This week was nice, I got to walk down through the market area with Myrna, which was fabulous. Basically, it's called the Medina (city, in Arabic) and it's what Chefchaouen is famous for - the older part of town is full of narrow alleys, with the buildings plastered and washed down with a lovely sky blue. Incredibly beautiful - I'll do a photo-wander over there before I leave, believe me! Our walk over there was cool too - the part of the city is higher up the mountain, about level with the house I'm staying at (the city is on th side of the mountain, so everything is on a hill here). When walking past buildings as they started becoming more frequent, the alley ways inbetween them plunce four stories at a time, making for incredibly steep walking paths falling away to the right as you wander along the street, which is absolutely gorgeous.
The Medina itself is famous on Thursdays, when the fresh produce is brought in from the hills by the Berber women and market-men. The small alleys were lined with old women with vegetables and herbs lying on the pavement to buy - you duck through an archway with fish in boxes driven in from the coast on to the next round of older women. The farther in you wander, the less people there are, an occasional shop popping up here and there - and then you start getting to the touristy old-town, where souvenir shops with their colourful and odorous (in a pleasant way) wares hanging and blowing in the breeze in the tiny, steep alleys. Keep in mind, everything that is part of a building is sky blue, with doors and window bars in violent turquoise or royal blue flush. It eventually led us out to the square with restaurants and postcards in abundance (after passing through an amazing little jewelry store full of silver gorgeousness!). We eventually got down to the local commercial district and got vegetables for the children at the hospital, but it was absolutely gorgeous. Loved it.
Today was a nice visit from Dr.Solis and his wife, who came to pick up Anita and take her to Spain for the week. They shifted me to the living quarters upstairs, as we'll soon have two more volunteers coming to stay, so we'll all be staying in the same area. Meh, I like downstairs, but if they insist, I'll come upstairs.
Myrna and I were able to find the Germany vs. England game on a German TV channel that she has on her TV, and let me tell you, it was an experience. Watching and hearing commentary in German while bantering in Spanish and explaining why I'm laughing at the commentary is a brain-jam. Hurts the mind, but was totally worth watching. THAT is how you play football gentlemen - no giant falls and dramatic fouls because you almost got tripped - there were five or six instances during this game that probably would have resulted in a major foul, if not a card for any of the teams from the Americas, France or Africa, but the Germans and English played on, knowing that there was something far more interesting and worth-while than a show of their acting prowess. I was sooooo proud of them! n_n And my heart was torn in twain the whole time, as I feel a sense of loyalty to both teams, though I'll admit I was fairly firmly rooting for Germany the first half of the game. Why only the first half? Because the underdog has my heart! I really think the Lions should have been given the goal that bounced from the post - it was technically in, and would have allowed for a little less loss of pride for those fabulous Saxons. But there you go - we can't all have our way. Regardless, great game.
After the game while a bunch of commentary was going on, interviews of players and coaches and flashes of Berlin going nutters, Myrna and I were talking about random things, like family, family history, things we enjoy or things that go on while we're here. Come to find that she is from El Salvador, not Honduras as I'd originally thought, and lived there during the entire civil war, which gives me a sense of great respect for that woman, who as a young woman (14-26 years of age) lived with untold terror. I've only learned a little about the war, and it's something that breaks my heart. If you've never watched the film 'Voces Innocentes' and really want a feel for the war, I'd recommend it. Now, as Myrna pointed out, it's no where near as terrible as the real thing was, which I completely agree with - films never are. But it's still incredibly graphic, and made me weep for a good thirty minutes. It is, however, as close to a true-voice of that era as you can get - from the point of view of the children. Hearing Myrna tell me just a little about the war, living through it, and its effects on her life while there, it just breaks my heart, yet gives me a deeper understanding of what she and others went through during a conflict that tore a country in two. I started off typing 'a great understanding' - really though, there is no way to understand unless you were there. But it helped me see through her eyes a little more. If I had more material to base off of, or some paper, I'd totally not mind asking her for more details and writing them up, but I won't do that unless I have good use for it - no need to make her relive it. Although I did learn something interesting - right now, a good number of middle-aged women are unmarried, because the boys their ages were almost all killed during the war. She commented on the fact that some people ask if she's single due to faith or lack of motivation, and she pointed out that it's extremely common for women her age - there just aren't enough men to be husbands. Kind of eye-opening to me, but there you go.
Overall, a good week - today was a lovely day off, and I plan on having another lovely relaxing day tomorrow before working on Tuesday. This week is oddly planned, but I'll be working Tues/Thurs/Sun. Friday and Saturday we're all heading to Ceuta to pick up the other volunteer coming to us for a month, and shall spend a night down there. That'll give us a chance to relax for an evening in town, pick up any supplies that are hard to find here, and just have a bit of an adventure. Woo hoo!
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