We were initially sorely disappointed when we arrived in Fez -- as it looked like just one more dirty, North
African city. What had everyone been talking about? What was so great about this place? Then we started asking questions and realized that the hotel that we
checked into (which was the first one we came to) was in the new city of Fez and what we wanted was the old walled city of Fez or the Medina. The Medina is a labirynth of alleyways and narrow streets filled with thousands of open booth-like stores selling literally everything: from honey-sweetened dates to Calvin Klein underwear to fresh goat cheese wrapped in banana leaves to a vast selection of Caftans (a long, flowing gown that the Muslim women here where over their regular
clothes whenever they are in public). We got lost in the Medina for hours... walking and walking and taking in the sites. It actually started to get a little claustrophic as the walls are very high on either side and the streets are very narrow. There are only 4 gates or openings in the walled city and they are HARD to find... so you feel like you are lost in a maze of epic propotions. There are lots of booths selling nothing but candies and sweets - just my kind of country. One of our scavenge
challenges was to get a henna tattoo... so all of the girls lined up for their markings (a memory that we will apparently keep in plain sight for the next 4-6 weeks). Emily and Elizabeth got it all over their hands. Natasha and I have a hearing in front of a conservative federal judge the day after we get back from this trip
so we had to get hidden tattoos: Natasha
chose her leg and I got this intricate pattern on my shoulder. The wizened old woman - who did our henna tattoos - drew from her imagination and did not use any templates or patterns. It was fascinating to watch her.
African city. What had everyone been talking about? What was so great about this place? Then we started asking questions and realized that the hotel that we 
checked into (which was the first one we came to) was in the new city of Fez and what we wanted was the old walled city of Fez or the Medina. The Medina is a labirynth of alleyways and narrow streets filled with thousands of open booth-like stores selling literally everything: from honey-sweetened dates to Calvin Klein underwear to fresh goat cheese wrapped in banana leaves to a vast selection of Caftans (a long, flowing gown that the Muslim women here where over their regular 
clothes whenever they are in public). We got lost in the Medina for hours... walking and walking and taking in the sites. It actually started to get a little claustrophic as the walls are very high on either side and the streets are very narrow. There are only 4 gates or openings in the walled city and they are HARD to find... so you feel like you are lost in a maze of epic propotions. There are lots of booths selling nothing but candies and sweets - just my kind of country. One of our scavenge 
challenges was to get a henna tattoo... so all of the girls lined up for their markings (a memory that we will apparently keep in plain sight for the next 4-6 weeks). Emily and Elizabeth got it all over their hands. Natasha and I have a hearing in front of a conservative federal judge the day after we get back from this trip 
so we had to get hidden tattoos: Natasha
chose her leg and I got this intricate pattern on my shoulder. The wizened old woman - who did our henna tattoos - drew from her imagination and did not use any templates or patterns. It was fascinating to watch her.
1 comment:
I'm sure by now they made you go to the tannery... don't be shy about stuffing the mint leaves up your nose!
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