Day 30: Home and Final Thoughts

No pictures today but I wanted to end my blog with my final thoughts on this experience.

I'm on one of my three flight on my way back to Austin.   I woke up this morning at 3:30 am to get to the airport on time and it will essentially be 4am on my 'Moroccan body clock' when I get back to Austin at 10 pm on Saturday.  Hard to put into words how much that I'm looking forward to seeing my family again.

It will likely take me weeks and even months to fully absorb this experience but it has truly been an experience of a lifetime.  I am so fortunate to work for a company like IBM that make programs like the IBM Corporate Service Corps (CSC) a priority.   During this trip, I've had the chance to study some of the other 150 similar trips to emerging market countries that other IBM CSC teams have made.  It's amazing to see some of the work that has been done in the five years that IBM has had this program in place and all of the lives that have been changed and improved because of it. 

I've always been very proud to say that I'm an IBMer but I have a deeper appreciation of its corporate culture and overall values after being a part of this great program.    I'm not sure who at IBM I need to thank for allowing me to participate in this program and travel to Morocco for a month, but I am deeply thankful of being given this opportunity.  I certainly know that I need to thank my manager, Jason Risley, for supporting me being a part of this program and for essentially doing my job for a month in addition to his own.  :-)

I think one of the great things about international travel is that it allows you to see and experience other cultures.  In my case, it always gives me a deeper appreciation .... both of other countries and cultures but also of home.  I've listed below some of what I have enjoyed - and missed most - while on this trip.

What I’ve missed most from home:

• Family!   You simply can’t put into words how much I miss seeing Paul, Thomas, and John every day.  I can’t wait to get home to give everyone a big hug.   I also missed being able to easily talk to my mom and sister.
• My normal daily routine.   I miss getting up each morning, waking up the boys, making breakfast, talking with the boys, drinking my cup of coffee, etc.   I can’t wait to get back into my normal routine.
• Coffee to go.   While I love being able to get a cup of coffee and sit and drink it in a street side café, I miss being able to buy a cup to go and carry it with me.   It really is not an option in Morocco…. and I looked.  J
• A glass of wine at dinner.   Although I don’t drink wine at dinner every night, I really miss the option of being able to order a glass at a restaurant.  With the exception of a very few restaurants in Morocco, wine (or any type of alcohol) is not something readily available for purchase because of the Muslim culture.
• Soap and toilet paper that is readily available.   Many of the bathrooms don’t automatically provide this so I learned to carry both with me in my purse.
• Traffic that I can understand.   It will be nice to drive my own car again and feel somewhat confident of the rules of the road when I drive.   Someone described the traffic in Morocco as organized chaos… you would have to see it to believe it.
• Being able to walk places by myself.    Although it was generally safe where we were, I never went out alone and always felt a bit ‘on alert’.   I will have a different appreciation for being able to take a walk in my neighborhood any time that I want.
• My grocery store at home.  I just miss my local HEB and being able to easily buy things we take for granted at home.
• My salads from home.  I didn’t realize until this trip how much I miss being able to order and make salads each day.   I think that is part of the reasons that my stomach has been so messed up.  I’m not used to all of the heavier foods and meats.
• My work.  Believe it or not, I did miss work and my job.   I miss the people, the daily challenges, the group celebrations around accomplishments, etc.   I look forward to jumping back in when I get back.

What I will miss from Morocco:

• The people.  I truly mean it when I say that almost everyone we met was very hospitable and welcoming.  We were continually surprised by small – and large – acts of kindness.  We met so many lovely people that I will not soon forget.
• Although I missed my ‘to go’ coffee, I did enjoy the culture around sitting down for a cup of coffee over conversation.   It is not uncommon for a one hour cup of coffee break.
• Moroccan fruits and vegetables.  One of the great things about this project was being around all of the delicious and beautiful fruits and vegetables in Morocco.  I ate a lot more of both while I was here and I expect this 'new taste' will carry home with me when I return.
• The weather.   It could not have been more beautiful while we were there.   The mornings were cool and generally in the 50’s and most of the days did not get any warmer than the low 80’s.  The skies were always blue and we never saw any rain… although they need it very badly for their crops.
• Leisurely dinners and conversations.  Our dinners were never any shorter than 2 hours and were generally over 3 hours.   It is the culture and it is a much slower pace at restaurants.  It helps for some great nights of conversation with the team.
• The foods.   Although my stomach was ‘out of wack’ during much of this trip due to eating different foods, I will miss much of what I ate.   I think that my favorite Moroccan dishes were fish tangines, chicken and seafood pastillos, and great vegetables salads.

Although not specific to Morocco alone, this trip gave me the opportunity to meet a new group of international friends that I know that I could call and visit anytime now.  If I'm ever back in Morocco, there are so many friends from the Ministry of Agriculture and the IBM Morocco office that I would love to see again.   I also know that if I'm ever in the 'neighborhood' of the Philippines, Australia, India, Taiwan, or Japan, that I have a lifelong friend that I could call and would love to see again.... and I hope to do this with each of them some day.  :-)