Morocco Day 6: Fes, Day3

Explored more of Fes today, on our own.  It rained on us a bit, but not too bad.  It felt like a tropical island type of rain, where it rains for a bit, passes on, and repeats.  It was never too heavy and when wandering the souks, there was often overhead cover to keep us dry.  We walked all the way back to Bab Boujloud.  Again, we were foiled many times by places being closed.  We can't figure out if places close for prayer, or what?  But we seem to be exploring during the worst times.  Also, we can't help but wonder if some places that charge an admission fee are official: could there just be enterprising people hanging out in front saying you need to pay them (Jim Kerker, my high school physics teacher, says he used to do this when he was growing up: they'd set up some folding chairs at the entrance to the school parking lot and charge drivers a parking fee to attend football games).  Anyway, the reason I wonder this is because the official sites all give you a stamped receipt, but these other places don't.  Maybe the difference is between government-run vs. private?

Did I mention yet how there are oranges everywhere in Morocco?  The train stations, palaces, public parks, etc. all have orange trees growing.  And you get freshly squeezed OJ everywhere.  Here is an orange vendor.

And tajines too...

Late lunch after walking to Bab Boujloud.  Ordered another sandwich, but it costs more in Fes.  I guess big cities always cost more than small ones.  One thing we observed here is that the locals were eating in this sandwich place, but the fish guy across the way was sending stuff over too.  So, you can eat in one place and order stuff from another.  Quite convenient.

Boubouches (sp?)

After we got back to Place Seffarine, we decided to take a juice and cookie break at the Cremerie.  Here is an avocade, apple, orange juice, though it didn't have enough avocado in it.  The guys that run this place are fun and nice.  They also own the restaurant across the plaza.  These cookies were the best.  They also have the crescent shaped ones, but they weren't as good.

View of metal workers from Cremerie la Place

view from Cremerie la Place

We asked Mohammed at Dar Seffarine to make a hammam reservation for us.  The local hammam was under renovation (though I'm sure there were plenty of others nearby), so he recommended a place in the new city.  Sort of a mix of European spa and traditional hammam.  We figured that would be a good intro.  The place was fairly expensive (average Western pricing, I think it was like USD$70 per person for hamman and 1-hour massage).  I always find it hard to figure out what to do in these places when I can't speak the language (I had the same problem at the Korean spa in Garden Grove, CA the first time I went).  I basically just went wherever the workers told me to go, except I may have made one mistake in the beginning, where instead of going downstairs, I went to some window to get my robe and towel.  Somewhere along the way, I failed to get the full-body clay mask (the receptionist swears she told them to give it to me, but I didn't).  Also, the weird thing about this place is that my locker key broke, and they charged ME for it.  The receptionist says that if I didn't pay, then the towel/locker boy would have been responsible for it, so that's why the kid was insistent that I give him money.  Oh, if any of you have ever had a body scrub at the Korean spa, the Hammam is similar.  They scrub you down with a super-abrasive glove, though they weren't as thorough as the Koreans, who literally cleaned *every* part of my body.

After the massage, we were going to try a restaurant recommended in Lonely Planet, but the receptionist said it had closed down (again, why are we always finding places that are closed?).  So, we went with another LP rec, even though it didn't get very good reviews on Trip Advisor.  The place is called Zagora, and I think I have to go with the Trip Advisor ratings.  Not bad, but not great either.  Pretty average.

Steak.  I assume it is grass fed in Morocco.  I'm very happy because it is not tajine. ;-)

Morocco Day 5: Fes to Fes

We changed accommodations today, moving to Dar Seffarine.  What a beautiful place!

Relaxing on the rooftop

Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of the courtyard, but you can go to their website.

We decided to hire a guide to get an "official" tour of Fes.  Definitely a good thing to do at least once, particularly in Fes, since the medina is so huge.  We got to see some stuff we wouldn't have ventured into if we were on our own, like:

 The alley where they dye fabrics.

water wheel

dyeing cactus silk (from agave)

Or the tanneries (ok, we probably would have found them on our own, but not sure we'd have found the leather co-op.

The stench is fairly bad, so they give you mint leaves.

These guys are around the smell all day 

Getting dirty

Or the guys who tend the fire to the communal ovens.  What a job!: they are underground all day, just feeding the fire.

Our first rug shopping exprience.  We learned quickly how to bargain, after buying a couple of leather poufs from the co-op above.

 Don't be afraid to bargain, it is expected.  Also, don't worry about offending them with too low an offer.  They generally won't be offended, particularly if you are nice about the low offer.  They won't sell you anything at an unprofitable price, so it's just a matter of figuring out the price point.  Some vendors will open with a ridiculously high bid.  There is no general rule, you can even go as low as 25%.  And be willing to walk away.  It's amazing how quickly the price drops as you leave.

Morocco, Day 4: Fes - Volubilis - Moulay Idriss - Meknes - Fes

Today we hired a driver (through our hotel), Hamid, to drive us to Volubilis, Moulay Idriss, and Meknes.  The rate was the same as the "teacher" we met on the train said it would be (800 Dh).  Still wondering if he was for real.  It was raining today, but luckily it wasn't heavy, and we really didn't need to use the umbrella that Hamid lent us.  The only time it was heavy was when we were outside the stables, and even then Hamid was able to drive right up to the doorway so we didn't get too wet.

Anyway, Volubilis is an ancient Roman settlement.  I believe the guide books say it was the furthest Roman outpost here, but I could be wrong.  While on the subject of guide books, we are finding that the Rough Guides (2010 was the most recent edition) book is better for maps and descriptions, while the Lonely Planet (2011 ed) is better for transportation options.  Good thing we got both books.  Too bad there isn't one book that covers everything well.

