We had a last quick breakfast in the lovely Riad Tizwa in Fes, before checking out and being collected by our private driver Madhi at 8am. Even though this was early for me, we were all super excited as today we were driving to the Sahara Desert! More specifically we were going to be spending the night in a Berber camp near the small town of Merzouga, which was about a 7 hour drive away.
Following the itinerary that we booked with Fes Authentic Tours our first stop was Ifrane. It was surprising to drive up into the Middle Atlas Mountains and see the fancy ski resort Michlifen; skiing in Morocco? Turns out that snow is common here at 6,900 ft between Dec and Feb. The town of Ifrane is actually referred to as "Little Switzerland" as the buildings were built in an alpine-style by the French who occupied the area in the 30's.
We had a quick walk around the tiny town and snapped a photo with the city's stone lion near the Hôtel Chamonix. Supposedly it was carved by a German soldier, who was held here during WWII in a prisoner-of-war camp, in exchange for his freedom. The sculpture represents the last wild Atlas lion, shot near Ifrane in the early 20s.
I bought a mix of sweet and salty peanuts and candied ginger from a snack vender for the car ride and then we were back on the road. The land became very flat and arid right out of Ifrane, but soon we were in an area lush with cedar trees and a large population of Barbary macaques! These are tailless monkeys that live in small groups on the ground.
The endangered species is already extinct in other parts of Northern Africa. Unfortunately there have been problems with poachers in this area and many are taken and sold as pets. There has been a lot of movement to protect these monkeys recently and hopefully their numbers will continue to rise; we saw babies which even 2 years ago was very rare.
As we continued our drive, we were leaving the Middle Atlas Mountains, which run primarily north and south, and crossing the high plateaus. The scenery was really interesting and really bare. Madhi pulled over and pointed out a small scattering of Nomadic Berber tents and pens made of scrub sticks for their herds. What an incredibly tough life that would be.
There were a few spots where we just barely crossed into the very northeastern tip of the High Atlas and the peaks were incredibly craggy, giving us just a small taste of what we would be driving through the next day!
For lunch we stopped at a roadside cafe seemingly in the middle of nowhere. It was obviously a pretty normal stop for tourists and others making the trek to and from the Sahara. Madhi left us as it was prayer time and we grabbed a table and some sticky menus. We weren't expecting much, and honestly my kabobs were fine, but Gail still talks about the "Berber eggs" she ordered, as one of the best egg dishes she has had!
Shortly after lunch we came upon the Ziz River and the Tafilalt oases. It's really a stunning site, even though our skies had turned overcast. Following the gorge are multiple walled kasbahs built among the thousands of date palm trees. This is the largest palm grove in all of Morocco.
At 5pm, 9 hours after leaving Fes, we arrived at the Palais des Dunes hotel in Merzouga. This tiny village in the Sahara Desert is the kickoff spot to Erg Chebbi, which are the huge red sand dunes that line the border Algeria.
We wouldn't be staying at the hotel but our suitcases and Madhi were. We would be staying at their luxury Berber camp in the desert!
We were escorted across the street to meet with our camel guide who, after tying our scarves around our heads for us, would be leading us on our 1 ½ hour ride. To be clear, these were Arabian camels, or dromedary, which have 1 hump instead of 2 (which are mainly found in central Asia).
Riding a camel is awkward and not comfortable, but it was an amazing experience! There were 5 of us total, each on our own dromedary, with the guide holding very loosely to the lead rope. Mine was in the front so I had pretty amazing views of the incredibly high dunes of powdery red sand.
Our guide was great, he was very patient with us and his camels. Sometimes he dropped the rope when helping one of the riders; I asked him if he worried the camel would walk off but he said that he'd had them for years, he treated them very well, and he knew they would never walk away.
He even did a little photo shoot with us all and then individually. A few of the camels really liked having their photos taken, it was super cute.
As it had been overcast all afternoon we weren't expecting any kind of pretty sunset which everyone always talks about. And honestly when the guide asked if we wanted to get down and take a break and watch it, we were all pretty unenthusiastic. And I just about fell off my camel getting down! So we watched the quad riders off in the distance, and saw a big scarab beetle making his way over the dune we were on, and then all of a sudden the skies started to clear and we had the most amazing sunset!
When we booked this excursion we had our choice between a luxury tent and a basic tent. The luxury tent was only €30 more and was private with actual beds (vs mats) and private bathrooms with running water in them (vs not). When we got to a rise on the dune and could see the two camps below us the camel guide told the other couple that they could dismount and walk to to their camp- the basic one. So going basic also means you are on your own to walk across a stretch of dunes!
