After breakfast, we left the hotel and returned to the crowded streets of the souks, then made our way to the leather workshop. This was easily one of the most immersive experiences of the trip. Actually sitting down and trying the work these women do every day puts things into perspective. It takes a lot of strength and accuracy to complete the process of going through the leather and stitching through the leather and stitching it up neatly. I made a small heart. It sounds simple, but it took real focus and patience to get it right. Getting to walk away with something I made myself made the whole thing feel different. The core mission for both Anou and the women’s cooperative is the same: supporting the women who handcraft the goods that make Morocco what it is, paying them fairly and giving them the resources to keep doing it. The difference is in the reach. Anou has created a social media-driven online marketplace that allows artisans throughout Morocco, including women in the most remote mountain communities who otherwise have no access to outside markets, to sell their work to customers around the world. The women’s cooperative does a really great job creating a unique, personal buying experience, but their distribution is limited to their shop. If you are not there physically, you are not getting their products. That’s a real limit on how many artisans they can support and how much impact they can have. I’m a consumer and I like Anou’s model. The cooperative has something special to offer in person, but Anou takes that same quality and craftsmanship and makes it accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Anou doesn’t just sell, she actively reaches women in the mountains who would otherwise be completely cut off from a fair market for their work. The broader the reach, the better the product and the more powerful the mission. Coming home to my host family after a full day in the souks felt really good. There’s something about walking through that door after a long day that just feels grounding. We sat down to a casual home-cooked meal, nothing fancy, but it was just what I needed. It is the kind of meal that makes you appreciate how worthwhile the homestay experience is. You can attend all the workshops and markets you want, but sitting down to a simple dinner with a Moroccan family gives you a perspective on everyday life here that you just can’t get anywhere else.