Life in the Fez Medina

I admit – I fell in love with the Fez medina.  

Between the peachy sandstone walls, the soaking sun,  the charming locals,  and the history oozing from every cobblestone and ledge – 

I could’ve stayed a month in the  Fez medina and learned something new every day!   

Here’s my Fez Medina….

The Cultural House in the Fez medina

A popular lodge in Morocco is the Riad, ottoman-style boxy homes, protected by massive wooden doors,  with secluded inner courtyards -- peaceful refuges from the craziness of the Fez medina just outside.    Riads are lovely, for about $300/night. 

Instead, I found a Cultural House.  

Squeezed in a neighborhood by the old mosque, its  4 floors are connected by an extraordinarily steep staircase of  properly-chipped and mosaic-ed antique tiles, and topped with a roof terrace – perfect for enjoying  breakfast or watching sunset over Fez medina.

I got 1 of the 3 rooms and from my cushy King bed, I gazed directly out this ornate wrought iron window.  The sun rose white on the Fez medina walls to greet me each morning, and the voices and clatter of the souk floated in to put me asleep at night. 

Sabah ,(a lovely young gal whom I’d love to adopt as my lil sis!)  smiled, cooked, even hung my laundry to dry in the desert air.

Ahmed, the house host, escorted me from the train  and through the labyrinth of the Fez medina to the House (a clutch perk – otherwise, you WILL get lost!) , then gave me a full orientation to the Fez medina.  By the end, I understood the 2 main paths – the Tala'a Kbira ("steep path") and the other Tala'a Sghira (“flat” one) -- and did not even need a guide! 

He even called his favorite restaurant, the Panoramique, to send a waiter to pick me up and walk me to dinner! 

40E/night, and it  had the fastest, most reliable wireless internet of any place on my entire trip!

Sacred Zone of the Fez medina

The famous Moulay Idriss mosque, next door, warranted a Sacred Zone.  

An area of about 300 meters is marked by 2 medieval-hewn logs nailed across the  Fez medina walkway, delineating a Sacred space of no bare arms or legs, no alcohol, no music.

Nestled in this Sacred Zone, my House felt neither silent nor isolated, but it did feel harmonious.  My neighbors waved as they cooked and parented and ate and visited on their own rooftops (few traditional homes in Fez medina have electricity, or even running water, so locals tend to retreat to their rooftops to live  in the open air.)

Eating in the Fez medina

Breakfast is fresh yogurt, tagine-eggs, honey, and 3 types of bread -- khobz (the flat one),  baghrir (the holy one), and harsha (the cornbeard type)

For dinner, go out in the Fez medina to a sidewalk café, 

or up to the Panoramique!  For 60 dirhams (divide by 10 to get Euros, then convert to US$), or about $8,  I  was served a slew of appetizers – warm aubergine (eggplant,  a local staple),  cold potatoes,  string beans, lentils… 

Followed by a tagine of lamb and vegetables.  

The El Ras Hanout spiced gravy… the twinkling lights of the surrounding “bowl” of the Fez medina…. I can still conjure the scene that night! 

Cooking in the Fez medina

I took a class to learn to stew in the popular tagines.   Starting in the local market to buy white artichokes and fresh dates, we stopped at the butcher to select a  (yes, still squawking) chicken.    Butchering was a quick slice of the neck and a shove into the boiling pot to de-feather.  Trust me... if you can boil a lobster, you can do butcher a chicken in the Fez medina! 

We also made Harira, a traditional tomato-based soup, and a dessert of macaroons, which necessitated a trip through the Fez medina to the community ovens.

NOTE:  did you know you even cook IN a Fez medina home with a local woman?

Tanneries in the Fez medina

Fez is the artisan capital of Morocco, and tanning is a major industry.   Here’s the largest tannery in the Fez medina – 

The hides first go in lime (white pools on left) to clean them, 

Then into pools where men in shorts literally stomp them for softness. 

There is more soaking, then dying in green, brown, black, blue.   The yellow ones, dyed with saffron,  lie drying on all the nearby rooftops of Fez medina like small slices of mustard-slathered bread.

I salivated over the ceramic products

The textile industry of the Fez medina uses automated spinning contraptions to replace the traditional 10-year olds who spun sheep’s wool into thread.

This man (right) tanned a goatskin, and I bought his drum! 

Meeting locals in the Fez medina

A local can teach you Arabic calligraphy. 

You can get measured by a local seamstress, pick out your cloth, and have a caftan custom-sewn for you!

You can cook with a local woman in her home, 

go to Café Clock to hear local drummers. 

Or – if you want to venture from the Fez medina -  daytrip to the Atlas mountains to an authentic rug auction! 

Desert Excursions out of  Fez medina

Here’re the Erg Chebbi dunes!

Camel trek for 2-4 days, overnighting under the stars in Bedouin tents! 

Unforgettable sunrises and fire-charred feasts make this a really unique Moroccan memory to augment your adventures in Fez medina! 







The Fez Medina, and northern Morocco, are one of my favorite destinations.  I would love to talk to you about Fez, and to create a Fez adventure that you'll be unable to forget!  

Call me today (609) 923-0304, 

or grab a FREE 20-minute appointment here:  www.MeetingWithMelanie.com