This is what you missed.

So, if you haven't been directly in contact with me, this is a recap blog of the time between arriving back in Morocco and my upcoming move to Portland.  I know there is a lot to cover. I'll try to keep it brief and not excruciatingly tedious.


So, first off I just relaxed a lot, trying to get back into the swing of America, spending lots of time with my family and doing odd jobs here and there of the gardening/landscaping sort.  Even got to pull out the chainsaw a couple times, which is always fun (kids, please remember that chainsaws are not just awesome zombie killing devices... they can do some serious damage if you aren't careful).

Then it was off to see Allison, girl of my dreams, in her home state of Illinois.  Can I just say one thing?  CORN.  There was an immense amount out there... in fact over the entire midwest, as I was to soon find out.  We had a good time meeting all of her family, seeing where she grew up, as well as visiting her college town for some of the tastiest BBQ I have ever eaten.  Just to prove how awesome she is, she even came along for a round of disc golf.  Yeah, I know I'm a giant nerd.  Sue me. 

We stopped up in Chicago for a couple of days to experience the sights and sounds, as well as one of the coolest music festivals I've ever had the privilege to attend.  Arctic Monkeys and Foo Fighters were especially awesome shows. The following day we went to the Shedd Aquarium and saw a pretty cool jellyfish exhibit (they are Allison's favorite), as well as all sorts of other sea creatures.

Then it was on to the great American roadtrip, from Atlanta, Illinois to Sequim, Washington, seeing just about every amazing thing in between.  It was not exactly a direct route.

We got to see my friend Laurel, who had returned to America just a few months prior from Morocco.  She was my closest volunteer geographically, and it was good to see my old neighbor again.  We hung out for the evening and played some settlers of Catan (one of my personal favorite board games of all time) with her boyfriend Zach while enjoying some very fine libations.

Next was Rocky Mountain National Park for some amazing scenery, camping, and hiking.  It is amazing driving through Colorado.  The whole state feels like one epic mountain range... because it pretty much is.  The Rockies dwarfed the Middle Atlas mountain range that I called home for a year. 

Next stop was Arches National Park, with its massive stone formations.  If you ever find yourself in Utah, these are definitely worth the drive. The next day we traveled to the south rim of the Grand Canyon for more camping and hiking (we did hike into the Canyon and it was hot!).  Words can not express the experience of gazing out over a ten mile wide canyon, especially at sunset.  Epic is the only thing that comes close, but unfortunately that word has lost meaning with chronic overuse.

Then onto Las Vegas for some rest, relaxation as well as the famous Bellagio fountain show.  We stayed at the Hilton (a four star hotel) for a ridiculously cheap amount.  The heat was pretty intense even in the evening, so we spent most of our time darting from one air conditioned casino to the next.  Caesar's palace had some amazing statuary and fountains, and Treasure island was also quite memorable with its nightly show involving sirens, pirates aboard lifelike ships, and fireworks.  

Yosemite was next for yet more camping and hiking (the valley was gorgeous!)  Then on to San Fransisco to see my friend Danny and check out a few of the sites.  Next day was Vancouver, WA to meet up with some of Allison's family, and finally on to Sequim.  

 From there it's been rather a blur of job searching and house searching, all of which came together this week.  I have a landscaping job, a house, and a car to boot,  much thanks to my supportive family.   I'm finally excited to be moving to Portland because all that other stuff I've had to worry about is behind me.  Yes, there is a lot of work to be done, and I still have to settle into life there, but it seems that the worst is behind me and the future looks bright!  

Sorry to have been so long between posts... as you can see, I've been a little busy.  Thanks for reading!

-Anton

p.s. photos of epic American roadtrip are on my facebook if you want to take a gander.

Back in America... this time for good

It is quite late, but I just wanted to let everyone know I'm back....

More to come soon.

Happy (slightly belated) Birthday America!

Abundant Life and Sudden Death

Right now life is abundant.  Spring is upon us and it blooms on the trees and jumps forth from the ground without restraint.  The exception to the rule is death, but it sticks with me longer, sinks into my bones and confuses me, angers me, and brings me to question the unfairness of the world.