We rode a bit further before being helped off the camels and being led into our luxury camp for the night. I have to say we were all VERY excited about what we saw, it was beautiful!
Our overnight bags were waiting for us in our big triple tent with a bathroom, including hot water shower, and also a nice little sitting area out front. Mint tea was brought to us as we relaxed.
Pro tip- while in Fes, we had taken a taxi to the Carrefour and bought wine, beer, and gin at the Cave there; one of the only places you can buy alcohol. We then had some of our wine and beer brought out with our bags and requested it to be put in their refrigerator. Obviously we checked with our organizer first to make sure this was all ok, and it was! So after tea we had a nice little drink before dinner.
That evening we had dinner in a big tent with just 2 other parties. Dinner was pretty basic: rice, veg, chicken tagine (even though we had requested a vegetarian option for Gail), french fries, and fruit. But we didn't care, we were in the Sahara Desert!
After dinner we were all invited to join around a big bonfire, and sitting on plush pillows got to listen to some traditional Berber music. It was so fun! Gail even got to take a turn on the drums!
Then one of the guys led Caitlin, Gail, and I out of the camp in the pitch darkness to look at the stars! We climbed a dune, holding hands as you really couldn't see anything, and layed on our backs gazing up at an amazing sky. We even saw a shooting star! It was really such a fantastic thing to be out there.
The next morning we were up early to catch sunrise but unfortunately it was cloudy. And this folks is why I always prefer sunset; no giving up any precious sleep! The camels we had ridden were still hanging out right where they were left the day before, without being tied up, and the resident cats were running around looking for bugs and critters to catch.
We packed up and had a fine but not exciting breakfast back in the big tent. And as cool of an experience riding a camel was, we opted to return to the hotel by 4-wheel truck!
This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me and it was so awesome! Highly recommend the long trek out to the Sahara if you ever get the chance.
All photos of the Atlas Mountains and Sahara Desert here.
On our first full day in Fes we hired local guide Amal, who was recommended by our riad, for a combination food and cultural walking tour of the medina. She met us at 10am and we started the day at the iconic Bab Boujloud or Blue Gate.
Blue represents the city of Fes and the opposite side is tiled a rich green, which represents Islam. Passing through the gate you leave the noise of cars and buses behind and you enter a crazy throng of thousands of people who seem to be in constant motion.
The old city of Fes is a Unesco World Heritage site because it is the world’s largest pedestrian-only area. Give that a couple of minutes of thought! This medina, about 540 acres, is a complex web of over 9000 alleyways, the WIDEST allowing only 2 mules to pass one another!
Fes El Bali, as the ancient walled city is called, is over 1200 years old and has over 300 neighborhoods! Homes, schools, mosques, hamams, bakers, and of course vendors selling everything you could possibly need. The markets, or souks as they are called, tend have groupings of similar venders together by product or craft, possibly keeping prices competitive and quality high. It's customary to negotiate before buying.
We entered past stalls of butchers, many with live chickens waiting to be "purchased", and hopeful cats waiting for a hand out.
Amal expertly navigated us past craftsman selling leather goods, handwoven rugs, wooden furniture and tools, lamps, etc. There were also kiosks selling antique silver and brass tea pots and trays. As we wandered past all of these stalls we went deeper and deeper into the medina. We were also experiencing all the very loud sounds and smells, not all of them pleasant!
We stopped in front of the Funduq al-Najjarin, a guest house built in 1711 and now a museum, to see the oldest fountain in the medina. In the days when caravaners passed through the city, they would stop here and perform ablutions which is an important ritual in Islam. We also took the opportunity to wash our hands while admiring the gorgeous tiled and plasterwork.
Amal continued to lead us through the tiniest of alleys, where we ducked and sometimes just fit through. She explained that between the 8th and 16th centuries camel caravans crossed the Sahara and traded goods in Fes and throughout the Middle East. These travellers would overnight with their herds in caravanserais, communal 2-story courtyards. There are still many in Fes, they are mostly abandoned and in ruins.
We continued following Amal, I really couldn't tell if we were coming or going as far as directions. We asked her a lot about knowing her way around and she said that she still gets turned around in certain spots, everyone does! This maze of streets was not accidental. The medina was a fortress and the confusing streets were a hindrance to anyone who invaded. That plan is still working!
As we approached the Mausoleum of Moulay Idriss II, the streets had very low beams overhead. This was to make sure that people didn't ride their camel or donkey to the shrine. As non-Muslims we were not allowed to go inside but even just gazing up at the ceiling from the entrance was amazing!
We were getting a bit hungry at this point so Amal led us to the souk where there were all kinds of great looking food stuffs! All of the tasting was built into the price of our tour so we didn't have to deal with cash which was great.
