Fes

After seeing the beautiful Roman ruins we went to Fes, the third largest city in Morocco. Due to its location between two mountain ranges, the Atlas and Rif, Fes was nearly constantly under attack. To combat this the city was intentionally built with labyrinthine streets so as to confuse any invading army. The old medina was divided into 35 wards each of which could be locked down at a moments notice. Each district has 10 mosques which has lead to Fes' reputation as the spiritual capitol of Morocco. We had a tour guide to show us around thankfully or I would have been completely lost even with the amazing sense of direction given to me by my Papa. 

Unfortunately I didn't take may photos due to the fact that we were a bit rushed and I wanted to keep up with the group. 

The Bab (door) into the Medina. 

The tile work is just amazing. 

This kid kept running from the beginning of our group to the end and back just laughing and having fun. 

That's a street sign. 

He was smiling at me just a few seconds before. 

There are so many artisans in Fes it is amazing!

Those blue and purple lines are silk threads. The silk makers take threads from cactus and create beautiful soft silk. They create thread by running the smaller fibers around the building and then electronically winding them together. 

More silk. 

The half barrel sticking out of the wall is actually a window. The first windows in Fes were created out of half barrels to give the occupants of the home the ability to see who was at the door without being seen themselves. It was to maintain the women's purity from being seen by non family members. 

An important element to any mosque is a fountain to ensure that worshipers are able to perform the ritual cleansing before prayer. They are so beautiful in their simple complexity. 

This is the entrance to the museum devoted to woodworking craftsmanship. 

This is the mausoleum of a king I don't remember his name but he was the king who brought Islam to Morocco. It is a holy site for many Moroccans who pilgrimage to Fes to light a candle and say a prayer here. 

This is one of the first colleges in Morocco it is now just for tours. 

Again a fountain to make sure students could perform ablutions before prayers. 

This niche in the wall performs two important functions. First it allows worshipers to know which way Mecca is (Muslims pray in the direction of Mecca, it is considered a holy city where the Kaaba is located a central element in Islam), and also the accustics in the niche allow for the call to prayer to be heard clearly from a distance. 

That is my classmate Maria peeking out from the window. 

We went to the tannery which would have been an PETA nightmare! And the smell was something I am unlikely to forget anytime soon, no matter how much I want to. We were given sprigs of mint upon our entrance to keep under our noses to help with the smell. I will say it helped a little, but not much. I didn't get a picture of the tanning pools, I did however get a few photos of the final products. 

Poofs Ric, poofs!!

As you can see the poofs come in just about every color and several sizes. 

We left the Medina and went to a pottery factory, it was quite incredible to see the craftsmen at work and admire their finished projects. 

All of the designs are hand painted using horse hair brushes. 

 

 

Busy building a table top one piece at a time. 

Of course there was a store for us to purchase our own pieces of Fes artistry. 

Dishes with the hand of Fatima. 

After the pottery house we went to an old fortress to look out over the city. 

 

After our beautiful view we were back on the bus and headed to home sweet home in Meknès. 

Fes was incredible and I'm really excited to go back when my family comes. I can't believe my time here is more than half way over, that's just crazy to think. I feel like I'm finally getting my bearings and understanding more of what to expect and not to expect here. I really love Morocco and I WILL be back!!

Meen qalbi,

Kayla نور