This was an interesting week.  Joe from Jerada called me up and asked if I could help out with a tree planting project.  I, always looking for actual work to do and happy for the change of scenery, happily agreed.  We met up on Wednesday afternoon along with a few other volunteers that were along for further help on the project.  The next morning we were up early and Joe and I went to a nursery in Oujda to pick out plants.  We hired a van to take us out there, and the driver insisted on taking the scenic route, eagerly pointing out all the best watering holes in the mountain valleys along the way.  Sometimes it’s best to just  nod politely and act as if you are interested.  On the way we stopped on the side of the road at one of the many illegal “gas stations” that are very common near the Algerian border.  A man popped out with I big plastic canteen and filled up the van for about $15.  You see, Algeria is an OPEC nation, so gas is very cheap there, but Morocco is not and has gas prices similar to those in the states (which is difficult to bear when you are a poor Moroccan).  Thus, much of the gas near the border is smuggled over with police bribes and the Moroccan people get significantly cheaper (but still illegal) gas.

After about an hour of driving we arrived at the nursery.  We got some pretty great specimens, and I was surprised by how cheap everything was compared to what I was used to in the states.  Among the gems were some carob trees, some small green shrubs (Euonymous), Hibiscus, and even a couple of fig trees.  It was really good to be in greenhouses again… I had forgotten how much I loved that smell.  Even better was helping the children at the high school plant them that afternoon.  They were really excited and got straight to work digging holes and popping in all their newly acquired plants.  It went surprisingly smoothly and I felt somewhat useful for once, giving them some planting tips and doing some general supervising.

We were invited back the next day to talk to the English club about our lives in America and in Morocco.  Joe was feeling sick and wasn’t able to show, but two other volunteers joined me, and we had some pretty good discussions in English.  If nothing else, it was a chance for the students to meet some Americans and practice their skills with native speakers.  The English teacher is good friends with Joe, and we were invited to his house for couscous dinner. There have only been a few occasions in this country where I feel really comfortable in a Moroccan’s house, and this was one of them.  I think it is because on those occasions I am with Moroccans that are used to Americans… they don’t try to force you to eat, they don’t pester you with meaningless banter, and everyone is just more relaxed.  It makes for a much more pleasant evening.

I took the train back this afternoon from Oujda to Taza.  It stopped for apparently no reason, but this is a fairly common occurrence; I paid it no heed until people on the train started getting up and looking out the window.  We had stopped in a small town that bordered the tracks, and something was wrong.  A few moments before there was little traffic on the dirt road next to the tracks, but now it was bustling with people, as if someone had thrown a rock at a hornet’s nest.  A women threw up her arms to her face and fell to the ground, clearly distressed.  There were murmurs through the train… we had hit a child.  The train waited for twenty minutes or so, then moved on, unaffected by the obliteration of a human life.  I wondered to myself… how did this happen?  How are there no walls when these peoples’ houses are fifty yards from the tracks?  I, like the train, moved on, but a little part of me stayed there to mourn the loss of a child I never knew, stayed there trying to realize the pain of a family who had just lost their son.

Doing actual work- great for morale!

This past week was a flurry of activity.  Early last week I went to Fes expecting to work at a booth to promote an earth day activity going on in Fes in April. The booth fell through, but I was scooped up by another volunteer and put to work screening people and translating at Operation Smile.  It was pretty difficult translating all of the paperwork, but somehow I managed, and I felt like I was making a difference for once.  After what seemed like months of winter and just sitting around, surviving, and not progressing very fast on my projects, this was a wonderful change of pace.  I left on Sunday before the process was complete, but I hear now that 144 patients got operations.  That's fantastic news, and it's good to feel like I was a part of that success.

The reason I left on Sunday was that I had to travel back to Taza to do Spring Camp.  We had about 80 campers and there were four volunteers including myself.  We taught English lessons in the morning, and then had club activities in the afternoon.  I had never taught English before really, but it was surprisingly fun.  I was all over the place the first day, jumping from topic to topic and trying to judge where the students were in their knowledge.  By the second day, things went much smoother and I was able to work in some fun language games that they really enjoyed... Simon says, pictionary, and hangman are always good ones. By the by, if you are looking for a good ESL website eslcafe.com is great. As with any class, I had some really bright students that were active, and some that tended to stay quiet, but all in all they were all remarkably attentive and respectful.  It was a really fun experience.

As for my club activity, I was in charge of environmental club.  I did a pretty cool presentation on the food chain and pollutant accumulation in higher predators.  We started off with a rainstorm exercise where everyone made rain noises by snapping their fingers and stomping their feet.  Then we moved on to talking about the food chain, and playing a game with plants, herbivores, and carnivores that involved lots of eating of nutrients (papers scattered on the ground) and chasing each other around.  After that we tossed a frisbee around and named our favorite animals, saying whether they were herbivores or carnivores.  Finally, we wrapped it up with a completely off topic but awesome demonstration of volcanoes using Mentos and diet coke.

