Peace Corps assignment takes traveler to Morocco

MICHELLE NOLAN

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At age 21, Kara Hanley has a huge map of the world with pins stuck in the numerous countries she has visited.

Now Hanley, already an author and a prize-winning poetry slam performer, is set to stick in the most meaningful pin on her map.

In September, she will fly to New York and learn where she will serve the Peace Corps in the North African nation of Morocco, a former French colony. Since she speaks fluent French, she isn't worried about a language barrier.

Hanley, a 2005 graduate of Squalicum High School, needed only three years to earn her English degree at Southern Oregon University, in Ashland. Her parents, Ed and Sally Hanley, live in Bellingham.

Question: You say you're shy, so what accounts for the half-dozen poetry slam awards you've won the past year?

Answer: I still feel pretty shy when it comes to social situations, but a poetry slam is like getting up and performing in a music show. I'm an experienced guitarist who plays blues and jazz.

Q: What does it take to win a poetry slam?

A: You have three minutes to share a poem with the audience and there are five judges who score you from one to 10, with one being the highest. The middle three scores count. You're judged on presentation, emotions and the quality of your poem.

I got my start performing at Stuart's and Fantasia in Bellingham in high school. I've won poetry slams in Ashland, Corvallis, and Bend, and made the finals at the big Eugene slam. I was second at Rogue Valley.

Q: Were you nervous performing in front of large audiences?

A: I really was nervous at first, but then I would tell myself, "Yeah, this is where I should be!" Poetry slams draw 200 or 300 people, with prize money at stake, and these people are really into it.

Q: And you've found time to write a short novel?

A: It's titled "The Revolution Wagon" and I self-published it in June. I also drew the cover.

It's a dramedy. The theme is what could happen if the gap between left- and right-wing political parties got too wide. My protagonist is a girl who hates war and her father works for the president.

Q: Can your book be ordered?

A: It's $12.50 online at www.cafepress.com/karahanley.

Q: What will you do in Morocco?

A: I'll teach English and work in community organizing at a women's community house.

Q: Will you feel comfortable covering most of your body, since you'll be living in a Muslim culture?

A: I'll be OK except for the heat. I'll be living with host families for two months while I find a place for myself. I've traveled around the world so much, to more than 30 countries, that I feel I have enough street smarts to keep myself out of trouble.

Q: How did you get the travel bug?

A: When I was a kid my family hosted an exchange student from Taiwan. I went to visit her in Taiwan when I was 17, and that's how it all started. Africa will be the fifth continent I have visited, and I want to travel throughout life.