The Whole Story - Part 2 of 3

The Middle

Soon after the party, Mohamed went back to the capital (a 14 hour bus ride away) and I officially moved into my own apartment. Life on my own was great and having Mohamed made it even better. In an odd way, being long distance was the perfect scenario.

hanging out in the capital

With PC headquarters also in the capital, I had to go there for medical visits, training sessions and other random activities. These events were all opportunities for me to see Mohamed and when I was there he was my tour guide. We spent days walking the city. It was freeing to be in a place where I didn’t know anyone and didn’t have to worry about people seeing us together. We could hold hands and go to cafes. We visited all of the main attractions and explored all of the places tourists would never go. I had an insider view of the city and loved every second of it.

Seeing the sights

When we weren’t out and about in the city, we were at Mohamed’s hanut (general store). When he was 11 years old, his family sent him to the capital in search of better opportunities. His uncles had a few stores and he moved in with them to learn the business. Soon after I met him, he opened a store on his own (he now has two!). His brother worked with him, but hours in the hanut business are long. He generally works from 7 am to 11 pm and is sometimes lucky enough to get a nap in the afternoon. When I was in town, I’d bring a book or my journal and occasionally reorganize snack cakes. The best part of life in the hanut was all of the delicious food that Mohamed would make for me. He’s an outstanding cook- even with just one pan and a tiny gas stove. I was spoiled.

Me in Mohamed's newest hanut

Since his family lived near my town, he also had a perfectly legitimate excuse to visit a few times per year. Being so sporadic, the sneaking around was minimal and we managed to be together without anyone in town finding out. I lived on the opposite side of town from my host family and the friends I hung out with, so there was never a chance of an unexpected visitor. I also lived in a building with three apartments, so as long as we didn’t go in or out of the building together, no one in town suspected a thing. It was almost as though the stars were perfectly aligned in our favor.
Mohamed hanging out with my host family

Hiking near my town

Being linked by my host family, I was even able to visit Mohamed’s village and meet his family on a few occasions. He has a great family. His mom, Khadija manages the household in the village while his dad works for a major tea producer in Casa- he spent most of his time away only returning for visits a few times per year. He also has three sisters- Fatima and Rkia (older) and Naima (younger). When I met them, all three were single living with their mother in the village, but two are now married and have small children. His two brothers are both younger and work with Mohamed in his stores.

Mohamed's youngest sister Naima at her wedding

When we weren’t together, we spent our time texting. Sometimes 30 messages in a day, but they were significantly cheaper than making calls. A text based relationship seems odd, but even so he was able to help me with my language skills and it never seemed like he was very far away. Knowing he was there got me through many difficult times and I’m not sure that I would have survived the full two years without Mohamed.

Thanks for everyone’s patience—Part three will be out soon!

it's so cold!

My store keeper says "welcome to teresa's update!!"

He is my main food man, i just walk across the street!

(yep, that is the toilet paper i was about to buy)

it's officially winter. i mean, it's been chilly for a while now, but now i'm just freezing my booty off. this morning i woke up, and for the first time, wasn't toasty warm under my four blankets. "this is odd" i thought as i felt a little chill. then i looked at my handy dandy clock thermometer. 47 degrees in my apartment.

the snow is beautiful!

in fact, as i sit here typing this to you all, my hands are so cold that they can only move very sluggishly. tried typing with my fleece gloves, but that just makes it too bulky. The mountains around town are covered in snow. while this makes for extremely picturesque scenery, it makes me just about willing to give my left arm for a furnace.

hmmm or maybe i could roll myself into one of these rugs?

so whats the big news these days. well, yesterday i got a new bike. it's a trek bike, and apparently cost over 500 dollars, so basically PC will kill me if anything happens to it. But wow, it's really zwine (beautiful). i went on my first ride this morning, but despite the daily running that i've been doing for the past 2 1/2 months i felt like i was going to die. my heart was racing, my legs were hurting. Really makes me realize how out of shape i still am.

i participated in making couscous for the first time at the home

of some new friends. mmm mmm good!

in other news, my theater club actually held a little performance on friday night. the actors were excited, and we had a crowd full of siblings and friends. despite not having much time for rehearsals, they pulled it off, and i consider this a large accomplishment. It proves that we actually can get something done, and i think we can only go up from here.

our performers and the teachers who lead the whole thing

spectators!

On thursday i'm leaving town for a little work and a little play. i have to go up to the capital for my mid-term physical, and have added a few vacation days before and after to make a nice little vacation. i'm going to visit some friends in the mountains who live close to an incredible waterfall, and then to an old roman city all in ruins.

these "snack carts" sell candy, nuts, seeds and lots of goodies

and are located all over town! this is by far the best one

i've seen in this country.

despite how great work has been the last few months, i am ready to get out for a bit. my location certainly makes me feel secluded and i'm getting a little stir crazy. The last night away will be christmas eve at a friends house, and then i will arrive back home on christmas day. maybe i'll make myself a little christmas feast.

maybe my feast will include peas. do you see how

many peas i shelled to get this tiny little bowl!!!! ridiculous!!!

but they are just so much better fresh. i tell you, canned peas

should not even be called peas. they dont taste the same at all!!!

I hope you all had a great thanksgiving and are fully in the holiday spirit. i love and miss you all!

this is my santa. i bought it for about 1 dollar

from that cart you saw earlier. sweet!

I am one spoiled little girl. thanks family!

this is my christmas tree. courtesy of my lovely sister. apparently it will grow when i add the magic water. i'll let you all know how it goes! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!

-I would like to say a big thanks to my dad, sue and little david for sending me a new camera for christmas. all of the pictures on this page were taken with it, and dont they just look fabulous!!-