The Morocco Report

I confess to a small secret - I am a wearer of clogs of all kinds. Rarely a day passes when I'm not wearing some form of clogs, be they Dansko, Birkenstock, or something I picked up in the medina. One day, in class, I was wearing the following, a student asked me, "Teacher, why do you always wear slippers to class?" I had to explain, gently, that my shoes were in fact shoes, not slippers, and were quite comfortable (compared to the stilettos in fashion amongst most of my 16-year-old female Moroccan students)

Nevertheless, I pay them no mind and go about my cloggy ways, convinced that no Moroccan woman could ever possibly understand the delightful comfort of the clog (why, I don't know, considering how similar it is to the bilgha!). Until last Wednesday, that is.

Heading out to a night of bowling at Rabat's Mega Mall, I dressed wisely for the occasion: dark jeans, a black sweater. Simple, elegant. I surveyed my shoe possibilities: knee-high Anne Klein boots or ye olde faithful (see picture below) plaid Danskos. I went with the latter, considering the fact I'd be giving them up in exchange for bowling shoes anyway.

On our drive back to the hotel, we spotted what looked like a fun nightspot - Le Reservoir - and decided to stop. As we approached the building, we noticed two burly bouncers standing outside. Hamza asked them if they were letting people in and they replied that it was full. With a little negotation, however, they told us they'd let us in, but the tables were reserved and we would have to stand. Determined to check it out, we decided to go inside, until...

 

"Pantoufe!" exclaimed the burlier of the two bouncers. Looking at his own shoes (white Adidas), Hamza began to protest, but the bouncer tsk-tsked, waving his finger, and pointed at my very own shoes.

"He thinks they're slippers," Hamza whispered to me. "La!" I immediately shouted, kicking one plaid-clad foot, "Mashi pantoufe!"

 

The bouncers began to laugh, heartily, then finally let us in. Still, I suppose next time I ought to wear something a Moroccan woman might actually wear, so as not to confuse them. Something like...this, perhaps:

HA! Never.