Living in Morocco as a female expat from a Western Country

urbanshopping101 Banned

Member since 30 January 2019

urbanshopping101Banned03 April 2019 16:17:28

152

Living as woman is not the same as living as a man anywhere.
We have different physical needs, shopping behaviours, different day to day biological inconveniences and safety concerns that are usually more directly effected by social, political and religious climates then men.

The impact of social, political and religious climates can be different with in specific areas and regions of each country even in Western Countries.

I am very interested in hearing from female expat living in different areas in Morocco to understand how comfortable you feel living in Morocco.

Do you live your life differently now that you living in Morocco?聽 For example:

-聽 Do you avoid going out alone more or less?
-聽 Do聽 you avoid going out at night more or less?
-聽 Do you intentionally dress differently to avoid attention/ conform?
-聽 Do you feel more or less fear when doing regular daily activities such as grocery shopping, going for a walk, going to work, going to get something to eat at a restaurant?
- Do you feel less or more intimidated of men?
- Do you less more restricted in terms of opportunities then a man of a similar status in terms of in terms of customer service and employment?
- Do you have any additional fears or comforts living in Morocco?

From a female perspective are there benefits or greater risks.

If anything it would be helpful to get an idea of how you lived life before being in Morocco vs how you live life now that you are in Morocco.

There are no right or wrong answers, just looking for honest feedback.

Looking forward to your input : )!

SeaDragon345 Member

Member since 01 February 2019

SeaDragon345Member17 June 2019 14:42:33

Do you avoid going out alone more or less? - I don't avoid going out alone either in the UK or Morocco but it's harder to be alone in Morocco and hard to be lonely!

-聽 Do聽 you avoid going out at night more or less? - I go out at night a lot more in Morocco especially during the summer. I never go out at night in the UK but that's because I can't be bothered not because I'm afraid.

-聽 Do you intentionally dress differently to avoid attention/ conform? -

My dress code is a bit different on the beach. Not used a bathing costume/bikini in Morocco on a public beach but used long shorts instead. I'm more aware of showing too much flesh but I'm not really into skimpy clothes anyway so in general I haven't changed what I wear too much. My rule of thumb is "would my son be embarrassed to be seen with me?".聽 I have changed the type of clothes in terms of tightness because it's uncomfortable to wear tight jeans etc in really hot weather but that is for comfort, rather than modesty.

-聽 Do you feel more or less fear when doing regular daily activities such as grocery shopping, going for a walk, going to work, going to get something to eat at a restaurant?

I don't feel any fear as such doing any of these things however I am aware of personal safety wherever I am.

- Do you feel less or more intimidated of men?
No I don't feel any different apart from the stares you get as a foreigner walking into a cafe full of men, but you would get that in a pub of blokes in England too. I've never had anything unpleasant happen and I don't feel worried at all.

- Do you less more restricted in terms of opportunities then a man of a similar status in terms of in terms of customer service and employment?
Hard for me to answer this one as I'm an artist so I make my own opportunities and it's an alternative lifestyle/career path anyway.

- Do you have any additional fears or comforts living in Morocco? I feel more comforted in Morocco as I feel like people are more likely to come and help you if you call on them and put themselves out. It's really easy to be anonymous in the UK especially if you live in a big city. At first I felt a bit intimidated by all the police checks along the road but now I just see it as a normal part of life and nothing to worry about.