Day 2 in Meknes: Moulay Idriss and Volubilis

On day two of Meknes I was not feeling well. I spent the previous night shivering instead of sleeping and just felt overall pretty crummy for the entire day. I couldn't bring myself to eat anything. I think I was just exhausted and my stomach had had it with the mass amounts of spices in all the food here. I had every intention of getting up early and visiting the mausoleum of Moulay Ismail, but I felt so awful that I stayed in bed.

Around noon the entire group filed into three taxis and journeyed to Moulay Idriss, a city at the base of Mount Zerhoun where Moulay Idriss I arrived in 789 bringing the religion of Islam to Northern Africa. The city is a holy place to Muslims in this region of the world, and non-Muslims were prohibited from entering the city until just a few years ago. Non-Muslims may now stay the night, but are still prohibited from visiting the mosque or the mausoleum of Idriss. Unfortunately I was feeling ill and didn't snap more than a couple of photos of an alley. I then sat at a cafe in the public square and bundled up in the sun to stay warm. Out of respect, I wore a scarf to cover my hair while in the city. I did see a few foreigners not covering up, but it seemed more appropriate to remain covered. Besides, I look super cute in a scarf!

After Moulay Idriss, we rode not far away to Volubilis, an ancient Roman city. Its ruins are partially excavated and located just down the hill from Moulay Idriss. It was built beginning in the 3rd century BC and covers about 100 acres. These were my first Roman ruins. I was feeling so poorly I really thought I was going to nap under a tree, but decided to trek to the ruins and was SO SO glad that I did. They were awesome. Anything that makes me feel like a tiny speck on the planet or on a timeline gets seared into my memory and makes me feel awed and inspired. Volubilis was one of those places. You could picture the streets as they were in the city's prime. The shapes of homes were still clear, and the huge arc was an incredible site. I would have never thought I'd see Roman ruins on this trip to Morocco. To see them in such a gorgeous setting at sunset? Incredible.