Camp Moroccan Style

What is Moroccan spring camp? Whenever I think about camp, pictures of lake-side cabins pop into my head. I think of arts and crafts and swimming and outdoors activities. Let me make it clear…. Moroccan camp is a week of a different sort. So to start off with, how did I, as a youth developer become a camp counselor? Well as youth PCVs as a part of our job we dedicate 3 weeks a year to teaching at English Immersion camps, 1 week in the spring and 2 again in the summer.

So last week I got the distinct privilege of being one of the 4 peace corps volunteers at the Khemisset English immersion spring camp. The days flowed, or were at least scheduled to flow similar to camps in America. In the morning we got up bright and early and sang some high energy camp songs, then breakfast with a lack of true coffee (which in turn caused me to wake up even earlier to grab a much needed cup from the corner café nearby) . Following that we had 2 hours of English class, 2 hours of sports, 1 hour of free time, lunch, and then “clubs” (ie, art, music, theatre, dance) for the afternoon. Then dinner and a fun activity/ dance party at night.

So ideally it looks like a packed schedule right? Have I mentioned yet in this blog that I am working in Morocco, where the schedule has NOOOO power ? So in reality not one single day did we complete this exact schedule. But nonetheless we all found time to have fun. I taught my 35 English students to say phrases such as “your get-up is ballin’” or instead of greeting my fellow PCVs in arabic or proper English, my kids were running around screaming “yo, yo, yo, wazzzzup?” to everyone.

One of my favorite moments was during one of my spontaneous salsa dancing classes when I began to teach a little bit of hip hop and the kids ate it up and insisted we create a full routine to do at the final show the next day. Although it was a crazy week the enthusiasm and truly universal things 12-17 year olds do, made me smile the whole week through. By the end I had girls crying on my shoulder in the bathroom saying how much they were going to miss me which, a week later, has resulted in about 800 new facebook friends, half of whom I am not even sure attended spring camp J

I loved the experience; it reminded me what it was like to be going through those truly awkward, early high school years and it made me appreciate where I am now. I love being able to help these kids learn how to dance, or speak English, or throw down the newest slang but it’s more then that. Weeks like last week remind me about the passion and desire of each individual kid I meet, whether there be a linguistic barrier or not. If for no other reason, I hope my time here can touch just a few individuals. I think one of the major things lacking in the lives of the youth I work with is a true support system for their passions. I hope that through showing interest and giving whatever help I can, these amazing kids can feel just a little more empowered to reach for their dreams.