There is no way to sum up Fes. Writing this entry towards the end of our Moroccan trip, I can safely say that Fes is the most overwhelming city in the country. Scott and I tried to tone that down by staying in the Ville Nouvelle instead of the confusing medina, and by hiring a guide for our first day. But all that did was create a different kind of confusion. Staying in the modern side of town made it harder to figure out what the people are like, and made the medina a total shock. Hiring a guide kept us safe from confrontation with salesmen and fake guides, but it meant that we were invited into a whole world we had never imagined. We only spent two days in this incredible city, but it felt like two weeks:

Our guide, Adil, lead us around the twisting and turning streets like a pro, shaking hands with his friends and helping old women with their bags. He showed us the sights that we never could have found on our own, he introduced us to his family and invited us into our home. Adil's cousins own a shop full of gorgeous Berber carpets and garments. The main guy, Mohamed, showed us around and gave us a lesson about carpets. Of course, this lead to the famous Moroccan "encouragement" but by then Scott and I knew how to say no three times with patience.

After our tour, Adil invited to his parents' house where we were treated to rice pasta and got to sneek a peek at Berber life. The family discussed the future of their hotel, Mama Afrika, over dinner (earlier that day Adil lead us up the stairs of this rickety building under construction to the most beautiful view of Fes--minarets towering over a sweet watermill). The family talked in Berber--a language and people still conotated with barberism--which was beyond Scott's and my frontier after all our troubles and success with Arabic.

After dinner, we went over to Adil's sister's house where the real fun began. The house was full of kids our age, just chilling like any of our American friends. We smoked some flavored tabacco, watched Arabic music videos, and tried desperately to communicate anyway we could. Scott's French came in handy, but hand gestures and laughter usually sufficed.