Fez is an ancient Moroccan city whose 2800 years of history have given the city more than its fair share of culture and tradition. In the old part of Fez, there are more than 200 mosques and many classic Islamic-style buildings, which give the city a mysterious and ancient atmosphere. The streets of Fez are narrow, but with a large number of streets leading in all directions, each twisting alley is lined with small stores, including food stores, butcher stores, craft stores, fabric stores, spice stores, etc. Visitors can wander through these alleys for a whole day and not even finish all the stores, there are more than 9,000 streets here! You can get lost if you are not careful, so it is best to have a local guide to show you around the small streets and alleys.
Fez leather is famous all over the world, not only for the quality of the leather but also for its hand-dyeing process, which makes leather products of the highest quality in terms of texture and appearance. In the old town of Fez, there is a large Chouara dye factory with colourful vats. Visitors can climb up to the surrounding stores or rooftops to overlook the dye factory, and the entire leather dyeing process is spectacular. However, due to the need to reinforce the colour of leather, the traditional process here is to add limestone and animal dung to the fuel, and the dye factory will have a pungent and unpleasant odour, so before the visit, the locals will give visitors mint, and blocking the nose with mint leaves will not smell the unbearable odour.
Walking in the old city of Fez, you will be surprised to find that donkeys are still a means of transportation here as if you were in the ancient society hundreds of years ago, there is a feeling of time and space disruption. If you go to Fez, you must go to the top of the hill to get a panoramic view of the old town. You can choose to go up at dusk, you can watch the sunset and beautiful evening sun. At night, the area is bustling with people and vendors. Pottery stores, lamp stores and spice stores are popular with tourists. You can spend a lot of time walking through these stores, looking at the various goods, and if you have something you like, then you can also try to bargain with the shopkeeper.
You also can't miss the Abu Einan Seminary in Fez. This is one of the few Islamic buildings open to visitors and includes a school building, a mosque and a residence. The woodwork and stone carvings here reflect the beauty of the East and are very ornate. The walls are beautifully painted, the décor is very local, and although the place is small, it has everything!
Overall, if you're in Morocco, Fez is a must-stop on your journey. The people and architecture are well worth visiting and the prices are not too high, so if you are willing to bargain, then you are in the right place.