Favorite Animal Frisbee!

The week is now over, the campers are all headed home, but a couple things have changed.  One... those darn kids gave me a cold.  What do you expect when you get a bunch of teenagers together?  So that's the bad news, but on the other hand I got to meet some really cool kids and have a lot of fun teaching.  Also, this past week has felt like the most work I have done in a good long while.  While it was a bit overwhelming at times (especially trying to teach English with a cold, and keeping up with the energetic highschoolers), I almost wish that every week was like this past one.

Paris, the city of love and light.

After many weeks of anticipation and research, it was finally happening.  A and I were heading on a romantic adventure to France’s capital. Departing from Fes was like stepping into a dream again… a close relative of the western world I was used to in America.  I expected the worst from Ryan air, because you don’t get tickets to Paris and back for only 50 Euro without giving up something in return.  Yes, the seats were small, we got nothing for free, and there were advertisements everywhere, for a three hour flight it wasn’t too bad.  The most interesting thing was that we had no assigned seats… it was first come first served.

Arriving late, we took public transport to the hotel, grabbed a bite to eat , and went to sleep so that we could get an early start the next day.   The nice thing about Paris is that pretty much all the food you get is delicious, although expensive.  I remember getting the steak tartar without knowing what it was (it’s pretty much a slab of raw ground up meat), and still enjoying it a lot.  I’ll tell you what though, I probably wouldn’t eat anything of the sort in Morocco.

The next few days were a blur of exploration, tired feet, and adventures.  I must have walked a marathon over the course of four days.  We saw but a glimpse of what Paris had to offer, but it was still so much.  That first day we trekked from our hotel to the Pere Lachaise Cemetery, the Paris Botanical Gardens, gazed at Notre Dame, the Louvre complex, the Arch de Triumph, and the Eiffel Tower all in a day before taking the Metro back in the evening.

There was so much to see and do in that city that every night when we returned we were pretty well exhausted.  Traveling with someone who you have never spent a large amount of time with can be stressful, but I was pleasantly surprised at how well we got along.  With only a few days in Paris, we had to pack it in, so there was little time to sit back and relax.  I think by the last day we were a bit stressed out… knowing we had to return to real life, and leaving a city where nearly everyone knew some English.  In the end though, it all worked out, and I’ll always remember the sights and sounds of Paris, the romantic walks along the streets in the city of love and light.

Anton Clifford Vs. the Weather

It’s so easy to get up on a sunny day.  I can hear that wind blowing and rain pouring just outside my window and I hunker down a little tighter in my blankets.  Alarms are useless… only a nuisance
 to my inevitable sleeping in.  I have the rain gear to brave it, but from my warm covers the outside world seems too cold and unforgiving.  The ten minute steep walk to the road seems daunting enough, let alone who knows how long I’ll be waiting for transportation.  On sunny days I’d bike down, but it’s too wet and windy now.

“Ten more minutes,” my brain tells me, “then we’ll get up and start the day.”  Anybody can get up on a warm sunny day.  It takes a really motivated person to welcome the world when the world isn’t exactly welcoming you back.  I remember when I had a job in America, it didn’t matter how early I had to get up.  I’d always get there, maybe 5 minutes late from time to time, but I’d get there.  Why?  Because people were counting on me, and I had a set schedule.  Here it’s not uncommon for me to hit the snooze five or six times.

Well, on another note, the 22nd Marrakesh Marathon went well.  I actually only did the half this year, but I’m glad that I did.  I wasn’t really in shape for the full, but was able to put together a performance that I was pleased with… 1:35.  That’s about 7:15 per mile for 13 miles, so not horribly shabby for being a bit out of shape.  Had fun hanging with friends… a few of them came out to cheer me on, which was great.  Hopefully with enough training, I’ll be able to do the full next year.

Back to the weather… It snowed while I was gone.  Those of you that still harbor the notion that Morocco is just desert country, think again.  That’s not what it’s like where I live. There wasn’t a whole bunch of snow, but it was enough to make a pretty impressive snowman (Please note the awesome "HUP HOLLAND" scarf he's sporting).  This guy was promptly destroyed by the local kids (those hooligans!) the second I got into my house. There is still a good bit of snow on the ground even with the relatively warm sunny days that have followed.  I hear that last year there was snow up to chest level where I live, so I’m thankful that it’s not too bad, and hoping that the winter remains mild.  It’s been cold and muddy where the snow has started to melt, but I’ve still been able to do a little gallivanting outside.  Got to do some more plant collection yesterday, so that’s a plus.  And hey… who doesn’t like blasting kids with relentless waves of snowballs?

