Have you ever been to....?

Have you ever been to a place, which you have liked so much wanted to write about? Yes, that is my case; I have to say that it gave me this feeling of being home. Before I arrived to my destination where I am supposed to work for three months. The stories and experiences i was told bout the place gave me this kind of image as if it is difficult to live there, especially, for its escalating zigzagging roads and small alleys.

On my way, I couldn’t wink for the landscape was astonishing. On my arrival, I noticed how crowded it is; shops and restaurants everywhere, people from all around Morocco and the world, I could not help but take a five minutes just to realize that it was the right place, Moulay Driss Zerhoune, a small town located northern Morocco, it is spread over two hills at the base of mountain Zerhoun, the holy town of Moulay Idriss Zerhoune holds a special place in the hearts of us as Moroccans, Moulay Driss Zerhoun arrived in 789, bringing with him the religion of Islam, and starting a new dynasty. In addition to founding the town named after him, he also initiated construction of Fez, continued later by his son, Moulay Driss II.

I started walking around caring my backpack without feeling its heaviness. I took a close look at the shops and some places nearby before I had to go to my place that I did not yet know where it was; I only had an address and a person to call to guide me to it. I called the person, he was happy to hear my voice, he was the Cheikh (Chieftain) of the town, his name was Kacem; a very welcoming and kind person. While walking me to my place, he started showing and giving me information of each place we pass by. We stopped next to a wooden door; its decoration symbolizes the Moroccan culture.......

I called for the landlord to check if she is there, after a while, she opens the door and welcomed us with a huge smile on her face; Entering the house she seemed very welcoming and happy, we sat down and after introducing myself to her, she insisted on bringing tea and cookies, we started talking about different kind of topics, then I gave her the papers to sign (the rental receipt and contract). She showed me around, and I was surprised and could not believe that it was actually the place I am going to live in for the next three months; I wished it were for longer.

The decoration, furniture, and every inch of my apartment was Moroccan in all word’s meaning, still I was more astonished when she opened the windows, yes, the landscape was marvelous; the hills, waterfalls, and mountains. Moments later, she showed me the roof, and I could not believe how nice and calm it was, she created this kind of a space that can take the person to another world of peace, and thoughts, lets just say; if you enter that house and walk around, you will be visiting all Morocco.

The only thing I did for the rest of the night was exploring each piece of my place and looking closely at each decoration, it was a long night; I was told by the landlord that I will have enough sleep if I sleep only for three hours, she was dead right. I slept late and woke up early in the morning, yet I woke up and felt I had enough sleep, maybe it was the excitement to go out, It was a beautiful morning. I have never been better before, just opening the windows gave me this feeling of happiness and peace. Moments later, I went out for breakfast and I chose a coffee that covers the view of the square (Biir Anzaren), I made a check list of things to do all day, one of these things was to see the Host Families and to get in contact with local authorities...

I had the addresses and started walking around looking for each address which was so exciting that I could get to visit different families of the area, get in contact with them and see how they live. Each Host Family welcomed me in the same way; they were very happy, understanding and respectful. For me, I used to take my shoes off when I step in, but they insisted to keep them on, it is a tradition maybe, because it was the case for all the Host families.