The trip to Morocco was our first family trip overseas albeit without Alethea. I had not traveled overseas since '86. Karen and Matt had never been anywhere outside the US but the Caribbean (basically a US beachfront) and Mexico or Canada. For me it was a big challenge in being a non-Euro-centered country. Although there is a lot of influence from Europe there it also has a huge Arab/Muslim influence. French is the lingua franca. English comes in 5th or 6th. I had attempted to prepare myself for all the challenges we would encounter upon arrival in Africa culturally, communications-wise, etc. I was not able to really relax until about a week into our two week stay.

These are views of our riad and other buildings we saw around the alleys in the Arab quarter of Fes. The riad is a large colonial styled building. Technically it has a garden so ours was identified euphemistically. The ceilings were 11 or 12 feet high. There are usually 3 or 4 floors with the top being a rooftop terrace surrounding an atrium shining light all the way to the first floor where there is typically a kitchen. The front door is huge and heavy. From the looks of it these buildings are antique, probably well over a hundred years old. Sometimes there's a huge door you could bring a carriage or wagon thru and a smaller door within a door. The little narrow stairways are like tunnels. You may have to duck your head and/or take off your backpack to squeeze thru.

They do amazing architectural carving and tilework.The riads we stayed in were like museums. There were three bedrooms on the second floor each with their own bathroom and shower. The first floor besides the kitchen contained a lounge area which was used as a bedroom. The second floor that overlooked the atrium on a balcony contained a splash pool and a dining area. There was also a 2 1/2 floor which looked like extra sleeping altho that was closed off for us. The open rooftop terrace had a good view of the area and offered a great place to sleep on comfortable nights.