First steps in Fez- The view from Dar Xariffa, the "Dishonest House"

 I’m currently writing this looking out on the old Medina from the balcony of my Dar. If that doesn’t describe the elation I’m feeling with being on my year abroad, then I’ll put in in layman’s terms for you, ITS AWESOME! I’m still not used to the scorching hot weather, and with having stupidly packed for the winter without thinking of the continued summer here, a trip to the local shopping centre to get some shorts was much needed, which was accompanied with a trip to what appears to be the only remnant of Western culture out here, a Carrefour.

The first few days of being here are all a bit of a blur at the moment, since sorting out housing for the first time and being in a foreign country was definitely a lot more difficult than the experience that many of my counterparts back home went through to secure a half decent house, especially since myself and some other students were looking for a home within the constantly buzzing and labyrinthine old town, also known as Fez el-Bali, instead of copping out and going for an apartment in the not-so-new Ville Nouvelle; and despite the chaos of house hunting whilst dodging the onslaught of donkeys, walking tours and various stalls thrown at us in the narrow streets of the Medina, everything and everyone seemed to slow down a little when we returned to the Funky Fez, which is one hell of a hostel, not only are the people in there amazing, but the price is ludicrously low, to the point where I felt bad for paying next to nothing to get treated so well!

By this point in this entry, you’re probably wondering where the madness of student life that exists in good old Blighty is about to appear, but you’ll be surprised to know that there is none, and with that I can see that student life here is going to be very calm; worlds away from the apocalyptic “party like its ‘99” style nights out on the neon (and vodka) soaked high street of Leeds. This assumption can simply be made based on the fact that the majority of the group here have lived off Moroccan mint tea, maxing out on some days at 5 cups of the stuff, leaving people relatively flat out relaxed and wanted to do nothing but socialise, the alcohol-free way, which is a nice change since, for the first time in a long time I’m not the minority living in sobriety.

The other part you must also be undoubtedly questioning is most likely to be the lack of studying that appears to be going on. Yes it’s all well and good that I’m abroad and taking countless photos like any other tourist, but why haven’t I picked up a pen and paper yet you ask? Simply put, my course hasn’t started yet, and to put everyone (mainly my parents) at ease, I have been to ALIF (the place where I’m studying) a number of times for everything from sorting out housing, welcome talks and collecting my course books for this year. The school is a much better setting for learning than the settings of Michael Sadler or Hilary Place, which many a Leeds student who studies Languages will be familiar with.

Finally, my first experience of the Moroccan people. To everyone that has mentioned the seedy mind-set of North Africans who apparently “want to exploit you for easy money”, then unfortunately they are sadly mistaken. The Moroccans are wonderful people, and yes there is the occasional hassling from someone offering drugs or a street kid begging for money (at one point I had my arm kissed), but they prove to be relatively few, with a lot of people wanting to help you, and not for profit, which is a great thing to see.

Oh, and the house is called Dar Xariffa, which we've translated as the "dishonest house" and assumed its called that since the door is quite small, yet the house that lies behind it is enormous given the path in which it's located.