Fes

That afternoon we arrived in Fez. After finally finding our hotel which was next to the medina (and only found it because we had a taxi  lead us there) we took a tour of the medina. Now this medina is huge and as I told Brent there is no way I’m going in that media with out a tour guide. The hotel (which was like a palace) called an English speaking guide for us and we could have never done it without them. Fez is a craftsman type of city. They are known for the tanneries where they dye leather and make leather goods, iron work, pottery, etc.

We saw many of these areas. The tanneries were the most interesting as we walk in they hand you a sprig of mint to help with the smell. They explain the dyeing process and hope you’ll by something. First they stick the hides of sheep, goats, cows in a limestone vat for a week to remove the hair. Then it goes through a machine. Then it stays in a week in pigeon poop (natural ammonia) to soften it. Then it goes into the dye vats for several weeks. The dye is made with saffron for yellow, red poppies for red, indigo for blue, mint for green, mascara for black, etc. Then it is taken away to dry in the sun and different families make different products out of it such as leather coats, shoes, bags, belts, etc. The total process takes 37 days from the limestone bath to the drying.

some tight alleys!

A visit to the weaver- I'll add more to this on a different post b/c it is one of my favorite things to buy here.

The 1st Fes University- men washing and getting ready for prayer

The medina is very interesting and gives you a taste of how most Moroccans live and work. However it is very crowded and busy and I’d never want to do it without a guide because it is safer and the chance of getting totally lost is most likely. So once is probably enough for me. I’ll take my nice quiet medina in Rabat where I usually shop for such things.