Fez - Schizo City

About nine thousand alleyways and cul-de-sacs make up this obstinately medieval city, where the unexpected and the extraordinary lie around nearly every corner. Fez is a textbook case of a classic medina functioning completely separately from the French-built new town. Over there, on what seems like another planet, pink and green neon signs wink from bars, cafés and restaurants beneath modern apartment blocks, and Fassis in Western clothes flock to shop at the giant Acima supermarket. A bottle or two of Moroccan wine may slip into their trolley whereas, in the old town, the strict control of the mosques means alcohol is only available inside the riad-hotels. But if you stay within the medina, its rhythms and mores soon become completely normal.