Other sights in Fès
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A
Nejjarine Museum of Wooden Arts & Crafts
Opened in 1998, this museum is in a wonderfully restored funduq – a caravanserai for travelling merchants who stored and sold their goods below and took lodgings on the floors above. Centred on a courtyard, the rooms are given over to displays of traditional artefacts from craftsmen’s tools, chunky prayer beads and Berber locks, chests and musical instruments (compare the traditional wedding furniture with the modern glitzy chairs outside in Place an-Nejjarine). Everything is beautifully presented, although the stunning building gives the exhibits a run for their money. The rooftop café has great views over the medina. Photography is forbidden.
reviewed
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B
Jewish Cemetery & Habarim Synagogue
The southwest corner of the mellah is home to the fascinating Jewish Cemetery & Habarim Synagogue, where the sea of blindingly white tombs stretches down the hill; those in dedicated enclosures are tombs of rabbis. One of the oldest, high up against the north wall, is that of Rabbi Vidal Hasserfaty, who died in 1600. On the slope below, the large tomb with green trimming is that of the martyr Solica, a 14-year-old girl who refused to convert to Islam or accept the advances of the governor of Tangier and subsequently had her throat slit.
reviewed
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C
Medersa el-Attarine
Founded by Abu Said in 1325 in the heart of the medina, the Medersa el-Attarine was designed as a separate annexe to the Kairaouine Mosque. Halls for teaching and a modest masjid flank the central courtyard. Displaying the traditional patterns of Merenid artisanship, the zellij (tilework) base, stuccowork and cedar wood at the top of the walls and on the ceiling are every bit as elegant as the artistry of the Medersa Bou Inania.
reviewed
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D
Dar el-Makhzen
The entrance to Dar el-Makhzen is a stunning example of modern restoration, but the 80 hectares of palace grounds are not open to the public. Visitors must suffice with viewing its imposing brass doors, surrounded by fine zellij and carved cedarwood. Note the lemon trees to one side – tour guides are prone to plucking the fruit to demonstrate the juice’s astringent cleaning properties on the palace gates.
reviewed
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Jnan Sbil (Bou Jeloud Gardens) & Baghdadi Square
These gardens, also known as Jnane Sbil, have been providing welcome green space for well over a century. They’re a good halfway break between the mellah and Bab Bou Jeloud, and were undergoing extensive renovation and replanting when we visited. If you continue from here, you reach Baghdadi Square, an open-air market on the edge of the medina.
reviewed
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E
Tanneries
The Chouwara tanneries are one of the city’s most iconic sights (and smells). Head east or northeast from Place as-Seffarine and take the left fork after about 50m; you’ll soon pick up the unmistakeable waft of skin and dye that will guide you into the heart of the leather district (the touts offering to show you the way make it even harder to miss).
reviewed
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F
Medersa Bou Inania
A short walk down Talaa Kebira from Bab Bou Jeloud, the Medersa Bou Inania is the finest of Fez’s theological colleges. It was built by the Merenid sultan Bou Inan between 1350 and 1357. The medersa underwent extensive restoration a few years ago, and the results are amazing: elaborate zellij and carved plaster, beautiful cedar mashrabiyyas (lattice screens) and massive brass doors.
reviewed
