Our next hotel reservation was in the city of Fes, a four
and a half hour trip from Tetouan. We would break it up by first stopping at
Chefchaouen, a city stuffed onto the side of a mountain in the Rif. It is
famous for its blue buildings, and blue they are, all shades of it, and we had
the bluest sky to match.
We hired a private driver for the day – he would take us to
Chefchaouen and wait for us while we explored the blue city before heading on
to Fes. The drive to Chefchaouen was scenic, but the mountain roads were crazy
and we were fortunate to have a driver who seemed sensible when it came to
safety. (That had not been the case on the way to Tetouan.) The roads through
the mountains are scarce – the road was packed with cars, buses, and slow
moving trucks. We all played leapfrog to pass each other. I noted the places
where vehicles had gone off cliffs, the useless guardrails mangled and the ground
crumbled where people had no doubt met their deaths. Ours was a good driver,
though, and I was mostly anxiety free and able to enjoy the views. I took some video of the trip - you can see the roads were rather bumpy.
The trip was about an hour and a half, but we hadn’t been in
the city for a half minute before a guy stopped our car and got in, offering us
a tour and a restaurant. He would not take no for an answer until we were about
halfway up the hill and I had been a bit mean. I really am sick of these guys.
We don’t want tours. We want to wander around and look at things and everything
we want to know we have either already read about or can look up on our phones.
Some tourists think Moroccans are so nice because these are the only people
they meet, and they are suckered into these kinds of things, not understanding
these “guides” (“I am not a guide, I want no money, I am just a student…” Oh
yeah, old man, I believe you are a “student.”) are only nice to them because
they are tourists with money. There is no polite way to dismiss them because
they are relentless. Very frustrating.
Anyway, our driver took us to Bab Souk, an entrance to the
old city, and after many confirmations in Arabic and French about our meeting
time, we set off to explore the city. We would only be in Chefchaouen for three
hours, enough time to experience it and eat some lunch before continuing on to
Fes. Although it was pretty expensive to hire a driver for the day, it was well
worth it.
This was another town that Jewish and Muslim refugees
settled to escape Christian persecution during the Spanish Inquisition. The
blue comes from the Jewish immigrants who painted the town that color, a
tradition to mirror the sky and remind them of God.
We didn’t have too much time here, but it was enough, and a
unique experience it was, as there isn't much in the world like it.
See?
Always Globalization
Chris also participating in the blue theme
traditional Bedouin hats
You can make this hill, Chris!
This is the style of rug I wanted to bring home. I should have just gotten it here.
It'd be fun to play in this town as a child! So many places to hide.
M.C. Esher's house?
Hanging laundry everywhere makes Morocco that much more colorful.
a laundry facility...made me feel bad for complaining about our old washer
