Day 7 of Moroccan Vacation: Meknes on February 11th, 2017


Seventh day in Morocco as we woke up to a pleasant sunny morning in Meknes.
The plan of the day was to visit the nearby Roman ruins of Volubilis, and then back in Meknes for its imperial city.

Riad Courtyard


Riad Courtyard
There was an orange tree growing in the courtyard. I guessed that solved the host’s welcome fruit problem. (Or maybe not, as orange trees were all over the country and people seemed reluctant to taste their fruit.)



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In the morning, for the first time, we found ourselves in a riad with an actual open-air courtyard (that’s how “riad” got its name for). And it was a refreshing sunny day.

Riad Entrance


Riad Entrance
It was located in a back alley off Google Maps. Luckily there was a trail on OpenStreetMap and we found it last night.


Streets of Meknes Medina


Streets of Meknes Medina
One good thing about Meknes Medina was that it was covered, so we didn’t need to walk in the rain last night. Also, it was a quarter to 10, and the indolent Morocco shop owners hadn’t gone to work it. (Is it because it’s a Saturday morning?)

After breakfast we made our way to Institut Français (station) to hitch a grand-taxi ride to Moulay Idriss, the nearest town to Volubilis ruins. On our way out we passed Madrasa Bou Inania, an ancient Islamic seminary. Since it wasn’t a very popular attraction (and there was a seminary in Fes under the same name and of more significance), and by the looks of it it was completely overshadowed by a nearby Mosque, we did not pay it a visit.

Walls of Meknes Medina


Walls of Meknes Medina
The stains on the walls speak of its history.


Mansion of Young Abdelkrim al Khattabi


Mansion of Young Abdelkrim al Khattabi
In what looks like an abandoned public ground. Abdelkrim was a Riffian political and military leader that led the rebellion against French and Spanish in the 20th century.


Roundabout in Central Meknes


Roundabout in Central Meknes

At Institut Français the shared grand taxi ride to Moulay Idriss was 10-dirham per person. It didn’t take long for a taxi to be filled, mostly by local people. The default grand taxi in Morocco should be century-old Mercedes with four people cramped in the back row, but luckily that day we got into a modern three-row Peugeot van. The 25-minute journey to Moulay Idriss passed along some beautiful magnificent Morocco countryside.

School Playground in Village of Tamesna


School Playground in Village of Tamesna


Farmland outside Meknes


Farmland outside Meknes
Farmland outside Meknes
Farmland outside Meknes
Farmland outside Meknes

After arriving at Moulay Idriss, the same taxi driver offered to drive my friend and I to Volubilis visitor entrance for 30 dirham, which we gladly accepted.

Volubilis

Volubilis is a partly excavated Berber and Roman city commonly considered as the ancient capital of the kingdom of Mauretania. Located on the fringes of the Roman empire, the city experienced rapid development in the 1st and 2nd century AD, which then fell to local tribes around 285 and was never retaken by Rome because of its remoteness.

Museum near Volubilis Entrance


Museum near Volubilis Entrance


Cactus


Cactus


Trail


Trail


Flowers at Volubilis


Flowers at Volubilis


Volubilis Ruins


Volubilis Ruins
Volubilis Ruins

House of Orpheus

Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus
Named for the large mosaic depicting Orpheus playing his harp to an audience of trees, animals and birds.

Amazingly, some Mosaic floors at Volubilis ruins were in such good shape till this day.

Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Volubilis Ruins


Volubilis Ruins


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Gate Remains


Gate Remains


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Mosaic Floor in the House of Orpheus


Dolphin Mosaic in the House of Orpheus


Dolphin Mosaic in the House of Orpheus


Restored Olive Press


Restored Olive Press


Bushes and Flowers


Bushes and Flowers

It was a lovely cloudy day at Volubilis. Ample precipitation under Mediterranean climate means the distant fields were green and flowers were blossoming. The Roman stones may be in decay but there was life everywhere else. Somehow, I felt it should be the best day weather-wise throughout my entire journey this winter, and how could one find a better day to visit an ancient ruin like this?

Capitoline Temple and Basilica

Columns outside Capitoline Temple


Columns outside Capitoline Temple


Ruins of Capitoline Temple


Ruins of Capitoline Temple


Capitoline Temple Surroundings


Capitoline Temple Surroundings


Basilica Interior


Basilica Interior
Columns with bird nest, typical Roman ruins.


