Time for my Turkish bath ... and a deep breath

Me and my touring companions at dinner in Fes.

Hello from Fes!

Today was a travel day as we said goodbye to Chefchouen and hello to Fes. The drive — including a break — took approximately five hours. Along the way, we got to see the Moroccan landscape, which is not at all what I thought it would look like. When I originally thought of Morocco, I thought of flat land with more desert plains. The green, rolling hills, fertile lands, varied crops are far different than I imagined. 

There are a wide variety of crops grown here. Everything from fruits — strawberries, watermelons, oranges, dates and more — wheat, sunflowers, olives. There are vineyards. There are fields of cannabis. 

Most crops are harvested by hand and, while I did see the odd tractor, traditional farming is the way of life here. 

There are sheep — many, many sheep. Some goats. Some cattle. Chickens are reasonably priced, so there are some of them as well. 

One of the biggest things I noticed is the fields are full of rocks. Growing up a farm kid, one of the worst jobs Dad made us do was pick rocks, so the farm equipment didn’t get damaged by them when he worked the fields. Here, since farming is mostly done by hand, that’s not a concern.

Here are a few pictures to try and show a bit of what I saw along my drive. 

We pulled into Fes in the pouring rain. The soggy weather and the fact our accommodation in Chefchouen was disappointing left the group feeling apprehensive.

We are staying in a riad in the old city. It’s kind of funky and the rooms are spacious and fairly modern. While it lacks the character of the first riad we stayed in, it’s better than where we anticipated ending up, which is a pleasant surprise. No one really wanted to go for a walk after we checked in and I asked Siad, my group leader, if a hammam could be arranged. He called ahead and they were able to make it happen.

Now, I’ve read a bit about what a hammam (a Turkish bath) is but to say the experience took me by surprise would be an understatement.

This photo, with the candles on the floor, is the entrance into the spa room.

I was greeted by a lovely lady with limited English and a touch of French. She communicated to me to get naked — all the way naked. I’m not comfortable or confident in my body but I did as she asked and apologized for my pudge. She looked at me like I was nuts. Then me and my naked self followed her into a room with hot running water, wide concrete benches, mats and spa products. She started by pouring a couple of buckets of water over my shoulders and legs and then the first of many buckets over my head.

Then it was time for the black soap. She washed every body part. Everything.

It was then and there I figured I had two options: relax and enjoy the experience or be tense and uptight and self conscious and ruin the adventure. So, deep breath in, I chose to enjoy and relax.

After the soap was rinsed off, it was time for the scrubbing mitt. And yes, she scrubbed everywhere. The piles of dead skin made both of us sad. In fact, the only time I felt judged was by the dead skin, not the size or shape of my body.

After my exfoliated skin was rinsed away (by now, I had become adept at holding my breath), it was time for mud on my body, mud on my face, some kind of hair treatment and more water boarding. 

After the bathing was done, she wrapped me up in an oversize robe and took me to a massage table.

There I layed quietly while she massaged my body with jasmine-scented oil. She massaged me almost everywhere and, by this time, I truly did not care that my body isn’t perfect. I felt clean and beautiful. The treatment ended with her leading me to a room with a chaise to relax on and fresh orange juice to sip while I became a puddle.

Eventually I got dressed and left. The whole thing took more than an hour and it cost about $80 Cdn, which I think is a decent price.

While you think that would be the end of my day, there was still one more amazing experience. Our group had supper in a restaurant that was originally a private home. It’s been in the family for more than 200 years. We started with several vegetable dishes, followed by pastilla (layers of chicken and nuts / a sweet-and-savoury dish wrapped in phyllo pastry.) We then enjoyed fresh fruit, Moroccan cookies and, of course, mint tea. The owner of the home is an amazing lady and she is so warm and inviting and oversees the guests in her restaurant and the food that is prepared. It was an amazing experience. It’s another wonderful day on my Moroccan adventure!