Jbel El Merkeb

The small town of Moulay Idriss is in the central north of Morocco and is one of the holiest places in the country. The reason this town is so sacred for the Moroccans is because this is where their islamic kingdom effectively began. The man who the town is named after, Moulay Idriss, arrived here in 789 and brought Islam with him. Today it serves as a destination for pilgrimage in the country. The town itself sits on two hills and has a main plaza situated centrally along with a grand mosque which houses the remains of Moulay Idriss himself. We took in qaiohwa k-hela (black coffee in darija arabic as best as we can spell with english pronunciation) at one of the many cafes and watched the bustle of the market and street. The surrounding countryside is lush and green with rolling valleys, beautiful views and ancient remains.

As non-muslims, we were not able to enter the sacred mosque. However, someone else on our tour took a video when they went to go pray and they were nice enough to share it with us.Read more