Fes

Fes seemed to me to be the quintessential Moroccan city. While Marrakech attracts more tourism, Fes is the oldest imperial city and has always been the religious and cultural epicenter. Typical of the imperial cities, there three general areas of the city- the new town (French built), the Jewish quarter (Mullah) and the old town, or fortified medina. The medina is what makes Fes the authentic experience that it is. It's the largest living Islamic medieval city in the world. And while there is a certain amount of tourism, for the most part people live and work within the ancient city walls in much the same way as they have for centuries. For an outsider the medina is a huge labyrinth and at every turn the path ahead looks exactly the same. So you have to go into it planning on being lost and bewildered before you find your way out. The first day that I went, I focused on trying not to veer off the main alley, just to get a feeling for the whole scene. It's an onslaught on the senses. Sounds and smells and sights coming from all directions. Most people are working their daily lives; guiding donkey carts or doing their craft in their workshops. But everyone else is aggressively trying to get your attention. In the bazaars and souks, the shopkeepers want to sell you their wares (they always say, "Just to look, no to buy!") and the restaurants and cafes want you to sit and eat or at least take a cup of mint tea (commonly known as Moroccan whiskey).
Other than just walking around and checking things out, there are a number of sites to see within the medina walls. The Koranic universities, or medersas, are really interesting. Most were built during medieval times and the more ornate ones have very elaborate tile work and woodcarving. There are numerous mosques as well, although in Morocco non-believers are not welcome. While the religious sites are impressive, I enjoyed seeing the tanneries. Moroccans have been tanning leather in the same way for centuries and are known for a soft goat leather made for binding books.
The worst part of the medina experience, and indeed much of Morocco, are the faux or unofficial guides. Law enforcement has cracked down on this practice recently, but it is still very present. These hustlers are shameless in their pursuit of your obligatory "tip". They always pose as "students" or "friends" who are eager to show you whatever you want to see. And if you're not sure, they will happily provide numerous suggestions until something sounds interesting. The annoying part of these encounters is that they don't take no for an answer. You can politely decline their assistance and many times they will still follow you around trying to talk you into letting them guide you somewhere. At times, for the really persistent ones, it was easier to just tip them a few dirham to move on to someone else. I do feel for these guys, though, as they are just trying to get by. And while a third of Morocco's population is under fifteen and unemployment is soaring, getting by is becoming increasingly more difficult.
Hanging out in Fes is an experience to say the least. Its intensity makes it very difficult to sit idly by and observe Moroccan life. I doubt many tourists that are just passing through get a good grasp on the intricacies of the people. The culture does not seem to reveal it's soul easily, and with the combination of sensory overload and culture shock, it can be hard to see the Moroccan forest through it's trees.

Getting Started

I arrived in Casablanca just after midnight on the 5th of January and just after the airport train, that makes the 35 km trip into the city, had stopped running for the evening. Taking a cab to town, I got a room and began to sleep of the jetlag and reset my body clock. Casablanca holds very little for the visitor who has come looking to experience the traditional or cultural aspects of Morocco and has very few attractions. It is Morocco’s commercial center and seems very much like a large, modern European city.
I got out of town as soon as I felt rested and boarded a train to Meknes, one of the four imperial cities. In stark contrast to “Casa”, Meknes is a small and more relaxed city that continues to maintain a great deal of its colonial atmosphere. Most of the other travelers I’ve spoken with had not planned to include Meknes in their itineraries, preferring instead to go on to Fes. I had read, however, that Meknes could provide a more easy going introduction to the medina, and traditional Moroccan life in general, compared to the very lively and intense experience that can be found in Fes.
Volubilis is the primary reason I decided to stop and spend the night in Meknes. One of the Roman Empire’s farthest and most remote outposts, it is Morocco’s best preserved archaeological site. The Romans occupied this area just north of Meknes from about 40 to 280AD and in doing so, allowed Claudius to say he had penetrated the Atlas Mountains. The site’s points of interest include a capital, triumphant arch, baths and a basilica. It was also a key location for "The Last Temptation of Christ". What I appreciated most were the mosaics.
To Moroccans Meknes is known for one figure more than any other. The Sultan Moulay Ismail ruled from 1672 to 1727 and Meknes was the location of his imperial complex. A direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed, a pedigree that the current monarchy shares, he ruled in this period that was to be Morocco’s last golden age. Building Morocco’s strongest ever army, Moulay Ismail began a military campaign that would eventually bring all of present-day Morocco under his control by pushing back the Berber tribes to the south and relieving the British and Spanish of their territories in the north. It is the building achievements of Moulay Ismail that are of interest in this small imperial city. His architectural achievements include the cities’ palaces, gardens, and stables located below the winding medina. And his palace quarters are introduced by the country’s grandest gateway, Bab el- Mansour, which is framed by huge marble columns plundered from Volubilis.
From Meknes I took a bus about an hour east to Fes…

I should have my pictures online in 24 hours at www.kodakgallery.com/douglegrand