Rooftops

Here in Morocco I have gained a new found love for rooftops. Here rooftops have become this magical portal to another place. Ok so obviously I am getting carried away a little with my new found love but the thing is here as a volunteer or even just as an American or someone who is starting to work in a new environment there is a continuos pressure to be perfect. Not only is Morocco just a really judgmental place to begin with, i am once more the new kid, and this time the strange looking one to. Every move I make is judged even when i think no one is looking. I have been told this is called the fish bowl effect.Anyway Peace Corps puts you in training with all of these wonderful people, you become fast friends and then Peace Corps does what they told you they would do all along, but splits you up and sends you to different corners of the country. Luckily Peace Corps gives us a phone that lets us all chat with each other and we are lucky enough to be doing this in the age of technology where communication is simple and sometimes instant. Now every once and a while we are lucky enough to get time off or there be some big event that throes us all together in one place along with this tend to be some hotel with a rooftop, these have become wonderful places where we can all get together relax, have a drink, eat way to many potato chips, play spades, and have educated conversations with vocabulary higher than a fifth grade level. Now many of us are in our own home and these tend to have rooftop access or a small court yard as in my case. This is a little outside places that are hidden away from the curious eyes of those in our community, they give us a chance to be outside and do and speak as we please. A friend of mine came out to spend a week and this gave us a great place to sit, read our books, and drink coffee in our pj's (which would not be acceptable to do in a public place. Girls in cafes and pj's are not publicly acceptable here). The heat here has also been rising over 100 degrees and many of my friends have ended up spending the nights on their roofs because it is just to hot to be indoors. Anyway I am grateful for these wonderful little escapes.