Moroccan marriage

Well now my head is racing. Here we sit at a beautiful cafe, looking out at the ocean, and native born Moroccan man has just proposed to me. He hardly speaks English, I hardly speak French. I am staying at his families house for 3 more days and wonder if they know his intentions. So I ponder, throw caution to the wind and say yes! He embraces me in his arms, kisses me lovingly and runs to the phone to tell his patents I said yes. We stay overnight in the city we were visiting and then take the drive home to see his family. When I arrive the house is all abustle and his mother and aunt quickly snatch me up to get showered and dressed for the company that is coming over to meet me. After I shower I return to my room to find it filled with dresses that are stunning for me to wear. One by one they try them on me, take pictures and introduce me to the family in each dress. Then the final dress, a gorgeous pink gown, is put on and I am brought to the formal room where a table is set with milk and honey, tea, dates, cookies and such treats. We sit and he feeds me and we drink out of each others glasses. More and more pictures come and then we have a feast of fish. I have to say the Moroccan cuisine is incredible. I thought nothing special of the night till I returned to the states and shared the stories and pictures with my friends. And then one of them said-that is a traditional Moroccan wedding ceremony....... Thus comes the 1/2 marriage to my surprise. 

Morocco

After a short, silent ride from the airport to his house I get unpacked and meet his family. They are extremely gracious and make me feel right at home. We spent our first two days in Casablanca and he showed me around the different sights of the beautiful city. The sights were beautiful, the food delicious, and just a rich city. I found it interesting how many people drank but had to hide it for religious purposes. Also as we traveled to different cities and stayed in different places we had to pretend we were married as we could get arrested for sleeping in the same room if otherwise. I wonder if people believed us as I hardly spoke French and he hardly spoke English. Driving around was heart pounding as people drive wherever they want and can mAke a two lane street into a six lane street. We went to three other beautiful cities in my time there, and after seven days, at a small cafe overlooking the water, he asked me to marry him.

Travel abroad

After a short while I transferred to another location and met a co worker from Morocco. She was a sweet heart and quickly began telling me about her brother, (my friends called him zoolander) and we exchanged emails. We emailed each other weekly and sent each other pics. After about 8 months of communicating I decided to travel to Morocco. I mean how could I not go? So I renewed my passport and booked my trip. I had a connection in JFK and almost missed my flight which was not the best way to start my trip, the only reason I made the flight was because a man who worked for the airline took pity on me when I was sitting and sobbing hysterically because my luggage was checked through to Casablanca and I was not. So I make it to Casablanca with my luggage to meet my Moroccan. We stop for a coffee before we go to his house and I tell him about my trip, more about myself, asked questions about Morocco and after 30 minutes of not really responding he looked at me and said could you please speak slower I do not understand. Oh boy this is going to be a long and interesting week. We get up to leave and I begin my journey of driving through Morocco and meeting his family.

Peru

So shortly after moving south I transferred to another location for work, and soon realized I needed to learn at little Spanish to get by with half of my client base. After learning maybe 30 words, I helped a gentleman with a purchase and I guess I made an impression because a week later he came back to my store with a burned cd filled with love songs and his number. I was not aware of and Pre arranged marriages with him so I figured why not! So I started dating a man who was 5 inches shorter than me and 8 years older. He took me to different South American restaraunts, the South American film festival ( which was the saddest movie I have ever seen I had no idea Columbia was really Like that) and we just hung out. After he met a couple of my friends I grew increasingly suspicious if was really 8 years older than me, and eventually learned he was 18 years older than me and was a diplomat. I never really got over the age difference, I know age is just a number, and not necessarily true when you are 23.

A new car

So shortly after moving to DC in a car with no A/C, I quickly realized my need for a new car. I was debating between a mustang and an accord, and the accord won. My Sales person, We can call him M, was very into me and I think that's why I got such a good deal on the car. The first time he took me out he took me to a restaurant near the dealership so he could show everyone he got to take me out. He would randomly call me up to take me out, and as a new girl in a new city I usually took him up on the offer. I found he he was previously married to someone from my hometown and had a son. We casually talked now and then but he had a business in his country back home and wanted me to buy in bulk with my discount for the lingerie company I worked for. I think my unwillingness to participate made him sour and so we talked less and less until I just got a yearly call asking about buying product in bulk. Nice guy, just not for me.

