The View From Fez - Happy New Year 2017

The View From Fez team hopes that 2017 brings you joy, laughter, opportunity, and time to relax with family and friends

In the desert near Merzouga, Morocco. Photo: Suzanna Clarke

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Moroccan Music to Celebrate New Year's Eve

See in the New Year with a packed program of traditional Moroccan music, offering a festive and fun night in Fez

Doors open at 7.30 pm on December 31st. From 8 pm there will be dinner and live musical performances, and later in the evening, dance to music of DJ Syno and countdown to the New Year. 

This event is presented by Renaisance 9 (R9) and Restaurant Palais Al Firdaous. Proceeds will be used for the R9 music project which organises community activities and events focused on local music and culture.

Plans for future events include Flamenco, Andaloussi and other styles of world music. This year traditional Moroccan music will be the theme. The musical styles on this NYE program are derived from Moroccan life. With deep spiritual roots, this music has evolved for popular appeal.

Jilaliat is an ecstatic music which can be traced to the spiritual music known as Jilala. As therapeutic music, it served to heal through wild dance and trance during all night rituals. It was also used for wedding celebrations and played at the henna party and even inside the hammam. Traditionally, the groups consisted mainly of women, since men were not present at female parties.

Issawa comes from a religious and mystical brotherhood founded in Meknes, Morocco. Similar to Sufi practices, it is a music for the spiritual experience of rejoicing. Fassis are known for this style and it has become popular as dance music.

Gnawa is a well known and recognised Moroccan music. Originally from West Africa, this style also has origins in healing rituals. It now has an international following and has attracted a number of well known Western musicians. Listeners will want to join in with the clapping and movements inspired by the sounds of cymbals and the gimbri, a rustic guitar-like instrument.

If you have not yet experienced these kinds of Moroccan music, your visit or stay in Morocco would not be complete.

Join in a Moroccan New Year's Eve celebration!

From 7.30 pm, December 31st at 24 Bab Guissa, Fez. 
For tickets, call 06 53 55 43 24 (English, Spanish) or 05 35 63 578 9 (French, Arabic). 

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Emirates to Launch A380 Fights to Casablanca

Regular travellers to Morocco have welcomed news from Emirates Airlines that the popular Dubai/Casablanca route will be flown by Airbus A380 aircraft from March 26th, 2017

The airline's website, pointed out that Morocco will officially join the Emirates’ A380 network, when “the first ever commercial Airbus A380 flight to Morocco and North Africa, takes the iconic double decker aircraft to Casablanca in March.”

The upgrade from the Boeing 777-300 to the Airbus A380 will result in 1,834 additional seats per week. Emirates gave "growing demand" as the reason for the upgrade and said that it will result in, "...increased seat capacity across all three cabin classes and an enhanced premium product experience”.

The Airbus A380 is configured with 14 private suites in First Class, 76 lie flat seats in Business Class and 401 seats in the Economy Class cabin.

In addition, the flight’s cargo capacity will be up to to 12 tonnes per day.

The flight will depart Dubai at 7.25am and arrive in Casablanca at 12.55pm, with the return leg leaving Casa at 2.55pm, arriving in Dubai the following day at 1.25am.

Emirates Airline said that “Casablanca has become one of Emirates’ most popular destinations, which has seen steady growth since being launched in March 2002.” In 2015 Emirates carried nearly 260,000 passengers and more than 10,000 tons of cargo.

Travellers who will fly from Casablanca to Dubai served by the new A380 will be connected to onward destinations in the Emirates networks such as New Zealand, Hong Kong, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth.

Fact Check:
The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine jet airliner manufactured by European Union manufacturer Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner, and the airports at which it operates have needed to upgraded facilities to accommodate it.
Wingspan: 80 m
Top speed: 1,020 km/h
Range: 15,700 km
Length: 73 m
Cruise speed: 907 km/h
Engine type: Turbofan
First flight: April 27, 2005

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Milestone for Fez Medina Children's Library

In January the Medina Children's Library will be two years old. In that time, more than 25,000 visits will have been made by local children to the small space off one of the main streets in the Fez Medina. It's the only children's library in the whole city. To keep the doors open, the Library is seeking donations.

