The yearly Imilchil Brides Fair takes place in the Atlas Mountains. Two main Berber tribes (Berbers are the original inhabitants of Morocco) participate in the festival, the Ait Hadidu and the Ait Ou Azza. Hundreds of young men and women meet and marry at the three-day event. Unlike the rest of the Moroccan society where divorce is frowned upon, here all marriages can be annulled within a year. Because the villages are snowbound for most of the year, the festival offers an occasion for trading, amusement and matrimony.
On the third day of the festivities, all the newlyweds must go to the lakes Isli and Tislit for a traditional visit. It is believed that long ago a young man married a young girl whose parents did not approve. The couple ran away and cried all night and their tears created the two lakes.
Fez is the intellectual and spiritual capital of Morocco. The city was founded in 808 AD by Moulay Idriss II and has the world's oldest university, Al Qarawiyine, which opened its doors in 859 AD. Fez is one of Moroccoís imperial cities which include Rabat (today's capital), Meknes and Marrakech. Most of the houses in the old city are hundreds of years old and are not accessible by car because most streets are too narrow.
