(December 25 Christmas Day – Fez)
Today was a slow day in the way of a story. All we did today was travel. It is a 2 hour bus ride from Essouria to Marrakech where we went to take the train to Fez. We had bought our tickets before leaving for Essouria so we already had them. It was an uneventful bus ride and once we got back to Marrakech it was time to hop on the train and head to Fez. It was more than a 7 hour journey through the country to Fez from Marrakech. There wasn’t much to see during the trip either. We did see some cities pass by as we made our way up the country side. As we passed by one of the towns it is highly possible someone threw a rock or something hard at the train. That I remember. We rode second class on the train which wasn’t too bad. The cars were like that of the train I took once from Moscow to St. Petersburg only not as nice. You are in a compartment with 7 other people 8 in total. You are all sitting in a private car facing each other so its 4 on 4. There is a table next to the window which is probably the best seat in the house. You put all your bags over top so that you can have some kind of leg room. The seats are cushiony but they don’t go back so sleeping is difficult for the sleeping straight up challenged.
We reached Fez and took a cab to our hostel. We were so glad that the cab drivers knew where we wanted to go. We got dropped off outside the walls of the Medina and the rest of the way would have been on our own but some nice local gentleman showed us the way…of course! And we paid him…of course! It wasn’t far from our drop off point but we would have never found it. We are actually living in the Medina this time. Inside the labyrinth of walls. It is like one big maze and we are the mice looking for some cheese!
We were hungry of course when we arrived having been on a train all day with only oranges to eat so we asked our hostel guy to tell us where to go. He did one better and took us there. It wasn’t far from the hostel but it seemed like we kept turning corners. I was unsure I would be able to find the way back. It didn’t matter though because he secured a guide for us for the return as we walked in. The restaurant was called Le Scorpion au Desert. It was a cool place with really cool staff. We were one of the only ones in the restaurant. We had the norm which was good and some tea. Our guide showed us the way home and we went to sleep in our lovely warm beds.
(December 26)
The next day we got up and went out to find our way. We had no idea what to see here either so we just went. We were using Amy’s kindle as our map since she had downloaded a copy of lonely planet Morocco. It was ridiculous trying to use the map on her kindle but it was all we had and it worked out quite well considering. We covered a lot of ground but we really didn’t see much except the castle that is right outside the walls of the Medina. We got lost in some neighborhood and had to use some kids to get out. They wanted money but we told them NO. I felt bad but you can’t give money to everyone you’d be broke. After a while we went back to the hostel and found one of the hostel owners. He was here on vacation. He is from here but recently moved to Australia. He is married there but here for the winter. He agreed to show us around since from what he heard of our story we had no idea what to do or where to go.
He showed us some cool spots including the museum that looks over the whole Medina so you open the window and you can see the whole city. It was beautiful. We took a bunch of pics. Then he took us to his carpet seller friends. We swore we weren’t going to buy anything but we did anyway. SUCKERS! What we got was actually beautiful and none of us paid that much for anything. I bought a blanket and so did Steph. Amy bought two. Apparently they are made from cactus and they can’t catch on fire! After that we took a tour of the tanneries and leather shops. We didn’t buy anything there. We wish he had taken us there first they had some really nice leather bags and jackets but we only have enough money for one pushy salesman tonight.
Tonight is a live Moroccon band at our favorite (and only) restaurant we know in town. We go there again to have dinner. The band comes on at 730pm. There are more people in the restaurant tonight. The band comes on and it is awesome. It is strictly Moroccon music with the drums and some light singing but it is great. It is clear that I am having a good time so one of the staff comes over and takes my hand and makes me dance with him in front of the band. It was great. This goes on for the rest of the time the band is playing…maybe 2 hours. Stephanie gets up there too and then several other foreigners that are eating in the restaurant. We had a great time. We are talking to all the people around us and having a ball. We start drinking wine and smoking hookah. It is great. Later that night we are asked to join them in the “Berber tent”. We don’t know what a “Berber tent” is but we go. Basically it is a tent on their terrace with comfortable couches along the wall and a few tables. I guess you could call it a “Berber tent” because there were Berber people in it. Quite a few of us go up there. We continue drinking and all of a sudden random people are going around the room and rapping. Amy even busts out some rhymes. Apparently one of the guys we are with is some famous rapper in Morocco…who knew? We do this for a few more hours and then our guide takes us home again. The end.
The next day we leave for Spain. Goodbye Morocco it was fun!
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