Samia Bachroui, 23, has been working as a librarian for the past year.  She says, "I've seen the improvement in the children." Many visit regularly and Samia says, "their level of expression is better now."

Librarian Samia Bachroui reads to a visiting school group

The Library was founded in January 2014 by a group of friends who live in the Fez Medina, to encourage a love of reading among local children. It has books in Arabic, French and some in English. It is a non-profit association and depends entirely on private donations to cover the costs of books, librarian staffing, rent, and operating expenses.

One of the regular library users is Sabrine, who is 11 years old. "The Medina Children's Library is the first library I have ever been in. It is in my neighbourhood, so it is easy for me to be there every day. This library made me love reading and discover a lot of useful books."

The library holds regular story time activities, hosts visits from school classes, holds occasional craft workshops, and runs excursions to significant sites in the Fez medina, so local children can further discover the heritage of their ancient city.

Kawtar, who is 7 years old, visits the Library every day. "The library is my special place," she says. "I like to go to there because there are a lot of books that I like and a lot of activities like story time."

Samia has a BA in English Literature. She says, "When I was a child there was no opportunity to read books...The (Medina Children's) Library is very important to the local community. The children love the Library and the books we have. Parents trust us - when they send their child to the Library, they feel they are in a safe world."

The View From Fez is a sponsor of the Medina Children's Library, and encourages donations to this worthwhile cause. 100% of donations will go towards the Library. To make a donation via PayPal, please visit the Medina Children's Library website. CLICK HERE.

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Fez Gathering - International Artists to Meet in Fez

International Artists will be gathering in Fez from the 12th to 15th of  January 2017. The aim of the meeting is to exchange knowledge between local and international arts organisations.

"The city of Fez is an ideal venue as it represents a meeting point of peoples, cultures and ideas. The spiritual homeland of characters including Ibn Arabi and Ibn Khaldun, its streets preserve the memory of some of the greatest thinkers and creatives in history. At the core of al-andalus, it represents a bridge between the Islamic World and Europe. It has been a place for advancement of the sciences and arts as we know them. Today, its heart is still beating.The International Artists’ Gathering seeks to exchange knowledge between local and international arts organisations for the development of a sacred arts programme in Fez which preserves and represents its unique spirit." - Fez Gathering

Exhibition curator, Pascual Jorden and Friedrich Prinz zur Lippe, the Son of Rudolph zur Lippe (one of the exhibition artists), were in Fez last week to inspect the locations for the gathering and to meet up with cultural institutions such as the ALC and IFF and other local cultural association.

Friedrich Prinz zur Lippe,Omar Chennafi and Pascual Jorden

Fez photographer Omar Chennafi is the founder and director of the Fez Gathering. He visited Pascual Jorden in Berlin last year and, after seeing his exhibition, invited him to bring part of the show to Fez. Omar also connected with another German photographer, Evi Blink, who agreed to become one of the German partners of the project. In Fez, the gathering is also supported by the ALC (American Language Center.)

The provisional programme

12th of January at 6:30 PM at ALIF RIAD : The reception and welcoming guest

13th of January at 9:30 AM at Dar Batha : Round Table, " the Arts in the Time of Crises " Panels /Contemporary Art, Photographer and Documentary

13th of January at 6:30 PM at Fes Saiss association Dar Pacha Tazi : Exhibition Opening

14th of January at 9:30 AM Dar Batha : Round Table, " the Arts in the Time of Crises " Panels /Art in Education, Art in Islam

15th of January at 10 Am : Historical Tour of the Medina and visiting art and gallery spaces

For more information visit: http://www.fezgathering.com/

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Fine Food in Fez - Resto 7 becomes "NUR"

When Resto 7 closed its doors, Fez lost one of the few fine food restaurants in the Fez Medina. Now the lights are on again - not as Numero 7 - but as Nur

Najat working some culinary magic

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Morocco's New Air Services to Paris

Last week low cost airline Air Arabia Morocco launched two new routes linking Fez and Tangier with Paris

Air Arabia Morocco Airbus A320

Air Arabia Morocco is the Moroccan subsidiary of the cheap flight specialist based in the Emirati city of Sharjah. The new flights will operate twice a week between its base at Fez-Saïss and Charles de Gaulle airport. The services will utilise 168 seat configurations of the Airbus A320.

