Preparing for a Moroccan Adventure

Hi everyone! My name is Brooke, and I am so excited to be able to blog about my CIEE Teach Abroad Morocco experience.

A little bit about me. I was born and raised in California, and while past travel adventures have taken me to southeast Asia and eastern Europe, I have never traveled to any place like Morocco. I hope to someday work in international affairs, and so continuing to broaden my cultural sensitivities is one of the main reasons I chose Morocco as my teaching destination.

It is t-minus 25 days until I fly off to begin my homestay and orientation in Rabat, before settling into my teaching routine in Mohammadia. This is a dream come true! I am so thankful that everything has thus far come together without too many hiccups… especially now that I have my FBI background report in hand.

As part of applying for my work permit in Morocco, I had to submit fingerprints and paperwork for a FBI background check. While live scan facilities are recommended, the nearest one is in San Francisco (aka too far), which is why I chose to go to a local company that does "old school" fingerprinting. (Meaning that I actually sent in a physical card with my fingerprints (gasp!), and thus began my mini-heart attack of this whole process.)

FUN FACT: you do not need a ORI number, even though various websites will say that you do as an individual. Now what is an ORI number you may ask? The ORI number is the number of the originating agency and the handbook on the FBI website led me to believe that I would need this information filled out; however, other people were telling me that I didn’t need it. Eventually I ended up calling the FBI-approved channeler that CIEE recommended and they cleared up my confusion in a jiffy, but before I called them, as by the time I had realized that I had no idea what an ORI number was their office was closed, I consulted my fellow teachers in our Facebook group.

Thank goodness for my incredible fellow teachers!! They offered up their own experiences leading me to discover that, indeed, I had chosen the "old school style" of fingerprinting submission, and had thus complicated my life in a totally unnecessary way. Even though, geographically, they were hundreds of miles away, it felt as if my fellow teachers were right there beside me. Throughout these past couple of months, in the moments of loneliness, having a place where we can all come together is truly incredible!

I am so grateful that as soon as I "met" the other teachers (via my program coordinator's email), I reached out, and soon we'd all emailed our introductions to one other and started a Facebook group. I don't know what I would have been doing all this time without them. We've already discussed clothing, plane tickets, housing, and now the most important topic of all: luggage (to bring one bag or two? a backpacking backpack? etc.)

As the clock continues to count down towards my departure, I am dedicated to making the most of my time left in the states. Hiking familiar trails, watching the newest episodes of Game of Thrones (before I lose my access), and spending time with my friends and family. 

(Taken at Shiloh Ranch Regional Park, CA this past weekend. "Just a little bit farther they said," and 2 miles later (luckily with no foot blisters given my shoe attire), we arrived at the top of the hill and were met with gorgeous views.)