Images of Dar Mystere

Here are some pictures of Dar Mystere in all it's glory, it's just a shame that I'm in Norwich in the UK. But of course, anyone who would like more information needs to get an email to us, info@housefezmorocco.com

The patio with various lighting options

The patio with obligatory bowl of seasonal fruit

Pristine plasterwork

The patio from the balcony

The red salon with some of the 40 cushions and sumptuous rugs

The window in the Grande Chambre


Roof terrace

The Grande Chambre

The en-suite for the Grande Chambre

The Blue Chambre

The Orange Chambre

Article in The Guardian

Read the full article here from Guardian Unlimited - http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/oct/11/morocco-shoppingtrips?page=all

Photograph: Simon Grosset

Heart Stopper!

A few weeks ago I got up to make a cuppa at about 7am (in the UK, not in Fez) and thought I'd check my emails as the computer was still on. Before anyone berates me for wasting electricity, it's a laptop with a sleep mode that uses no power but will instantly spring into life at the touch of a key.

Among the usual offers to enlarge parts of my anatomy and meet willing Russian and Thai ladies, was one from my friend Alami in Fez. The email was titled 'Big problem in your dar'. At the time our friend Pippa was staying there (one of the only people to make use of our house since it's completion) so, intrigued as to what the big problem was, I read on as the kettle boiled.

When we were having the house renovated we decided to have a gas fired water heater mounted outside on the terrace. This seemed a logical option as it was economical and would be sufficient for the hot water requirements of a small house. One worry was the possibility of a gas explosion, although we also have a gas cooker in the kitchen, as do most Moroccan houses.

Our gas bottles sat out the summer of 2007 in the full sun with no problems, and provided steaming hot water during winter visits to the house. We also had a bamboo cover made for the heater to improve the aesthetics.

So, the email started 'I dont knoe where to start, the gaz has explode'.

The first thing I imagined was the top floor of Dar Mystere atomised, smouldering and scattered around our part of the Tarayana area of the Medina. Pippa would be in hospital. Needless t say my early morning cup of tea was less enjoyable than I had hoped. It is pretty rare for one of the gas cylinders to go off, but not unheard of, and the devastation they can wreak is enormous.

I had been trying to work out why Skype wasn't working on my computer for a couple of weeks. I found I was able to get it sorted out quite quickly all of a sudden.

When I finally got through to Alami my first question was is anybody hurt. There was nobody and it turned out there was relatively little damage compared to what I had imagined. The gas had not exploded as such, but the heater had malfunctioned, setting fire to the bamboo cover (probably not a good idea in the first place). The heater was knackered, the wall was scorched, and part of the plastic on the halqa cover was melted so the cover will not work until a repair is effected.

The charred and knackered gas water heater.

The melted halqa cover.

The melted halqa cover - another view.

We figured it was time to change to an electric heater. So now there's a nice, big, safe, white cylinder in the kitchen/utility room on the terrace above the washing machine - which just seems to make so much sense.

Not the most interesting image you've ever seen on blog I reckon.

This picture will give you an idea of what I was imagining when I first read the email. This is actually a house on the corner of Rue de la Poste close to the post office on Place Batha that seems to have collapsed.

Flying the Flag

Whilst enjoying an afternoon beverage in my local award winning public house, the Fat Cat (look it up, it's got an award for being the best pub in the UK for various reasons- twice!), I noticed on their 'Around the World in 80 Beers' menu that I am now able to sup a little piece of Morocco in the form of a bottle of Flag Speciale.


Whilst much of the array of fine brews on sale in the Fat Cat surpass Flag in taste and quality, when in Fez it's my tipple of choice form the racks at Marjane.

So good old Fat Cat... and Flag breweries of Morocco.

No news is...

The posts on this blog site have been few and far between recently. This is partly due to our house now in fit state to live in so there's nothing much to report. There are obviously things to change in the future, such as how to improve the windowless and semi subterrainean downstairs bathroom. Buying up the adjacent little house that sits above our bathroom/kitchen would be an improvement. We could then open up the ceilings and get some natural light in there. A unlikely proposition unless we're lucky on the Lottery.

The ironic thing, and this was always going to be the case, is that we can't stay there for long periods. Due to our heavy work commitments and family/school needs in the UK, we won't be attempting to run it as a business - lucrative as this might be. So at present it can remain 'in limbo', although at the moment our friend Pippa is staying there while she checks on and progresses the work on her place buried down in R'Cif/Gzira locality.

So having exhausted shots of the house, here are some images from our recent visit back in March/April. Looking back at all the snaps we took, most of them are of ours, and friends of our children. That's only natural I suppose.

Frankie feeds Lola camel burger at Cafe Clock


Not sure what's happening here


Or here.

Life on Taryana Sghira

Is the waiter at La Noria looking on fondly at the children
or checking his watch and hoping we'll soon stop
bothering him and his cats?

Miniature bike or giant baby

Fez in Springtime

Having been back from Fez for a week now, we can say that the trip there and back on two Ryanair flights (each way) is not as bad as some things. Take our 3 children out of the equation and it would almost be relaxing. A tip for would-be Stansted-Girona-Fez travellers, check your bag weight, they seem to have a different type of 15 kilos in Spain.

It was good to get in our house for the first time without having to rush out and buy something straight away, like a bed or a fridge. Everything was ready and the new cover over the roof kept the torrential rain out out the central patio. Another tip - take a few warm clothes this time of year, we spent the first few evening wearing all of our clothes at once.

This is the time to get there though, anything that's going to be green is green now, as well as swathes of wild flowers around the countryside outside the city, the Ville Nouvelle was, and probably still is bristling with geraniums and other plants that look nice but I don't know their names. We nearly got to ride the tourist train, but the driver was asleep spread over two sets in the back. Obvious child safety fears aside, the prospect of swerving around the various intersections dodging kamikaze petit taxis has a certain appeal.

We had some vague plans to visit Lionel in Meknes and and to travel out to see Fred and Marie's country house, but getting out of the house for a leisurely stroll around the Mellah was a challenge in itself. So sorry Lionel, sorry Fred and Marie. We'll try and get out next time, although next time will be the height of summer, so moving around could be even more off the agenda.

Mehedi, Frankie and Ashraf, life in the derb

Our son Frankie had the usual raucous time, with most of the local kids knocking on the door all the time... "Fronkie joué?". He's now able to show his friends back here his early attempts at Arab flips and walking up walls.

It was good to catch up with Louis and his latest top secret schemes, and get to check out our old friend Pippa's house deep down in the medina, which is now under renovation.