Departures are scheduled Thursday and Sunday at 6:00 am (arriving at 10:10), with return flights leaving France at 21:20 (arrival at 23:20). Air Arabia Morocco is competing on this route with Royal Air Morocco and Transavia , both operating out of Orly.

Since last week Airbus A320s are also being deployed between Tangier's Ibn Battuta and Paris-CDG. Flights depart Paris on Thursdays and Sundays at 11:00 (12:45 arrival) and departing from Morocco at 16.35 (arrival at 20:20).

Adel Ali, CEO of Air Arabia, says ... "Opened in partnership with the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) these two new destinations to the French capital strengthen the services we offer to our passengers in Morocco and France for their tourist or business travel, and form part of the overall strategy of Air Arabia Morocco with priority development of the tourism sector in Morocco".

Paris is the sixth French destination Air Arabia Morocco after Bordeaux, Lyon, Montpellier, Pau and Toulouse. It operates from five Moroccan airports (Casablanca, Marrakech, Nador, Fez and Tangier. Two other lines were launched last week, between Fez and Bordeaux and between Tangier and Malaga.


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Global Warming Impacts on Morocco

Morocco's Royal Institute for Strategic Studies (IRES) has warned that global warming is having an impact on the Kingdom's biodiversity, claiming that if nothing is done to fight climate change, nearly 22% of the countries flora could disappear by 2050

The Royal Institute for Strategic Studies (IRES) was established in November 2007 and tasked with contributing to decision-making on strategic issues. Its mission is to carry out strategic studies and analyses on issues as advised by His Majesty The King and to be entrusted with a strategic watch task, both at the national and international level, in fields deemed strategic for the country.

The Institute's recent report on the global issues of the biosphere points out that several species of birds and mammals may disappear because of drought, while 9% are already endangered, 7% listed as vulnerable and another 7% critically endangered.

Endangered mammals in Morocco include: the Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus, Barbary Sheep (Ammotragus lervia), Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), Dorcas Gazelle (Gazella dorcas), Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra), Geoffroy's Bat (Myotis emarginatus),Greater Short-tailed Gerbil (Gerbillus maghrebi). (Endemic to Morocco.) Harbor Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena).

Greater Short-tailed Gerbil

The endangered Greater Short-tailed Gerbil is endemic to northern Morocco. It is found from the southeastern slopes of the Rif Mountains and the Gharb plain, to Chaouia and southwards to Jbilets.

Morocco is prone to drought

A major cause of climate stress in Morocco is attributed to a shortage of water, with an expected decline of about 20% to 50% of precipitation by the end of the century.

While Morocco is already in a situation of water stress, with the equivalent of 600 m3 / capita per year by 2050, demographic pressure and climate change, the water capital per capita could fall to less than 500 m3 per year, the report said.

"Morocco would face a water shortage and therefore to the cost of production and exploitation of water resources that are increasingly high," said IRES.

Another consequence of climate change: the increased vulnerability of soils, especially because of the growing needs of the agricultural sector. "The soils are already suffering from the degradation that occurs, especially through deforestation, land clearing and land cover changes," notes the report.

In 2050, land degradation could reduce the agricultural area per capita 0.15 hectare against 0.24 currently.

Fish stocks are also under threat, while fish stocks are already experiencing degradation due mainly to poor management of coastal areas, to polluting discharges into the seas and overfishing.

Rising sea levels could finally lead, by 2050, the flooding of low-lying coasts, and coastal erosion could take almost half of the area of ​​Moroccan beaches, and up to 72% over 2100.

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l'Eid Al Mawlid

Bonne fête de l'Eid Al Mawlid Annabawi à tous les musulmans.

Happy l'Eid al Mawlid!

مَولِد النَّبِي‎‎ mawlidu n-nabiyyi, "Birth of the Prophet", sometimes simply called in colloquial Arabic مولد mawlid.

