Morocco trip# follow me to quiet mountain town—Chefchaouen 摩洛哥旅行之蓝色小城舍夫沙万

Yesterday I took a bus from Fes to Chefchaouen which is the famous blue town. The bus drove all the way in the mountains of northern Morocco for more than four hours, and the road was not so flat and very mountainous, so it was very bumpy. When I arrived in Chefchaouen, it was almost five o 'clock in the afternoon.

Chefchaouen located at an altitude of 600 meters high mountain peak.

In the beginning the city wasn’t decorated with blue color. It is used only as a traditional Arab fortifications to fend off Portuguese invaders who have been expanding south all the time. After 1930s that the city walls and streets were painted in blue gradually. It is said that at that time most citizens were jews who were refugees, because for them it was hard to bear the heavy summer heat, so they painted the house in blue for reduce the indoor temperature. But there is another saying in the local folk: blue can keep mosquito away.

Because I'm traveling on my own this time, so I always back to hostel before it gets dark just for the safety. Basically, Morocco is a safe country, but as a solo traveler girl, should still be careful. So after dinner, I returned back to my hostel. Fortunately, the hostel environment is very cozy and clean and very suitable for taking break.

The hostel that I sleep where is not in the old town, but it is not far from the old town, so it’s very easy to find. It located on the hillside. The hostel boss is very kind. He booked my bus ticket for free and called a taxi for me. The staff are also very friendly, very sincere and honest. These people gave me a good first impression of Chefchaouen.

In the hostel the interior walls all painted in blue, and there were some very interesting little decorations make the public room even nicer.

I live in a four girls dorm, although the room is small, but I can have intimate space.

The night was very quiet, and on the top proof, I can look at the thousands home lights on the hillside.

我昨天从摩洛哥的菲斯坐大巴到舍夫沙万，那座著名的蓝色小城。大巴在摩洛哥北部山间行驶大概四个多小时，全程公路都不是很平坦，又以山路居多，所以一路很颠簸。到达舍夫沙万已经快下午五点了。

舍夫沙万位于摩洛哥西北部，地处海拔600米的山峰上，阿拉伯语中，Chefchaouen即寓意“瞭望群峰之巅”。

最初建城之时，舍夫沙万还不是蓝色的。这里只作为传统的阿拉伯式防御工事，用来抵挡不断南下扩张的葡萄牙侵略者。直到1930年后，舍夫沙万的建筑外墙和路面才被陆续粉刷成蓝色。据说当时山城居民中多数为逃难至此的犹太人，因为难以忍受当地夏季沉闷的高温，便用蓝色涂料刷满屋子外墙来降低室内温度。在当地民间则另有种说法：蓝色避蚊。

因为我这次是自己出来旅行，为了安全起见一般天黑之后就会回到住的地方了。所以到底舍夫沙万匆匆吃了饭之后就回到住宿的地方了。幸好这次住的客栈环境很好又干净，很适合窝着。

我住的客栈不在老城区里面，但距离老城区不远，很好找，在半山坡上。客栈老板人非常好，免费帮我订汽车票，又帮我叫计程车。里面的员工人也都很好，很真诚很厚道。这客栈里的人让我对舍夫沙万的第一印象很好。

客栈的内部墙壁也被粉刷成蓝色的了，很有舍夫沙万当地特色，四处摆放着一些很有意思的小物件。

客栈非常干净，而且很温馨。我住的是女生四人间，房间虽然很小，但感觉很有私密空间。

舍夫沙万的夜晚很安静，在客栈的天台上可以眺望到山坡上的万家灯火。