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A Tip on Citizenship

Posted by on June 27, 2014

Earlier this week, I ran into a few problems with my taxi driver. He purposely took a much longer route than necessary, discretely switched my meter to the cost of a previous passenger, and even refused to give me my luggage, all in an effort to scam me out of my money. As a foreigner, I would be justified in feeling targeted, but Moroccans aren’t exactly immune to the same type of dishonesty I experienced, believe it or not.  Having a stable source of income isn’t easy to come by, and many Moroccans have to resort to such methods, or even begging, just to make ends meet. However, for those who have the capacity to make a decent living, I believe that improving one’s citizenship can lead to a more prosperous future.

2014-06-25 09.05.09

My new animal friend of the week.

On our trip to the Sahara desert the weekend before last, we made a stop at perhaps the lowest quality eating establishment I’ve ever set foot in, due to its extremely atrocious service. In America, it is customary to leave a tip even for subpar service, but in Morocco, unpleasant experiences such as these don’t qualify for any sort of compensation. Because of the sheer frequency of my taxi rides and dining experiences, coupled with my compulsion to conserve cash, I’ve become far more selective with the times I do throw in a few extra coins. All it really takes is a simple smile or a warm greeting to really set the tone.

2014-06-21 13.54.53

Delicious meal near our hotel in Agadir, during our final Moroccan excursion of the trip.

But, the reality is that many Moroccans can handle business in really unhealthy ways. Some can be biased towards Americans—and whether we deserve it or not, a predetermined disposition is a hard reality to change, especially when lacking command of the local dialect and having come from two completely different worlds. I’m not generalizing this to the greater whole of Morocco, but regardless of the reason, such attitudes shouldn’t penetrate into business dealings. Every citizen of any country is, to some extent, a liason of sorts, whether he or she would like to or not, especially when considering interactions with foreigners. When those interactions become detrimental to its global identity, and contradict with the laws of the land, it really jeopardizes a nation’s intentions and is extremely harmful, should the trend be perpetuated.

Honestly, I’ve been treated very well in Morocco holistically, and this trip has been wild—one that I would love to have again, but perhaps somewhere else in the world. Even with such drastically different cultures, there are really a lot of things that don’t really change. But it’s about time I got home, to return to the comfort of my own bed and the familiarity of my past existence. Not a lot has changed, but there is going to be a lot more to appreciate.

So for the last time, I’m signing out.

اسلام عليكم

براين –

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