When we’re talking about the Moroccan Kingdom, especially when we’re talking about it’s inception, we are talking about Fez. This city was the capitol of Morocco, in which the first king settled, this happened 12 centuries ago. That’s how old Fez is. Which means that it still preserves old buildings, and architectures from different periods of ancient history. The type of architectures we’re talking about is of course, old islamic architecture and design.
Fez isn’t however, all old and traditional, even though the ancient aspects of the city are what makes Fez a special city. In fact, Fez is the second largest city in Morocco. Which means it’s a city with modern a lifestyle, since it’s one of the imperial cities.
The modern face of Fez embraces all what has to do with the standards of modernity, like those you can find in European cities. From fancy restaurants and hotels to beautiful streets and so on.
Plus, Fez is in a geographical location that makes all the other places in Morocco that are considered the main attractions easily reachable. Fez is situated in the heart of Morocco. It’s no wonder why it was the capitol of the first king.
You might be someone who is considering to pay a visit to Morocco, and fez in particular, and you might be wondering what sort of things you expect to do or find in there.
This article is about the most attractive things about Fez and the things you can do in there. Keep on reading to discover that.
The Medina.
Visiting Fez without taking a walk in the labyrinths of the old town, and even perhaps struggling to find your way around, is considered a waste of time. The old Medina is the original Fez, everything else is just added afterwards.
The old Medina is always crowded with people of all sorts, merchants selling goods, and bazaars all over the place in every corner of the narrow alleys.
The old Medina also has walls and castles from ancient history, these architectures are what give to Fez its authenticity.
These monuments are accumulated from as far as the 8th century of even before that. Those ancient architectures and buildings are what preserves the rich cultural heritage that Fez has.
One important thing is all the ancient mosques and their beautiful minarets are really hard to miss.
University of al-Qarawiyyin.
Fez is the home of the oldest university in the entire world. Although this might be a little bit surprising, but in fact, Morocco has this honour of hosting the first roots of academia. The one who established this university is woman whose name is Fatima Al-Fihri, she did so 1160 years ago. The whole world should be very thankful for what this lady has done, and perhaps recognize what she did more. In Morocco nowadays Fez is considered the capitol of science and knowledge, this reputation that Fez has comes from the University of al-Qarawiyyin.
This place is must-visit if you’re considering Morocco for vacation.
Moroccan Riads.
A riad is essentially a form of Moroccan traditional style of housing, although the original form is said to be inspired from an old Roman city near Fez, called Volubilis. The old Moroccan dynasties adopted these types of houses, and soon they became the norm for many Moroccans throughout history, up until the modern era.
The architecture of a riad is quite interesting. They are built for the purpose of protection and and introspection, it’s as if when you enter a riad you are secluded from the outside world. The focus of all the rooms is directed towards a beautifully designed fountain in the middle of the courtyard. The building has usually no Windows that face the outside, you can access it only through a gate. However, all the Windows are opened to the open space in the middle towards the fountain. The riads are also built this way because Moroccans used to live throughout their lives as a family, even when the son marries, he doesn’t leave home.
Nowadays the riads are open to visitors. Not many Moroccans live in riads anymore. Which leaves a lot of them to be turned into beautiful hotels, restaurants or cafes. Others are open for visitors to explore them.
Borj Fez
Staying in the old Medina of Fez for a long period of time may feel like time travel to past centuries. You might want to get a taste of the modern lifestyle, or perhaps even a taste of foods that you got used to in your country. Visiting Borj Fez can offer this to you. Borj Fez is big mall in Fez that you must visit. There you can do all sorts of shopping and fun activities. There you can find worldwide restaurants that offer foods like burgers, pizza and tacos.
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