Fes is the third largest city in Morocco and it is one of the four so called "imperial cities". The main crafts are ceramics, leatherwork and carpets, but you can find almost every kind of traditional crafts and shops within the medieval medina.
The medieval medina of Fes is about a millennium old. The narrow and crammed alleyways is busy with carts, mules and donkeys carrying goods to and from the souks.
Fes was the capital of Morocco at various times in the past, the last such period ending in 1912, when most of Morocco came under French control and Rabat was chosen to be the capital of the new colony, a distinction that city retained when Morocco achieved independence in 1956.
The city is very famous for its tanneries.
(click to enlarge)
Just as a contrast, here is the nice, clean Royal Palace (Dar el Makhzen) on the other side of the city:
The gates to the palace are masterpieces themselves.
There are a number of key entrances to the old city, each has their own gate:
Back to the old city:
The medieval medina of Fes is about a millennium old. The narrow and crammed alleyways is busy with carts, mules and donkeys carrying goods to and from the souks.
The alleys are quite narrow (SP has used a wide angel lense here)
Fes was the capital of Morocco at various times in the past, the last such period ending in 1912, when most of Morocco came under French control and Rabat was chosen to be the capital of the new colony, a distinction that city retained when Morocco achieved independence in 1956.
The city is very famous for its tanneries.
(click to enlarge)The backbreaking work of scraping the skins and moving them from one tanning vat to the next looks like a never-ending process. The average cowhide weights about 25 kgs! The stench of rotting animals and various chemicals was bad, even from 4 floors above ground! Imagine standing in those tubs bare-footed for day after day!
Just as a contrast, here is the nice, clean Royal Palace (Dar el Makhzen) on the other side of the city:
There is a big square in front of the gates. There are security guards in front of the only entrance to the square and it seems that only tourists are allowed to enter the square.
The gates to the palace are masterpieces themselves.There are a number of key entrances to the old city, each has their own gate:
The Bab Boujeloud (Blue Gate)
Back to the old city:
This was the entrance to some sort of library
The Kairaouine Mosque is the largest mosque in North Africa, with a capacity of 20,000 worshippers. It became the home of the West's first university at the beginning of the second millennium.
There are a number of entrances to the Kairaouine Mosque. I really like this particular photo. The lighting and the composition is great. No touch-up required!
Entrance to the restored Musée Nejjarine des Arts et Métiers du Bois (Nejjarine Museum of Wood Arts and Crafts)
The building's originally provided a commercial trading area on the patio floor and lodgings on the three levels above.
Section of the old city wall
Food being served from a window. In this case, it's the local specialty B'sara (butterbean and garlic soup served with olive oil poured on top)
It is a great photo of 'before' (below deck) and 'after' (in the roaster)
We bumped into Sara and Ben from our Sahara tour just outside the Blue Gate. As we go around the country, we ended up bumping into everyone from the tour group. What a small world!
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