While the IBM teams have been working hard, we also have the opportunity to do this work in an amazing country. This first weekend gave us an opportunity to decompress a little, or so we thought, by taking a trip to Fes.

Our main priority while in country is to our host organization, but if the host doesn’t have anything planned for the weekend, we are free to take advantage of that by exploring. We met as a group on Wednesday and came to a group decision that we would explore Fes.

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First, what and where is Fes – it’s northeast of Casablanca and it’s the 2nd largest city in Morocco with over a million people. It’s centrally located between Casablanca, Tangier, Rabat (the capital), and Marrakech. From Wikipedia, a medina is a distinct city section found in a number of North African cities – they are typically walled, with many (MANY) narrow and maze-like streets. The word itself means ‘city’ or ‘town’ in modern Arabic.  The medina of Fes is considered one of the largest car-free urban areas in the world.

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The Medina of Fez, built in 789 is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has a population of over 150,000 people. It has the University of Al-Karaouine, founded in 859, and considered one of, if not the, oldest universities in the world. Fez was also the largest city in the world in the late 1200s. Bottom line – we were looking forward an incredible experience.

 

Once we decided what city to explore, we needed to find a place to stay. As evidence of our new family being built, we decided (all 15 of us) to make the trip, which is amazing! Finding accommodations in 3 days for 15 people, not so amazing, so we enlisted outside help. Nikki Cantu, my wife!, is a great planner and knows the in’s and out’s of traveling and she identified a Riad to stay in, that would hold all 15 of us in Fez.

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Dictionary moment: Riad – a traditional Moroccan house or palace with an interior garden or courtyard.

Rooms are usually rented one at a time, similar to a bed and breakfast in the United States. We (my wife) found one that was completely empty, close to great sites, including the Blue Gate. It slept 16 and included breakfast.

 

Next up in the planning process, determining room assignments – again a democratic process with all voice heard (loudly), basically, a normal family gathering – it’s really amazing to see a group of quasi-strangers come together in a matter of days!! You’ll see pictures of us discussing room assignments below.

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We had to work late Friday and left the hotel at 6:00 am for a 7:00 train to Fez arriving at 11:00. After some haggling for a taxi (virtually everything is Morocco is haggled) we were dropped near the medina. Signs are rarely there, and while we had directions from the riad owner, there weren’t completely apparent when we were in place. A nice young boy, around 10 or 11, volunteered to take us to the raid. He led us on a winding, five minute journey that made us realize exactly what is meant by maze-like streets. He then proceeds to demand $10 USD which when divided by 15 is change and we paid – sly boy (more to come on this).

 

For lunch, I tried the pastilla au pigeon. Originally from Andalusia, Morocco has made it its own. It’s a crepe-like pastry, wrapped around slow cooked meat in a broth, pigeon in this case, shredded with toasted and ground almonds. It’s topped with cinnamon and powdered sugar and it’s a very unusual taste for me personally, with the meat countered with the sugar. If you think about it, sweet barbeque  sauce has the same concept. All said, it was very good and something I’ll definitely eat it again.

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The riad is amazing, a center courtyard with a pool and fountain, room after room, intricate details, reliefs carved in cedar, mosaics, we’re served hot tea immediately – it was what we hoped for and more. Please see all the pictures below.

We were asked if we’d like to eat lunch and the owner of the riad knew a place called Medina Café right outside the main entry to the medina, a 10 minute walk. She takes us, (pictures of us in a eating lunch in a room by ourselves) and the first thing we notice is that to leave the media, we went straight and took a left – one turn – that’s it. We were 50 yards/meters from our riad, Riad Le Sucrier De Fes, when the young man took us on a walk-about making it seem longer and earning his $10.  All we could do is laugh and realize we learned a lesson, buyer beware. He did what we asked, and he was a great salesman, great pitch, nice, it’s just how he went about it – I’m sure he’ll do quite well for himself in the years ahead.

 

The medina is this crazy place, which can be overwhelming, but has a great vibe – people are friendly, but they are also making a living, we understand that. We visited textile places where they make pashminas and scarves, the famous tannery of Fez, where multiple leather jackets, purses and briefcases were purchased, copper and tin shops, carpet shops where they are handmade, and argan oil shops. Another dictionary moment, these are properly called souks – an Arab market or marketplace, a bazaar.

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We ate street food which was inexpensive and delicious. The vendor was extremely nice and with his little bit of English and our little bit of French and Arabic, we had a great conversation and learned more about local cuisines, including harira soup – made with flour, tomatoes, lentils, chickpeas, onions, rice, meat (beef, lamb, or chicken) and olive oil. It’s especially eaten during Ramadan, but throughout the year as well.

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We had a wonderful guide named Idrissi on Saturday that made life much easier. On Sunday, we were educated and prepared to try the medina alone and had some more great experiences. We headed back to the train station around 2:00, for the four hour train ride back to Casablanca. It was the end of spring break in Morocco and the four hour trip took six and a half. We arrived at Casablanca thrilled that we were able to experience more of Morocco and grow closer as a group.

A new week start starts on Monday and we’re recharged and ready to dive in, more to come. Please feel free to comment below.