LOCATION: Fes
What's happening?
Glad we have reliable alarms because we may have missed the day completely because our room has no natural light source. We woke to our alarm cocooned in darkness and the comfort of the air con. First check of the phones revealed the great news for the Socceroos! Woo hoo. And Morocco enjoyed a draw so a great start for our little travelling troop.
In fact, all very quiet here in Fes today - it is Sunday morning and the early morning finish of that one all draw between Morocco and Brazil - meant a little less sleep for our locals - there were lots of celebrations and now not the same spring in @Mohammed's step to start the day. He did warm up as the day progressed.
The Adventure
Not quite breakfast in bed but pretty close. Right outside our bedroom door. We did need to make a judicious selection of table - didn't want to sit at the one where the staff member was doing the early morning bird cage clean up!
Took the short drive with @Smail and @Mohammed to meet up with our local guide @Hicham who has a PhD in Linguistics for our tour of all things old town Fes. Needless to say, his education background, combined with the fact that we was a local lad from the medina, meant he was "the man" for the tour.
Getting our bearings with @Hicham
We worked the medina in sort of concentric circles working from the outer edges of the 1400s to the inner ring of the foundation of Fes dating back to between 788 and 808 CE.
Started at the Royal Palace and the Jewish quarter in wide open spaces and progresed through uneven, narrower than narrow passageways that open into endless and sometimes unexpected elements whether it be the souk or mosques or schools or caravan trade centres or tanneries or even the oldest university in the world. @Hicaham's figures were 9 000 alleyways and 40 000 dead ends sprawled over 280 acres housing approximately.150 000 residents.
Before the deep dive, we did take a short drive to the terrace of the Borj Nord to get those sweeping views across the wider city of Fes with its total population of 1.5 million. It was hazy, but you could view both the Rif and Atlas Mountains.
Have no idea if we were heading north or south but it didn't matter because at all times @Hicham was the lead and @Mohammed was behind the last of our little group of four - a definite commitment to keeping us on the straight (well not really) and narrow (definitely extremely narrow in some sections.)
Some of the highlights @Hicham helped us navigate:
Fes el Jdid: Built in the 13th century, home to the Royal Palace and Mellah (Jewish quarter). Our starting point and we were part of an interesting near confrontation with a staff member from the Jewish cemetery.
Fes el Bali: The oldest quarter, founded in the 9th century, with winding alleys and dense souks. Our ultimate goal.
Walls and Gates: Massive fortifications like Bab Bou Jeloud to mark entry points. There are 8 gates ... saw most of them earlier from the panoramic view point
Car-free labyrinth: Narrow alleys where donkeys carry goods and we had to listen for cries of "Balak balak" to watch out and move out of the way for donkeys and carts . @Mac had to duck in lots of places - if it a no go zone for camels - a lower beam is passed across the doorway preventing entry.
Chouara Tanneries: Needed a sprig of mint for the smell and surprised that pigeon poop is used to soften the leather. The pigeons are couped for this purpose! Products were tempting but we did not "invest."
Al Quaraouiyine Mosque: Founded in 859, centerpiece of Islamic scholarship.It is the oldest existing, continually operating uni in the world according to UNESCO and Guinness World Records and was founded by a woman.
Bou Inania Madrasa: 14th-century masterpiece with intricate tilework. This koranic school was a boarding house and features a mosque. When @Liz and I visted the loo here - the lady on duty was being entertained by some pretty raunchy cartoons that she took great delight in sharing with us!
Nejjarine Fondouk: Caravanserai turned into museum of wood arts. Massive three floors that @Mac sealed to get views over medina.
Cats: they were everywhere — perched on fountains, guarding shop doors, sunbathing or prowling the alleyways. Yep, again, they unofficial rulers of the medina.
This was a five hour on foot tour that culminated in lunch inside another riad -"again all tilescand wood m, woth impeccable table presentation, now familiar food choices and the ever perfect, orange juice.
Took a little detour to a shopping mall to pick up a bottle of wine for a treat in the desert camps and some supplies for tomorrow's road trip. Mind you @TheRoyals were doing a little happy dance as they had scored a pair of rubber thongs! @Bill had suffered a blow out two days ago and had been on shoe alert. Funny, that after all the leather offerings of today - these little rubber numbers were such a hit - he bought two pair, despite them being a size too small. Got to smile.
We were home by three and could use the afternoon to relax and finally get to watch the Socceroos 💪before taking to the rooftop of our riad for the sunset. This is actually the first time i have heard the "call to prayer." Haven't noticed it before but perched on top of the building it was a weird mess of the calls echoing from the 300 plus mosques. It was an ear jolting babble.
For dinner - lunch recovery. Had a cup of coffee an orange and a Ferrero rocher chocolate . We needed a breather from food.
Our bags are packed - just need final touches in the morning as we make our way further south to the Sahara, the heat and the sand and the real test of @Bill's one size too small rubber thongs.
PS: Reinforcing here that "perspective is everything. Important to keep your critical thinking hat in place when hearing the perspective of our "locals." Three big examples today, the "collision" outside the Jewish cemetery, the commentary around the history of the shape of our Arabic numbers and the acceptance of the oldest university, founded by a woman, now exclusively for the men.
PPS Lots of children playing in streets, courtyards and alleys with real joy and freedom. Trying to recall seeing any girls - only boys? Going to watch for that today.
Survival Barometer
Steps: 13 602
Weather: comfortable for walking day at 31 - lucky because overnight prediction had been 35!
Can you believe that?
A little background from Co-Pilot.
🌀 Quirky Bargaining Tricks in Fez
Walk Away Move
Pretend to leave after the first price. Sellers often chase you down the alley with a much lower offer.
Mint Tea Delay
If a shopkeeper offers tea, accept it. The longer you sit, the more likely they’ll drop the price — hospitality creates pressure to “seal the deal.”
Silent Stare
After hearing the price, stay quiet and just look unimpressed. Awkward silence makes them lower it faster than arguing.
Local Phrase Trick
Drop a simple Darija phrase like “Safi, bzaf!” (“Enough, too much!”). Sellers laugh, respect the effort, and usually soften.
Odd Number Rule
Weirdly, offering an odd number (like 47 dirhams instead of 50) feels more “calculated” and often gets accepted.
Today's Spot the J clue - I think there is only one?
"I've got the penguin for the last trip - now where is the camel?"
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