Day 1 :
Embark on your French Immersion Tour
- Departure from your airport:
Relax and enjoy your scheduled flight from North America.
Day 2 :
Arrive in Morocco
- Upon arrival:
Your International Studies Abroad Program Director will meet you at the airport, and your private coach will be waiting to transfer your group from Casablanca to Meknes.
- Meknes:
Meknes provides visitors and residents intimate views of its unique blend of Islamic and
European influences. While Meknes' population is 713,609, the city has a smaller-town feel to it and remains easy to navigate by foot. Unlike other Moroccan cities such as Marrakech, Casablanca, Fes, and Rabat, Meknes sees relatively few tourists, providing visitors a better opportunity to interact with locals and experience the authentic Moroccan lifestyle. Located in the rich plains below the Middle Atlas Mountains, any culinary experience in Meknes will be crafted from the freshest ingredients. The abundant grains, olives, and citrus fruit native to this region remain Meknes’ economic stronghold.
- Welcome and orientation:
Your group will have an orientation meeting, providing relevant information and useful tools to familiarize yourselves with your host country and the program ahead. You’ll also be introduced to your host families, which is where you’ll be staying for the next six evenings and where breakfast and dinner will be provided daily.
- Daily Reflection and Group Discussion:
"We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience." - John Dewey
On every evening of the program, we’ll set time aside to update your Reflection Journal and share thoughts and impressions that have come up during the day.
Day 3 :
French Language Classes and Walking Tour
- Local expertise:
During your French language immersion tour, you’ll gain the knowledge and insights of half-day local guides in Morocco.
- Language classes:
For the next five mornings, you’ll participate in French language and Moroccan culture classes to enhance your linguistic skills.
- Visit the Bou Inania Madrasa:
A marvel of Islamic architecture, the madrasa is considered one of the best monuments the Marinids have left. Its columns and doors have wonderful decorations, including the writings of carved ornaments.
- Visit the Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail:
A visit to the final resting place of the sultan who made
Meknès the capital in the 17th century should be a rite of passage for those traveling through town. Entry is through a series of austere, peaceful courtyards meant to induce a quiet and humble attitude among visitors.
Day 4 :
French Language Classes and Trip to Fes
- Language classes:
Continue with your French language classes to enhance your linguistic skills.
- Excursion to Fes:
Fes is the spiritual heart of Morocco and is the most ancient of the country's imperial cities. Within the walls of its medina, lies the world's largest, intact medieval city, where narrow streets and dim alleyways wind endlessly up, down, and around, crammed with people, music, sounds, and smells.
- Explore the Medina of Fez:
The world's largest car-free urban area, where donkeys cart goods down the warren of alleyways as they have since medieval times. Seemingly blind alleys lead to squares with exquisite fountains and streets bursting with aromatic food stands, rooftops unveil a sea of minarets, and stooped doorways reveal the workshops of tireless artisans.
- Bouinania Madrasa:
See the Bouinania Madrasa, a group of buildings built between 1350 and 1356 by Sultan Abou Inan, which provide an excellent example of Marinid architecture. The madrasa functioned simultaneously as both an educational institute and as a congregational mosque.
- Souvenir shopping:
Visit traditional Moroccan souks, where you can pick up some traditional gifts.
Day 5 :
French Language Classes and Old Town Tour
- Language classes:
Continue with your French language classes to enhance your linguistic skills.
- Explore the Medina:
Take a walking tour of the Medina (Old Town), which is home to the 12th-century Grand Mosque. Pass through the Bab el-Mansour, the grandest of all imperial Moroccan gateways, into the heart of the Meknes medina at the Place el-Hedim. Before Moulay Ismail swept through town, a kasbah stood on this spot, but once the bab was erected the king ordered for it to be demolished in favor of a broad plaza from which the gate could be better admired.
- Cook Moroccan style!:
Create authentic local foods and sit down to savor your delicious creations. Moroccan cuisine is influenced by Morocco's interactions and exchanges with other cultures and nations over the centuries—a mix of Mediterranean, Arabic, Andalusian, and Berber.
Day 6 :
French Language Classes and Trip to Volubilis
- Language classes:
Continue with your French language classes to enhance your linguistic skills.
