Fair Trade Culture

July 31st, 2007 by Dominic

The first line in my journal about Fez is: â€œI’m in the most amazing place I’ve ever been.â€

I describe Fez as: A labyrinth that very soon after entering one of two things will happen. Either you’ll attempt to run to the nearest exit (if you can find one) or hope to forever wander throughout.

Upon arriving in Fez after a long hot bus ride from Tangier I found a place to sit and get some tea. As a tourist, especially one with a backpack in Morocco means you are never short of friends. Friends that want to give you tours, friends that know where to get the best hotel deal, friends for everything.

As I sat I was approached and asked if I had a place to say. I say yes, when in all reality I hadn’t a clue since I seldom if ever book ahead. He asked where…..â€the hostelâ€, i replied. â€That’s too bad, the hostel is in the new town…you really should stay in the Media, I live right around the corner in a part of town called ‘The Casbah’â€…. Soon he moves on.

I don’t know why, but i didn’t feel like i was getting hustled.

I sat back and watched for the next 15-20 minutes. He wasn’t hustling the other tourists around, he was talking with people, kissing babies, joking with shop owners. I called him back over and made a counter offer….Hassan’s response is â€œWe accept my Brother!â€.

The part of town where Hassan lives is called the Casbah. In this part of town there aren’t any tourists. It’s the oldest part of the city and is a completely separate community from the rest of the Medina. The only way in or out is through a door on the outer wall of the city. To access the rest of the Media you must walk out of the gate and back in a different gate.

When you see rogue tourists walk in, they soon turn around realizing they weren’t where they thought they were. I was a local there, I knew where I was and where I was going. People knew me, I knew people.

A ‘Souk’ is what you or I would call a street or flea market, little stall after little stall (each 100-200 square feet). The Souk in Fez seems to twist and turn on and on, forever sloping down (or up). Some places it’s wide enough for donkeys with carts to pass, while in others it’s barely wide enough for two people.

The Souk is loosely broken into many smaller areas, each of which has it’s own specialty. Meat, vegetables, clothes, hardware, carpets, handicrafts, etc, etc, etc. There are actually several iterations of this pattern. There are several different places along the street where you can find vegetables. Through all of this noise and chaos there is no pushing, shoving or ill words spoken. Everyone is going about their own business, courteous of those around them.

I found myself wandering up and down these tight twisty streets for hours and days on end. This is truly a magical place I hope to have the privilege to visit again in my travels.

I planned on staying in Fez 2-3 days. It took me 6 days to pull myself away. In my time there Hassan and his friends were most gracious hosts.

Random notes on and highlights of Fez:

-Within the medina there are no cars. Donkeys deliver everything, they have the justly deserved title of â€œTaxi of the Medinaâ€. It’s said that Fez el Bali (the old part of Fez) is the largest, contiguous auto-free urban area in the world.

-I gave one beggar woman a 2Dh coin (approximately $.20). As a I walked away she said, â€œTonight I pray to Allah that your pockets never run dry as mine haveâ€.

-I was automatically invited to partake in every meal that appeared (as everyone was). If you had some pocket money you contribute. If you don’t, next time you do it’s your turn, no questions asked.

-I never witnessed anyone being mean, loud, rude or impolite in any way. This is true of my entire time in Morocco. When dealing with me (a non-Arabic speaker) they were more than accommodating w/ my pointing to what I wanted to see/eat/look at. Moroccans are some of the nicest, open, friendly people I’ve ever had the pleasure of spending time with.

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