Remains of Basilica Walls


Remains of Basilica Walls


Remains of Basilica Columns


Remains of Basilica Columns


Remains of Basilica Walls


Remains of Basilica Walls


Arches of Basilica Wall


Arches of Basilica Wall


Columns of Basilica and Capitoline Temple


Columns of Basilica and Capitoline Temple


Flowers at Volubilis


Flowers at Volubilis


Arch of Caracalla


Arch of Caracalla


House of the Columns


House of the Columns
House of the Columns


Mosaic of Bacchus encountering the sleeping Ariadne from the House of the Ephebe


Mosaic of Bacchus encountering the sleeping Ariadne from the House of the Ephebe


Tracks at Volubilis


Tracks at Volubilis
Used to carry spoil away?


North Baths


North Baths
Fed by the aqueduct.

House of the Labours of Hercules

Mosaic Floor in the House of the Labours of Hercules


Mosaic Floor in the House of the Labours of Hercules
Named for the mosaic depicting the twelve tasks that the demigod had to perform as penance for killing his wife and children.


Mosaic Floor in the House of the Labours of Hercules


Mosaic Floor in the House of the Labours of Hercules


Mosaic of the Four Seasons in situ in the House of the Labours of Hercules


Mosaic of the Four Seasons in situ in the House of the Labours of Hercules


Decumanus Maximus


Decumanus Maximus


Tingis Gate


Tingis Gate

Tingis Gate was at the northern end of the Volubilis ruins. There was a half-opened ion gate through which we could easily leave the premises, and entering through which one can dodge the entrance ticket. However, we felt so deeply enchanted by the site that we decided to go back to its proper exit.

Decumanus Maximus at Volubilis Ruins


Decumanus Maximus at Volubilis Ruins


Columns along Decumanus Maximus


Columns along Decumanus Maximus


Sky Opening


Sky Opening


Volubilis Ruins


Volubilis Ruins
Volubilis Ruins


Flower


Flower


Volubilis Ruins


Volubilis Ruins


Slope with Flowers Blossoming


Slope with Flowers Blossoming


Column Decoration Display


Column Decoration Display


Museum near Volubilis Entrance


Museum near Volubilis Entrance


Arch at Volubilis Entrance


Arch at Volubilis Entrance

After leaving the Volubilis ruins, we decided to walk back towards Moulay Idriss, mostly due to the wonderful country scenery along the way.

Fields and Mountains around Volubilis


Fields and Mountains around Volubilis


Thorns along the Way


Thorns along the Way


Country Road


Country Road
Country Road


Cactus with Fruit


Cactus with Fruit


Orchard and Pasture by Volubilis


Orchard and Pasture by Volubilis


Mountains by Volubilis


Mountains by Volubilis


Country Road


Country Road


Orchard and Mountains by Volubilis


Orchard and Mountains by Volubilis
Orchard and Mountains by Volubilis


Roundabout


Roundabout


Town of Moulay Idriss on Hill


Town of Moulay Idriss on Hill


Town Buildings of Moulay Idriss


Town Buildings of Moulay Idriss
Town Buildings of Moulay Idriss


Alley


Alley

So an hour, 3.5 km, 140 meters in elevation and a lot of photographs later, we were back at the town center of Moulay Idriss. It was 13:30 in the afternoon, and we planned to find a restaurant in Moulay Idriss for lunch. But it seemed that we could only find cafe houses where local men (yes, only men) enjoyed Moroccan tea before televised soccer games. Since Google Maps wasn’t very helpful at locating restaurants there and guess Moulay Idriss was by no means a tourist town, we decided to head back to Meknes for lunch.

Moulay Idriss Transit Center


Moulay Idriss Transit Center
It’s just a big open space, with grand taxis and mini buses parked.


Pasture


Pasture


Plants


Plants

Back in Meknes, it was starting to rain. So we just hopped into a nearby PizzaHut and finished our lunch while waiting out the rain.

Lunch in Pizzahut


Lunch in Pizzahut
Late lunch at 3pm.


Commercial Complex


Commercial Complex
With the Pizzahut where we had lunch in the foreground.

After lunch, we decided to visit Meknes Imperial City and Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail for the remainder of the day.

