Fes-tastic

The remainder of our guided tour had us in the car quite a bit as we visited - essentially- the rest of the country.

After leaving the desert, we drove through the Ziz Valley full of palm groves and greenery for the first time of our trip. We also stopped briefly to see Barbary Macaques living in the cedar forests outside Ifrane.

Ifrane is also called the “Switzerland of Morocco.” Located in the Middle Atlas Mountains, it is famous for being one of the cleanest cities in the world. And, it really was like teleporting to Europe. The buildings, the gardens, the fountains, it didn’t feel like the Morocco we had become acquainted with over the last few days.

The town was founded by the French colonials in 1929 and is a popular winter tourist destination for Moroccans today. It was intentionally built to feel and look like a home away from home for French vacationers coming to ski nearby.

The symbol of the town is a big, stone lion. Though the true identity of the artist is unknown, legend has it that it was carved by a German solider  (or perhaps an Italian solider held prisoner) during WWII when Ifrane was used as a prisoner-of-war camp.

After snapping our photo of the famous feline “Guardian of the Forest,” we continued on to Fes for the night.

We arrived at our riad (a traditional guesthouse) in Fes in the early evening. We were once again treated with so much kindness and hospitality. Our rooms were comfortable and connected via an interior balcony. Dinner, freshly prepared by the riad owner, was served in the interior courtyard.

Though there were several choices, we took the chef’s recommendation for Moroccan Pastilla and we were not disappointed. Pastilla is a savory meat pie wrapped in a flakey crust, often served at weddings and celebrations. Brother and I had minced meat, Josh had chicken and M had a vegetarian version. Each one had its own unique flavor and all were equally delicious.

We were happy to have the warmth of a real hotel after our night in the desert and were up bright and early again to start our day in Fes. Our guide, Mr. Rida, arranged for a local tour for us and we scooped up Mr. Abdul for the first part of our tour around 9 am.

The first part of our tour was via the van. We made stops at the Royal Palace of Fes. Though the original palace dates back to 17th century, the beautiful front facade was created in the 1960s to honor the new king. The gold plated doors were hand-chiseled with delicate and intricate patterns and the hand-crafted tiles represent the regions of the country. Red for Marrakech. White for Rabat. Blue for Fes. Yellow for the desert and Atlas Mountain regions. And, green for Islam (the predominant religion of Morocco).

Later in the day, we visited a small shop and met the son of one of the original artists who chiseled the massive doors. He still practices the family art and gave us a demonstration. The work is so small and incredibly detailed. No stencils are used, just free-hands, old-fashioned tools and the artists imagination.

Fes is known as both the religious and cultural capital of the country. We were excited to see both the first mosque built in the city, as well as, the world’s oldest university during the walking portion of our tour.

The University of  Al-Qarawiyyin was found in 859 AD and is the oldest, continuously operating university in the world. It was originally opened as a mosque and provided religious training.

We continued our walk around the old city of Fes stopping for visits at various businesses for brief information sessions by the owners and workers. It was the only tour we’ve ever been on that was conducted in this format and it was pretty incredible.

Fes is known for its handicrafts. Getting to hear the processes and histories first-hand from the artisans themselves was a really special experience. We made stops in the tannery district (the smell of soaking animal hides and pigeon poop - used for it’s ammonia content the strip the hair from animal skins in the leather making process) was pretty intense and we were given mint sprigs to smell as we made our way through.

We also make stops at a pottery/tile factory where M got to make some pottery.

Then we moved on to a traditional bakery where bread was being cooked over fire in stone ovens and a weaver shop where the fabrics were made for clothing and carpets using a foot-pedalled loom.

M’s favorite stop was our extensive visit at the women owned co-op feature selling all natural domestic products, spices and argon oil. We got to sample a ton of products and even got face massages. M loved hers. Josh not so much.

We exited the old town through the extremely busy and overstimulating market streets. Mr. Abdul was booking it to keep us on schedule and lost him a few times in the crowd! The smells, sounds and sights of the market were both welcoming and overwhelming. The coolest stalls we saw were sparkly wedding/formal dresses and a camel meat stall with whole camel head hanging for purchase.

After that, we returned back to Mr. Rida for a long drive to our next destination - Chefchaouen - the Blue City.