Fes - Going back in Time!
Trip Start
Jun 07, 2008
1
21
191
Trip End
Jun 28, 2009
Where I stayed
Fes, Morocco
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Salaam and Bon Jour!
Today I saw things I have never seen before in my life! We went with a very nice guide named Ghali to the old medina (walled town) of Fes. First it was kind of scary because there were so many people and the paths are so tiny and there were so many merchants selling things. Right away, I saw a dead camel's head hanging from a butcher's shop. It looked GROSS! And there were goat heads and one man was selling sting rays (to eat!), and there were live rabbits, turkeys, and chickens for sale everywhere. It is like going back to the 9th century. And everyone speaks Arabic or French.
We went through a maze of tiny streets (more like alleys) - no cars are allowed but there are lots of donkeys and tons of people and carts. Ghali taught us the magic word of the medina - "Belek" - which really means "Get out of my way!" We heard that a lot today! We saw lots of different markets. People were selling so many funny things, like toothbrushes, candles, purses, bread, candy, all sorts of things. One was even trying to sell a bag of cement and one person was selling barber shop chairs. Then we went to the tanning markets. It smelled really bad because they use pigeon poop to take the fur off the hides. We went to a shop way above the tanners where we could see everything. There were guys soaking hides in dye - red and blue and yellow. They jump in these vats and step on them to soak the dye in, then dry them on the roofs. They gave us mint to smell so it was not so bad. And my sister got some Moroccan shoes made of leather.
Then we went to the carpet weavers market. We saw women weaving carpet so fast, I could barely keep track of their hands. There were lots of beautiful carpets but we did not buy any because we are traveling. But when we stop traveling I want to get a blue Berber one that I saw - it was nice!
I had cous cous (cous cous is like tiny pasta/rice - they eat is with lots of things) for lunch and lamb kebabs - our guide could not eat because of Ramadan, but he found us a nice place to eat. And I tried some of the candy on the street. So far, I have not seen any pizza or pasta or anything like that here.
I also saw a shop where you can do "Play Station 2" - there were kids in there playing video games! We also saw a preschool with a tiny door and kids in there playing. And an elementary school, but we could not go in because it was not open yet. School only starts here on September 15. And we visited some mosques, where people were praying and hanging out, but we could not go in because we are not Muslim. By the end of the day, I was not scared anymore because Ghali knew his way around the streets and because people were very nice. Tonight we watched the sun set from the roof of our riad and heard the call to prayer - this happens many times during the day. It was great to look out over the city - it probably looks like it did thousands of years ago, except now there are satellite dishes on all the roofs! I wonder what they watch on TV.
