Back to Retail Therapy--Shopping Is Exercise, Right?

Another later morning between jetlag and a very late Moroccan time schedule (staying up until 1:00 or 2:00 and then sleeping in past 10:00). After a not-terrible (diet-wise) breakfast at a cafe at 1:00 in the afternoon, we decided to try to get to the medina.

After a crazy journey there (five people in the back seat of a very small compact car, with someone we'd just met over breakfast and two people we didn't know at all), we got to the medina.

I got a bunch of shopping done for presents for friends and was pleased that I was even somewhat able to communicate this year.

"Communicate" being used loosely as at one point I wasn't sure if the guy was saying that he was impressed that an American was speaking French or laughing at how terrible the American spoke French. Considering my French skills, it was probably the latter. On the other hand, considering he was trying to impress a customer (as they usually do), there is a slight chance it was the former.

Or maybe I'm just trying to flatter myself and WANT to believe my dad when he tells me how impressed he is with my French.

Hmm. It's actually something I feel good about myself with right now, so I'll take it as a positive.

Not that I can quit studying.

Unfortunately, not much exercise got done, unless you count standing/walking around a medina for about four hours. While carrying pounds of three-year-old daughter and/or pounds of purchases.

It still felt like Ramadan as we didn't eat in the medina though and even had to wait awhile after getting back to my father-in-law's house.

I'm having a hard time relaxing on my "vacation" between issues with the dog, things coming up over email with my volunteer work back home, and not being able to control my diet or exercise plan very well.

Or maybe I'm just whining because of my control issues and I can't control anything here.

Nah.