Sunday, July 8, 2018

Fez, Morocco: The Pigeon and the Butterfly

Al-Qarawiyyin: The oldest university in the world reigns over Fez
 The great walls of Fez envelop the passerby with an apocalyptic and majestic reality, opposite piles of onions, bread and second-hand shoes sold by street vendors on the corner of Raw and Divine.

At a loss and in flames, you flounder through a labyrinthine Medina of eager hawkers and latent heat waves, trying to find balance in your own truth that is no more.

Stunned by centuries of enlightenment, knowledge and craftsmanship injected in the city's timeless mosques, humbled by the grace and baffled by the bees accumulating on Moroccan delicacies for sale on slow-moving carts, it is time to take in a new reality: You are no longer the one behind the wheel. And it's the best gift fairy Fez can ever give you...

 Soundtrack: Moroccan Gnawa Music


Medersa el-Attarine: Galvanizing visitors into sight-seeing action since 1325




Wandering through the Attarine souk

Bab Boujloud gate: Enter madness

Best buddies

Mint tea on the rooftop overlooking minarets, Bab Boujloud and Bab Chorfa gates.

Cafe Clock: Pop in for a funky falafel
King of the Clock
Book o'Clock

Trumpeting heights
Armageddon-it
Fez Medina: The world's fanciest cat shelter

Dar Zohor hostel breakfast: Pas tres "petit" dejeuner

 
Dar Zohor: A luscious dream for the weary backpacker
Ceci n'est pas un hostel bathroom

Ecole Bouanania: Studying the Koran with annoying tourists taking pictures
 
Ecole Bouanania: The gate to spirituality




Fez during Ramadan: Pray by day, disco-party by night

Fez wars

Henna Souk: Beats IKEA every time

Market beau - Turkish singer Tarkan is a big deal in Fez

Life in the Medina moves slow

Chicks about town

Mama Africa: Berber coffee with a view to the Merinides tombs

If you take the wrong turn at the market...

Bab Chorfa, "the gate of nobles" - and the noble souls



Strolling the Medina


Mosque open for the evening prayer

Le Mur de la Mort: Get into gear at the Wall of Death

The Wall of Death, duh..

Champion Youssef Bidaoui rides like the wind


Tea room atop the scenic Nejjarine Museum

The Nejjarine Museum of Wooden Arts & Crafts and captivating invigilators

Dusk walk by the cemetery outside the Medina walls

I'm on the outside looking in


Riad Alkantara: A dip into history (open to non-guests)


Ramadan in Fez: Only some shops are closed for business
The Tanneries: This is hardcore

The sweet meets the animalistic - typical Fez
The unbearable heaviness of PO (Pigeon Odour)


The eclectic trades of Talaa Sghira


The unmistakable charm of Fes el Bali

Life is always colourful through the lens of Cafe Bouanania


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