To Fes
14/09/07 04:26 Filed in: Morocco
Another early morning to catch the 8:12 to Fes. It was the first day of Ramadan and the streets of Rabat were pretty much deserted.
Our train left on time. It seemed brand new and had double deck carriages.
At Fes shortly after this photo was taken the hustling started. It was relentless very irritating and they would not take no for an answer.
Absent a map or guide of any sort we walked for a bit and decided to check into a nearby Accor hotel. It was hot and our bags heavy.
Normally I like to find my own way round but with the tourist office being completely useless,
only providing a brochure in German, we were walking blind and exposed to continuous aggressive hustling.
If coming here again I would obtain some good maps and a "Rough Guide" before departure. Perhaps not for detail but for orientation and an overview.
Eventually we found our way to the edge of the Medina. Here the Petite taxis are red...
...and there are lots of them.
Fes is one of the four "Royal Cities in Morocco each with a palace. The others are Rabat, Meknes and Marrakech.
This picture was taken near the palace in Fes.
Fes has the oldest Medina in Morocco dating from circa 900.
It shows it. Many of the buildings are held up by scaffolding and are in a very poor state of repair.
It was getting late in the afternoon and we had still not found the part of the Medina we were looking for. A chap approached us, still hustling , but in a much more subtle manner. He was a guide. We surrendered and he took us on a short tour of the Medina.
The "Blue" gate Medina entrance.
Someone important is buried here. I forget who. Only Moslems are permited entry. We were allowed a peek.
No vehicles in the Medina. Only donkeys or people can transport goods.
Fabrics are still hand woven on looms. The colours were stunning.
The tanneries where leather and fabrics are dyed.
These vats are used to clean material before beginning the dyeing process.
We were told this process has not changed for centuries.
Our guide then took us to a lookout point above the Medina from where this picture of Fes was taken.
He returned us to the hotel. It had been a long hot day. Later we went out for a quick meal and inevitably more hustling.
I must say that, one or two of the spots we visited apart, I disliked Fes intensely. It was very dirty, particularly in the Medina. Raw sewage leaked onto the alleys in places, there was rubbish everywhere and the built environment seemed in very poor condition. A lot of people were packed into a small place. It was very, very crowded with large numbers of young men without very much to do. We saw three street fights in a period of two hours in the Medina.
There was an air of menace about the place I had not felt elsewhere in Morocco. The relentless hustling was irritating in the extreme and never stopped even when we had the guide.
A horrible place and IMHO to be avoided like the plague.
Our train left on time. It seemed brand new and had double deck carriages.
At Fes shortly after this photo was taken the hustling started. It was relentless very irritating and they would not take no for an answer.
Absent a map or guide of any sort we walked for a bit and decided to check into a nearby Accor hotel. It was hot and our bags heavy.
Normally I like to find my own way round but with the tourist office being completely useless,
only providing a brochure in German, we were walking blind and exposed to continuous aggressive hustling.
If coming here again I would obtain some good maps and a "Rough Guide" before departure. Perhaps not for detail but for orientation and an overview.
Eventually we found our way to the edge of the Medina. Here the Petite taxis are red...
...and there are lots of them.
Fes is one of the four "Royal Cities in Morocco each with a palace. The others are Rabat, Meknes and Marrakech.
This picture was taken near the palace in Fes.
Fes has the oldest Medina in Morocco dating from circa 900.
It shows it. Many of the buildings are held up by scaffolding and are in a very poor state of repair.
It was getting late in the afternoon and we had still not found the part of the Medina we were looking for. A chap approached us, still hustling , but in a much more subtle manner. He was a guide. We surrendered and he took us on a short tour of the Medina.
The "Blue" gate Medina entrance.
Someone important is buried here. I forget who. Only Moslems are permited entry. We were allowed a peek.
No vehicles in the Medina. Only donkeys or people can transport goods.
Fabrics are still hand woven on looms. The colours were stunning.
The tanneries where leather and fabrics are dyed.
These vats are used to clean material before beginning the dyeing process.
We were told this process has not changed for centuries.
Our guide then took us to a lookout point above the Medina from where this picture of Fes was taken.
He returned us to the hotel. It had been a long hot day. Later we went out for a quick meal and inevitably more hustling.
I must say that, one or two of the spots we visited apart, I disliked Fes intensely. It was very dirty, particularly in the Medina. Raw sewage leaked onto the alleys in places, there was rubbish everywhere and the built environment seemed in very poor condition. A lot of people were packed into a small place. It was very, very crowded with large numbers of young men without very much to do. We saw three street fights in a period of two hours in the Medina.
There was an air of menace about the place I had not felt elsewhere in Morocco. The relentless hustling was irritating in the extreme and never stopped even when we had the guide.
A horrible place and IMHO to be avoided like the plague.