Next Stop, Casablanca.

Only 2 days left before I board a plane and begin the journey of a lifetime. I leave Friday and land in Casablanca, Morocco on Saturday morning. There I will be picked up and driven to Rabat, a two-hour drive. Sunday we will have our orientation and Monday my volunteering will begin.

I spoke with Sharon again today regarding my volunteer placement. She explained my job at the Children's Hospital in a bit more detail. I will be working in the Respiratory Ward of the hospital. I will be entertaining and cheering up children that are anywhere from 5 to 14 years old. She advised me that I may have different children everyday, hopefully a result of the kids getting well enough to go home. I may have a handful of children to entertain with crafts, card games, puzzles, etc. or perhaps 10 to 15. My placement in the Children's Hospital is not structured at all and she explained that I will be in complete charge of what we will do each day. While this freedom is very exciting, it is also quite a daunting task to take on. She suggested to have a few "tricks up my sleeve" for days where the kids end my planned projects or games early or for some reason things don't workout. So the next couple of days I will be brainstorming simple games and crafts for me to do with the children.

She also mentioned that some children may feel too poorly to participate in the games and crafts in which case I can visit them individually in their rooms. This is an opportunity to get to know the mothers and families of the ill children. The hospital also has play centers for me and the other volunteers to conduct our activities each day if not in the children's individual rooms.

So, this is probably my last post until I settle in at the Homestay in Rabat. Thank you to all that have made this volunteer trip possible. I plan on updating the blog daily over these next two weeks assuming the internet connection is consistent. If not, I will certainly write everyday and post them when I can.

Maxa s-salaama.