Salam wa aleikum!
I hope that everyone has been having a lovely, not burning hot time wherever they are. Because let me tell you, I had a burning hot time this weekend. Burning hot as in sun. Not fun. Well, a little fun.
So, on Saturday our program was taken to Volubilis and Moulay Idriss. First, we hit up Volubilis, a city of ancient Roman ruins that's been partially excavated. It was founded in the 1st century AD and was really prosperous because of all this good stuff.
What could it possibly be??
Could they be...
OLIVES!!
Hallelujah!!
However, it fell to local tribesmen in the 3rd century. And then Rome was basically like, 'Eh, that's really far away and we're kind of sort of lazy...Meh, they can keep it.' It was actually really interesting, just because I've only ever seen Roman ruins in Italy and the baths in England, and both of those countries proudly flaunt their Roman connection. Morocco doesn't do that. I mean, they're like, 'Oh yeah, there were Romans here for a bit, but then they left and better things came along.' So it was kind of weird to see Roman influence in a country that is so obviously NOT influenced by Rome.
Off we go!
Ruins.
Then there was this one tree.
Really, it was super special.
I don't know what this is, but it's cool.
PILLARS!!
Some have seen better days.
Very Roman.
The road in Volubilis.
Cool mosaics.
Close up of cool mosaics.
It's an arch!
These are actually cobras.
As our guide demonstrated, this is where people sunbathed.
Is very large.
Guess where this was? (Hint: the whorehouse)
I exist!!
Someone poured water on this mosaic.
Which made it look much cooler.
The remains of the Basilica.
The Temple of Jupiter.
A mosaic of the story of Orpheus.
What we actually did the entire time. SHADE!!
So yeah, we basically were all dying from heat by the time we got out of Volubilis. No matter how cool the stuff was, the weather refused to match. After that, we hopped into our little buses and headed to Moulay Idriss, a city located about 5 kilometers for Volubilis. And it was pretty cool. Except for the fact that it was burning hot.
The Mission.
The Setting.
The Merchandise.
So, what we did was first visit the entrance to the mosque, which is actually super famous. A quick history lesson. So this is the city where Moulay Idriss Zerhoun started his new empire in 789, which also brought Islam to the Moroccan area. He considered a Muslim saint and his Mausoleum is a holy site that Muslims go to during pilgrimages. Of course, as I am not a Muslim, I was not actually allowed to go in.
People can go in!
Lots of people!
Just not you.
Yeah, after that we walked up a lot of stairs. And I mean a lot of stairs. I saw a lot of things as I walked up the stairs. Here are some pictures of them. (Believe me, nothing else happened, like at all).
Place where they cook bread. There's lots of wood.
Place for hand washing. Very important in Morocco.
This just looks cool.
I have no idea what this is, but it was everywhere.
Something's forbidden. Figure out the rest on your own.
Staaaaaaaaairs.
People actually live here.
These were real flowers behind a window screen.
Moooooooosque.
I just liked this picture.
More stairs.
We then reached our destination: the very top of the city. Which had an awesome view. So that was cool.
City of Moulay Idriss.
Mausoleum.
Oooh, pretty!
No railings!
Cats eating a dead fish.
The stairs were a little steep.
I just like taking pictures like this.
Kids on a donkey.
Bee on Farhana's hat.
Refrigerator on a donkey.
I hope that everyone has been having a lovely, not burning hot time wherever they are. Because let me tell you, I had a burning hot time this weekend. Burning hot as in sun. Not fun. Well, a little fun.
So, on Saturday our program was taken to Volubilis and Moulay Idriss. First, we hit up Volubilis, a city of ancient Roman ruins that's been partially excavated. It was founded in the 1st century AD and was really prosperous because of all this good stuff.
However, it fell to local tribesmen in the 3rd century. And then Rome was basically like, 'Eh, that's really far away and we're kind of sort of lazy...Meh, they can keep it.' It was actually really interesting, just because I've only ever seen Roman ruins in Italy and the baths in England, and both of those countries proudly flaunt their Roman connection. Morocco doesn't do that. I mean, they're like, 'Oh yeah, there were Romans here for a bit, but then they left and better things came along.' So it was kind of weird to see Roman influence in a country that is so obviously NOT influenced by Rome.
So yeah, we basically were all dying from heat by the time we got out of Volubilis. No matter how cool the stuff was, the weather refused to match. After that, we hopped into our little buses and headed to Moulay Idriss, a city located about 5 kilometers for Volubilis. And it was pretty cool. Except for the fact that it was burning hot.
So, what we did was first visit the entrance to the mosque, which is actually super famous. A quick history lesson. So this is the city where Moulay Idriss Zerhoun started his new empire in 789, which also brought Islam to the Moroccan area. He considered a Muslim saint and his Mausoleum is a holy site that Muslims go to during pilgrimages. Of course, as I am not a Muslim, I was not actually allowed to go in.
Yeah, after that we walked up a lot of stairs. And I mean a lot of stairs. I saw a lot of things as I walked up the stairs. Here are some pictures of them. (Believe me, nothing else happened, like at all).
We then reached our destination: the very top of the city. Which had an awesome view. So that was cool.
It'sa me, Mario (Mary)!!
And then we walked all the way back down.
Nelson and John being exhausted.
So yeah, after that, we all went back to Meknes, where we ate and slept, not necessarily in that order. On the plus side, I did not get sunburned! I applied that sunscreen like a boss. On Sunday, all we did was homework, so it was a fairly chill weekend after the outing. Hopefully, I 'll get to visit some other places soon. Be on the lookout!
Ma'a salama!!
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