Ah, Orientation. Some love it, some hate it, most go through it in some way and at some time of their life. Orientation Rocky Mountain College style involves a long trip into the woods, playing games and meeting people.
Orientation here at Al Akhawayn has involved less woods (since we’re already in the woods), plenty of people, and LARGE AMOUNTS of administration blah-dity-crap. Apparently each of us has to re-register via paper, since the portal system is not set up for exchange studnets. Which sounds simple, but usually involves two hours of waiting in line, tracking down the necessary signatures, and then waiting in line again for books. AND many of the classes are full, so you can have your perfect schedule foiled by one closed class.
We also went filled out residency permits and health forms, but more will be done tomorrow. The international office presented slides on the process of adapting to the new environment, some of which was interesting, most of which was not. In general, the whole thing is quite disorganized, with schedule and plan changes happening almost hourly. It should be noted that this is a holiday for them, and culturally, time and order just are not as emphasized as in western culture.
The Arabic placement test was this morning. I took one look at it and decided beginner was for me. Although I had taken one semester one Arabic last year (a serious disadvantage of coming here as a sophomore!), I was informed the book we took all semester to cover is covered in this class in about a three weeks. I don’t think I’ll be bored. Almost everyone here speaks at least two languages, most people speak four or five. I will admit to feeling slight inadequate in that department and self conscious of my lack of language and travel experience. When everyone is chattering around you and you understanding nothing, it can become isolating. I try to just keep my chin up and show them what the “Rocky Difference” really is.
That said, I have met a lot of great people I don’t feel isolated from. I spent most of my time after dinner with two very sweet freshman Moroccan girls who played guitar and sang Coldplay songs. This week (it is a holiday and most Moroccan students will go home) I will go to Merrakesh with two girls from Italy, two guys from Germany, a guy from Denmark, and two US Army guys, one of whom as been here about eight months. We plan on leaving Saturday night and getting back here Thursday at the latest for class on Friday. More posts about that adventure later, and pictures of campus hopefully before I leave!
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