It happened. I bought a leather bag this morning. It was more than I thought I'd spend but a lot less than I would have paid in Canada. I bought it from one of the tanneries after a guide showed us around the centuries-old tanning house and explained the dying process to us. Red dye is made from poppies. It's all brutal work and smells awful because they use pigeon crap as a softener. I was really glad to have the sprig of mint they provided, even though I tried not to use it too often because I didn't want to be a wimp.

Yesterday, we arrived in Fez (via totally air conditioned train - we were spoiled) and caught a cab to our hotel. We somehow picked up a guide in the form of a guy no older than 18. He offered to show us around a bit later and, despite the many warnings about unofficial guides, we figured this kid was fine. He couldn't expect very much money from us and going with the flow seemed a good idea. We left a couple hours later, when the sun was getting weaker and were casually led by Hassan and his brother, whose name I have no idea how to spell, into the maze that is the medina in Fez. All of the streets look the same and yet they managed to lead us to a number of mosques, the old Jewish Quarter (the mellah), a bakery, and then up a hill to what Hassan called "the terrace of the town." We sat up there for a while, partly because the 360° view was phenominal (we could see black smoke rising from the potteries, and the walls of the medina) and partly because a Fassi hip-hop band was filming a music video. When we finally left our spot, Hassan led us through the old French ramparts around a few corners and up a flight of stairs to their home. They served us tea, which was slowly sipped as Hassan listened to music on his phone and we watched his three-year-old sister sleep on the couch next to him. Next, we were taken into a Berber weaving house. We bought tapestries. I really hadn't planned on it. But then there was a green stripey one and I was done for.

There's more to our first night, but it'll have to wait because my internet time is up and I'm hungry.