The Scoop

Morocco!

That’s where I’m headed on Jan. 26 to study abroad for the semester. During my final week in the States (and final week of this oddball Chicago winter), I’m visiting with family, saying last goodbyes and getting everything packed before making that drive to O’Hare. It’s been a long haul, but I’m even more excited now than when I applied for my program.

While I’m away, I’ll use this blog to post about my experiences, keep you updated about what I’m learning and ultimately provide a window into the world of this fascinating North African country (it should be an especially interesting time considering what’s been going on recently in Mali and neighboring Algeria ). Plus it lets my family know I’m doing OK.

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My study abroad program is affiliated with the School for International Training (SIT). SIT offers experiential and field-study based programs around the globe, with each concentrating on a specific topic or area of study. The programs are anthropological in nature, as students travel on educational excursions in the host country, interact daily with locals and immerse themselves in the culture through fieldwork, language classes and urban and rural homestays. Each semester culminates with an independent study project, where students choose a topic, direct their own studies and conduct original research. Bottom line, it’s an incredibly unique experience.

For most of my time abroad, I’ll be staying in Rabat, Morocco’s capital. Rabat sits on the Atlantic and is the country’s second largest city behind Casablanca. It’s one of the major political hubs of North Africa and, like much of today’s Morocco (and Africa in general), is at the crossroads between ancient and modern.

The focus of my program, newly launched last year, is journalism and media, my chosen career. The 10 other students and I will sharpen our journalism skills with ongoing reporting assignments about Moroccan social, cultural and political happenings while taking a course that contextualizes journalism in the country, where the press is not completely free. We’ll also study Arabic (or French) and learn how to conduct field research in Morocco. Classes are conducted at the Center for Cross Cultural Learning, a private cultural institution, but much of our learning will be done outside the classroom. My first homestay, which will be for eight weeks, is in the medina, or old city, of Rabat and the second, only for a few days, is in a southern village in the Sahara desert. In between the two homestays we’ll travel to other cities and sites. Read more about what I’ll be doing here (Forty-odd students are participating in two other Rabat SIT program this semester about migration and national identity, and I’m told there’s another group studying there through an organization called IES).

I chose this program because of its content and also because I wanted to go to a country I’ve never been to before. I love to learn and have always been fascinated by different cultures, and Morocco seemed like the perfect fit for me to challenge my conception of the world and grow as a student and a person (and eat some great food along the way).

Check for posts every two weeks or so. When I can, I’ll include cool accompanying pictures. I’ll also try to upload photo albums on Facebook frequently.

See you in May.