The holiday is the observance of the birthday of the prophet Muhammad.

The origin of Mawlid observance reportedly goes back to the Shia Fatimids. The Ottomans declared it an official holiday in 1588. The term Mawlid is also used in some parts of the world, such as Egypt, as a generic term for the birthday celebrations of other historical religious figures.

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What's the Story With the Russian Tourists?

For the last several weeks The View From Fez has been visited by an unusual and increasing number of Russians. But is this upsurge in interest matched by tourist numbers?

This week's top source countries

Back in March the news media reported that the number of Russian tourists was expected to soar in the coming years following the visit by King Mohammed VI to the Russian Federation, a visit which gave a new momentum to Moroccan-Russian cooperation.

At the time the Moroccan National Tourism Office signed 12 agreements related to tourism as well as agreements with big Russian travel agencies to sell Moroccan destination to some 85,000 Russian tourists in 2016.

King Mohammed VI and President Putin

The strategy appears to be working and if the the hits on The View From Fez are any indication the potential tourists are doing a lot of research before travelling.

Last year, Russian tourists, who visited Morocco, spent over €25 million, according to the latest data released by the Moroccan Tourism Observatory.

About 60 percent of these Russian tourists were accompanied with relatives, while 18 percent of them came in organised trips. Over 49 percent of them stayed in rated hotels, while 45 percent chose Riads or rented apartments.

Russian tourists visiting a souq

Tourism professionals are confident that Morocco can attract over 200,000 Russian tourists a year. Talks are underway with airlines, such as Royal Air Maroc and Aeroflot, to open new routes between Moscow and St. Petersburg and Marrakesh and Agadir.

Agadir remains Russian tourists’ favourite destination in Morocco. According to Maghreb Arab Press, 11,541 Russian tourists visited Agadir at the end of June 2016, against 3,034 only during the same period of last year. The Regional Council of Tourism (CRT) says this is an increase of 280.39% during the first half of 2016.

Their number at the end of June 2016 reached 11,541, against 3,034 in the same period of 2015, according to statistics recently published by the CRT.

In early December Morocco’s Tourism Observatory released a communiqué showing that 8.1 million tourists have visited Marrakech in the first nine months of 2016. Visitor numbers from most European countries were down, however, the number of Russian visitors has doubled while Chinese tourists increased by 180 percent, compared to the same period of 2015.

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Moroccan Photo of the Day - Winter in Fez

Local photographer Suzanna Clarke captured the muted tones of winter in Fez in this shot taken from the terrace of Riad Laaroussa

(Click on image to enlarge)

See more in our series Photo of the Day 

The View from Fez welcomes contributions to our Photo of the Day Series

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"My Photography" Exhibition in Fez

Saturday,  December 10 at 4 PM at the ALIF RIAD  

P h o t o g r a ph y   P r e s e n t a t i o n   

"My Photography, My Journey"

 by the Spanish photographer, Olga Pibars

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Casablanca Invests in Security Cameras

While many European countries now employ public video surveillance as a primary tool to monitor population movements and to prevent terrorism, Morocco is catching up on the trend with a large investment in CCTV in Casablanca

Councils, law enforcement and security management professionals in many cities rely heavily on video surveillance as a tool to fight crime and prevent terrorism. According to some researchers, the camera surveillance systems discourage criminals and thus preventing crime.

CCTV systems continue to enjoy general public support but they do involve intrusion into the lives of ordinary people as they go about their day to day business and can raise wider privacy concerns. The debate between public good and citizens privacy is yet to be had in Morocco. But, as many advocates say, "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about".

A recent survey in the USA found, some 62% of people favour CCTV while 38% are opposed.

In the USA the value of public surveillance technology helped investigators in April, 2013 to identify the two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing after sifting through video images captured by the city’s cameras.

Yet, despite CCTV assisting police and security officials, there are many opponents who are quick to quote Benjamin Franklin - “Those who give up liberty for safety deserve neither”.  They make the point that a camera is not a deterrent as all that’s needed is a mask and claim that CCTV allows governments to watch us, which may not matter now, but in the wrong hands, could be catastrophic.

