Making Murals and Dumplings: Service and Cultural Exchange at a Youth Center in Morocco

This May, 13 Morningside students participated in the college’s first service trip to Rabat, Morocco. Students served at a youth center run by a small local NGO in Sale, a low-income sister city of Rabat. The service included both a mural project and cultural exchange activities with youth center visitors. The mural project removed extensive graffiti and created a nicer community space for the upcoming Ramadan celebrations. The project was completed with Morningsiders working alongside local visitors to the youth center. Morningsiders were tasked with designing a mural, and chose to paint a nature scene as well as a skyline of Hong Kong.  Joyce Tong, a year 4 Architecture student, was up to the challenge! In the afternoons, students designed and ran cultural activities with their Moroccan peers. While local teenagers taught Morningside students Moroccan dances, songs, and games, Morningsiders introduced them to Chinese calligraphy and dumpling making. During the service trip, Morningsiders also went on an excursion to Marrakech, a cultural hub in the south of Morocco.