Fez, Morocco | 2016

Less than 15 hours later, it was already time to say goodbye to the beautiful blue city of Chefchaouen and head to Fes (also spelled Fez). Fes is a northeastern Moroccan city that is often referred to as its cultural capitol. It is home of the oldest continuously operating university in the world. It is a World Heritage site, and its Medina is thought to be the largest car free zone in the world. Its leather tannery is also one of, or the, oldest in the world. Basically this place is built on thousands of years of rich culture and history.

Each area had its own specialty from lanterns to sweets in the labyrinth of 10,000 alley ways. We were guided with precision and expertise through back hallways which we would have never ventured down on our own. We ended up in the most hauntingly beautiful antique shop called, Talisman Antiques.

As we walked through the hallway, lined with intricately carved doors, and into the courtyard, i felt overcome with emotion. It was as though I could feel all of my ancestors who had hammered the silver medallions, and inscribed into the goat skin pages of the Torah. We spent nearly an hour enchanted by these ancient tokens of the past, learning of their decent and the families that brought them to existence, while sipping on sweet mint tea.