A taste of India

So last blog I was running away to DC. I packed up and moved with a friend to Northern VA and so began my whirlwind of dates.
When we first moved we really didn't know where to go out, so we found a local watering hole in walking distance of our apartment. We figured we would start there and then see where we could downtown afterwords. Well, we never made it anywhere else. We quickly befriended the band playing and the drinks kept coming. Turns out this bar had karaoke every Thursday night and quickly became regulars, even making it on the cover of the song selection book for a time. Never got a date from the bar, but years of fun times and good memories. My first date happened when we went Downtown into DC. There was a club (whose name escapes me) which had different floors for different music taste. My roomie and I always went downstairs to the hip hop room-best music at the time in my opinion. We would usually go on saturday nights when it was crowded but we got to know the DJ and he would always take of us. One night I saw a gorgeous man from across to him and after a few too many drinks said "too bad your'e not on the menu" and walked away. He chased out of the club after me and we exchanged numbers. Surprisingly he called the very next day. Between my drunken memory and the name that popped up on caller id I had no idea where this man was from, but I don't discriminate so I agreed to go on a date. When he picked me up in his tricked out civic (flashing fluorescent lights around his rims and tinted windows) I had no idea what to expect. He took me out to dinner and was actually very nice, and as I grew accustomed to the constant smell of curry on his skin we began dating. We would go to parties, movies, dinner, and just chill, but always on my side of town, with my friends, or at my place. I never really thought anything of it until one day his car broke down and he needed a ride to work. Of course I said no problem and asked for his address to pick him up. He told me to pick him up on the corner of 2 streets, and I questioned why not at his house as it was the middle of winter and freezing out. He told me to not worry and just to be there. So I went to the corner where he told me to be and again, I asked why did he not want to be picked up at his house. He replied stone faced that his mother could not see me as he had an arranged marriage with a fiancé in India and he would disgrace his family. Not sure how to process this info I proceed to drive him to work. Just before dropping him off I ask "then why are we dating" and he replies I always wanted an american blonde before I got married.
And that was the last time we ever spoke; at least that I spoke to him. He did try multiple times to take me out again, and I refused as he always maintained his fiancé back home. And that was the beginning of many around the world experiences with men.

the breaking point

So I am sure we have all had our fair share of high school bf's, the I don't know I'm gay, the stoner, the jock, etc. Well my dating stories truly begin after high school, and well, even after my crazy college years. (One year for my bday in college my roommates bought me a blow up male doll bc my bf had just dumped me-and I took him all over town with me.) But onto real men.
I had just transferred malls working for a leading lingerie company, and noticed a cute Italian security guard; and the courtship began (especially after I found out he was a volunteer firefighter). We started talking in early July and I was ecstatic when he asked me to go camping with him over Labor Day. So I pack all my stuff up (this was not real camping, there were lodges and showers-so real camping to me), and he picks me up and we hit the road. Roughly 4 hours later we arrive and park and he says "ok I will see you at dinner!" I pause for a second and say what? He says "I was truly concerned for your soul so I brought you to a christianity camp. I want you to find Jesus so you can be saved with me"
Now, backing up a little, I am neither pro or anti religion, it was just never a part of my upbringing so was never important to me.
After I almost fall over he proceeds to tell me that girls sleep on one side of the camp and boys on the other and we are together at meals. So I am rushed off to go bunk with the other girls in the camp who are all asking me why I haven't found Jesus yet. After getting to the room and realizing I have no cell service, and no alcohol, I realize I am in for a very long weekend. And a not so long relationship. This man, though sweet, was against premarital sex, did not drink, and had do drive to better himself because Jesus would show him the way. I think what pushed me over was that on Christmas at his close friends house (who were the nicest people truly) they got a birthday cake out. I asked whose birthday is it? And they all replied looking shocked I would ask: "Jesus'". I had to sing happy birthday to Jesus on Christmas.
We lasted a few months longer, and I decided to move away, and so he proposed. I simply said no, and moved 400 miles away from all I new.
Little did I know my mind would be blown away with what I encountered over the next few years....