Têtouan
Today we explored the fascinating medina of Tétouan. We spent hours wandering the narrow streets as our guide pointed out cultural quirks and architectural details of this ancient town. The size of the city swells with tourists in the summertime, but today we felt like the only foreigners in Tétouan. And although French is the second language of Morocco, here we had to switch to Spanish, owing to Tétouan’s interwoven history with its Andalusian neighbours.
The narrow lanes of the old town meander through the characteristically low, square white houses; giving Tétouan its nickname of White Dove. Navigating this rabbit warren seems like an impossible task and gives you the feeling that you could be lost amongst the alleyways forever. But there are clues within the #architecture to help point you in the right direction. Brown doors denote private residences and green doors are reserved for shopfronts. Paving stones in the ground are laid in a certain manner to help point you to one of the eight gates enclosing the town centre. Geometrical archways and ornate door hinges tell you whether you are in the Jewish or Spanish quarter. The walls are full of secrets.
Just as different ethnic groups have their own quarters, so too do different industries. Workshops for embroiders lie separately to those of plasterers. There are designated areas for the woodworkers, leatherworkers, silversmiths, engravers and potters. Selling their wares from the same window where they make them. All separate but all together. Traditional #craftsmanship is alive and well in Tétouan.
And around every corner there seemed to be a different food market or street vendor offering up fresh produce. The indigenous Berber women bring their homegrown goods down from the mountains each day to sell in the medina. As we wandered the different market stalls, vendors plied us with cookies, dried fruit and fresh bread; wanting nothing more than a smile in return. There was no need for lunch today. The only stop we made was inside an exquisitely tiled riad, for traditional mint tea and fresh orange juice with cinnamon.
