Our next stop in Fez was the medina. It’s famous for being old and confusing for outsiders. It was built in the 9th century, and is still very actively in use. At its center was an ornate mosque, originally one of the first universities, built by a woman named Fatima. We couldn’t go into the mosque—virtually all mosques in Morocco are only open to Muslims. We could look in through the doorways, though. It was gorgeous, filled with ornate carvings and tile.
The medina was like a maze, and I was nervous we’d get separated from Rashid, who was moving quickly. At several points, I might have wanted to stop and buy something, but he kept moving!
The medina is organized in sections or departments, with the wood workers in one place, the butchers in another area, etc. The shops were both selling wares and creating them; a craftsman would pause in hammering a copper pot to sell one.
The experience was both completely modern (so many stores selling SIM cards, or shirts with cartoon characters printed on them) and not at all (donkeys moving through the crowded alleys, laden with bolts of cloth). I felt like I could suddenly picture what it would be like to live in an ancient city, in a way that I never quite could before.
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