[Dec. 2025] Our next destination for our year-end trip to Morocco is the blue city, Chefchaouen.
This is precisely why I decided to take this trip.
There are several destinations I’ve always wanted to visit, like Meteora in Greece, Ushguli in Georgia, and Çichemany in Slovakia, and Chefchaouen is one of them.
It all started about 15 years ago when I saw a friend’s photo.
Since then, every time I planned a trip, something always got in the way, and I couldn’t go until now, but finally, my long-held wish has come true.
I knew that it had become increasingly touristy while I was cherishing the idea.
It’s simply a mountain town where the walls of the houses and even the streets are painted blue, but it’s incredibly photogenic.
It’s said to be a city built by Jews who fled after the Spanish Reconquista.
There are several theories as to why the buildings are painted blue.
One theory is that blue is a sacred colour for Jews.
Another theory is that it’s to keep mosquitoes out of the houses.
In any case, simply painting the walls blue has made the town so famous, attracting a flood of tourists who spend money there.
It’s a lucky town indeed.
Our driver, Youssuf, dropped us off in a corner of town, saying, “See you tomorrow,” and handed us over to the hotel staff.
I was secretly dissatisfied, thinking, “He was supposed to take us to the sights…” but since our goal was to wander aimlessly through the blue town, we decided it was fine.
Unfortunately, the weather was intermittent rain, making the blue look a little dull, but the atmosphere was fantastic.
We took tons of pictures.
It wasn’t as touristy as we had feared, and we could feel that many locals were still living there.
Many people wear the djellaba, the national garment of Morocco.
The djellaba, a jacket with a pointed hood, is also worn by young people, and Youssuf says he keeps one in his car.
It’s used as a coat in winter and a shirt in summer.
In this region of the Rif Mountains where Chefchaouen is located, in addition to the djellaba, women sometimes wear a red striped wool cloth wrapped around their waist or shoulders.
This is called a mendil, and it serves to protect against the cold and their clothing.
Furthermore, wearing a straw hat with a large pom-pom will make you look like a typical Berber woman of the Rif Mountains.
Unsurprisingly, perhaps because it was winter, I didn’t see anyone wearing a straw hat, but I did see them being sold as souvenirs.
I wanted to buy something memorable since I was there, but everything sold in the souvenir shops was pretty much the same.
I saw some lovely carpets, but it was still early in my trip…
In the end, I bought a blue macrame tote bag, the same colour as the town.
Macrame doesn’t seem to be a local specialty; I saw it in other towns as well, but the colour is definitely unique to Chefchaouen.
This was my first purchase in Morocco this time, so I wasn’t used to haggling and bought it for the asking price of 200 dirhams (approximately 18 euros).
I suspect I was probably ripped off.
