As I unpacked this afternoon, I heard something. Or rather a song.
A rap song.
I had to investigate. So I wander upstairs in the apartment I'm staying in for the next four months. I ask my homestay mom, "What is that?"
And all she does is laugh and point. She's pointing at the porch outside.
Snap back to reality. Oh, there goes gravity
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that
Easy, no
My main man Eminem was taking it back to reality. I found one of my home-stay siblings rocking out to some classic Eminem. I introduced myself, for like the fourth time because I really rock at introduction sayings. Then rapped the rest of the song. Told him he should listen to Dr. Dre if he already wasn't and then went back downstairs to finish unpacking.
It was probably one of the weirdest ways to start a conversation in a foreign country. But I did conclude that if America is great for one thing, it's the music industry. Not only did I continue to overhear Eminem, but also the current song hits from the US of A. Fifth Harmony, Designer and Beyonce were all a part of the songs I jammed out to.
Lesson 1
America follows you everywhere. The best example of this is from above. The music, the identity, it all follows you around the world.
Lesson 2
I actually spent my first night in a sofitel because I arrived one day prior to the beginning of the program. It was my mistake because I mixed up the dates.
It all started with the missing transport taxi which I arranged to take me from the airport to the hotel. Long story short, it was a no show.
Which meant I had to take find a taxi ride. Now, this may seem easy. But I know absolutely no French. And they speak French and Arabic here. But their dialect of Arabic is so foreign to me I decided to wing French. I tried explaining to a taxi driver where I am going in Arabic a number of times, but he did not seem to understand me. So, French, it was.
Then my card did not work for the hotel reservation, so I paid in Moroccan Dirham. I got it all back the next day because the money is only to make sure you do not trash the room. If you do, you get charged.
Anyways, when I finally got to my room, I felt alone. The excitement wore off because of all the little incidents. Tried listening to music as I got organized. Didn't really work. So I went to the pool. Finally began to de-stress. I just chilled. Ate dinner by the pool. Then went back upstairs and slowly started to stress about the following day.
BEING ALONE IN A NEW CULTURE BY YOURSELF IS INTIMIDATING. But don't let the little incidents get you down. Take some time to not freak out. Ten minutes, then freak out.
Lesson 3
Despite not knowing any of the Dirja dialects of Arabic, I still communicate. A smile, a thank you, or offering some help, goes a long way. Hopefully, I will be able to make somewhat of a sentence by the time I leave! HAHA Just kidding, I'll be able to hold conversations and such.
I have this host sibling Mardja who is a saint. She's my buddy for the program I'm in, and she's absolutely awesome. And she's the person who is going to push me the most during this program. Even though she speaks fluent English, she gently nudges you into the conversation.
Final lesson: Don't lock yourself in your room your first day. Yes, I'm intimidated as heck. But I know that if I don't put myself out there, I'll feel even more isolated.