Street Lined with Palm Trees


Street Lined with Palm Trees


Gate into Meknes Old City


Gate into Meknes Old City


Gate in Meknes Old City


Gate in Meknes Old City


Streets of Meknes Old City


Streets of Meknes Old City


Vintage Car


Vintage Car

Meknes Imperial City

Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif was the second ruler of the Moroccan Alaouite dynasty. Under his reign Morocco’s capital city was moved from Fez to Meknes. King Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif was so fond of building things that he ordered the construction of numerous gates and many miles of city walls in Meknes. He used stones from Volubilis to build the splendid city gate of Bab Mansour, he used materials from El Badiî Palace in Marrakech (that we visited during our first day at Morocco) to decorated his palace.

But unfortunately, that day, it seemed that his Mausoleum could use some renovation itself.

Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail under Renovation


Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail under Renovation

So to spend the remainder of the day, we decided to take a walking tour around the perimeter of Meknes Imperial City, which, by satellite image, has been turned into a Golf course.

Arched Tunnel in Meknes Imperial City


Arched Tunnel in Meknes Imperial City


Tunnel in Meknes Imperial City


Tunnel in Meknes Imperial City


Fountain on Meknes Imperial City Wall


Fountain on Meknes Imperial City Wall


Street around Meknes Imperial City


Street around Meknes Imperial City


Gate of Meknes Imperial City


Gate of Meknes Imperial City


Street around Meknes Imperial City


Street around Meknes Imperial City


Gate of Meknes Imperial City


Gate of Meknes Imperial City

There were some guards outside this particular gate in splendid costumes, that told us not to take photos of them (after which I though their customs weren’t as splendid).

Plaza outside Meknes Imperial City Main Entrance


Plaza outside Meknes Imperial City Main Entrance
Plaza outside Meknes Imperial City Main Entrance


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Sports Field by Meknes Imperial City


Sports Field by Meknes Imperial City
I sort of didn’t understand why there was this pile of construction waste in such a “royal” stadium.


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City

Royal Barn and Stable

At the South-West corner of Meknes Imperial City there was remains of the royal barn and stable, and we admired its spacious interior reminiscent of Sultan Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif’s extravagance.

Royal Barn Interior


Royal Barn Interior
Royal Barn Interior


Royal Stable


Royal Stable


Royal Stable


Royal Stable


Royal Stable


Royal Stable


Gate of Royal Barn


Gate of Royal Barn


Royal Barn Interior


Royal Barn Interior


Bathroom Entrance in Royal Barn


Bathroom Entrance in Royal Barn
The bathroom certainly blends into the barn building.


Royal Barn Exterior


Royal Barn Exterior


Reservoir for Royal Stable


Reservoir for Royal Stable
Reservoir for Royal Stable


Tents along Stadium


Tents along Stadium
With loud music playing, there seemed to be some events going on here later in the day.


Wall around Meknes Imperial City


Wall around Meknes Imperial City
Those holes were for pigeons?


Houses in West Meknes and City Wall


Houses in West Meknes and City Wall

Towards the end of our circling Meknes Imperial City a distinct animal smell drew my attention to a nearby house ghetto. Well, no matter how fond Sultan Moulay Ismail ibn Sharif was about building exorbitant walls, he couldn’t control who’s residing underneath it. In this case, bear and grin this scene in heaven was probably the best he could do in heaven.

Ghetto below Meknes Imperial City

Ghetto below Meknes Imperial City
Ghetto below Meknes Imperial City


Walls of Meknes Imperial City


Walls of Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Imperial City
Gate into Meknes Imperial City


Gate into Meknes Old City


Gate into Meknes Old City

Bab Mansour and Square

Finally we arrived at Bab Mansour, the infamous city gate with columns from Volubilis ruins.

Bab Mansour


Bab Mansour

And nearby Lahdim Square, much less in scale than Marrakech’s Jemaa el-Fna.

Crowd at Lahdim Square


Crowd at Lahdim Square


Coke Fishing


Coke Fishing

After that, we elbowed our way in the streets of Meknes Medina to our hotel. It seemed that there weren’t so much tourists in the city of Meknes, and the shops in Meknes Medina were mostly selling Islamic female clothes and jewelry, but the Medina streets were much crowded in Meknes than in tourist-filled Marrakech. (Is it because people in Marrakech all swarmed into the big Jemaa el-Fna Plaza?)
END

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Day 7 of Moroccan Vacation: Meknes on February 11th, 2017 by Huang's Site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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