About Fes.

A little bit of backtracking:

• Our hotel in Fès was magnificent. Marble floors, huge bathrooms, multiple pools, lounges, butlers, bowling lanes, dance clubs … basically we were spoiled. It was still chilly in the mountains, but Nicole and I decided that we had to go swimming in one of the swimming pools. It was like a polar bear swim. After a few laps, the water doesn’t feel so cold.
  

• Stopped by a carpet dealer in the Medina. We were given mint tea followed by a sales pitch. The mint tea was excellent. The carpets were nice as well - I bought three. Got them for a third of the original price, so what I paid was hopefully closer to the actual value. I plan on hanging my new purchases in my apartment.
  

• The Medina was not at all touristy. The sights and smells reminded me of markets in the Philippines. I loved the narrow streets lined with merchants and crowded with customers. People stopped to stare at us - I don't blame them as I'm sure it's not everyday that a group of 11 western girls walks through the crowded market place.

• Went to see cloth dyers. The colors are created with herbs and pigeon poop. We were told that the skin of the workers becomes the color he works in. Such labor.