Vanlife Diaries Morocco: The Imperial City of Fez
Fez is one of Morocco’s four imperial cities, alongside Marrakesh, Meknes, and Rabat. Driving closer to the centre, we became in awe of the old, striking architecture and abundant locals cycling around with trailers bursting with produce. We’re not really city people, but our six weeks exploring Morocco have opened our eyes to the beauty in these bustling hubs of life.
The only difficulty we’ve found with souks, medinas, and city centres is the lack of suitability for Cali. The narrow streets, abundant strays, and sheer volume of people would make our pup explode, so this is something to consider if you’re planning a North African adventure with animals on board. To solve this, we opt for paid, guarded parking when we’re exploring dense areas and leave the van and Cali for a couple of hours. Parking like this isn’t difficult to find and generally costs a maximum of MAD 20 (roughly £1.50/€ 1.80).
It also means we can immerse ourselves in the experience without worrying about accommodating Cali in potentially stressful situations. We arrived in Fez late morning when temperatures were still pretty low and the streets weren’t packed with too many locals or tourists. Upon entering the medina, we were immediately grasped by the contrast of colour against the old medina walls with the vibrant stalls showcasing handcrafted, artisanal goods.
The smell of spices, incense, and freshly baked goods waltzed through the air, waking up our slumbering senses with delicate sweetness. Here, we stocked up on spices, opting for essentials like dried garlic, onion, thyme, paprika, cumin, and cinnamon. Something we’ve learned about Moroccan cuisine is the generous use of cinnamon in both sweet and savoury dishes. This is new for us as we tend to use sweet spices in baking, but since our first taste of Moroccan cuisine, we’ve been adding it to so many things like stews, soups, and tagines.
Learning about the city’s history was fascinating. Place Seffarine was the spot to delve deeper into Fez’s history with copper. We walked through a narrow street that opened out into a square beating to the rhythm of coppersmiths making pots, pans, trays, kettles, and more by hand. Although techniques have evolved from ancestral times, the heart of craftsmanship remains the same.
We spoke to one of these crafters as he worked on beating a tray into shape with nothing more than sheer skill and what can only be described as a wooden mallet. This filled the air with a piercing sound as each motion united the mallet with the copper, radiating sound ripples across the entire square and undoubtedly other areas of the medina.
Dating back to the 9th century, the walled medina of Fez and its maze network of over 9000 cobbled alleyways is an indescribable quest for visitors. We got lost on the hunt for fresh fruit and veggies to stock up on and ended up venturing deeper (and deeper) into the medina. Thankfully, we found solace in a kind store owner who put us back on the right path, and before too long, we returned to the familiar alleyway we’d spotted earlier with fresh, local produce.
Fez gave us an authentic insight into Moroccan culture and a glimpse into the history of the city itself. We hope to return one day in our old bus and explore more of the area, maybe alongside our new friend Youssef who we’re certain we’ll meet again.
