The much awaited visit by HRH Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, to the ancient Medina of Fez took place today. After sandstorms forced the cancellation of yesterday's trip to Errachidia, the royals were lucky to have beautiful weather for the Medina visit. The View from Fez team was out in the Medina to bring you some of the images.
From early morning the street cleaners were hard at work
Moroccan security was handled very well with no storm-water drain unchecked!
The international press were strictly managed by a Moroccan minder. The royal couple is followed by six accredited British journalists; the rest were locals.
Crowds were huge and applauded Camilla as she made her way down into the Medina
The trip to Cafe Clock was a gentle stroll during which Camilla, accompanied by her Private Secretary, the British Ambassador's wife Mrs Morris, Fatima Sadiqi and palace officials, stopped to chat with locals
LUNCH AT CAFE CLOCK
Welcomed by the Jilyat women's drumming group at Cafe Clock, the Duchess met members of the expat community in Fez and the cafe staff, and then had lunch on the terrace. People were invited to meet her in small groups and Camilla was delighted by a curtsey from little Francesca Coules.
Dressed in a beautifully beaded beige silk dress with matching shoes, Camilla charmed everyone by being very approachable and interested in life in the medina. She mentioned how much her husband, The Prince of Wales, would have enjoyed lunch at the Clock, but he had other duties. Lunch was a tasty risotto with fresh asparagus spears, peas and green beans.
Also at Cafe Clock, Camilla gained a small henna tattoo
Also accompanying Camilla was Max from Cafe Clock
Camilla arriving at Cafe Clock with Max and the owner, Mike Richardson
PRINCE CHARLES
Prince Charles had a full day of touring various parts of the Medina, including a visit to a Medersa (Koranic school), Danan synagogue, the Al Karaouine Library and the handicrafts vocational training and qualification centre. He also spent time in the Al Batha Museum, where he was greeted by the regional directors of Morocco' Ministry of Culture and Islamic Affairs. Prince of Wales also attended a Sufi performance by the Al-Sufi and Ibno Bussairi Al-Arabi groups.
Prince Charles listens to Dr Armand Guigui at the Danan Synagogue Museum
Reporting: Helen Ranger and Sandy McCutcheon
4 comments:
A great report and lovely photos!
Glad she followed my suggestion of visiting the honey souk!
A really wonderful event. Wish I'd been there and heard it was fabulous.
Feel free to link to my report and photos here: http://blogs.jpost.com/content/royal-visit-morocco-charles-and-camilla-visit-synagogue-fez-0
Great photos, Sandy! The next Accreditted Royal reporter in Fez, I can tell :) Greetings from Hobart!
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