Pam and I went to a restaurant with our guide for lunch. He did not eat with us but went home for lunch.

We had one of the set menus which consisted of:

• Salads ( as seen in the photo)
• Pam had Tajine and I have chicken pie with icing sugar
• Fresh Fruit

The meal was great, we had enough after the salads as can be seen from above.

• Fava Beans
• Carrots
• Tomato & Cucumber
• Grilled Peppers
• Betroot
• Dal
• Harriot Beans
• Chilli
• and more

This guy serves the mint tea from great height.

The meal was very good, but the restaurant was full of tourists so it was obviously a drop point for guides who would get tips for bringing customers to the restruant.

Our bill was quite pricey:

• 2 Mains = 300 DH
• 2 Cokes = 60 DH
• 1 Fresh Orange Juice = 36 DH

The total was 396 DH which at the time the NZ Exchange rate being 6.06 = $65 NZD

To put the prices into perspective you can buy:

• 1 Litre Water = 5DH
• 1 Litre Coke = 7.2 DH
• 1 Load of bread ( round and thin) for 2 DH

We did not need any dinner that night as we were both very full from the lunch.

Pam and I visited the oldest tannery in Fes at about 9:30am  - the weather was cool which meant that the smell was not too bad.

The skins go through two processes

• Ammonia Bath to remove the wool from the skin
• Die Bath to dye the skin

The ammonia bath is made with Pigeon Poo, a natural source of Ammonia.

The dye baths use natural colourings such as Saffron (although not much now due to expensive)

The poor people who work here and as shown in the Photo below are actually standing in the dye.

 

We are staying in Fes at a Riad called Dar Roumana which is owned by Jennifer Lapostol

The web site for the Riad is at www.darroumana.com

What is a riad? A dar?

Technically, a riad is a single (or sometime two-storied) building constructed around an interior garden, often with trees and fountain(s).  A dar is very similar, but it is generally composed of more storeys and the interior garden or patio is often completely tiled, though it may still contain plants in pots or beds and fountains.  The courtyard of a dar can often be closed or covered during winter months, which can make a dar more comfortable in the winter than a riad.  Nevertheless, because most tourists recognise the term "riad,"  it has come to mean any sort of lodging in a traditional home (simple to palatial, riad or dar) with an interior courtyard.

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Below are some pictures that I tool while we stayed there. It is a very lovely place - quite mellow and tranquil, and I would recommend to anyone who wants a nice peaceful time while in Fes.

This door looks pretty plain and what is behind it is not!

Once inside you see the lovely Riad for all its worth

This area is actually outside, the space here is in the center of the riad and the house is around the edges. There is a large hole in the top of this area where the sun shines in (sometimes rain)

One of the dining tables for dinner

An example of an old chair in a lounge off the main area

The view from the roof garden

A nice shot of the center fountain, inside but also outside!

One of the rooms / alcove off the main garden which is inside but outside had this great light

Riad Dar Roumana
30, Derb el Amer,
Zhak Roumane
Fes Medina
Morocco

Telephone: +212 35 74 16 37
Fax             : +212 35 63 55 24

After arriving in Casablanca we needed to get to our hotel. The hotel we booked into was called Hotel Central, near the port.

We took the train from the airport to the city for 50 DH each in first class. First class had no Air Conditioning.

We then got a petite taxi to take us to the hotel. The driver wanted 5 EURO which is about 50 DH.  We offered 40 DH and he accepted. We later found out that we should have only paid a maximum of 20 DH

The initial impression of the area surrounding the hotel was it was a big dodgy with some people sleeping on park benches.

We never got harassed by anyone while staying there.

The view from our room

The view of the park outside of our room

The hotel is quite basic, but it was clean and tidy although there were quite a lot of flies around.

We stayed on a Friday and Saturday nights and found that there was a lot of noise outside most of the night with people, and vehicles, and of course the Muslim call to prayer at 3am

We booked over the Internet and paid 10% deposit by visa card. But when we had to pay the balance they said the visa machine did not work and they wanted cash. Sounds like a bit of a scam to me to get cash.

We ended up having to pay 720 DH in cash which was a bit of a pain.

After Pam and I arrived in Casablanca we got to our hotel and felt completely stuffed after travelling for 30+ hours.

We went for a walk to the Hussan II mosque which was only about 15 minutes from our hotel.

A closeup of the stone work

One of the doors to the Mosque

Some guy carrying stuff around the city

One of the markets in the old Medina

Another market shot

A restaurant that we went to for dinner

Outside the restaurant