our blog
Apparently GPS units are forbidden in Morocco without written permission from the ministry of communications. Our recent package containing our GPS unit has been held up in a customs office in Agadir for the last 2 weeks, since we received it’s arrival notice in our PO Box. When we came to retrieve it, they told us we didn't have authorization to have a GPS in country and the package had to be returned to sender. We knew there was nothing we could do about it so we said okay. As they started to pack the box back up I looked at the bureau chief with sad eyes and in a doleful voice said, "what about the rest of the package...it's just food... and I'm hungry." He looked back at me, paused for a second to think and said, "fine" and then proceeded to pile all the granola bars, the bag of coffee, the m&m's, the boxes of macaroni and cheese and bags of black beans onto his desk. He got us a plastic bag for all the food and taped the U.S. flat rate box with the lonely GPS unit back inside. We have heard horror stories about people having to pay hundreds of US dollars to retrieve much less expensive items, so for the last two weeks we have been envisioning all sorts of scenarios including declining the package all together and having to try and file for the insurance money or paying $200, or more, to recover the box. In the end it was not our best case scenario but it was certainly better then we were expecting and most definitely not the worst it could have been. We gave the men who helped us each a piece of what I only imagine was a handful of soon to be halloween candy that was thrown into the package and left the office surprisingly happy and satisfied.
Friday, October 8, 2010
GPS Embargo...
our package contents
The contents of our package we were allowed to take with us, everything but the GPS!