The White Town

Chauen's Medina
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We finally arrived in Chauen, a little white town washed with the sweet

sun of the Mediterranean. Every town and city in Morocco is divided

'We decided to stop to have a mint tea in a typical coffee place...when something incredible happened..."

in two parts: the ville nouvelle or new city, and the ancient medina

Grafitties on the Wall
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where you find the real Morocco, a maze of little and noisy streets,

houses, shops or souqs, street sellers and mosques, all surrounded by

fortress walls with entrance arches generally located in the four corners

of the medina.

We found a very cheap hotel in the ville nouvelle, left our backpacks

in the room and wondered down to the medina. When we entered the medina

a completely new world appeared before our eyes. People stared at us

with such intensity we felt like we were people running away from a

mental institution. I gotta tell you that we never felt that watched

before, we were starting to wonder when they last saw foreign people.

Chauen´s medina is small and quiet, houses and stairs are dyed

with soft blues and cream colours giving a sensation of coolness and

cleanliness. You just have to let go of everything else and get lost

in the hundred of tiny narrow streets, trying no to bump on beggars

sitting on the floor and street dealers offering you hash or marijuana.

You have to answer politely but firmly and they won't bother you any

more. If you pass by any house-shop you will get the inevitable offer

of visiting: 'Please feel free to look around and touch, there is no

need to buy, try it!'

The real thing is that you feel terrible entering their houses and not

buying anything at all, all quality products and everything so beautifully

on display. They even offer you tea or coffee. But you always end up

feeling guilty because you wasted his time. During the next days we

began to understand that it was all part of the game, so we relaxed

and enjoyed.

We decided to stop to have a mint tea in a typical coffee place, where

woman are not allow to enter, when something incredible happened. For

the first time, we heard the chants to call the people to prayer, coming

from the speakers from one of the many mosques. It felt like time stopped

and we were special guests in an Indiana Jones movie. The first stage

in this amazing trip was as good as it gets. We went to sleep and woke

up early the next morning to go to our next stop.