04.03.24 – 20:47 – my bed in the hostel Bayt Alice
I wanna try something else and turn this into a real diary-diary. That’s basically what I’ve been working up to by cramming everything from Barcelona to Cadiz into two posts and I think I like it. Now, as you can see, I am just writing whenever it feels right to do so and wayyy before I release the post. Just jotting down my thoughts, straight from my brain to the screen. I have arrived in Morocco which was a really – I’m looking for an adjective – interesting experience. There are too many adjectives that would fit the situation. Honestly, mentally I’m not quite there yet. Or rather not quite here yet. There was so much going on and since my brain takes a long time to process stuff and always needs a bit of help by writing or other measures I haven’t processed any of it yet. Which this is for anyway. It’s always crazy to think „this morning I was still in …“ because that place seems so far away now. The people I’ve met in Cadiz have become my group to be with and now they’re gone again and I’ve moved to a different continent. Like what. It’s crazy looking back at even just one whole day: walking to the bus station in Cadiz, waiting for the bus, taking the bus, walking through Tarifa, going through security and stuff like that, taking a ferry to Morocco and then walking to the hostel. All of that being accompanied by so many people and impressions in general. And languages as well in this case. It’s seriously crazy. It’s gonna take a bit to process.
There’s so much I need to get out of my brain and this format, this way of writing, feels perfect for it. Even here in the hostel there are so many noises and languages going on. I’m in a room with an Australian guy and a young woman from the Netherlands. I’ve heard people speak Spanish, French, English, German and Arabic today and in this hostel (not sure about Spanish, but I heard that enough in Spain to count. Also maybe Tamazight as well, I don’t know how that sounds yet) – and now I’ve lost my train of thought by googling how Tamazight was called again, which in and of itself, only that language, is probably interesting enough to write and learn sooo much about. It’s so good feeling the excitement about everything. Realizing that makes me feel just a bit more at peace, but there is still so so much more in my brain. It maybe needs a bit more time to settle to put it into words.
I love how this is already longer than the last few posts.
05.03.24 – 16:24 – Rooftop Bayt Alice
Greetings from the food coma. It’s quite rare that you get enough moments of time alone to be in the right headspace to write. But right now I’m digesting, literally and mentally, so I’m just laying around on this beautiful rooftop and doing nothing. Morocco is interesting. Well, at least Tanger is. But I bet the rest is as well. The city is very lively, I just went through it. Lots of tiny stores which sell different things, the whole old town is sort of a street market right now. They sell lots of things one would expect from a clichee touristy Arabic market: lots of food, traditional robes, jewlery, football jerseys, etc. But what I found most interesting is that soo many people talk to you. Whether it be all the people showing me the direction to the hostel yesterday or the people who talk to me on the street. Quite a different vibe. I mean, they eventually wanna sell you something, but I haven’t met a single person who is not kind while doing so. And a lot of them know German as well, because catching their target group, I guess. Interesting anyway. For now, I’m too tired to continue writing. I’mma take a nap.
05.03.24 – 19:19 – still on the rooftop
I’ve noticed that I’m not as social as I was during the last few stops. It may be about the people – who are very nice, don’t get me wrong, but I think they are just now completely my vibe. And also, there have been so many new experiences and impressions here, that I think that my brain uses its energy to process all those and has none left to be social. Which is fair, honestly.
06.03.24 – 07:30 – Tanger port
This post ends where the last one did: in a waiting area at a port. This time on the other side, tho.
First thing I’d like to mention is that yesterday, right after writing about how I didn’t have enough energy to be social, I had some great and long conversations. In the kitchen on the rooftop with Alice or in my room with Dan as well, such a fun guy. Clichee-Brit. It’s more about the people than about how busy my brain is, is what I would deduct from that. It was a nice finish to this little detour to Africa. But still, my brain is busy and since it gets overwhelmed very easily by even just a slightly-bigger-than-usual cognitive load Morocco has been quite interesting. There is a lot to take in and a lot of things are very different here.
When you go here you obviously also have to think about the politics, geopolitics and refugees. Latter is not, from what I picked up, such a big topic when compared to Lybia for example, but you can’t help but think about it when you – as a European – go to Northern Africa.
Life here does not feel that bad. Obviously, there is always room for improvement and the quality of life may not be on the level of Europe for example, but I would say Morocco is a lively country on its way up. I mean, I’ve just been here for two nights, but that has been my impression during this fairly short time.
When sitting here at the port and looking at the sunrise over the water I can’t help but feel the end of my trip getting closer. Time really moves fast when there is always something going on: in a week I’ll be back in Germany and in two I’ll be sitting in uni again. That is a weird feeling. But to be honest, I’m already looking forward to my own bed and the (relative) silence of Northern Germany again.
I think this post could honestly never be finished. The longer time goes on the more I’ll remember little bits and pieces which will suddenly just pop up in my mind, but right now – I am too tired and that doesn’t happen. Well, the sun is rising and today I’ll make my way to Gibraltar. Spain feels almost like a second home by now, I’ll be happy when their language is around me again.
Either way, Morocco was cool. I am tired. The sun is rising and water is wet. See you in a bit. شكرًا
-Louis, 23, by now one with his yellow hoodie
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