Fez: The old Medina

Fez is one of the cities that I was most excited about visiting on this trip.  I read Susanna Clarke’s book A House in Fez where she recounts her project with her husband to acquire and restore a riad (or home) in the old medina of Fez (an adventure just as full if surprises as my trip has been).  Now that I have been traveling through Morocco for a few weeks, I have really come to appreciate and see for myself the anecdotes of this unique culture (so different from my own) and have really come to appreciate all the things that are uniquely Moroccan. 

            We arrived in Fez on Saturday morning after only an hour of travel.  (Ifrane, where we are staying is about one hour up the road from Fez.)  First we went and visited the Royal Palace in Fez, which used to be the capital of Fez until Morocco became a French protectorate in 1808.  After the signing of the protectorate doctrine in Fez, the Berber tribes who lives in the Rif and Atlas Mountain chains became hostile toward the French there and created enough of a raucous that the French finally moved the capital to Rabat, where it stands today. 

            Because it was the former capital, Fez boasts some of the oldest buildings, universities and neighborhoods still in use today, and some of Morocco’s greatest treasures are considered to be in Fez.  The palace was a huge, sprawling estate, surrounded by ramparts that seemed to go on for days.  We were not permitted to enter the grounds, but we were allowed to meander around the reception courtyard and photograph the main gate that leads to the royal palace.  Apparently, the king’s wife is from Fez, so the royal family spends some significant time there during the year. 

            After visiting the royal palace, we moved onto the old medina, which I was very excited about having read so much about it in Clark’s book, and from hearing about it from both Moroccan and American friends that have visited.  We walked through the blue gate, the main entrance to the medina into the produce district (souk).  The people, sights and smells hit you immediately.  People are hustling here and there, donkeys (“petit taxis” within the medina’s walls because there are no cars allowed) wait patiently in the middle of the streets while people shop for their groceries. 

The butcher shops are a sight to behold.  Whole dead goats and sheep hang with their red flesh adorned by flies, a smell that is putrid at first, but you become quickly acclimated to it.  Their heads are available for sale, separate from their bodies.  I have yet to find out what for.  Interestingly enough, in this souk we had the divine pleasure of seeing fresh camel meat, only identifiable by the camel’s head being mounted on a post outside the butcher’s stand.  It was a first for us.   

            The question of camel meat has come up a couple times, mostly when I’m joking about what’s in the kefta, or minced meat, that they prepare like meatballs in tajins and other indigenous dishes.  Kefta has also been adapted into Italian dishes such as spaghetti and kefta.  I like to joke with the people eating it that I hope they enjoy the camel… which is supposed to be very good, but in our minds has the same appeal as eating a horse or a donkey.  It was more interesting than disturbing to have this affirmed because people have been very unclear about how available the meat of a camel is and how easy it is to buy.  Another cool Moroccan food were tubs of fat mixed with meat that they use for breakfast with eggs or on toast.  Kind of like Moroccan Chorizo. 

    There are beautiful fruits and grains overflowing in baskets and carts for sale.  Everything you can think of is available to purchase from beautiful peaches and grapes to pomegranates and giant watermelons, lentils, navy beans, hariza and always, always, always the distinct smell of saffron fills the air.  I have yet to have the opportunity to cook, and I hope we will before we leave, but I am definitely getting some great inspiration for some Moroccan flavors and dishes.  Don’t worry, we’ll skip the camel.  It will probably be difficult to get a hold of in the states anyway. (If you look in the picture above with the man in the foreground, you can see the camel head hanging from the awning.)

            About half way through the souk there was a doorway that led to the madrasa, or the old Qu’ranic school.   This phenomena is so common here, it’s uncanny.  You’re just walking along and all of a sudden you’re someplace important that is so well camouflaged that you can’t find it without a guide.  Apparently, even the guides have been known to get lost from time to time in the labyrinth of the medina sometimes.  The madrasa was beautiful, very well maintained and preserved, although, from my understanding it was only a few hundred years old. 

            We spent some time at the madrasa then continued through the souk in the medina.  Every now and then our guide would comment, “There’s another mosque… here’s a madrasa… here’s a hamaam… there’s a university…” and we would have had no idea had he not been with us.  By the way, the most polite, intelligent and well-mannered guide we’ve had thus far, in my opinion.

            We toured around the medina for quite some time.  At one point we visited the government building where the protectorate agreement was signed with France, which was really beautiful.  I looked up at one point and discovered that there was a terrace on top and was able to convince our guide to go up.  He gave me two minutes, so I ran up six flights of stairs to the top, was absolutely exhausted, but it was well worth it.  At the top of the stairs was  a huge covered terrace where you can see the entire old medina in Fez.  The photos I was able to take probably do it no justice, but it was really beautiful. 

            We also visited a silk cooperative where I was able to buy beautiful Moroccan fabrics that were woven by a man on a giant hand loom.  Apparently, it takes them about a week to finish one tapestry, and all the colors were so beautiful, it was so hard to decide.  I probably paid way more than I should have, but it was still far less than I would have paid in the states and well worth it for the quality. 

After we spent some time walking around and shopping we ended up at the tanneries.  I had completely forgotten about them since I have been here, but they are something that has always intrigued me.  The tanneries are where they die the leather for use in Moroccan slippers, handbags, clothing, luggage and other leather wares.  Although I know that the tanning process consists of one phase where they let the skins soak in ammonia and pigeon droppings, I was not prepared for the appalling smell that we would have to endure when we arrived.  The man sitting at the front passing out sprigs of fresh mint leaves made it pretty evident.  There are so many unpleasant smells in this country that people simply deal with, the reality that they were acknowledging the fact that the smell was going to be awful made me realize that we were in for something intense.

And intense it was.  Walking up the winding staircase- and they’re all winding here- the smell gradually built up so that the point where we actually reached the rooftop the ammonia was burning our eyes and lungs- probably exacerbated by the intense heat that day.  Down below us spread a courtyard of vats and vats of ammonia where leather hides sat soaking, waiting to be dyed.  To the right of the ammonia pits were the vats of dye- reds, oranges, and browns, where men used their feet and long poles to apply the dye to the hides.  After a few minutes I became totally nauseous and my eyes were burning, so I had to make a break for it, but it was a very interesting experience.  I was shocked that some people in our group stayed up on the roof to purchase various leather products, despite the putrid smells.  My clothes still smelled when we got back to the hotel.

 

            After the tanneries, we went to a factory where the zelijj, the Moroccan mosaic tiles are manufactured, and were able to witness how the tiles and the pottery are made. 

            Before we made it back to the hotel, we were able to go to a panoramic lookout of the medina as the sunset.  There was a beautiful view and a cool breeze, and there were hundreds of local Moroccan people there enjoying the afternoon and the scenery.  It was a very nice end to a long day.

 

            That night, most of the other teachers went out to celebrate our tour guide’s birthday.  They left the hotel at 11:00 at were out ‘til 4:00 in the morning.  I was so glad I opted to stay in because when I was up ready to go the next morning almost everyone was still in bed or going back to sleep.  I had a whole day in Fez to enjoy the next day!