Clothing
There are a lot of special considerations to take when packing clothes for a new life in Morocco. Here are a few:
- Chances are, you’re gonna be doing your laundry by hand. You either need clothes that are going to hold up well, or clothes that you won’t mind chucking as time goes on.
- Along the same lines, you want clothes that won’t look horrible if they get some dirt on them. Your white socks will die. That can be ok, but if you don’t want your socks to look permanently filthy, don’t bring white ones. Moroccan dirt has an amazing ability to stick in clothes.
- You may end up in a final site where it’s ok to wear jeans and a t-shirt like you would in America. Or, you could end up in a place where you cannot show your elbows, your shirt must completely cover your butt, you can’t show more than your ankles down below, and your neckline must be snug while everything else must be loose. I only get to wear my beloved t-shirts from home when I travel outside of my site. Thankfully the majority of my packed shirts were long turtlenecks, on the advice of an experienced PCV.
- You also can’t plan entirely for the climate of your final site. You might request the coldest site possible, and still end up in a mild-to-hot site. Even suppose you get the site you want, you’ll likely end up travelling to the colder or hotter regions at some point in your service. I live in just about the most moderate site you can get in Morocco, alhamdulillah, but here in January (2010) I’m about to travel to some very cold places. I’m glad I lugged my cold weather gear around for just this occasion. Of course, it’s all a personal preference.
- Think about packing a special reserve of brand new socks, underwear, and (if applicable) bras to pull out after you’ve been in country for a year. I got this idea from an experienced PCV and it’s been great. As of now I haven’t reached my year-mark, but once or twice a hidden set of clean clothes has been a complete lifesaver. I think even the most disciplined of PCV’s can occasionally find themselves in a tight spot when laundry isn’t possible due to weather or time constraints. Not to mention the pleasantness of busting out the rest of the new clothes once the year’s end comes around.
- Ultimately, I’d say you could survive just fine if your packed wardrobe consisted of some good shoes, a pair of pants or two, maybe two or three shirts, good underwear, and a coat. Some people I’m sure couldn’t, but no doubt others could. I heard from a PCV or two that one might as well pack as light as possible and just buy some used clothes at a market once they got here. It’s pretty easy to round up necessary clothes here, but given tight scheduling during training, a lack of language, a lack of immediate funds, and a general lack of knowledge about how things work in Morocco, it could be intimidating to carry out the plan effectively upon arrival. I probably packed a bit more than I needed to as far as clothes are concerned, but I haven’t particularly regretted it. Somehow I survived hauling my bags around. (They probably would have been at the weight limit anyway, with other goodies, if I hadn’t packed the clothes I did.) The time and concern I never had to worry about, having all my stuff at my fingertips, has been worth it to me.
Alright, enough considerations. Here’s what I brought (with official Welcome Book suggestions in CAPITALS):
LONG SKIRTS (I got Macabi skirts) 3 TROUSERS 2 LEGGINGS (for under skirts) 2 ATHLETIC SHORTS 3 JEANS 3 REI Rendezvous travel pants 1 LONGSLEEVED SHIRTS (cover butt) 7 TSHIRTS 2 Under Armour shirts (cold weather) 2 Under Armour shirts (hot weather) 3 Business casual shirts 2 Business casual pants 1 LIGHTWEIGHT, WATERPROOF JACKET 1 HEAVY JACKET/WATERPROOF SHELL 1 FLEECE TOP 1 fleece vest, light 1 LONG JOHNS 2 BATHING SUIT 1 tank tops (for lounging/sleeping) 2 shorts (for lounging/exercising) 3 pajama top (warm/cold) 2 pajama bottom (warm/cold) 2 sports bras 5 year’s worth underwear 10 year’s worth underwear (sealed) quality socks wool socks/Smartwool Chaco sandals 1 Keen sandals (Arroyo II) 1 Keen mid-boots (Targhee II Mid) 1 dress shoes/flats 1 large brimmed hat 1 medium brimmed hat 1 thick gloves 1 thin gloves 1 ear covers 1 sunglasses 2 BANDANA 2 scarf 1 black belt (with zipper pocket) 1
Marj this is great!! I bet this will help a ton of future Moroccan PC volunteers!
Meagan said this on February 22, 2010 at 5:50 pm