Last day in Fes

 Very little of our last day in Fes was spent in Fes, which was fine. Not that there isn't anything else to see here, but it's pretty inaccessible and you really can't get anywhere at all from our hotel without a car. I've mentioned the hotel here and there, but let me tell you about it. Palais Faraj may be the nicest hotel in Fes, but of course I'm no expert on Fes hotel. It is clearly a former palace of some sort. It sprawls about, with a large courtyard by a nice looking, but empty pool. There are tables and chairs with umbrellas and more places to sit under cover. There is apparently a spa somewhere, possibly in the basement, but I never saw it. The ground floor has a reception area and a sitting area nearby, then you can walk across the courtyard to the back of the hotel where there's the Salon de Thé, then a library, then another sitting room, then a large room with a grand piano, and then the so-called gym. I think there are bathrooms back there was well. There are staircases and elevators in the front and the back of the hotel. Guest rooms are mostly on the 1st and 2nd floor. On the 3rd floor there is a restaurant with two seating areas, one narrow one that I was never in, and a big bright (during the day anyway) area where they serve breakfast. On the other end is a large bar. 

The room we had was lovely in many ways. It was a suite with a bedroom and living room, both beautifully decorated, a large closet and a good sized, well equipped bathroom. The bed was very comfortable. There is almost no lighting in either bedroom or the living room, which is odd because the living room as an overhead fixture, but the room seems to get darker when you turn it on.

So we got picked up and headed to Volubilis, a large Roman outpost that's pretty well preserved. Some incredible mosaics are left in situ and they picture things like the labors of Hercules in pretty easy to recognize detail.

We've seen ruins like this before, most recently on Delos, though those were mostly Greek. There are many similarities but none of them are quite the same, so it's always interesting to explore.

We then drove Meknes, which is has a walled in area including a palace and related places like stables. Unfortunately, Meknes is being renovated right now (it's a UNESCO site) and we couldn't enter that part of the city. We got to see one of the gates though!

Then we drove back, stopping at a boulangerie for a fresh baguette (30 cents today) and then hung out at the hotel again. This time, we were able to watch The Departed, one of those sprawling Scorcese movies with an all-star cast. It was good and kept us diverted until bedtime.