We spent a good 2 hours at Volubilis; a bit longer than Hamid thought it would take.  I guess we really enjoyed the ruins and the old mosaics that are still visible.  There's something about ruins that I enjoy.  It's fun to imagine what they may have looked like back then, and also to marvel at how they constructed everything without the use of heavy motorized machinery.  Here's a picture of a statue that was not mentioned in either guide book (according to my friend, these were used to mark whorehouses):

After Volubilis, we did a quickie drive through of Moulay Idriss.

Not much to see here, except the view down to the valley.  There is a mausoleum here, but it is in the mosque and we weren't allowed to go in.

This guy was not happy to have his picture taken, albeit accidentally.  He bumped Yoojin with his donkey as he rode by. 

After Moulay Idriss, we headed to Meknes.  Didn't have much time here, but were able to grab a bite to eat at Dar Sultana (Sweet Sultana).  We were the only ones there, probably because we got there pretty late.  The small sampler was probably the best thing we had.  I got a tajine that was just ok.

Visited the museum for a quickie look.  We had like 15 minutes before we had to meet our driver.  Once inside, though, a guide started talking to us and explaining things.  We couldn't tell if he was a real or faux guide (assume real since he was inside the museum, but I don't remember seeing him wearing a badge).  He was nice and took our photo, but soon we decided to ditch him, using the fact that we had to meet our driver as a convenient excuse to high-tail it out of there.

Morocco, Day 3: Fes

Stayed at a "hotel" we found through a group called "Ziyarates", which means "visits" in Arabic. We found this through Lonely Planet.  This is a mix between a home stay and a hotel.  The Ziyarates organization helps families turn their homes into a source of income.  We randomly chose the Family Korriche based on the online photos, and couldn't be happier.  The location was great, just outside Bab Bou Jeloud.  The daughter, Manal, spoke the best English and so we interacted with her the most.  We ate dinner there on our first night and it was delicious (and we got lucky and they had couscous, even though it was not Friday).  The portions were huge: we couldn't believe they normally ate this much (we swore they were giving us larger "American" sized portions).

Morocco Day 3: Rabat to Fes

Warned about people getting on the train at Meknes. Sure enough, some guy gets on and I'm immediately suspicious. He enters out cabin, say hi, says something to the woman next to us. He asks her a question then several minutes later she gets her baggage and leaves. Strange, since we just left the station. He starts to chat with us. Tells us he had his heart broken by a girl in Ca. That he teaches Arabic at the ALIF language school, where he met said girl. Asks us where we are staying (we tell him). Tells us not to hire any guides, official or otherwise, but also that he can hook is up with a driver to Meknes/moulay Idriss/Volunilis for 300 dh less than the riad would charge us. Asks us if we want to join him for a drink at a restaurant he recommended. Wary, we say we'll think about it. When we arrive at Fes, he says bye and leaves without further offer of meeting up. Did he sense our skepticism?  Was he genuine?  Was he a hustler?  I guess we'll never know. We don't like this feeling of immediately being suspicious of people. We want to be open and meet new people, but it is hard to figure out right now. We are too fresh.

Morocco Day 2: Rabat

Checked into Riad Kalaa last night. They had our room set up for our Honeymoon:

This first full day in Rabat has been a learning experience.  Petit (blue) taxis, as in most places, you should always demand they use the meter.  The tram is quite convenient: one fare regardless of distance. Clean and modern trains.

It's hard to trust people here, as we never know if they are being helpful or trying to get money out of us (or both).  So far, our only experience has been a faux guide in Sale.  He supposedly helped us out with directions, then  when we followed his directions, he whistled at us saying we were going the wrong way and then led us where we were going, saying he was going that way anyway. After he started telling us a bunch of trivia, I got suspicious.  Cut him off a little late, but at least we smartened up after our morning hustle that we insisted on only giving him 15 Dirham rather than the 100 dh he was asking (keep in mind, the train from Casablanca to Rabat cost us 125 dh each).

Visited the Medersa (Koranic school). Intricate tile, wood, and ceramic work. The study rooms look like prison cells in Cambodia.  Before heading back across the river to Rabat, we ate Tajine at a touristy looking place which was actually pretty good.  In Rabat's Central Market, we strolled past the various meat and produce stalls. The most interesting was a couple of animal carcasses hanging. We couldn't tell what they were, but now think they were camel.

Dinner was at Le Petit Beau, a Lonely Planet 2011 top pick. I thought it was ok. Not much better than the little touristy place in Sale. We were not able to try the couscous, as they were sold out. Which brings me to another thought: we keep coming across things that are closed, like the mausoleum: we went during prayer time, so we would've had to wait until after to see it.

Oh, Senna at Riad Kalaa referred us to a great website:
http://www.espace-morocco.co.uk/

We are finding it has many of the same riads you'd find on Trip Advisor or Booking.com for less. We just booked a place in Marrakech for half off!

Morocco Day 1

Arrived in Casablanca after ~18 hrs of travel time, including getting to SFO.  Arrival was smooth and it was easy to find a train to Rabat. Most people in the airport spoke some English, and many people in people in general speak it as well, so it was easy to figure out how to get to Rabat. The taxi driver didn't  speak much, but he got us where we needed to go. Explored the Medina a bit at night, but didn't want to get lost in the dark, so we pretty much just stayed to the main streets. Had my first street food: a pita like sandwich made of hollowed out bread stuffed with ground beef, cheese, paprika, and hot sauce. Sort of your Mexican hit dog cart slash hamburger joint in one.