Our car sits in the Embassy garage, and though we’ve owned it for five months, we’re still not allowed to drive it. The elusive license plates—stalled, we're told, due to a Morocco-wide aluminum shortage—remain a distant dream. My prediction? Soon, a diplomatic-plates-blue paint shortage. By the time the plates are ready, we may be packing up to leave!
For now, my ride to work is in one of the ubiquitous blue petit taxis. Each morning, I walk a couple blocks from home, flag down the first one to zip by, and request “L’ambassade américain.” By the time I finish Wordle I'm at work.
Getting home is often simpler, as kind colleagues offer rides. But yesterday, no such luck, so I hailed a taxi. Normally, I ask to be dropped off at a familiar landmark—Café Paul Prestigia. All the drivers know this roundabout, but it's still a bit of a hike home, and unlike the photo here, it was pouring rain.
To avoid getting drenched, I tried a new trick: asking for the Hai Riad Carrefour grocery store, closer to home. It seemed like a foolproof plan. Along the way the driver did something commonly done here, he picked up a couple more passengers, a father and son.
Then we pulled up at the wrong Carrefour.
Turns out, there is more than one Carrfour in Hai Riad. Completely disoriented, I attempted to explain to the driver that I meant the other Carrefour--I guess? He was utterly baffled—this was, as far as he knew, “the” Carrefour in Hai Riad. Fortunately, the son stepped in, studying my phone’s map and translating my Franglais to Arabic.
As the meter ticked up from my usual $2 to $3, I started digging through my bag for extra coins, hoping I had enough. As we neared the other Carrefour, I looked out the window—and burst out, “C’est ma maison!”
Father, son, driver, and I all cracked up as I fished out the last of my change. I handed over the coins, thanking the father-son team and the driver in three languages: “Thank you! Merci! Shukran!”
Sometimes, you’re handed small frustrations and detours, a little reminder of the oddball charm in these adventures overseas.