Introduction

london76 wrote:

this is your own statistic and opinion if believing it make you happy then good luck lol

First of all, I'm not particularly interested in the opinions of someone who is on the thread simply to make money out of expats and not to help them.  I note your frantic posts to rent out flats and your description of yourself as a "real estate agent".

Secondly, it's unwise in these days of the internet simply to make assertions when anyone can refute them within seconds.

I don't think the business culture, which is what we are talking about, is necessarily something that makes Moroccan people want to leave. However, that business culture, where lying and cheating are accepted facts of life  is something that it is very difficult for foreigners to deal with. It is deeply ingrained in the culture.

You say you know Morocco. How many times have you been quoted an inflated price for goods and services? Moreover with a wide-eyed look of innocence. Well, it's even worse if you are in business. Unless you know exactly what you are doing you will get ripped off, the vegetables will be of poor quality, the rice won't be basmati, the meat will be poor cuts, or whatever, for your Indian restaurant.

I think that you are confusing personal relationships and commercial ones. Many personal relationships do not necessarily involve cheating unless it's an exclusive one, such as a marriage and the foreigner is in Morocco simply to conclude formalities. Most of these marriages fail. However, friendships made in the context of normal social intercourse are often not susceptible to exploitation; it depends who you make fiends with! I except those approaches by (usually) young men in cafés and so on which often end up with a "please give me some money for my Mum's scanner in Rabat", "my brother's roof has fallen in" or similar. Clearly, no one should ever give money at all after such a plea even if the friendship is a longtime one. After all, they'd get the money somehow if the foreigner weren't around. We are not the Banque Populaire!

The problem is the inequality of wealth. There is a small rich class, a somewhat larger middle class (which would be characterised as low income in the UK even though they might be comfortable in Morocco because of their buying power due to the lower cost of living) and the rest are poor even by Moroccan standards. So, any relationship between a foreigner and these latter is immediately unequal. Who buys the beers? Who pays for a meal out? If the foreigner does, how do we look at this? Is it exploitation? Is it buying friendship? I think that if the expat sees this, it's not a problem. What is a problem is when there is a relationship that demands an unceasing flow of money towards the local. Often, but not always, this involves an older expat and a younger Moroccan.

Everyone has their own limits. Mine are that I might buy drinks or meals on occasion, but the few pleas from friends to pay for major alleged "disasters" have been met with a firm "No". This hasn't broken the friendship, as one might assume. It's a try-on. Even poor families have jewellery to pawn or know a rich relative or even a money lender.

I don't think anything that I or the other poster (zayn?) have said is untrue. I think you need to clear up your terms.

london76 wrote:

((((laduqesa))))
I have read all your post , if you think negatively of Morocco , why are you still living in it? [...]
and when are you going back home??

I don't think negatively of Morocco and I don't think I said anything in my post for you to be able to say that. I have explained this very carefully. I enjoy it here. I have friends, I have a little money for some treats and I can afford things I couldn't afford in the UK. I am aware of the culture here and the differences in purchasing power between me and even some of my "middle class" friends. Did you not read my post?

I don't want to continue this discussion. I don't want to be accused of flaming the thread, which is about opening an Indian restaurant, after all. However, in response to your question about "when" I am going to leave, I say to you, "Mind your own business".