Ghardaia Travel Guide

 kokoryko Says:  In Beni Isguen the strange fortifications isolating the city from the desert do not look as a real military construction. Only near the main city doors do the wall look like real walls. In beniIsguen the foreigner are not allowed to stay during the night, except they have... 

 kokoryko Says:  The Wilaya (the residence of the wali), the prefecture; this is the main administrative building in Ghardaia; it is on the squared market place; on this place, the movie maker M. Lakhdar Amina directed a scene of massacre of Algerian by French troops for his movie “Chronique... 

 kokoryko Says:  Again this mosquee, with the inclined pillars, the windows, the ceilings made of palm tree trunks. You could stay there for hours, specially when it is so hot outside; may be the architect wanted people to stay inside as much as possible. 

 kokoryko Says:  It is not an effect of alcohol on the photographer, the pilars are inclined, as the whole building seems, if you look at small parts one after the other; but as a whole, the Sidi Brahim mosquee is a solid building. And inside, it is cool enough to concentrate on prayer... 

 kokoryko Says:  It is sais this tiny old mosquee inspired Le Corbusier (French Architect) for building a well known modern church in France (Ronchamp) . Indeed, the shape, the rigorous style, the beautiful design , are stunning here in this environment.This mosquee has been build in the... 

 kokoryko Says:  In the Mzab, the cemeteries are ouside the cities. The old cemeteries are not maintained and only grave plates and some pottery remain ; the cemetery looks like a field where the rocks grow in anarchic pattern. The place is very hot and there are no flowers on the graves... 

 kokoryko Says:  The streets here, like in Ghardaia are narrow, but more steep. Children play in the streets and the colors are always so pastel.It looks, like in many North African cities that electricity and telephone were installed without clear plan, but, at least it seems to work and... 

 kokoryko Says:  the poor onkeys can carry everything, even tourist, and their weight is not . . . virtual!The donkey is still there. This is an important transportation mean like in most North Africa. I would like to have such an animal not eating up the juicy vegetables I load on his back! 

 kokoryko Says:  It is not a tourist transportation mean, it is a transportation mean in general !The Mobylette, a small motorbike is a very popular transport mean in the M’zab (and rural Algeria in general), for goods and persons. Some have even modified saddles (here, a blue blanket, like... 

 kokoryko Says:  The older people do not go shopping in the hot sun; they have a caht in the shadow of the buidings or the umbrellas; no stress, no hurry, take life as it comes. 

 kokoryko Says:  The carpets seen here on the market are typical berberic carpets; there are two types: one colored generally with a red dominant and geometrical patterns; the other type has a white background and brown or black patterns (this last one is from Kabylie, a mountain area of... 

 kokoryko Says:  These views of the market with the city and the minaret as background give a general idea of Mozabite way of life: small compact city, high minaret, busy people, heat and protection with umbrellas and. . . . . . . lots of women everywhere; yes, it’s the men who go shopping! 

 kokoryko Says:  Market day in Ghardaia; watch it from the terrace of a café located on the place. Quiet market in fact, many people, generally busy, but no noise; you see essentially products from the gardens located in the palm tree orchards ; algerian love the white long onion and cardes... 

 kokoryko Says:  The walks in the oasis lead you to some surprises, like this barley field (I do not think they brew beer in the M’zab; it is barley, not wheat or hard wheat used for couscous). The surprise too is to meet local guys who invite you for a tea. Tea here was made with camel... 

 kokoryko Says:  I loved to walk in the oasis near the cities; Very quickly, you hear only the wind in the palm trees, and your eyes are open for everything, like here, this old water well; water is still pumped from this well, to grow the palm trees and other crops ; I love these old...