So I'm not sure if many of you know.... but most of Morocco is pretty much desert. Exhibit A:
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(I'm dead serious)
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSunsDNslj8pDboIfMQq6ICB-vnON31w6QyixZbPCVb8Iib8aIE3Q&t=1 |
Because of this, Morocco is often in a state of drought, putting a premium on the water supply. The government is currently enforcing some solutions to be able to sustain the entire country's water needs, but they mostly target the urban and wealthy coastlines. The OPEC Fund for International Development donated 15 million to Morocco to help jumpstart its new water supply program to double to country's storage capacity. But what about the people in the rural villages of the Atlas mountains? While 98% of city-dwellers have access to pure water, only 56% of people in rural areas have the same privilege.The large amount of contaminated water is due to common soil erosion, human waste, and oil spills. Now, let me introduce you to someone.
Meet Bader.
He is super cute, super rambunctious, but also really hates getting baths from his mother:
As you can see, the water spurts out a fountain on the side of a building. There were two places you could retrieve water in my village, and they both happened to be at the top of a hill. The women there were extremely tough and hauled water back and forth up and down the hill to transport it back to their homes where they would use it for drinking, cleaning, cooking, and laundry. However, all of the luxuries that we take advantage of here do not exist in Morocco, especially in the villages. While I take a nice shower everyday and change my clothes in the morning and at night, an average rural Moroccan wears the same clothes for over a week (making laundry day every couple weeks, rather than days) and rarely takes showers.
During my stay in the village, I did not have to drink this water. In fact, it was forbidden as we would most likely fall ill from some parasite. Instead, we were lucky enough to have access to dozens of jugs of water we had brought in from the city. It was a little sad and awkward to not be able to share my water with my family, and to have to drink out of a Nalgene bottle at the dinner table. I don't think they quite understand what would happen to me if I drank their water... it would not be pretty. Luckily in this village, however, the contamination in the water is fairly low. But, there is by no means easy access to it and does not allow the village to be efficient in its use. Imagine if you had to go to a well every time you needed water... yikes.
Never did I encounter a typical dining room set in Morocco, even in the cities. Before my trip to Morocco, I had no idea what kind of food I was in for. I thought I would have to become accustomed to really spicy food (I have never done well with hot food), but it all seemed to be the contrary. The food was full of flavor, yet it was totally bearable for my wimpy taste buds. As you can see in the photo, an entire family can eat out of one dish. They usually don't use silverware, but during our stay my family felt obligated to provide me with a spoon. A real Moroccan uses the meal staple that at one point, everyone on the trip felt as their enemy. It is called khobz. You rip off a piece and use it as your scooping tool to get to all the goodies in the communal dish. There were usually a range of vegetables then chicken or lamb. I really tried not to think about how the animals walking around outside were potentially my meal for the next day...eek.
As you can see, the water spurts out a fountain on the side of a building. There were two places you could retrieve water in my village, and they both happened to be at the top of a hill. The women there were extremely tough and hauled water back and forth up and down the hill to transport it back to their homes where they would use it for drinking, cleaning, cooking, and laundry. However, all of the luxuries that we take advantage of here do not exist in Morocco, especially in the villages. While I take a nice shower everyday and change my clothes in the morning and at night, an average rural Moroccan wears the same clothes for over a week (making laundry day every couple weeks, rather than days) and rarely takes showers. 
During my stay in the village, I did not have to drink this water. In fact, it was forbidden as we would most likely fall ill from some parasite. Instead, we were lucky enough to have access to dozens of jugs of water we had brought in from the city. It was a little sad and awkward to not be able to share my water with my family, and to have to drink out of a Nalgene bottle at the dinner table. I don't think they quite understand what would happen to me if I drank their water... it would not be pretty. Luckily in this village, however, the contamination in the water is fairly low. But, there is by no means easy access to it and does not allow the village to be efficient in its use. Imagine if you had to go to a well every time you needed water... yikes. 
