which would take more than 40 days to heal. Volunteers are sent home if they cannot heal from something within 40 days. I think. I have the administrative policy and medical manuals, but that doesn’t mean I always understand or remember everything that is in them.
I have seen accidents here and they are bad. What is worse is the response time of ambulances. The vast majority of the time I have seen ambulances they are serving as a hearse in a funeral procession. It’s not an encouraging sight. Not that I’m trying to scare my parents - I was trying to reassure them that I really am going to be okay here. Really.
This turned into a longwinded response and I’m not sure I even answered Amanda’s questions. But I realized once more that I have a lot more to learn here. If I can’t answer basic questions like this maybe I should just put the blog on hold until I learn more - and figure out how to use my new camera.

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