Leaving Los Angeles

From Salt Lake City
Yes, I have much to write retroactively on Morocco. And yes, much has to happen to get from Tangier to Salt Lake City. I'm going to jump forward a bit, then back in later posts.
I left Los Angeles quietly. No nostalgia, no fanfare, no turmoil, no second thoughts, no difficulties short of needing to return the cable box to Time Warner. There was a moment when I was sitting in my empty living room, save for a few more items I needed to pack in the car, eating a salad leftover from dinner the night before, staring at what seemed to be a huge empty space, that I realized what I was doing: changing jobs and moving 3000 miles to another life. It was actually happening. And it better be happening considering three moving men had just finished loading my "stuff" onto a very large truck. When I shut my door to apartment 33 for the last time, George and Gracie in their carriers at last, I felt done.
At noon on Monday August 11, I filled my tank (at $4.29/gal) at a Chevron in Hollywood and slid onto the 101, headed for the 405 interchange. As I merged onto the 5 on the other side of the San Fernando Valley, I didn't look back. Last week friends did grace me with farewell/good luck dinners and with these small gatherings, I felt quite comfortable saying goodbye, but with a definite eagerness to anticipate what's to come. So far I don't feel stressed with the move or the long drive as much just needing to perform some tasks. Now that I'm on the road, it's a matter of the next gas station, the next hotel, shushing the meowing cats so I can get some sleep, etc.
For the record, while it may not make mileage sense to head north on the 5 to pick up the I-80 near Sacramento, yesterday's drive into Truckee--where I spent the night--and today's drive to Salt Lake City made it worth it. I did do the 15 through Utah and the 40 across the southwest last summer. What I haven't done as an adult is drive the I-80 between Tahoe and Salt Lake City. I think leaving California via the Sierras was a nice way to do it. Then there was the snowy white salt flats stretching far and wide, simmering under a hazy sky, just over the border of Nevada into Utah.
To continue a habit from last summer, I spotted some funny signage today:
1. "Fog may be icy" -- this on a diamond yellow sign of course. A weather phenomenon I apparently have not encountered since I don't know what this means!

2. An advertising "poem" for the highway. Small so easy to miss. Each line is on its own rectangular sign and the signs are placed about 25 yards apart:
A good shot of tequila
Cold beer on tap
We got some pretty 'wimmins'
To sit on your lap
Wild Horse Saloon
Exit 28

Cheapest gas thus far: $4.02. I saw $3.53, but foolishly I waited because at the time I had half a tank. Tomorrow, my goal is Cheyenne. All this when two weeks ago I attended an elegant, traditional engagement party in Rabat.
more to come...

Cookies & Darija

Finally some time at a siber. After a 28 hour delay at JFK, our intrepid, good natured group took off for Casablanca where we landed the next day at noon. A full day later than was arranged. My week (yes I am with 14 other Fulbrighters, but for this blog, I'll speak for myself) in Rabat was a headspinning introduction to l'Maghreb with 4 hour language classes (Darija Arabic, but it certainly helped I had had beginning Standard Arabic prior to this trip) in the morning followed by a hearty lunch at the school; then we were whisked away to the Fulbright Commission for 2 lectures followed by my discovery of the century: cookies. Not your ordinary cookies mind you, but I dare anyone to find cookies of various kinds that are better than these. Traditional Moroccan varieties (gazelle horns are among my favorite) and French versions of other Maghrebi pastries. Darija with Hassan (a more than capable teacher with the patience of a saint), lectures on 20th century political history, Moroccan francophone literature, women's rights, women and Islam, the 2004 Moudawana, and a reading by Leila Abouzeid--this was the week. I have managed to read two books and have started my third. I really should blame my lack of sleep on my reading.
On Saturday morning, we left the cookies and our darija classes behind and departed for Tetouan and then Tangier. In its medina, we had a lecture on the social and cultural history of Tetouan through the study of its architecture and urban planning. An exhausting walking tour, but one of the best learning experiences I've ever had. Tangier is far larger than I expected and while it does not come close to Cairo in scale and population, the throngs of people and honking horns do remind me of Cairo. Of course, the Mediterranean ensures a comfortable 85. In the future, I will try to avoid the boring travelogue. The next siber opportunity--who knows.
bsmallah.
lcr

On the Road to Morocco

Well,not a road exactly. A flight path. If we could get on a plane, that is. Stuck at Ramada JFK is far from ideal. Hoping to arrive in Morocco tomorrow sometime this week! More later. Time's up.