Sacred Heart of Morocco, Moulay Idriss put on the tourist map

When the danger zone, the holiest city in Morocco begins to woo tourists with a friendly new houses and some of Fez's most stylish restaurant

By 2005, non-Muslims must not stay overnight in Moulay Idriss. Guidebooks warn tourists, who dared to go is out of town is fifteen. This is what Edith Wharton had to be made in 1919, when he visited the town, known as the holiest place in the research in his classic memoir of travel in Morocco. Although there was nowhere for his stay, he claimed that he was the first foreigner to witness the city's frenetic moussem – music and dance in honor of the summer-drenched considered by many Moroccans as an alternative to the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca.

Well, there are places to stay now, and exciting new restaurant manages Mike Richardson, a former Maitre d 'Wolseley, and Ivy, who recently became the first foreigner to buy property here. The red-haired pioneer moved to Fez, an hour east, five years ago to set up a Café Clock (concept: the crazy Moroccan souk meets Venice Beach-style cafe, camel burgers), and now intends to do the same thing Moulay Idriss.

"Foreigners are cordially invited to now," he says, adding that the Moulay Idriss reputation as an unfriendly place had not been down to religious sensitivities alone.

"From what I can gather," he says, "myths come about because the place is so special. Moroccan wanted to keep it a secret."

His new restaurant, Dar Akrab (Scorpion House), has established one of the two hills of this ancient city where Moulay Idriss el Akhbar, great-grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the man brought Islam to Morocco 1200 years ago, is buried. It is an exciting place for an attractive yet not star-struck by the promise of tourism.

Tour bus to Fez used to come any closer than Volubilis, eerily abandoned city of Rome a 20-minute walk from the city. There is still no regular public transport, the cheapest way there is a common "grand" taxi to Fez or Meknes.

Dar Akrab climb is steep, but worth an incredible mountain views from a white minimalist terrace eating scrambled eggs with truffles in the desert, or in Morocco, a barbecue, the house specialty. In Morocco, grilled meat, usually lamb, cooked Mechouia style (as opposed to Arabic Berber method) – outdoors over hot coals and basted with Herby, spicy marinade of cumin, pepper and coriander.

If you want more, well, you can ask other clients, because, unlike a lot of cool new places in Marrakesh, Dar Akrab you can meet local young people, men and women.

"The feeling is going to dictate to the town's inhabitants," says Mike, as the wave of a few women enjoy afternoon tea as well as the nearby terrace. He says he initially bought a place of refuge for his life, feted a resident of Fez. Café Clock, in the middle of Souk, is so successful that every time he steps out, He grabbed a stallholder selling pet chameleons or homemade rosewater who wants to talk.

Even non-famous, Fez can feel claustrophobic after a couple of days, and the huge sky and the dramatic views of Moulay Idriss is a tonic. Other attractions are the ancient Roman hot springs, a 10-minute walk from the quiet hills, with two moderate-sized resort is built on the foothills of Mount Zerhoune. You can swim here: the water smells of cumin and hot stone. (During the summer, Richardson says, it is the "son of soup.") But even if you take a dip, it's worth the climb spectacular. Looking down the great plains of Volubilis to provide a truly in Africa – as well as a flash what the Roman Africa, may have felt.

Thank you Dar Akrab, Moulay Idriss is waking up. Mike a local friend, Fayssal, passing a new five-room guesthouse, Dar Zerhoune. It is a modest wood-framed, tile-floored boutique hotel is a classic keyhole-shaped doors, a lot of romantic balconies and a rare baraka, or carving the courtyard of Mohammed denoting that part of the house originally came from Mecca.

Conservatory style dining room is softened with a roof terrace (again) an amazing view of the mountains. Breakfast with local honey and couscous bread immersed in olive oil grove just down the road.

Fayssal's father, Mustapha is a good host, too. Once a week, he offers her the opportunity to tangia, Moroccan hotpot cooked known only by men. It is a very masculine dish, that there is a lot of meat, not a lot of work. You take a big ceramic urn and a butcher, to get him to fill it with seasoned meat and then you take it down to the hammam. You leave it on fire, turkish bath, go out and have a good steam, and when you're finished, you take it home and announce, "Hi, honey, I made dinner!"

Big Show-off time comes, when Mustapha empty urn in front of me. Richness and tenderness of the meat sauce momentary shock to me inscrutable silence Fayssal father and his jovial smile for me.

Food will be a big part of Mikko's new projects. He has already run cookery workshops in Fez, and will do the same in Dar Akrab. His friend, cookery writer Tara Stevens has just released the Clock Book: Recipes from modern Moroccan kitchen (33books, £ 15), inspired by Mike's menus. In Moulay Idriss, Morocco's occupation, he has a grill and teaching visitors how to do it all duck flavored with pomegranate molasses is a crystallized rose petals.

• Contact Dar Akrab, which opens in late May, is +212 535 637855, cafeclock.com. Ensuite doubles Dar Zerhoune price of 45 € (212 535 544 371, buttonsinn.com). Ryanair (ryanair.com) flies from Stansted to Fez from £ 42 return

More Source:

Sacred heart of Morocco: putting Moulay Idriss on the tourist map ...
Morocco + Restaurants | Travel | The Guardian
Morocco + Hotels | Travel | The Guardian
Sacred heart of Morocco: putting Moulay Idriss on the tourist map ...

Related News:

Details :
Submited at Thursday, May 5th, 2011 at 7:00 am on Hotel by hilman
Comment RSS 2.0 - leave a comment - trackback

Leave Comment Here...

404 Not Found