a beautiful weekend

so this has been a ridiculously packed weekend.

yesterday, a group of us met up for an early breakfast and a day trip into fes. after trekking down to the grand taxi stand on the backside of the marche, piling into said grand taxi, and staring out of the window for an hour as the landscape of morocco whizzed by, we found ourselves on the side of a bustling fassi street, surrounded by heaps of people all extremely confident of their destination and the appropriate directions. we, on the other hand, gathered together to pore over our lonely planet guides and sort out the way to fes-el-bali, the old city whose walls contain the world-famous medina. needless to say, after a few moments time, everything was mzien (good), and off we went!

there are countless stories i could tell from my day there - like how we ended up in the middle of a residential neighborhood and took to a little bit of moutain-climbing to make our way back to bab bou j'loud or what the medina was like or about the pickpocket we encountered (and walked away with all of our possessions) - but the truth is, it's more than a little daunting to try to record all of that her. simply said, you must experience it for yourself - the winding corridors of vendor stalls with their propietors hanging out in the path eager to catch your eye and lure you inside - the way the adobe walls change colors with the shifting sun - the families who begin to come out at dusk to slowly walk the plaza and have a sit on the steps - the smells of roasted meat, candied nuts, and mint tea...it was truly wonderful in many respects.

today, again, was a bit of an adventure. a small group of us - tony, eva, stiv, ghassan, sanae, and myself - set out before the crack of dawn to walk the 20 or so kilometers from aui to azrou, the town next door. we had bought fruit and cheese and peanut butter and all sorts of things the evening before on our way back from fez, and armed with these things, our water, some money, and our cameras - we embarked on our walking adventure. we wandered through the countryside, stopping here and there for some breathtaking photos (check out my online album: http://picasaweb.google.com/lauren.fadely). all told, it took us about five hours, and worth every second of it.

now back in my room, and looking forward to the beginning of the week, one thing that stands out to me from both days of adventuring are the kids that i encountered. i really love kids, and they are easily my favorite part of any place that i go. there's something universal about children and their willingness to simply be themselves and accept others as themselves. i encountered some really wonderful kids in fes yesterday - like the group of thirty or so first graders who suddenly appeared out of nowhere and filled the little allyway i was walking in, surrounding me and those around me with their smiling and open faces. "bonjour!" "asalaam!" rang out in a chorus of voices as little hands raised themselves for high-fives and handshakes. or like the little girl, mounia, who i met today on the walk.

we came upon a group of boys of all ages playing football in a little pitch on the side of the road. stiv and tony stopped off to play for a while, and i found myself next to this little girl - not more than seven or eight - the only girl amongst this swarm of boys and delegated to the sidelines as the rest of them played with their makeshift football. i offered her a clementine from my bag, and she returned the favor with a wonderful smile. je m'appelle elle, i said. nothing - french was out. siimtii elle, i tried instead with the help of sanae. there - that was it. mounia, she replied. zwiin, i said in return - pretty. she flashed me her little white smile once again, and then one last time again as i waved b'asalaama when we later continued on our journey.

i would trade all of the silver and gold of fes for that beautiful little girl in a heartbeat. lets just say she made my weekend...