Quruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuud!!!

Today I left the house with only one mission in mind: find the monkey forest. I had heard about the monkey forest during orientation from a young woman who had just returned from spending several months in Ifrane, Morocco. She mentioned that there was a forest near Ifrane where you can go and hang out with monkeys. From that moment I knew I had to visit this magical place.

So I met up with nine other students at the hotel and we took two taxi kebeer (big taxi) to Ifrane for 150 dirham per car, with five of us snuggled up tight, two in front, three in the back. The person who sits in the center front, next to the driver (mool attaxi) has the worst position because the driver has to get way in your personal space every time he shifts gears (I fortunately avoided this position).

The drive to Ifrane today was beautiful and the countryside looks strikingly like California's Central Valley (but with less smog). Ifrane is a very pretty town that looks much like any American suburb. There are lawns, wide streets, parks, and a pond. We walked to the university in Ifrane, Jamiat al-Akhawein (University of the Two Brothers). We tried to walk through the gate, but a guard stopped us and said the university was closed and we needed an appointment to visit. After a long argument, he agreed to let us in as long as two of us left a photocopy of our passports for identification. We handed over the photocopies (which our program recommends we take everywhere) and entered. The university looks like any small private college. Once inside we were greeted by a security guard and an administrator who welcomed us and insisted on giving us a tour of the campus.

We walked around the campus and saw the gym, the auditorium, the library, the campus mosque, and a lecture hall. The campus is very beautiful and modern, and caters to English-speaking students (mostly American) who take part in exchange programs. After the extensive tour, we were hungry, so we asked if the restaurant on campus was open. The guard said it was and that we could eat there, though some people in the group found the prices expensive so we decided to look elsewhere. The security guard asked us where we were going, and when we told him we were looking for the monkey forest, he gave us detailed instructions on how to get there and return to Meknes. Then, naturally, he invited us to eat lunch with his family sometime. We said shukran, insha'allah, made our goodbyes and walked to find a restaurant.

After lunch we found two taxi drivers willing to take us to the monkey forest, which we found out is named Sedr Goro. The price was expensive, but we had to pay the taxi to wait for us while we were in the forest because there is no taxi stand near the monkey forest.

Finally at Sedr Goro, we got out of the taxi and some men on beautiful horses rode up to us and asked if we wanted to ride. We politely declined but agreed to take some pictures after he insisted his horses were beautiful and good. A man offered to sell us a bag of peanuts, and one person agreed. After a short conversation about the monkeys, the peanut seller came with us into the forest to show us how to lure the monkeys.

And the monkeys were EVERYWHERE. It was a family, and a couple of the mothers carried babies on their backs. These monkeys have become used to tourists feeding them food, so they're not too shy. When my friend offered one monkey a peanut, he decided to steal the whole bag instead. We hung out with the monkeys for an hour and then returned home in the taxi.

After being dropped off in Meknes, I thought the day's adventure was over, but I ran across a large demonstration on the way home. I asked a young man who was watching what the demonstrations were about, and he said that they were about the upcoming referendum to amend the national constitution on July 1st. Some protesters were with the February 20 Movement (a movement made up of mostly young people who do not support Morocco's current government and operate much like protesters in Egypt and Tunisia) and counter-protesters who support the government. I'll post the two videos I took of the demonstrations as soon as I can. It was amazing to be in the middle of everything, watching the effects of the Arab Spring firsthand. I'm very excited to see what happens in the run up to July 1st and afterward.