Return to Fes
My best and most lasting memories from my brief trip to Morocco in 2001 were of Fes, one of the greatest and largest living medieval cities in the world. I was fascinated but also completely overwhelmed by the old city – the bazaars, the poverty, the centuries-old traditions. It was, for a person of my worldy experience at the time, too much to handle. Since then, I’ve always wanted to return to find out what I think of Fes now, having experienced so much more in the intervening five-and-a-half years.
So now, I’m happy to write that Fes is an incredible place. You walk through one of the gates into the old city and are instantly transported back 500 years; the fruit and vegetable and meat markets are among the most interesting I’ve ever seen. Fes is the sort of place where, in one of the stalls in the bazaars no larger than 3m x 3m, a man has his hens in cages on the back wall and sells the eggs directly over the counter – it’s just so completely devoid of modernity in this way.
I managed to find an old email of mine describing Fes, which is quite funny now that I look back on it. Here are some snippets:
Then yesterday, one of the most amazing days of my life, we went to the old town … the morning was a very humbling, and kind of scary, experience … I abandoned my journal last night because I didn’t know how to write about what I’d seen and how I felt. This place has easily had the most impact on me of all the places I’ve been to so far. It’s not often you get to go to a third world country and be right in the thick of it … I wonder if I’ll ever see poverty like this again.
The poverty aspect is particularly interseting, as I didn’t really notice what I would call poverty this time around, and didn’t remember that it had had that kind of effect the first time until I just found this old email. Anyway, the clear answer to the last sentence is that I have seen much worse poverty than Fes – in India, in El Salvador, in Yemen, and probably a few other places as well.
Anyway, despite throwing up the first night we were in Fes, lacking energy for much of our time there, and all the touts that hassle you at every turn, I really enjoyed being back in Fes. I think I was able to appreciate it much more this time around, with a better understanding of the religion, the culture, and the world in general. I’ve done and seen a lot since July 2001, but Fes remains one of the most extraordinary cities I have seen and ever will see.
Tags: Africa, Fes, Morocco, North Africa, Travel
Nick
Hey Nick, great to hear you returned to Fes. One of those truly unforgettable places. Have fun in Morocco.
SAM
Sam – it’s a bit crazy going back to some of these places and remembering the time you and I had there. Just this morning I was in Rissani … do you remember that awful place in 50-degree heat? It’s not so bad in winter…
Hey Nick,
Yeah, I remember that place very well. It was where I got sick, then from there we took that extremely bumpy and very hot 15-hour bus ride to Marrakech!!
Well sounds like you’re having a great time, some wonderful photographs.
have fun
SAM