We tried so much stuff! Freshly fried dough with honey, a selection of fresh goat's cheese, khlea (preserved meat similar to confit), fresh pressed pomegranate juice, dates stuffed with walnuts, etc.
And of course olives, olives, and more olives! Everything was excellent and the vendors were all super friendly and most spoke English so Amal didn't have to translate everything.
We stopped in to one of the farans, an underground communal oven that each neighborhood has. Families bring their dough and leave it for the baker, then pick up their fresh baked bread later in the morning. They identify their loaves by the linen it is wrapped in. The daily bread, khubz, is what is baked here and these farans are still in use all over Morocco!
But there are other types of bread in Morocco as well. Baghrir is like a crumpet with lots of airy holes inside excellent for trapping butter and honey. Batbout is Moroccan pita and is eaten with tagine; this is made on a stovetop so is generally made at home. M’smen is similar to scallion pancakes (without the scallion) in that it is made with many layers. Sometimes meat is folded into the layers before baking, like the preserved meat we tried. In the souk the dough is stretched super thin and then layered onto a large dome shaped griddle. This was my favorite of the breads we ate.
Feeling full we continued to explore other parts of the medina. It was so great having Amal lead the way, I mean some of these ways were real tight and seemed a bit sketchy! But we felt very safe everywhere we went.
We came to the fabric dyers next where men were hand-dipping individual pieces of fabric, yarn, and clothing using long sticks into hot vats of rich dye. These were all hung to dry under rafters which were vented to allow for maximum air circulation. I'd never seen anything like it!
Next we were in the small Safreen Square that was incredibly loud with multiple copper and brass smiths. Craftsman hand-hammering metal creations all day long! Everything was beautiful! Huge pots, hot water urns, platters, mixing bowls, saute pans, etc. But their poor ears!
Amal was very excited to take us to the next stop, "the tea man". Standing in front of a wooden door we eyed the stairs that truly were more of a ladder. Straight up the very narrow staircase led us to a tiny room with a big copper hot water urn, green herbs poking out of every corner, and the tea man!
In Morocco, mint tea is just that, a big bouquet of fresh mint steeped with hot water & a bit of green tea, that you then add your desired amount of sugar to. But Sidi (the tea man's name) uses a variety of 6 herbs in each cup; geranium, sheeba (wormwood), verbena, common mint, spearmint, peppermint, and marjoram. We were given a bouquet of the fresh greens which went into a tall glass that was then filled with a hot combo of water, green tea and sugar. A silver sleeve made it possible to pick up the hot glass. Sidi is a character, the location is like a treehouse, and it all costs about $1! Mint tea is also jokingly called Berber whisky!
Amal had taken sprigs of mint from the tea shop and told us to hold them under our noses as we headed to Chouara Tannery. This is the largest tannery in Fes and is believed to have been in operation since the 15th or 16th century. We entered one of the many leather shops that are in this area and were led upstairs for a view of all the vats.
You smell the tannery way before you get to it. And it is STRONG. Before being dyed, hides are soaked in a mixture of cow urine, pigeon feces, quicklime, salt, and water in order to soften them. Those are the white stone vats on the left in the photo. Pigeon keepers actually sell their bird's shit to the tanneries! I'd heard how horrible to smell was but I guess I thought it had something to do with the hides. Nope, it's piss and shit!
Once softened the hides moved to one of the many vats filled with colorful dyes. The tannery still uses natural colorants such as poppy for red, indigo for blue, and henna for orange. The hides are then hung to air dry before being sold to leather craftsman who create all sorts of beautiful and colorful pieces.
After some shopping, and a stop for a delicious banana/date/chocolate smoothie type of drink, we continued on to the Al-Attarine Madrasa. This high school was founded in 859 AD for male students to study and learn the teachings of Islam. The building is incredibly beautiful, it's courtyard is filled with stunning tilework and intricate cut plaster that looks almost like lace.
Upstairs are 30 very simple rooms for the students who lived here during their studies. Many of those students went on to study at nearby Kairaouine University which was founded in 859 AD and is the oldest continually operating university in the world. As it is also a mosque non-Muslims are not allowed in but you can peer into the courtyard from the massive wooden doorway.
And all of that was before lunch! Amal had shown us so much and given us a lot of history, cultural information, and of course delicious food. We finished by sitting down to a light lunch were she had us try some hot potato fritters, a delicious soup made from fava beans called bisarra, and eggs scrambled with the preserved meat khlea.
I'm so glad that Amal was recommended to us and that we were able to do a combo food and cultural walking tour. There is no way we would have found everything and had the experiences we did without her! Reach out to her if you are heading to Fes!
