Perhaps after my last Fes post you might think I’d be skipping the jealousy series for that city. But no, that would be absurd. Fes is gorgeous. It’s just hard sometimes to see the forest for the touts.
There is plenty for me to torment you with when it comes to Fes. In my previous Jealousy posts, I focused on food, but here I am branching out. I want you to see Fes without the added stress of fighting off self appointed guides and dudes bursting with testosterone.
Ladies and gents, I give you Fes, the awesome bits. Not many words though, as I used them all up yesterday.
Vendors
You know all those cliches about the sights, the smells, the sounds of a market place? Fes excels at the scent bit. Lots of spices and herbs, fresh and dried.
Fresh veggies for your eventual tagine.
There are carts of fresh mint, still dewy, all over Fes.
In case you were running out of nougat.
More nougat, in case the first stall wasn’t enough. Here’s one in the shade.
What we ate
I never tire of Moroccan salad. How many ways can you serve eggplant? I shall endeavor to find out!
About 5 storeys above Fes’ back alleys. We had the terrace to ourselves. Rickety table and chairs draped in vibrant cloth. Plants everywhere.
The view wasn’t bad.
Lots of lovely terrace veggies!
Chicken with preserved lemons and olives.
Preserved lemon, caramelized onion sauce and chicken on fresh, hot flatbread.
Fresh mint tea and melon to wash it all down.
Retracing our steps back to our riad after dinner. We got lost.
Going simply, lightly and deliciously: tabouleh with fresh mint, tomato, and cilantro; home-smashed hummus and felafel. All tangy with fresh lemon.
Random beauty
Walls with juxtaposed carpets, calligraphy and ball caps.
Beautiful hand woven silks.
Casually gorgeous old door. One of hundreds in the medina.
And look, more casual gorgeousness, just down the alley way.
Not so nice smelling (pigeon shit isn’t up there with Anais Anais, really) but quite beautiful to watch. You’re given a large sprig of fresh mint to sniff to take the edge off.
They’re lovely big shawls, actually, and we bought some as gifts to take back. A bit pricy- I think it was 250-300dh ($30?) per shawl- but they were hand loomed and really well made.
Nice fabrics, lovely terrace, very lovely snacks, and somehow the Falāfel looks so much better than what we get here in the Arab/Persian snack shops around us… So, yes: one more post like this and I’ll have to officially declare myself jealous (actually, a frequent event, but usually it happens less officially 🙂 And, as it seems, your new camera was also a good idea. Summer may be a bit hot in Morocco but obviously it’s a season with good light for beautiful colors and amazing photos. Hope you’ll still have fun over there!
The dinner in Fes looks amazing…can you post the name of the restaurant?!
I’m in Fes now, and completely understand your “Fes Rant”. I came in from Dubai which I thought would prepare me for Ramadan here – sadly, not a chance.
It was this one: http://www.dartouria.com/ We actually only ended up there because the one we wanted was closed for Ramadan (like so many! My god, it’s frustrating). The tout on the street who saw us ringing the doorbell of the one we wanted seng us there. The inner dining rooms were a bit stuffy and over the top but the rooftop terrace was amazing.
And yeah, fes… After 6 years in Turkey and several years of travels around the Middle East (and Egypt!) I thought I would be immune to it but Fes…Fes was hard on us. I think it was the hostility more than the grabbiness.
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