The Blue Pearl of Morocco
“There’s just really interesting facets of culture just swirling in Morocco. They all have slightly different colors, so it’s just an inspiring place to be.” – Mark Foster
With its blue alleyways and blue washed walls, clearly blue is the color of Chefchaouen. Why blue might you ask? Frankly it’s a mystery though there are many theories. Some say the blue was meaningful to the Jews who settled here after fleeing Hitler, others say it keeps the mosquitos away and yet others say it represents the color of the sea. I’ve even heard a theory that it’s soothing and it keeps the blood pressure in check. Go figure!
The blue no matter the reason why, transforms what might have been an ordinary medina and souk into something extraordinary, one of the most Instagram able spots in the world. I would almost say that the photos look better than the reality.
The town was founded by the Jews and Moors who escaped from Spanish persecution in the late fourteen hundreds. Nestled in the Rif Mountains it sprawls over hills and valleys with the requisite curving roads and lanes.
Blue and green are the popular colors in Morocco, but blue is the color of Chefchaouen which is called the blue city near and far. From the bus stop we walked by beautiful, tiled fountains and gardens as we headed towards the Medina.
It was still pretty early when we entered the Medina, so a lot of the shops were closed and shrouded under covers. We weren’t here to shop anyway so we proceeded along the narrow curving alleys that sloped up and down along the hilly terrain.
The blue color adds a touch of mysticism and elevates these homes, shops, cafes and alleys into a whole new level.
Shades of blue are predominant but as you can see there are accent colors that also have a place in the palette that the local shops sell.
The town was quiet, it seemed like we were the only people around other than shopkeepers and a few locals.
We wandered along listening to the guide in our ear as we stopped and took pictures. It was just inevitable that some of us would get separated from the group and it was just as inevitable that I would be one of the “lost” ones. Fortunately, we were only misplaced temporarily not lost in the maze of alleys though our tour guide had told us that if we continued to head downwards we would eventually end up in the townsquare.
One of the smaller town squares along the way. We saw a small group of tourists enjoying coffee and a snack but for the most part the cafes were devoid of customers and almost seemed closed.
This is supposed to be a hot Instagram photo opportunity. We waited a while, but an Asian family refused to budge taking all manner of photos and all manner of poses.
I was just talking to my son, and he was telling me that the Tesla super chargers kick you off a charger if all the chargers are full and there are cars waiting. There needs to be a similar protocol about photos and popular spots because people just don’t like to move even when there are a lot of people waiting.
I came back and snuck in a photo later but felt quite like a lemming because I am not sure what makes this spot so popular given there are many other interesting spots throughout the town.
Narrow alleys lead off from the main path showcasing colorful goods to sell. This might be my favorite photo stop in the town.
Another hot Instagram spot. This time we did manage to get some photos.
It was at this moment that it happened. With the guide droning on in my ears about the condition of the roads and how the government didn’t do much about repairing them, I felt myself flying off said road and heading for a prone position on the muddy ground.
Soon I was surrounded by well-meaning kind shopkeepers who brought me a stool, water to wash my muddy hands and a wet towel to brush the mud from my clothes. Out of 20 people in the group, I was the only lucky one to find the pothole and then get my foot caught in it. On the plus side I was able to experience the kindness of the local people firsthand.
Ah well! it’s a good thing that nothing worse than embarrassment and a whole bunch of black and blue happened. Oh yes! I also learned that my apple watch was programmed to alert my emergency contact who was boarding a flight at O dark hundred in Florida at the time. When I caught up with my son the first words out of my mouth were “I’m okay” and his were “well that’s fine and dandy but I’m not”. Luckily, we’ve since worked out our differences and he’s still my emergency contact, and the feature on the apple watch is still active despite my best efforts to turn it off.
With my adrenaline at an all-time high, it was a good thing we were near the main square and the end of our guided walk. I was able to find a cafe, order myself a sweet green tea which I promptly spilled all over the table and my companions and a bag of ice for my leg.
Not the kind of adventure necessarily that you want on your travels but since all’s well that ends well it added a nice touch of excitement to our day and made this visit memorable. Holding my icebag, we headed towards the bus and onwards towards our nighttime stop in Fes in a riad in the UNESCO designated Medina.