Labyrinthine Medina.

3-29-14 FES, MOROCCO: Fes dates back to 789 AD and the medina is closed to cars, a big plus. Like almost every city we have seen, Fes was once the capitol of Morocco. The present capitol, Rabat, isn’t on our itinerary. Also, like all the other cities, Fes had yet another royal palace. That’s where we started today at the famous bronze doors and took a group pic with the Nat/Geo banner. The nearby banks had lots of ATM’s, and we stocked up with dirhams. I don’t think I mentioned that there are about ten dirhams to the dollar.


Famous doors not open to us.

Us.

Shoppers, start your engines.

Near the palace, is the Mellah, the old Jewish quarter, and an ancient synagogue that was used by Maimonides when he lived in Fes in the 1100’s. He came to Fes from his hometown of Còrdoba and later moved on to Cairo.


Menorah-like hinge on the synagogue door.

The Torah. Note the carved wood and tiling.

Synagogue with loft for the women.

Moving on, we went to the older sections of the medina. A lot of it is dedicated to one craft or another in different areas. The streets are narrow and narrower.


Narrow street.

Narrower street.

Really narrow street.



Adjacent shops of copper workers.

Head scarves. [Val spotted this display first.]

Coca cola delivery.

The leather tanning and dying area can be seen from above. They give you a sprig of mint to ward off the aroma of the process.


Tanning and dying vats must occupy an acre. It's a Dante-esque scene.

Cats are everywhere.

The medina above the leather workers.

Leather for sale-shoes, clothes, bags-you name it.

The Kairaouine Mosque and University has another beautiful courtyard with a fountain and wonderful geometric designs.


Mosaics, carving and plaster work.

We had lunch at Palais Medina and then visited a rug dealer and later a pottery factory.


Another great meal at another gorgeous restaurant.

Rugs.

Pots.

Ceramics.