New Cities & Fancy Feasts

Hello from Istanbul, Turkey!

The past 2 weeks have been a crazy experience of new cultures, new food, and new climates (for real guys it's gettin' cold).

Last week we left Amman and went to Morocco and oh my goodness, I loved it for a few reasons. First of all the food. Specifically breakfast. Guys I love breakfast, it just understands me. On our first morning in the incredible city of Marrakech, we went out to look for breakfast, and we were not disappointed. The lattes there (called nous nous) were a dollar. One dollar for a latte. And they were fantastic! To make things even better we found croissants (because of the French influence in Morocco) and found this bakery where they sold croissants for 10 cents. Guys. Fresh chocolate croissants were 10 cents. So naturally I bought 10 the first day... and maybe every day after that. I won't disclose that information. Moroccan culture is also incredible to experience. The greatest time we had was at a medina called Jemaa El Fna in the heart of Marrakech. There was SO much going on in this area. Along with rows on rows on rows of shops with everything you could think of buying, there were fresh juice bars that sold cups of fresh juice for 40 cents (like seriously, this country knows what's UP in terms of prices), tea shops/cafes, snake charmers with REAL live snakes moving to the music, and trained monkeys that jump on you. Like this place was a hot mess, but it was such a great experience to be a part of.

The next stop was in Fez, which claims to be one of the biggest and oldest Medinas in the region and possibly the world. It was very different than Marrakech, because of the winding corridors and alleys, and the incredibly old architecture hidden throughout the city. While in Marrakech and Fez we also had the incredible opportunity to listen to some great speakers on religion, the role of women, politics and culture in Morocco from Moroccans. It really is a country unlike any other in the world because of the ties it carries to everyone. It is aligned with the West because it holds one of the longest treaties with the United States, some of the Moroccan dynasties reached up into Spain connecting ties with Europe, as an Islamic dominated society it holds ties to the Middle East and is part of the Arab League, and finally is known as the "economic gateway to Africa," and held former membership in the African Union. It really is such a diverse and beautiful country that you HAVE to visit. Also the croissants are cheap, so I really don't see an argument here.

After a one night stop on the coast in Casablanca, we departed for Istanbul, Turkey which has been one of my favourite cities after visiting it last year, and is currently still holding on to one of the top spots in my books. Like in Morocco, we've had the incredible experience to listen to some political figures, journalists, and other speakers discuss much of Turkey's history and current position in the world. Turkey is just such an interesting example of a combination of a beautiful and diverse history with a super modern society, universities and infrastructure. It is very rare that one can find a busy metropolitan city with such well a preserved and championed history as Istanbul.

Today we got to experience an authentic Turkish Hamam, which is the Turkish version of a Roman bath, but with a Turkish twist. I say a Turkish twist because I assume in a regular "Roman bath," there isn't a big Turkish man yelling at you in Turkish as he scrubs 14 layers of skin off you, and then slaps your back signaling for you to rotate. I came into the Hamam knowing how ticklish I was (guys I'm really bad) and I'm the guy that giggles when he gets patted down at any security checkpoint. I just have certain zones where I just laugh, and I can't help it. I felt like the pillsbury dough boy on steroids at the Hamam. So this Turkish man laid me down on my back and began to scrub my body with soap which wasn't bad. I really was enjoying it. And then he grabbed my thigh and started massaging down my leg and I yelled. Not like "ah." Like I YELLED and laughed at the same time. He was giving me weird looks the entire time, because when he massaged any part of my body I just began to laugh uncontrollably. I was a mess. But now my skin feels incredibly soft. Worth it? I think so.

I've learned and experienced so much on this travel component, and you should definitely visit Morocco and Turkey sometime soon. I leave Istanbul in a few days back to Amman, Jordan, where we only have just over 2 weeks left! I can't believe how fast time has gone here! I hope to maybe give an update one more time, but we will see! I'll also be updating photos on my Facebook in the near future.

Blessings!
Caleb G
Ps. I think my final Marrakech croissant count was 36. I had 36 in 3 days and it costed me $3.60. That is all.

Old Conflicts & New Families

Hey everyone!

Lots has happened since my last post so I'll try to keep it brief, but not too brief that you still don't know what's going on. 

Almost 2 weeks ago, the students and myself on the program came back from a travel study to Israel/Palestine to study the historic conflict taking place in the holy land. It was one of the most eye opening experiences I've ever been a part of, and was equally as amazing as it was challenging. We got to hear from some incredible speakers on both sides of the Arab/Israeli conflict and their opinions on the cause and solution to the conflict. I won't go into too many details about what and who we heard from, because I don't want this blog to be a political boxing ring, so if you're curious to hear more about the things we saw, and people we met, let me know face-to-face, or in a private message :)

Along with the lectures and speakers, we got to experience the sites that the holy land has to offer, such as: the Old City of Jerusalem (including the Wailing Wall, but excluding the Dome of the Rock), the Sea of Galilee, Bethlehem, Hebron and heaps of places that were mentioned in the Bible. If you were following the news during the time we were there, you'll know that we were there at an extremely high time of tension, where stabbings, shootings and demonstrations were abundant throughout Jerusalem and the surrounding areas. However we were totally safe, and there was never a time where I felt that I was in real danger from either side of the conflict. It was a memorable experience that I will never forget.

This week was also the last week for our service projects, that myself and my fellow students have been participating in once a week since the start of the semester. I got the incredible privilege to serve a pastor in the area and his ministry to Christian Iraqi refugees. These incredible people have fled their homes within the past 2 years to Amman, Jordan because of the heightened conflict happening near their homes in Iraq. What did I do you might ask? Well folks I taught English. That's right. Caleb, who is near illiterate in his reading English, poor in his written English, and who talks like a walking twitter handle was going to teach people ESL. I was just as scared as you are reading that sentence.

Not gonna lie, the first few weeks were super tough. I have the genetic makeup and personality to be a teacher, but I don't have a creative bone in my body to come up with material and present it. Luckily, I had some help from volunteers (one from California, and one from the Netherlands) who helped me create lesson plans week after week. Many times my students would ask me tough questions like, why sentences are created the way they are, and what certain words mean (try explaining the word "think" without using the word "think" or "thought" to describe it). I've been speaking English for 23 years and I still don't know how to use words properly. This has made me come to the conclusion that English sucks, and I commend whoever has attempted or succeeded in learning it. My hats off to you.

However, as the weeks went on, I found my groove. I learned how my friends operated in learning, and I grew very close to them. It warmed my heart to watch them be so passionate to learn English, and it warmed my heart even more watching them succeed. Today was the last day of my ESL teaching, and I was extremely sad to leave my new family I had made in just 2 months. They have taught me so much about being grateful and happy in every circumstance, and to persevere through the trials life throws at you. I hope to one day meet up with them again (Insha-allah), as they have impacted my life in so many ways.

My 2 ESL classes

Next on Caleb's Arabian adventure is a journey to Morocco and Turkey for just over 2 weeks! I am SO excited to experience another Arab culture across the African continent from Jordan, and to experience the Turkish culture just north of myself (at the moment).
Side note: The Arabic in Morocco apparently is so different than the Arabic in Jordan. I'm literally gonna be down to knowing 2 words of Arabic by the time I get to Turkey, and then down to 1 word because of everyone speaking Turkish to me. Like actually. This is my life right now, but I wouldn't have it any other way. :)

Just over a month to go! I can't believe it's almost over!
God Bless!
Caleb G