The center of Marrakech looks like any town plaza during the day. With alleys leading off to the souks, it is a beautiful place to explore or chill out in one of the cafes.
But it is at night when Djemma El Fna comes to life and is a magical place. It is one of the most famous meeting places in Africa and a must see on any Marrakech visit.
A North African Meeting Place
Transformed in an instant by the steam hissing from cooking pots and the lanterns on the food stalls the Jemaa el Fna is a fascinating and intriguing melting pot of North African culture at night. There are food stands all over the square selling kebabs, snails, tagines, fruit, and unidentifiable entrails.
The smells are enticing and the atmosphere electric.Take your seat at these pop up cafes and place your order. Look, point and smile to negotiate a menu. Within moments you will feast on delicious cuisine, all freshly cooked.
For dessert there are juicy oranges, stalls selling plump dried fruits, and sticky pastries covered in honey.
There is entertainment here too, from North African drummers to snake charmers. Take a walk around the Djemma to find letter writers scribing notes for travellers, and storytellers enchanting a crowd.
Telling a tale using facial and hand movements as well as reading from a book keeps people entertained and spellbound in the Djemma El Fna.
In corners, men sell charms for ailments, and argan oil as gifts. As buses discharge passengers from journeys across the Sahara there are Tuareg and Berber tribesmen here on business and ready to feast on the famous cuisine.
Watch out and enjoy Jemaa el Fna
For visitors there are hawkers and peddlers to observe. Watch out for the henna painters who insist on grabbing your arms, painting with hypodermic needles of unknown origin. If you take a photo of the water carriers or dancers a fee is expected.
Look after your possessions too. Whilst the majority of locals are honorable and very honest there is a minority who take advantage of the crowd. But this is an entertaining place to see at night, where the world congregates.
You never know what you may encounter here. There are wedding parties, traders, and impromptu musicians. Each evening a different scene is set for the magic of the Jemaa el Fna.
As the souks pack up and the fizzing, hissing and bubbling of the cooking pots die down, the Jemaa el Fna closes late at night. By dawn this is an ordinary square once more, hiding its secrets, but waiting for the magic of the night to begin all over again.