Fez City, one of the four so-called imperial cities next to
Marrakech, Meknes and Rabat, in Morocco, is considered as the religious and
cultural capital of the country. Founded in the year 789, it has 1.1 million
inhabitants and its visit is worth it just to see in the Medina of Fez el-Bali,
an endless number of alleys that look like a labyrinth and where you can feel a
way of life already extinguished in other societies.
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| Photo credit : Pixabay |
Next, I propose five things to do and visit in the Medina
of Fez, each one more interesting.
1. Stay in a Riad :
To be fully immersed in the Moroccan culture, it is best to
stay in a riad within the Medina, so you can soak in the local atmosphere at
all times. A riad is a traditional Moroccan house, of great dimensions.
Normally it is an old building, consisting of two floors, which has four to six
rooms that overlook a large inner courtyard with a fountain and which has been
restored to accommodate tourists. The good thing about this type of
accommodation is that having few rooms, the place is usually quiet, as well as
being an oasis of freshness (the riads always maintain a cool temperature
inside) where to go to rest after walking under the harsh sun that usually
shine in Fez.
2. Walk through its streets.
The Medina of Fez el-Bali is the oldest and walled part of
the city of Fez and is considered the largest pedestrian zone in the world. The
immense Medina has retained its medieval structures of yesteryear, so today
walking through its streets is like making a trip to the past, discovering
trades, shops and corners that we thought were no longer there. Therefore, I
recommend spending at least a couple of days to explore this fantastic
labyrinth of streets in which you will love to get lost.
The medinas, those markets full of small shops, are the best
places to get to know the day to day and take the pulse of the ancient city. In
the Medina you buy, sell, bargain, socialize, etc. In the streets of the Medina
of Fez, you can be sure that your senses will wake up completely: new smells,
tastes and sounds. Shopkeepers, donkeys carrying large packages and skins,
women with the basket full of mint, children playing ball, diligent kids carrying
tea glasses, men who come to the call to prayer, gentlemen who hand-sculpt
copper goods ... that, and more, is what you'll find there.
3 . Enter a madrassa :
A madrasah is a school of the Koran. If you have the
opportunity, I recommend visiting one to get an idea of how a place is where
students spend the day learning the teachings of the Koran. The madrasas of
Attarine, Bou Inania or Cherratine are some of those that can be visited for
only about 20 Moroccan dirhams (about 2 euros) the entrance.
4. Visit a tannery :
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| Photo credits : Pixabay |
Inside the Fez medina, we find several tanneries, places where sheep, goat and camel skins are still being worked manually today. The easiest way to get to these is through the local people, who will easily offer to guide you and accompany you to a (after tip), sometimes making you go through the inside of a business of leather bags and jackets so that buy something.
They will take you to a terrace from where you can enjoy the views and they will give you a sprig of mint so that the strong smell that emanates from the multiple pits full of dyes that make up the tannery becomes more bearable.
There are several tanneries: Chouwara, Sidi Moussa or Ain Azliten. Ideally, a guide or worker will explain the processes by which the skins pass from collection to after dyeing, to see with your own eyes how the skins end up being bags, jackets, belts or purses, to finish in stores from the same Medina.
5 . Taste the Moroccan gastronomy in Bab Bou Jeloud :
There is no better way to get to know the Moroccan culture
than to taste its delicious gastronomy. After a day walking and visiting the
Medina, surely you want to sit down for a while to eat or have a tea. The ideal
is to do it on a terrace that has good views.
Bab Bou Jeloud or «Blue Door», decorated with blue and green
ceramics, is the best-known gateway to the Medina of Fez el Bali. Sitting down
to eat or have a tea at one of the tables in the restaurants before you are one
of the best decisions you can make. Eat a couscous or tajine with a mint tea
and a Moroccan puff pastry to finish the meal, while we watch the coming and
going of the most famous door of the Medina. What a pleasure!
Finally, we want to remind you that the currency in progress
in this country is the Moroccan dirham. If yours is not, you can change it with
Global Exchange, which also has more than 13 exchange offices in this country
(in the international airports of Agadir, Tangier, Marrakech, Casablanca and
Fez).
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| Photo credit : Pixabay |
