Fes!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post! My computer hasn't been working in my room, so I haven't had a chance to update! Last weekend, we went to Fes! We travelled in taxis from Ifrane, which took a little over an hour. Once we arrived, we walked around the Old Medina and then got dinner.

The restaurant was located right inside of the main entrance to the Old Medina, shown in the picture above. Below, Rebecca, Brooke and I wait for our dinner, which was delicious! :)

Our meal consisted of appetizers, soup (or salad), bread, a meal and dessert. For the whole meal, we each paid 50 dirhams. I was starting to doubt the food here, but our dinner redeemed Moroccan cuisine! The food was amazing! I had a ground meat (beef, I think) and egg tajine. I finally had some decent coffee too! :)

For dessert, we had a choice of cookies or tangerines. The cookies were pretty good and my favorite was the one on the bottom, which was chewy and almond flavored.

After dinner, we went back to our hotel. It was nice, but once again, very cold! We spent a couple hours on the roof chatting, then headed to bed. Fortunately, we had thick blankets and I didn't have any trouble sleeping. We each paid 100 dirhams for the night and had our own beds. 

On Saturday, we woke up and headed to breakfast, which consisted of different kinds of bread with butter and honey (and mint tea, of course). The bread shown in the picture below is called harsha and is dense and similar to cornbread. The other bread we ate is called msemmem and is flaky and is somewhat similar to a crepe. Moroccans LOVE their carbohydrates! 

After breakfast, we ventured into town. Everything was so colorful! We wandered around the shops, which included jewelry, leather bags, plates, lanterns, and loads of other goodies. 

I absolutely love the lanterns that we saw in Fes! They are beautiful, but I'm not sure how I would be able to get one back to the states in one piece.

There are countless food shops lining the streets in the Old Medina. Some of the featured meats were slightly disturbing, especially the camel head hanging from a hook. I apologize if this picture disgusts anyone, but I thought I should share to fully capture the experience. 

We visited  the Tannery, where most of the leather used for the products in the medina is processed. The dye used for the leather is all natural and is stored in large vats. According to our guide, the Tannery is the center of the Moroccan leather industry. Visitors are given mint leaves to smell while visiting the Tannery, which emits a very strong odor. The picture below is of two fellow exchange students (Rebecca and Brooke) and me putting our mint leaves to use! 

While most of the vendors in Fes were very friendly, many were pretty aggressive. I found a bag that I liked in town and saw a similar version in the Tannery store. After explaining that the purse was made of very high quality camel leather, the seller mentioned that it cost 900 dirhams (over $100 USD). I tried to explain that this was too expensive and he angrily responded, "You don't like my leather!" After having a brief and fairly awkward staring contest with the disgruntled salesman, I left. 

Many of the shop owners emphasized their love of Americans and noted that they would give us "the student price." We all had our share of interesting interactions while browsing through the shops. One of my personal favorites was a man who sold earrings. I briefly looked at some of his jewelry and found a pair of earrings that I liked. He said they were 30 dirhams, which Nour, a Moroccan student who (very kindly) showed us around Fes, said was too much. As we walked away, the salesman screamed, "You know nothing about Morocco!" He proceeded to insult us multiple times afterwards as we walked past his store. Another student, Elizabeth, made a real connection with a seller, who asked her if she was interested in his bags and then proclaimed, "I love you!" 

At one point, I lost our group and headed up the street looking for everyone. Suddenly, from every direction, I heard, "Katharine! Katharine! Come, look!" At first, I was totally confused and not quite sure how a herd of Moroccan salesman suddenly knew my name. Then I realized that my name was scrawled across the back of my trusty L.L. Bean backpack. 

We also visited a rug shop. The salesman pulled dozens of rugs and blankets out of stacks that lined the walls of his store. I am considering buying a carpet before I leave, but plan to shop around. He also showed us blankets, which he called "student rugs." One of the girls in our group, Jill, bought a blanket for 400 dirhams (about $50 USD). 

One of my favorite parts of our trip to Fes was the Berber apothecary. A salesman showed us an array of natural medications and remedies, including "Moroccan Viagra," which he noted was very useful for "the jiggy jiggy." He offered us whale fat, which is supposedly an aphrodisiac. He also let us sample different kinds of oils and perfumes. When he showed us a tube of green lipstick, I got to be the guinea pig of the group. At first, I was afraid the lipstick would actually be green, but it changed to a pretty shade of pink once applied. 

For lunch, we ate at the same restaurant we had the night before. I really enjoyed the fresh orange juice, which is by far the best I've ever had. Each glass consists of about 3-4 freshly squeezed oranges. I also had a chance to try fresh apple and banana juice (both were very good). An interesting aspect of dining in Morocco is the constant presence of cats. We were joined by a couple of cats for lunch, one of whom jumped onto Nour's lap.

Of our travels to date, Fes is by far my favorite! It is beautiful and so busy and exciting! Luckily, it is also relatively close to Ifrane. There is so much to see and one trip just isn't enough!