Day 13: Volubilis Roman Ruins and Chefchaouen
October 26, 2007
On our way from Fes to Chefchaouen, we stopped at the ruins of the Roman city Volubilis
We left Fes early in the morning after breakfast to continue on our journey to Chefchaouen. We made a stop at Volubilis where Mustafa took us on a guided tour of the ruins.
The ruins of Volubilis are said to be some of the best preserved Roman remains in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, containing over 30 well-preserved mosaics, a forum, a triumphal arch, a basilica and three residential houses. Volubilis was an important granary for the African Roman Empire, exporting olives and cereals all over the Roman world. It was also the meeting point between Berbers and Romans, where the two cultures met to trade even though the indigenous nomads of Morocco were never subdued by the Roman legions.
This is also the point in my trip where, unfortunately, my camera battery died (what a sad moment that was for me :-( ) but not before I was able to take some pictures.
The hmmm ruin, in my last photo (see below) caused quite a stir among the group. A few of the ladies took some pretty interesting photos with that particular symbol :-)
Volubilis was the southern-most settlement of the great Roman empire
We left Volubilis and after a stop for lunch, we headed for the Rif mountains and arrived in the beautiful village of Chefchaouen by late afternoon. Our hotel was right by the medina, perfect location. The medina had a Spanish-style square surrounded by many funky arts and crafts stores, roof-top restaurants and cafes. The feel of the place was so cool. I loved it. Wish I could have taken pictures, sigh.
After checking in our cute little rooms, Bronwyn, Becc, Jade and I ventured out into the medina to look around and do some last-minute shopping.
It was great, part of the walls, alleyways and doors in Chefchouan were all painted in beautiful shades of blue. One thing I did notice here, was the temperature was much, much cooler, even more so than in Todra Gorge.
They spoke Spanish and Arabic here, which was cool for me, since I am fluent in Spanish. I was able to help the girls bargain for their items while we were shopping I ended up buyying myself another pair of beautiful silver earrings. In fact, at one shop, I was able to help the girls bargain for their woven throws and blankets. After they were done, I turned around looked at the shopowner and told him in spanish, "okay I just helped you with over four sales, now let's talk my price". I ended up with a beautiful woven throw for my son, which he has laid out on his bed now.
Later that evening, a few of us decided to eat dinner at one of the outdoor restaurants.
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