- Visit Volubilis:
Volubilis was founded in the 3rd century B.C. as the capital of the Roman province
Mauretania (not to be confused with the modern West-African country of the same name). Built in a beautiful fertile area, the site of Volubilis is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Roman ruins:
Discover the Roman Ruins at Volubilis, which represent the best-preserved archaeological site in Morocco, with only half of the 40-hectare site having been excavated. The city is famous for its mosaics—some of the finest are in the House of Venus, once home to King Juba II. Its Forum includes a series of plinths carved with Latin inscriptions—try to imagine what this ruin once looked like when the plinths were topped by statues of the Roman Empire's great and good.
Day 7 :
French Language Classes and Free Day
- Language classes:
Today is the final day of your French language classes in Morocco. You’ll participate in activities and lessons to demonstrate what you’ve learned over the past week.
- Outings with host families:
You have the rest of the afternoon free to explore the area and spend time with your host families.
Day 8 :
Travel to Casablanca via Rabat
- Depart Meknes:
Today, you’ll travel from Meknes to Casablanca. En route, you’ll stop in Rabat.
- Rabat:
Literally translating to 'fortified place' in Berber, the nation's capital, Rabat, is considered Morocco's most conservative city and displays a civilized orderliness akin to European cities. Located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the river Bou Regreg, Rabat was fortified in 1146 by the Almohad ruler Abd al-Mu'min to use as a launching point for attacks on Spain.
- Andalusian Gardens:
Escape the heat in the shade of the Andalusian Gardens, which were originally constructed during the French protectorate era on the old palace grounds. The palace buildings now
house a museum with various exhibitions of jewelry, clothing, ceramics, and traditional musical instruments.
- Le Tour Hassan:
Visit Le Tour Hassan, the towering minaret of the Hassan Mosque, which began construction in 1195 under the Almohad Yacoub el Mansour. The tower was intended to be 200 feet tall,
but today is incomplete at 145 feet—construction of the mosque was abandoned upon the death of the sultan in 1199. Facing the tower, you’ll also visit one of the country's most important shrines, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V. Your accommodations for the next two nights will be in Casablanca. While here, you’ll enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- Casablanca:
Known locally as Casa, Casablanca is the largest city in Morocco, both in population and economic size, and host to the country's primary naval base. No longer a haven for pirates, Casablanca is a thriving, rather European-feeling center of industry, art, and fashion.
- Hassan II Mosque:
See the Hassan II Mosque, which is the largest mosque in Morocco and the 13th largest in the world—its minaret is the world's tallest at 689 ft.
- Group dinner:
We will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.
Day 9 :
Excursion to Marrakech
- Marrakech:
Marrakech is a vibrant city of marvelous contrasts, from the narrow, car-free streets of the old walled city to the more spacious French colonial areas. Experience the glorious sights and sounds of the timeless souks and the circus atmosphere of the Djemaa el Fna. The oft snow-capped High Atlas Mountains are visible from many parts of the city, behind which lies the Sahara.
- Guided tour:
Enjoy a guided tour of Marrakech on foot. See the Koutoubia Mosque Minaret that dominates the city, the gardens of the beautiful Menara Pavilion, and the Saadian Tombs, a true masterpiece of Hispano-Moresque art.
- Saadian Tombs:
Visit the Saadian Tombs, which are sepulchers in Marrakech dating from the Saadian Dynasty under Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur (1578-1603). Among the graves are those of Ahmad al-Mansur and his family. The mausoleum is composed of three rooms, the most famous being the room with the twelve columns, and comprises the interments of about 60 members of the Saadi Dynasty that originated in the valley of the Draa River.
- Majorelle Garden:
The two-and-one-half-acre Majorelle Garden in Marrakech is a botanical garden and an artist's landscape garden. It took French painter Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) 40 years of passion
and dedication to create this enchanting garden in the heart of the "Ochre City.
"
- Farewell dinner:
Enjoy a special dinner tonight in Marrakech. You’ll be able to enjoy traditional Moroccan music while dining.
- Final Reflection and Discussion Session:
This evening, you’ll make the final entries in your Reflection Journal and share some of the most significant observations and perspectives that have taken shape throughout your French language immersion trip in Morocco. We’ll also discuss how these experiences may be most relevant for us all as we return home.
Day 10 :
Depart for the U.S.
- Bon Voyage!:
Your rewarding and enjoyable French language immersion tour in Morocco comes to an end as your Resident Director accompanies your group to the airport on your final day.
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