Day 4 - Fez

Brief Info
Fes or Fez is the 2nd largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of just over 1 million habitants. It's the capital of the Fes-Boulemane region.

Fez, the former capital, is one of the country's four imperial cities, the others being Rabat, Marrakech and Meknes. Fez comprises 3 distinct parts, Fes el Bali (the old walled city), Fes-Jdid (new Fes, home of the Mellah) and the Ville Nouvelle (the French-created, newest section of the city).


Fez
On our fourth day in Morocco, we are going to see the town of Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, where non-Muslims were not allowed until the recent past, and then head to Fez. The town Moulay Idriss Zerhoun was named after the grandson of the prophet Mohammed and first Arab leader of Morocco. It is located 26 kilometres north of Meknes. Holding Zerhoun’s tomb, it is a sacred place of pilgrimage Muslims. Since we have come this far, we may as well see the ancient Roman City of Volubilis, which is only five minutes away from here. After resting a bit in Volubilis, we are now ready for the magical town of Fez, which takes its visitors two hundred years back in time.

Fez is Morocco’s religious, cultural, and culinary capital. The administrative centre of Morocco for more than 400 years, Fez was founded in 789, between the mountains where the River Fez is born. Entering the medina, Fes el Bali, which dates back to the Middle Ages, is like taking a huge breath and going underwater—it is a total bombardment of your senses. Fes is a city that one cannot fail to be passionate about. The addictive essence of the pounding medina drips into one’s veins like a drug that forever leaves you with a thirst to feel more. Therefore, a single visit can never be enough for the oldest and largest medieval city in the world, a city that is almost unchanged through the modern ages. Although it is such an old town, Fez still preserves its architectural texture and does not yield to time. Since most streets are too narrow for cars, donkeys and mules are common for transport. Fes el Bali is also the home of the oldest still functioning university of the world (in Guinness Book of World Records), Al-Kairouine Medresseh. This enormous complex, opened in 859, holds a magnificent mosque inside it, and has been one of the most important centres of Islamic learning for hundreds of years. Passing through one of the most famed gates of Morocco, the Bab Boueloud, we arrive at Fez el-Jedid, which means “the New Fez.” When you step in through the gate, which was built in 1913 to connect Fez el-Bali and Fez el-Jedid, you will note that the colour of the mosaics change. The outside blue reflects the colour of Fez, while the inside green is the colour of Islam.

Although Fez el-Jedid means “the New Fez”, its history goes back to 1200s. Another one of the most interesting sights of Fes is Suuq Dabbaghin, or the tanners’ quarter. Photographs of the platform, where you can look down on the entire area and see how the process is done, reveal an enchanting play of colours between the brownish honeycombs, the white houses, intense reds, yellows, and blues of the dye. This scene is among the most commonly taken home Moroccan memories.