The week is nearing an end and I am preparing to leave Ifrane for Boston. I’ve written a report clarifying what I have done here at the library, and what I have learned myself. I feel that for me the experience has been extremely rewarding. I’ve absorbed cultural, linguistic, and intellectual facts and feelings from many different people I’ve met during the past 6 weeks. These people include those I’ve spent time with talking to on train rides; those who have extended friendship to me in a wonderfully generous fashion; those in the library who have shared with me their felings about their work; those faculty here at Al Akhawayn who have likewise shared with me their knowledge; and others. I take back with me many memories and much experience from living in another culture other than my own. I return with a much fuller idea as to what exactly is “the Arab world”.
I hope I’ve left some impression here at the library. If I have not touched every person, I know that I have shared some positive communication with a few staff members. The student and faculty survey will have to be posted without my presence here, as the software is still not available. The library will most likely post a blog of its own, as it has already started to do this. And most important, I hope I’ve opened up communication between Al Akhawayn and Boston University — as I’ve shared many emails of my colleagues in Boston, with colleagues here.