Friday 18 February 2011

Roseville College takes first school expedition to Morocco


In December last year, Roseville College embarked on Antipodeans Abroad's first ever expedition to Morrocco. And from the sound it, this first trip definitely won't be their last.

After a rough flight in to Casablanca, the Roseville students split up into teams and prepared to set out for their community project.

Their first stop was Meknes. While suffering from jet lag, the team was more than happy to settle into their comfortable hotel.

" We all thought Antips was about roughing it and doing travel at a basic level, but no. This was great. Hot showers, comfy beds, elaborately decorated rooms and foyer, and everywhere a feel for what Morocco was going to be like with mosaics and cool pictures lining the walls. Obviously Antips wanted us to settle in and be ready for the adventures ahead."

The next day, the team managed to convince their driver to take them to Chefchaoen, the Marroccan city famous for its blue and white colour scheme. For the students, arriving into Chefchaouen was like experiencing another world.




"The city is completely blue and white, our cameras would never be able to do it justice, a Roseville girl said.

" It was a feast for the eyes to try to take in everything going on around us and not miss a thing."

Funnily enough, the bus rides around Morocco also turned out to be quite an interesting cultural experience.

"For those of you who want a taste of what our bus sounds like, turn on Dynamite by Taio Cruz, change the lyrics to "singing eh oh, we're in Morocco" then do some funky dance moves with your hands in the air whilst remaining safely seated at all times."

Sounds like fun.

En route to Chefchaoen, the group also stopped at Volubilis, home to fascinating ancient ruins that allowed students to see what a town would have been like when the Romans occupied parts of Northern Africa.

"Each gate had three doorways - a large one in the centre for chariots and horses and two on either side for pedestrians. Aside from seeing some great mosaics, we saw the ruins of houses, shops, temples and the market place."

The team also couldn't help but notice the Romans' penchant for phallic symbols used on door knockers, wind chimes and the like. Supposedly, these were used as a sign of health and fertility.

Roseville College's expedition was filled with many other fascinating sights and amazing tales.

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