Amazing Race + Chinese Dinner

Today’s our second day at the client’s office and we had a very looong day.  We were able to speak with some of the commission heads and were also able to get more information of their areas of concern and improvement.  I really am very thankful that God has been faithful to me and Tracey.  I’ve been praying that God would guide us and that He’ll take care of everything and so far, I’ve seen these prayers being answered.  We were always provided with hot Moroccan mint tea, pastries, fruit, lunch, our own private room with white board and flip charts and of course a heater (which is the most important coz its cold!).  The other teams are a bit jealous of us because of all these plus the fact that we have the “feel good” project.  Tracey, being the playful individual that she is, even sent an email with a picture of the pastries, fruits and hot Moroccan mint tea to the whole team to tease them.

Hammam Experience -- felt like a fish being scaled :-)

Had a great first face-to-face meeting with our clients Monday morning at one of the Government Ministries. It felt like we were at some government official meeting.  According to one of my teammates, it was like we’re in a peace treaty meeting with other government official from different countries. The meeting was led and hosted by Abdelmounaim Guessous who is the Minister of Economic Affairs. We had translators interpreting the presentations for us since most of the conversations were in French. Our team was divided into 4 groups and our clients are as follows: The Ministry of Agriculture, The Ministry of General and Economic Affairs, ARDI Foundation, and Moroccan Women Mentoring/Networking.  I was assigned with the Moroccan Women Mentoring/Networking organization and I am partnered with IBM Australia’s representative, Tracey Pickersgill.  We were tasked to make a 2 year strategic action plan for the organization and make recommendations for marketing, communication and financial sustainability.  I took a shot of our meeting place and here’s how it looks:

Kasbah des Oudaias & the Medina

Sunday was by far the best day yet.  The whole team went on a “walking-tour” around our hotel so we would get the feel of the neighborhood.  We checked out some restaurants for our succeeding dinners, nearby gym and grocery as well.  Our hotel is near the Medina.  The Medina is like a walled city and in it is a local market which sells different stuff such as fruits, herbs, spices, veggies, clothing, shoes, bags, etc.

Kick-off at the IBM Morocco Office

We had our kick-off meeting last Saturday at the IBM Morocco office in Casablanca, which was a stone throw away from our hotel.  I would say that the kick off meeting went quite well.  We were able to meet some of the IBM leaders such as IBM Morocco’s Country General Manager, Abdallah Rachidi Alaoui; HR Country Leader Najlaa Hachami; Innovation Center & Technical Exploration Center Program Manager Asmae Chaarani; and Business Development Manager Ali Aqallal to name a few. Being able to meet these high ranking officials made me realize that what we’re doing is really of importance to IBM.  I do hope that we’ll be able to achieve everything that we were asked to do so that everyone’s happy. :-)  And oh, we were served some sweet pastries and of course, the much awaited “Moroccan mint tea.”  Loved it!!! It was an instant hit to the whole team, especially to Jailan Adly (CDC Program Manager) who had named the drink as the “Moroccan Red Bull”

When was the last time you did something for the first time?

I left Manila at around 11:30pm via Qatar Airways and had connecting flights via Doha>Tunis>Casablanca.  After 23 hours and 55 minutes, I finally arrived in Casablanca.  The whole flight was really tiring even if I just sat the whole time. The time of my arrival was almost the same as Mihoko’s (from IBM Japan) and Rahul’s (from IBM US).  It was really nice to finally meet them as it was totally different when you meet your team in person compared to all the telecons we had for the past 3 months.  I do hope that we’ll be able to bond as a team and be like a family by the end of this whole activity.  

What to do in Morocco?

I love to travel. I love to know more about the people, their culture, their FOOD, how a typical day goes in that part of the world, everything.  Last year, I also realized a desire in me which I didn't know was there.  For the past quarter years I've lived, it’s just recently that I realized that I enjoy volunteer work.  I'm not sure if most people who volunteer feel the same but I feel such great joy and accomplishment helping those in need –- help freely given which does not ask for anything in return.  I also believe that by doing these simple acts of kindness, it would give glory and honor to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I want these people to realize that there is hope for a better future, that God did not forget them; all they need to do is seek Him and surely, if they seek Him with all their heart, they’ll find Him. http://bit.ly/kqEgi1

Moonleaf Tea Shop ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I looooove milk tea.  Back in 2006, I only get my milk tea fix via Lipton Milk Tea sachets. >.<   There were still no tea place within the metro thus I only get it via sachets or from Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL).  You see, CBTL offers a number of tea latte drinks and my 2 favorites are: Chai Tea Latte & Moroccan Mint Tea Latte.

Recently, a number of tea shops sprouted like mushrooms.  I've thought of putting up one myself but a lot of my friends and relatives told me that this is just a craze.  In a span of just 2 years, I've already lost count of all the tea places around the metro.  Aside from the ones I've tried namely Serenitea, Cha Time, Happy Lemon, Zen Tea and Cha Dao, there's still A LOT of other tea places (that are yet to be tried) but one of the tea shops that got me is Moonleaf.