Fes (Morocco)
19 JUL - 20 JUL
We made a valiant attempt to start the day by having breakfast on the roof terrace of the riad Zamane. Valiant in the sense that by the time the clock had struck 8am the sun was already blazing and we were pushing the mid 30's mark, probably not the most favoured way to chill out with a fresh glass of orange juice and a coissant.
The prospective heat of the morning and midday sun kept my parents within the confines of their 17 degree air conditioned room, under covers, under blankets and hidden from the Moroccan disco inferno that attacked their space from just behind the stone riad walls. JJ and I, defined by the 'hardness' of our own internal mechanisms, please also see (stubborn as two mules on a hunt for fairy floss..?), decided that we were going to go out and attack Fes for what it had to offer.
Streets of Fes - Morocco - where dialing for a taxi will get you a donkey, home delivered
We commenced our self designed journey at the blue gates,(Bab Boujloud), the famous entrance to the medina. It's usually at this point that you encounter 'tour guide' spruikers, telling you how they specifically have the skills to guide you through the myriad of roads, alleyways and side streets, and in all honesty, for a medina that is 19kms squared in size, containing approximately 400,000 people and has somewhere in the vicinity of 9800 recognised streets, you probably do need a guide in order to make the most of your time. As I said, 'most people' would accept this offer for assistance gracefully. The guide that we encountered at the gate was doing his best to put the word on us, attacking us with his big Moroccan welcome, quoting a few stats and asking us to slow down so that we could at least hear what he had to say. My man, apologies, but the both of us were on a mission and we had no time to waste, we cleared his verbal clutches only to be thrown a parting passive aggressive line that went something like, 'a man in a hurry is always dead'...well yes, that may be the case, but if we were now dead then who the hell were you going to guide around the medina? What's more, do lines like that really get tourists to stop in their tracks and recant on their decisions? I'll need to contact the Moroccan bureau of statistics for those numbers, watch this space.
Fes - Morocco
Fes - Morocco
Walking down one of the two main roads of Fes I had it in my mind that we'd aim for one of the tanneries that are located in the heart of the medina. Not the most difficult place to find, but not the easiest either as it involves a little local knowledge with some twists and turns, something that I didn't have , although I do have a relatively decent internal guidance system with decent orientations skills, so taking on the ultimate test was something that I was happy with.
Now Fes is one of those old style towns that has particularly small streets, fit for only pedestrian traffic and donkeys (their version of a taxi), high stone walls, twists, bends, shops of intrigue and confusion, markets, mosques and all things else Moroccan. It's an old town that's mysterious and interuiging in it's own right, different to the very 'in your face' nature of Marrakech, these guys are more subtle, less pushy but probably as insistent, and yet is still has a quietness and calmness about it. There appears to be a lot hidden behind the high street walls of Fes that you don't get to see, an element that always has you kind of guessing at the possibilities.
Tannery - Fes - Morocco
Tannery - Fes - Morocco
Tannery - Fes - Morocco
After walking for something close to an hour and two refreshment stops, JJ and I managed to find the tannery. Nearly on our own, we were kind of guided in by a local over the last 100 mtrs, very much in the same way that a local harbour pilot takes control of a tanker or cruise liner in their home waters. So, what's so amazing about the tannery? Well, it's probably not so much the manner in which they dye the coloured hides, although it looks to be particularly labour intensive and damn hard work if this is your chosen style of employment but more so its the vibrancy of the colours of each of the clay dyeing vats and the look of the medina that immediately surrounds it. Aesthetically it's an amazing sight but the accompanying smell is none too appealing, something to do with the copious amounts of pigeon droppings that they use to treat the animal skins prior to dyeing. I'm not quite up to speed on that element of the process but there's always Wikipedia for personal interest.
Having being committed to Fes success, having taking on this headspin of a place and nearly scoring a clear victory, JJ and I headed back to the riad for a few drinks before jumping into a cab with the parents for an afternoon panorama tour of the town from outside of the medina walls.
Panoramic view of Fes
It's tough in the ceramics business....seriously, it is!!!
Ummmm.....yeah
20 JUL - Walk this way
Sunrise - Fes - Morocco
The miraculous Manuel (aka Abdul the great), the man of riad Zamane that can organise anything for you before you've even thought of it, hooked us up with a half day walking door of the old town on this day. My parents having remained indoors for the majority of the previous day and have gauged the morning temperature of Fes on this day as being quite comfortable, joined us for a 4hr expedition into the heart of the medina.
Medersa - Fes - Morocco
Oldest university in the world - Fes - Morocco
I think for my parents, Fes more of a relaxed and acceptable type of atmosphere. No speeding motorbikes clipping your heels, no horse drawn carriages about to run you over, no shady Moroccan men waiting to reach deep into your pockets on consent, or even without your consent. Our guide was actually quite good, advising us of the main historical features of the town, the main mosque, the university that is claimed to be the oldest in the world, the various shops of artisans selling uniquely Fes style wares. In fact the first shop that we stopped in within the medina was a carpet co-op that had hundred of luscious hand made carpets of varying quality and style. I could see on entry that the eyes of my mum lit up, and as they say in the classics, 'let's get ready to rumble'.
It was to become a 'carpet-a-thon', Berber made carpets, Jewish made carpets, carpets from the Toureg, carpets that the owners cousin made, carpets that some poor retardo kid from the backstreets of Tanger kind of made. It was a whirlwind of knots, colours and wool. Beads of perspiration running down our faces with the anxiety and pressure of needing the make the critical decision of what would work and what wouldn't with our house. As the Moroccan whiskey, (see mint tea), settled our nerves and cleared our mind, we made our final decision. Time for negotiation, and then, the ATOMIC BOMB! As dad and I sat back, kind of deliberating, kind of waiting to play the well known Moroccan sport of 'democratic price arrangement', mum was shaking hands with the owner and entering into a binding verbal agreement.Well, that just trumped us all!! Needless to say, the carperts that we've locked in are truly stunning and whilst they may be running on the high side of the prospective range, I'm more than satisfied with the result.
Running on that endorphin high that only females can really appreciate, we moved through the medina with gusto and appreciation. Visiting the tannery once again and spending a little more time with 'our man' Hassan, a person that JJ and I had managed to successfully dodge the day before. A artisan related stops and we were back to the riad Zamane for afternoon session with our good friend Mr Heineken and co.
Tannery - Fes - Morocco
Later that evening I set up dinner at a riad that was quite close to our own. Two years earlier I had had dinner at the same place and had spent a couple hours of one afternoon happily chatting with the owner Khalid over a mint tea with nothing more than good conversation on the agenda. I took JJ with me to make the reservation early in the afternoon and was happy to be met by Khalid at the door, and then was more than a little surprised when he actually remembered when I had came last time, where we had sat and the fact that I had
written a few words in his guest work (which he was more than happy to show me - kind of strangely amusing to see the words you've written a few years previously in a place that's completely foreign and so far from home).
written a few words in his guest work (which he was more than happy to show me - kind of strangely amusing to see the words you've written a few years previously in a place that's completely foreign and so far from home).
We ended up having a mammoth dinner at the house of Khalid and as I did two years ago, thanked him graciously for his hospitality and good nature. Winding up our stay in Fes on this evening, this was to be the departure point for my parents who the next day were set to make their way to Belgrade via the short hops of Casablanca and Madrid, and has for JJ and myself, the next day we were heading into the Rif mountains and the small blue town of Chefchaouen.
