Fes, Volubilis, and Meknes

As we left Rabat, the Foret Maamora (forest) was shrouded in mist with the sun shining above.

Forest as we were leaving Rabat

Fog hanging in the low spots as we drove toward Fes.

I noticed that all the trees (cork oak) had a darker color bark from the first branches to the ground. It was also interesting to see people wanting a ride somewhere would stand by the roadside and sort of flag down passing cars by putting out their hand and pointing a finger. Hitchhiking, which seemed to even be done in groups. We arrived in Fes,

Fes

and after depositing our things in the riad,

Courtyard in our new riad in Fes.

The courtyard and dining room of our riad with the water feature.

Door to our room. I wish I’d taken a picture of the loft I slept in.

This courtyard was covered, but the cover could be opened.

we met a guide arranged through the riad and headed out to see the handicrafts of Fes. First stop was the ceramic co-op, where we saw red and gray clay being soaked in water (they harvest it from local areas, dry it and then soak it for a week after which it is kneaded by foot and hand), sculpted on a foot-turned wheel,

Potter in the co-op just outside the old city of Fes working on a foot turned wheel.

The kiln. First firing is 900℃ and the second firing is 1125℃

painted with painstaking detail by hand or hand chiseled into designs,

Artisans sat on the floor and hand chiseled designs into the glazed and fired pottery tiles. They were they pieced together to form intricate patterns.

The green and black fountain pieces are made from the pieced together tiles.

and finally the shop with hard pressure to buy.

All sizes and shapes of pottery available in the retail shop.

Bowls decorated in more modern style

From there we went into the medina and visited the jalaba (hooded ankle length pull-over) shop, where I bought one. I wear it almost everyday now. We went into a weavers shop and watched them work the floor loom with a pulley thrown shuttle.

Weaver with a hand pulled flying shuttle and foot operated treadle.

They use agave fiber as the silk, in addition to wool from the sheep. I was quite interested in this after my experience with weaving when I lived in London long ago. We saw where they auction the leather hides

Leather auction where skins are auctioned off in batches of four whole skins, presumably of the same type of animal: sheep, goat, or cow (maybe some others, but I don’t know what).

and then went to the leather dying area. At the bottom of the stairs was a box of mint leaves to take and hold under your nose when you arrived at the top to look out over the dying vats. It smelled like boiling meat that might be too old, as they wash the skins (mostly sheep, cow, goat) and then dye them in big vats. Men stand in the vats and pull the skins one at a time to be pushed down and spread out with both hands and feet to soak for 7-10 days.

These were the white dye baths for the leather. You can just see some skins over the ledge set out on straw to dry in the sun.

When they are the color desired they are set out in the sun to dry. From there they are sent to tailors to make them into saleable items. Our guide wanted to take us to another Berber pharmacy,

Narrow streets were a complete maze and populated by bicycles, motorcycles, donkeys, carts, and people. . .lots of people.

Peeking into a mosque in the old city of Fes.

Another peek inside the mosque from a different doorway.

You don’t see pay phones anymore, so I thought this was kind of quaint.

This was a school filled with small children. I had to sneak the picture so it’s not very good because our guide said the teacher would come out and want money.

but we said we’d already seen several, so back to the riad where we had a scrumptious tagine meal! I slept in the loft here, which was accessed by a narrow, rickety wooden staircase (wish I’d taken a picture of it). The next day our riad host (who was quite a braggart) arranged for us to be picked up and driven to Volubilis

Nearing Volubilis which was about an hour from Fes on very small, very bumpy roads.

Countryside surrounding Volubilis (Old Roman City ruins)

Roman ruins in Volubilis

Roman ruins and the surrounding countryside

to see the Roman ruins, and then to Meknes. In Meknes, we ended up taking photos from the car and having lunch at a rooftop café.

Gates into Meknes

View of Old Meknes from our rooftop terrace cafe.

Our cafe from street level

We were pretty done with medinas and mosques we could only view from outside. So back to another delicious meal at the riad.

Rabat

The next day was a long drive to Rabat,

Ovens at a roadside stop

Tagines cooking to be ready for the lunch crowd at the road side stop

the political capital of Morocco. I loved seeing the storks and their nests atop buildings, walls, and towers there as well as in Marrakech. We walked through a gigantic graveyard

The cemetery was vast. It goes all the way to the top of the hill there.

Cemetery headstones

(I can’t remember ever seeing one in Kuwait, or any of the other Middle Eastern countries I’ve been to so far) and then along the seaside to a restaurant overlooking the beach.

The coastline in Rabat.

Lunch overlooking the beach.

The Moroccan coastline is very rocky,

Very rocky coastline!

but there are small spaces (probably manmade) where there is sand and traditional beach activities could occur – though it was very windy and cold.

Small sandy area where people were having picnics, walking dogs, play soccer, and eventually a surf school came and were teaching/learning to surf.

Then we walked up to the ancient walled city

The walled city with a small cemetery at the foot of the hill.

and through the Bab Oudaïa Gate

Gate to the walled city.

and walked around inside there.

Inside the walled city. I don’t know the significance of the blue and white walls, but it was beautiful.

This is about how big the alley was that our riad was on. This is in the walled city though.

We were shooed away from the mosque as it was near time for prayer, and many people offered to be our guide ($$). We wandered out and through a small garden.

Garden within the walled city. It was quite peaceful and beautiful.

Interesting flowers and one of the gardeners eagerly told me their names, one was either Angel’s Trumpet or Devil’s Trumpet, probably the latter.

Trumpet, of devils or angels, I don’t know.

Giant poinsettia, of which there were many

So delicate and beautiful.

Everywhere we went in Morocco there were orange trees loaded with oranges. Many cities had them lining the streets. We were told these are not sweet oranges for eating, but bitter oranges from which essences, perfumes, etc. are made.

Our place in Rabat was called a riad, or ryad. This is a house, or palace with an interior garden or courtyard.

Sitting in the courtyard and looking into the kitchen at our riad in Rabat

Looking directly up while sitting in the courtyard, which is open to the outdoors

They are frequently open air above the courtyard garden and have a water feature. This acts sort of like air-conditioning as the hot air enters, passes over the water and is cooled. The walls are very thick as well, which insulates for both hot and cold. The inward focus with few windows supports the Muslim idea of protecting women from being seen. They are surprising in that when you stand at the door it looks small and sometimes even very rundown. Then once inside you are stunned by the expansive courtyard with rooms off to the sides and above, creating a peaceful and beautiful oasis right in the middle of a bustling city.

The dining room from the courtyard

Doors to our room “La Confidente”

View from the rooftop terrace at the riad