JEWISH SECTION
The Jewish section of the medina is noticeable by its balconies.
Arabic buildings do not have balconies. We learned that in
Islam there is a value in not displaying wealth on the outside
of the house so as not to inspire envy. This explained why
the lush interiors were in direct contrast to the simplistic
exteriors on the outside.
LEATHER SHOPPING
Later that afternoon, after trudging up several floors of
narrow stairs, we visited a leather shop. You could see from
its high balconies the dye vats below. We were lucky. That
day there was no smell coming from them. I, then, realized
why we were given fresh sprigs of mint as we climbed
those stairs. Mr. Ahmed Ghaber entertained us with his
“bad” English in several different dialects. He proudly told
us that he had even been interviewed by Nas Daily for
his language impersonations. Their soft leather products
included those of camel skin. One could choose a style,
type of leather, and color to have any clothing item custom
made and delivered by dinner! Two in our group ordered
custom measured coats. One in red and the other in a soft
grey blue color. One of them was delivered to the hotel
that very night. Impressive! The other needed one more
small alteration.
At this point, I noticed one person of our group was sleeping
in the back of the van any chance she got. She was getting
ill and was wearing a face bandanna because she was also
starting to cough. The rest of us were fine, except feeling
tired from the hectic pace of late-night dinners and early
morning tours.
A Balcony in the Jewish Section of the Medina
ILFRANE IN THE MOUNTAINS
As we all rested in the van travelling south, I watched the
landscape change. From open sand dunes to river gorges,
green-forested mountains, plowed fields and back to sand.
It was amazing to see large, hairy nests made with sticks and
tree branches here and there. These were stork nests built
in trees and on top of roofs. Addi played hypnotic Tuareg
music on the van system. Along the way we saw Barbary
monkeys on the side of the road, had a coffee and French
pastry break at a cool, green mountain village that resembled
Switzerland, even to the pitched room chateaus! This little
town of Ifrane was established by the French administration
in 1928 to be able to enjoy a cooler and higher altitude
climate. As we continued our road trip, our group bought
fresh dates at roadside stands and marveled at all the palm
groves and how the flat-roofed adobe homes resembled
those of New Mexico.
Stork Nests at Ruins