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Fes Morocco November 2-6, 2007 |
Fes was an impulsive adevnture to North Africa, born of an unreasonably cheap airfare and a long term desire to go to Fes.
(Timbuktu is also on the agenda, but that's a long-term project.)
Some things I loved:
1.
Hangin' with my Jennie.
2. Time travel. The medina (old city) of Fes has really hardly changed in hundreds of years. Cars are banned, internet cafes are sparse, the streets are narrow and almost impossible to navigate, and occasionally you'll find a ditch with raw sewage running through it. If you ignore the telephone kiosks and occasional neon light, it genuinely feels like you're in the middle ages.
3. Beauty. You can see why Fes was seen as a capital of the Islamic world for so long.
4. Cats. There are cats EVERYWHERE, fed by the market traders' garbage heaps and totally unencumbered by spaying and neutering. Some are friendly, some aren't, all are cute. Jennie and I made friends with a cat we called Chicken.
Some things I did not love:
1. Time travel. The middle ages were very, very smelly. Also, some of the mores hadn't changed from the medieval period as evidenced by the monumental level of
2. Sexual harassment. "Lady, lady, you want to bed with me?" No, I don't, fuck off. Jen and I tried covering our arms, shoulders, hair, nothing worked. And in any event I hate that I have to adhere to an antiquated misogynistic dress code to avoid the constant threat of sexual violence. It's not acceptable anywhere, in any society, and I found it appalling.
More Information:
photos on Flickr
Fes on Wikipedia
Fes on Wikitravel
Fes Medina Blog