The Fes medina (walled city, Fes el-Bali), founded between A.D. 789 and 808, is an enormous quarter with 9,100 “streets” (some so narrow they accommodate only one person), a population of 300,000 and the biggest car-free area in the world. We spent the entire day walking around the medina and I’m sure only saw a fraction of it. Not only was it fascinating, but it was a real slice of life in Morocco. I could have easily spent more time there. We were under strict orders not to wander around on our own; our driver, Rostom, who grew up in this medina, said if we got lost, it would take him weeks to find us.

Riad Myra was our accommodation in the medina, one of the most beautiful “hotels” we stayed at in Morocco. The building, a formerly private residence, was enormous and elegantly decorated, with a huge skylight that was open in the daytime and a very friendly staff. There were something like 20 rooms, and ours was large and very exotic. I wouldn’t normally post pictures of hotels, but the riads and dars we stayed in were definitely part of the Morocco experience.

A view of the Fes medina, posted earlier: