A FABLE IN FEZ

LOSE YOURSELF IN THE MOROCCAN CITY'S MAZE-LIKE MEDINA AND DISCOVER CRAFTS, CAFÉS AND AGE-OLD MANSIONS AWASH WITH COLOURFUL TILES

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To step into the Fez medina is to enter one of the greatest medieval cities in the world. Its tangled network of lanes is home to extraordinary Islamic architecture-elaborate mosques, palaces and madrasas (theological schools)—but it's the magic of the everyday that enchants most: artisans hammering patterns into brass, donkeys ferrying sacks of spices between the souks, the waft of fresh mint tea drifting from a doorway. It may seem like a vision from Arabian Nights, but this is no fantasy-Fez is a living, working city rather than one preserved largely for tourists, and it's that character that makes it so bewitching.

Spend time getting lost in the labyrinth of the MEDINA, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre, making new discoveries every time you set out-perhaps an elegant courtyard or a decrepit palace, their tiled floors and creaking colonnades awaiting renovation. First, order a fresh fruit smoothie and admire the views of the old city from the rooftop of NAGHAM CAFE, close to the BAB BOU JEOUD gate that leads into it. restaurantnagham.com