Zwina

Zwina (or Zwine if you're a guy) means beautiful in Darija.  It's also one of the words I hear the most on the streets of Meknes.  Unlike in the US where the phrase "cat calling" is an idiom, Moroccan boys/men actually yell at women the way they call cats.  It's mostly a hissing noise, "Tssssst, tsssssst, tsssssst."  Also kissing noises.  I've honestly heard people try and get cats' attention the same way. Sometimes walking down the street sounds like being surrounded by snakes and fish.  It's honestly kind of amusing.  But also gross.  Especially when they have almost no teeth and they follow you down the street.  (This happened to my friend and I yesterday... Super fun!)

You also get some very amusing pick up lines.  As one of my professors here noted, many boys only learn English from American TV and movies.  This means that they often say the stupidest things to you on the streets. So here, for your viewing pleasure, are some of the most amusing pick-up lines I've heard on my trip so far.

"Are you looking for me?  Because here I am!"

"Hello, I speak English very good.  Nice ass."

"Hey girl, it's your birthday."

"Have we met before?  Somewhere on the planet Mars?"  (I'm not really sure what was up with this guy, but the line seemed very practiced... Maybe it's worked before?)

(Something involving Barack Obama.  Sometimes just "Barack Obama!" yelled in a wannabe seductive voice.  It's quite disturbing...)

"You're starving?  You're starving for me!"
(after my friend mentioned that she was really hungry while we were walking.)

"Punch me in the face, you're beautiful!"  (After a conversation between my friend and I about how street harassment makes us want to punch people.)

"Very nice, I like."  (Ironically, Moroccan accents can sometimes sound very much like Borat, making this line extra amusing."

"Setta"  (Some more explanation for this.  Setta is the word for six in Darija.  This lovely gentleman was offering me 6 Dirhams (approximately 75 cents) because he hoped I was a prostitute.  Aren't guys sweet?)

"Ca va?"  (Which really just means "how are you doing" in French, but it now means "I'm an annoying boy, you should hit me")

After all this, I've decided that the only men worth bringing home from Morocco are under the age of 6 (because Moroccan children are the cutest.  Hands down.)