Surveillance cameras are now everywhere in Casablanca and being recognised as an effective weapon against crime. The main city areas are under surveillance to ensure the safety of citizens and control crime and traffic problems.

Casablanca, as part of its urban development program, has completed the installation of 500 cameras in key areas with an investment of 450 million dirhams. The latest cameras have been added to the existing 400 surveillance cameras that cover the entire tram network.

Al Ahdath Al Maghribia News reports that other cameras are installed inside trams, allowing the drivers to constantly monitor what is happening both inside and out. The surveillance cameras are connected to monitors at the Casablanca Waliya in Sidi Moumen.

In addition the Casa Transport company, responsible for providing urban transport, has 300 cameras installed in buses.  Each bus is equipped with four cameras that have a fortnight recording capacity. Al Ahdath Al Maghribia reports that these cameras have already helped both the police and the judicial authorities resolve several criminal cases involving assault, theft or acts of hooliganism at football matches.

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Fewer Visitors but the Fez Medina Expands Accommodation

Despite the present tourist downturn in Fez, the city is planning to go ahead with an increase in accomodation options, with a total of 29 projects to provide additional bed capacity of 13,000 beds

With an investment of nearly 8 billion dirhams, the projects are expected to boost tourist numbers to 1.1 million by 2020 and to reap tourism revenues of around 11.7 billion dirhams.

In social terms, these projects should see the creation of more than 45,000 additional jobs, from 32,800 currently to over 78,000 in 2020. This program is seen as a road map for the development of tourism and will capitalise on the cultural and historical nature of the city.

However the present conditions are bleak, with overnight stays in Fez down 12% at the end of September 2016 compared to the same period for the previous year.

Some 482,546 overnight stays were made at the end of September, compared with 550,654 overnight stays during the same period last year.

Arrivals choosing hotel accommodation numbered 248 606 in 2016, against 274,362 in 2015, a decrease of 9%.

Despite the numerous attractions and large number of available day trips, the average length of stay at end September 2016 was a disappointing  2 days, a rate identical to that achieved during the same period of 2015. The overnight stays at Fez for the month of September were 57,144 against 56,849 in September 2015, an increase of 1%

The Riads and Dars in the Fez Medina are the most preferred by visitors and the latest figures show that Medina guest houses and tourist establishments classified 3, 4 and 5 stars showed the best results and counted for the majority of overnight stays in the city, with an occupancy rate of 28%. However, this was still down against 31% in the same period of 2015.

The number of available rooms in September 2016 amounted to 3,942, including 946 Category 5 star 1,208 4 star 696 3 star and 568 rooms in other guest houses.


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Morocco's Tourism Numbers - Mixed Results

Moroccan tourism may be making a comeback, but only in certain areas. During the first nine months of 2016, revenues generated by foreign tourists in Morocco amounted to 50.77 billion dirhams. This compares to 47.85 billion dirhams in 2015, an increase of 6.1%

Chinese tourist numbers saw a huge increase

Overnight stays in classified tourist accommodation establishments increased at the end of September, 2% compared to the same period in 2015 (-2% for non-resident tourists and 11% for domestic tourists).

The two major tourist destinations,  Marrakech and Agadir generated 60% of total overnight stays in the first nine months of 2016, registering increases of 2% and 3%.

The other destinations posted mixed results. Fez decreased by 12%, followed by Rabat (-2%), while Casablanca and Tangier experienced increases of 5% and 7% respectively. The occupancy rate until the end of September 2016, stood at 40%, down one point compared to the same period in 2015.

According to statistics the tourism Observatory, a total of 8.1 million tourists visited Morocco in the first nine months of 2016, up slightly by 0.3% compared to the same period in 2015. the number of foreign tourists decreased 3.6%, while arrivals of Moroccans living abroad (MRE) were up 3.8%.

Tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom, Germany and France have seen a 7%, 3% and 2% decline respectively. The number of tourists from the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain rose 2%, 1% and 1% respectively. The bigest increase came from the Chinese and Russian markets which posted 3 digit increases (+ 102% in Russia and + 184% for China).

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