Zombie Snowman wants BRAINS!

Almond arborculture and integrating at a “grueling pace.”

So... I've been writing, but not posting.  Thus you get two posts this week.  Lucky you!


L called me this week.  She had a truckload of almond saplings on the way and was in need of some help.  A truck, which looked like a cross between a dump truck and a flat bed came rolling by the café I was sitting at, and I could tell without even looking in the cab that this was my ride.  They stopped by the side of the road and jumped down from their seats, in search of some caffeine.  We sat in the café with her village’s association president.  He’s an interesting character, with one bulging eye, perhaps from a minor stroke, a scarf wrapped around his head, and an affinity for shooting the breeze with anyone who will listen.  As per usual, he was having a great time talking to the growing crowd in between snorts of his snuffing tobacco.  Eventually we were able to disperse and cram myself and three others into the truck up to her site.  When we got there, we distributed about 1200 almond trees to the people of her village in an attempt to increase revenue and stop soil erosion.  It felt good to be doing something I loved… digging holes, planting trees, explaining how to take care of the trees properly to the villagers.  That’s the kind of stuff I signed up for, and I’m glad I got a chance to put some of my technical skills to use.

I also spent a bit of time putting together our quarterly report, the VRF (volunteer report form).  It was a chance to talk about the projects I’ve been working on, and to evaluate what I want to do in the next few months.  It really got me thinking about the steps I needed to take to get the next couple of projects underway. On the list of upcoming projects, one I’m pretty excited about is a herbarium for the visitor center in the park.  I’ve been doing some hiking and taking lots of pictures of flowering plants, doing some sketching, and even collecting and pressing a few species.  I expect even more to start blooming  as the spring comes around.  This is one of those things that is going to keep me pretty busy, but also be interesting and enjoyable.  That’s one of the great things about the peace corps… you have the time and space to create some of your own projects and find out what you are passionate about, and what isn’t really your cup of tea.  For me, community development isn’t high on my favorites list, teaching at the school is fun from time to time, but my favorite things are to be out hiking and looking at plants or helping people with nursery type stuff.

On a separate note, integration seems to be going well.  I biked about 55 kilometers (35 miles) round trip the other day through some pretty hilly terrain just to go see a berber festival.  Long day, but actually a lot of fun.  Got to see some decent live music, got in a lot of exercise, and hung out with some people I haven’t seen in a while.  My favorite part was when the town crazy man came up in front and thought he was the dance leader.  All the little kids were laughing so hard, but the adults were pretty cool about just letting him do his thing.   Man was I tired at the end of the day… walking my bike up that last steep rocky hill to my house I must have stopped to rest at least three times.  Even so, I still somehow mustered the energy to have dinner with my village and even talk with them a bit.

That’s all for this episode. Hope all is well on the Western Front!  Miss all you guys.

Anton

Oh the places you'll go, oh the people you'll see

Adventures galore!  From the Eastern side of the Atlantic to my homeland on the Pacific Ocean, in only a day.  Amazing what modern transportation can do.  Still, it is a hell of a trip to get from my site in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco to the Olympic Penninsula of Washington.  Taxis, Trains, Trams, Planes, Ferries, Cars, and my own two feet, I feel like there wasn't any sort of transportation not utilized getting me back home.  What a mind bending experience it is too, to be living in a stone house without indoor heating or insulation one day, and back in my warm home in America the next.

There was much visiting of friends and family, snowboarding, snowshoeing, beer tasting, game playing, Holiday and Birthday celebrations, the whole shebang.  Too much to write about in great detail at this juncture.  Just wanted to say I had a great time and it was good to see everyone.

How do I cram the last month into a couple of paragraphs?  It's impossible, things will be left out. So here it is in a sentence:  Site, Taza, Casablanca, Frankfurt, Seattle, Sequim, Bellingham, Seattle, Sequim, Bellingham, Sequim, Seattle, Vancouver, Frankfurt (for a 12 hour layover!), Marrakesh, Taza, Site.  Holy travelling gnome!

Anyway, for now things are back to normal, I've picked up another day of teaching at a school 45 minutes walk away (I'll probably lug my bike over).  I helped my nearby volunteer L with an almond tree planting project, bee box building is in the works, and the weather is gorgeous (high 60s-mid 70s in Taza).  I'm hoping for a mild winter this year.  The almond trees are in bloom already and it is a beautiful thing to behold.  So I leave you that picture this week.  Come on early Spring!