Today we did a day trip to Meknes and Volubilis. The landscape is very different here in the north east of Morocco. We travelled through very productive farming country, a great contrast to previous farming country. There were grains, olives, vines, vegetables, but mainly cropping. Obviously plenty of water available.
In Meknes we picked up our local guide for the day, a man called Ba, who was wise and intelligent but had the quietest voice. Unfortunately he was not using the Whisper device so we missed much of what he told us.
On to Volubilis to visit the Roman ruins, yes, Roman ruins in Africa.
A little background information sourced from the internet. Volubilis has remains of settlement dating back to pre-Roman times. It is only partly excavated but shows evidence of a Berber Roman city. It was founded in 3rd century BC and abandoned in the 11 century. This was not all Roman era.
In 1997 the site was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Roman rule began in the 1st century AD. Thanks to the fertile land surrounding, plentiful water and olives, the settlement in Roman times had large impressive buildings, a Basilica, a Triumphal Arch and many fine homes. The beautiful mosaic floors are testament to the wealth of the people there. The superior skills of the Romans in hydronics meant that the settlement had good water supply, fountains and the three phase Roman baths.
The Romans lost control to native tribes in the year 285 and the remaining settlement was Christian, then it had an early Islamic presence.
In the 8th century Idris 1, founder of the Idrisid Dynasty arrived in Volubilis.
By the 11th century Volubilis was abandoned and the population moved higher up the hill to Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, five kms away. The ruins remained intact until the mid 18th century when the area was devastated by an earthquake.
The UNESCO charter reads 'an exceptionally well preserved example of a large Roman colonial town on the fringe of the Empire'.
Ba demonstrating how the baths worked.
The new town of Volubilis, Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, set higher up the hill.
Our lunch stop was a lovely restaurant in a country setting with some different Moroccan dishes. Pictured are a vegetable couscous with caramelized onions, a chicken pastilla ( a sweet and sour dish with almonds and icing sugar on top), beef and prune tagine and a seafood pastilla.
In Meknes Ba took us to the Mausoleum of Moulay Isma'il in a complex containing an old and very beautiful mosque and the tombs. Sultan Moulay Isma'il ruled Morocco from 1672 until his death in 1727. It is a major historic, religious and pilgrimage site.
The tomb of the Sultan is second on the left.
A short walking tour took us through one the gates, beautifully decorated as usual, to take a peep at the 18 hole golf course within the city walls, and to a local artisans shop. We were shown how they make damascened iron items - the art of inlaying different metals into one another. In Meknes they inlay silver thread.
The other local traditional craft is embroidery and they had some beautiful work done by the local Franciscans.
When doing my Blog for a group and saying I will write daily, I always add the rider
'If internet connections and technology play the game'. The last few days the internet has not been playing nicely so I apologize to those looking for their daily catch up on family and friends.
Thanks also for all the positive comments, I'm pleased that you are enjoying my Blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment