Letters From Abroad: Marley’s Study Abroad Reflection!
by Marley Craine ’25
The end of the year means that many study abroad programs are starting to wrap up – which is exciting for those of us missing friends abroad, but definitely bittersweet for traveling students! This December, the Words reached out to two members of the department community about their experiences studying abroad. First is Marley Craine ’25, an incoming EHS officer and friend of the department. Marley studied in Morocco, and she was very kind to shoot a reflection (and an awesome photo) our way!
As I sit writing this on the balcony of my host home, surrounded by drying laundry, all I can hear are the revs of old car engines, violently honking horns, and the music of passing cars. The weather has just started to change, and I’m shivering in a mild 55 degrees, wondering how I’ll ever acclimate back to Minnesota’s frozen tundra. I didn’t expect it to get so cold here, so I’m dressed in just about every warm layer I brought. I’m studying in Rabat, Morocco this semester and living in an apartment with a host family. There are ten total students in my study abroad program from all over the United States. I didn’t know any of them before this program, but the ten of us are now all incredibly close. I live in my host home with one other student, and every morning we walk up a bustling street about fifteen minutes to our Amideast school building, where American and Moroccan students alike take classes each day. Every morning, we mount five flights of spiraling, narrow stairs and arrive in Arabic class out of breath.
At Macalester, I double major in English and International Studies. Many of my courses here are focused on International Relations, and I’ve been interning at a small think-tank called the Arab Center for Research that works to promote democracy and economic opportunity in the Arab world. I take a French literature course and speak French at home with my host family, and I’ve been learning colloquial Moroccan Arabic—Darija—as well. It is an incredibly difficult language to learn, though each time I understand a word in a conversation or successfully order at a cafe in Arabic instead of French it gives me immense satisfaction. I didn’t expect to be using and learning so much Arabic, but my French has been greatly improving as well, so the more languages the merrier!
I came to Morocco for an immersive French experience and one that did not involve living in Europe. I wanted my study abroad experience to allow me to explore a corner of the world that I wouldn’t be able to understand on my own as a tourist. After being here for less than a month, our program took us to Khenifra, a rural Amazigh village in the Middle Atlas mountains. We stayed with host families and slept on couches under thick, wool blankets in homes that didn’t have running water. We visited a local school and helped them plant trees. We hiked to a waterfall summit and bought fresh figs from a woman on the side of a winding mountain pass. I’ve traveled to nearly all the major Moroccan cities: Tangier, Fes, and Marrakech, with a day-trip to Casablanca in the works, and I even visited the Sahara Desert and rode a camel. On so many of these trips, I felt like I was in another world.
In Rabat, I am in another world, too, even though it is arguably the most modernized and Westernized city as the nation’s capital. I’ve visited Europe twice since being here—France and Spain—and each time I leave Morocco and see a familiar European city, I am reminded of just how different from home Rabat really is. The city is lively and gritty, but clean. People are kind, warm, and considerate. There is a cat on every street corner. I buy good, healthy, and filling meals for $2.50 USD. My fingernails are tinted yellow from eating so many turmeric-seasoned meals with my hands. During the harder moments of this experience, I often deeply miss the comforts of home, but I will never regret my decision to go off the beaten path.
See you soon, Macalester!
Thanks Marley! We’re so excited to see you again soon!