Ayyur wis tza gis lhma bzaf zund ayyur wis tam. Zrigh bzaf n ussan gh umoddo bach ad kkgh dar taradin gh idwwarn-nsnt. Imalass lli izrin, ftigh s Tassa Ouirgane, Marigha d Imlil. Amoddo ur irkha ashku ur illa transport direct d laktariya, transport s tamazirt ichqqa immik. Umzgh triporteur s Tassa Ouirgane – ur rta7gh walakin nkhallas ghir 5 dirham bach anfto 12 km d lmandar ichwa bahra.
Riding in the triporteur
Gh Tassa Ouirgane, ftigh s tamsmunt (cooperative) n timgharin lli skarnt tammnt. Tbda tamsmunt ad yat tarad lli mu ssghrigh tinglizit gh 2019 d fjjigh bzaf ashku zrigh manika as timgharin ofant lfursa i tudrt nsnt gh tamazirt.
Visiting the cooperative
Bach ad ftugh s Imlil, umzgh minibus, walakin ur iga zund minibus gh Britanya. Llant 20 n lblays walakin i3mr s 50 midn, d Iggi/akfaf ns i3mmr ula nta s lmakla d tighawsiwin zgh souk n Asni. Illa yan souk kraygat imalass gh Asni, d bzaf n midn n tamazirt ar tghzun idrarn s Asni bach ad sghin kulu matn ikhassan i imalass. Tga luqt ichwan bahra gh Asni d yat lfursa ad zrgh kulu imdukkal llid yuchkan zgh tugogt ar souk n asni.
Ayyur-ad ifulki walakin, mridgh gh nfs luqt. Zrigh bzaf n luqt gh idwwarn 3zln d irkha ad mridgh ashku id hnna ur llan waman gh robini n tigmi, nghd nčča lmakla lli ur myarrgh, zund lhaleeb direct n tafunast. Hawlgh ad rargh l3aql walakin ichqqa ashku midn ura dima tfhmn makh ur righ ad ččigh nghd ad sugh kra.
Lluqt lli lkmgh, hchmgh bzaf ad swalgh Tachelhit d midn, walayni dari tiqqa uggar kraygatt ass d lluqt lli swalgh Tachelhit, ar itbadal ljuw d midn farhn d tsDmn bzaf ashku ur ju maggarn tarumuit lli sawaln tutlayt nsn, d ran ad ssn manikas ta3lmgh/lmdgh Tachelhit d makh. Ifulki mayad ashku ifkka yyi lfursa bach ad swalgh d midn gh kraygatt mani – gh tahanut, gh transport, gh azniq, gh agharas. Ida hnna igh lligh gh udwwar, ar ddari tachkan middn ghir bach ad zran d ad sawaln d tarumuit lli isawaln tachlehit.
Watching the sunset in Tassa Ouirgane
Imalass lli dyuchkan, rad bddugh drs n tinglizit i tifraxin gh dar taliba n Asni, lligh khdmgh gh 2019.
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September has been another hot month. I have spent many days traveling to visit girls in their villages. Last week I went to Tassa Ouirgane, Marigha and Imlil. The journey wasn’t easy as there isn’t any direct transport and sometimes the transport to the countryside is challenging. I took a triporteur to Tassa Ouirgane (a motorbike with a metal flatbed on the back!). It’s definitely not a comfortable mode of transport but we only paid 5 dirhams (about 40p) to travel 12km and the view is beautiful! In Tassa Ouirgane, I visited a women’s cooperative that makes honey. The cooperative was founded by a girl who was in my English class in 2019 and it made me really happy to see how women are creating opportunities for themselves in rural areas.
To go to Imlil, I took a minibus, but it’s unlike any minibus in the UK! There were 20 places, but it was full with about 50 people and the roof was also full of food and other things from the market in Asni. There’s a market once a week in Asni and many people from the countryside come down from the mountains to Asni to buy everything they need for the week. It’s a nice time to be in Asni and see friends who come from far away for the market day.
Unfortunately, I got sick this month. I spend a lot of time in isolated villages and it’s easy to get sick because sometimes in villages there isn’t running water, or we eat food that I’m not used to, like unpasteurized milk from a family’s cow. I try to be careful but it’s sometimes difficult because people don’t always understand why I don’t want to eat or drink something that they eat regularly.
When I arrived here, I was nervous to speak Tachelhit with people, but every day I’m gaining a little more confidence, and when I speak Tachelhit, I’ve noticed that people’s entire mood changes. People are very curious because they have never met a foreigner who speaks their language and they want to know how I learnt Tachelhit and why. This is really great as it gives me the opportunity to speak to people everywhere – in shops, in transport, on the street. Sometimes, if I am in a village, people come just to see and speak to the foreign girl who speaks Tachelhit!
Next week, I’m going to begin giving English classes for the girls in the boarding house in Asni where I worked in 2019.