It's bad over here people, bad. The heat is really on. I am no where near the Sahara Desert so I can't even imagine how my friends down there are feeling. But I, in the more tropical climate of Morocco, am having a hard time getting through the days.
Summers have proven to be some of the toughest parts of my service. For example today I have no running water, my apartment feels like an oven even though my shutters are closed to block the sun's direct rays, and my gas tank for my stove just ran out. I have to cook just about everything I eat and to refill it I have to carry the tank downstairs, hope someone is open to buy a refilled one, and cart it back to my apartment in this monstrous heat.
As you read a couple days earlier I just got back from a weekend away. I hadn't showered in four days and in those four days I went to a very sandy beach, was covered in sticky sunscreen, got the worst windblown and sandy hair, and rode a bus for seven hours. I really needed a shower. But when I went to the faucet it made a sound like a dramatic cartoon coughing out its last breath. Now it just makes no sound and my faucets just seem like they would be something just on display at Home Depot.
Each time I try the sink with no luck I am almost brought to tears. It makes keeping myself and my house clean very difficult. I have several gallons of water stored but it's not a way to take a shower and to wash dishes I have to awkwardly pour water over them from the heavy bottles. Flushing the toilet is another whole story. I also start to ration my water use. Knowing that the most important is for drinking.
I have to leave for a two week stay at summer camp on Friday and I hope to take clean clothes. However I'm not sure when I will be able to do laundry before then.
Another thing about summer is there is nothing to do. Aside from my two week stint at summer camp and later on my vacation to the UK (Yay!) I don't have much else on my plate. This is both good and bad. Good because the summer heat makes everyone so lazy, sometimes it's tough to use any brain power at all. Bad because it's really boring sitting alone in your house all day.
The best thing keeping me going is knowing that this is my last Moroccan summer to endure. And the harshness of the heat should let up slightly in September, so I only have two months of hell ahead. But while you are in it, it feels like forever.
Summers have proven to be some of the toughest parts of my service. For example today I have no running water, my apartment feels like an oven even though my shutters are closed to block the sun's direct rays, and my gas tank for my stove just ran out. I have to cook just about everything I eat and to refill it I have to carry the tank downstairs, hope someone is open to buy a refilled one, and cart it back to my apartment in this monstrous heat.
As you read a couple days earlier I just got back from a weekend away. I hadn't showered in four days and in those four days I went to a very sandy beach, was covered in sticky sunscreen, got the worst windblown and sandy hair, and rode a bus for seven hours. I really needed a shower. But when I went to the faucet it made a sound like a dramatic cartoon coughing out its last breath. Now it just makes no sound and my faucets just seem like they would be something just on display at Home Depot.
Each time I try the sink with no luck I am almost brought to tears. It makes keeping myself and my house clean very difficult. I have several gallons of water stored but it's not a way to take a shower and to wash dishes I have to awkwardly pour water over them from the heavy bottles. Flushing the toilet is another whole story. I also start to ration my water use. Knowing that the most important is for drinking.
I have to leave for a two week stay at summer camp on Friday and I hope to take clean clothes. However I'm not sure when I will be able to do laundry before then.
Another thing about summer is there is nothing to do. Aside from my two week stint at summer camp and later on my vacation to the UK (Yay!) I don't have much else on my plate. This is both good and bad. Good because the summer heat makes everyone so lazy, sometimes it's tough to use any brain power at all. Bad because it's really boring sitting alone in your house all day.
The best thing keeping me going is knowing that this is my last Moroccan summer to endure. And the harshness of the heat should let up slightly in September, so I only have two months of hell ahead. But while you are in it, it feels like forever.