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Djamaa El Fna - Square, Marrakesh
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Djamaa El Fna - Square, Marrakesh

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Djamaa El Fna - Square: Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea
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  • SWFC_Fan
  • By SWFC_Fan on March 4, 2007
  • Marrakesh Page by SWFC_Fan
  • Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea cart, Djemaa El Fna - Marrakesh
    Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea cart,
    Djemaa El Fna
    by SWFC_Fan, 4 more photos
    Each night on Marrakech's Djemaa El Fna square, a row of carts line up to sell Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea.

    While Morocco's popular mint tea is a refreshing drink at any time of day, the Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea is best for warming up your insides on a cold night! In February, the time of year that I visited, although the days were hot and sunny, the nights were very cold - so a few glasses of hot, spicy tea were very much appreciated!

    I stopped by the tea carts most nights during my week long stay in the city - a late night Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea became an unmissable part of my daily routine!

    The carts attract a steady stream of customers. Tourists, like myself, can be seen sipping cautiously at the hot tea, while locals, more accustomed to the taste, might down two or three glasses in the time it takes me to finish one glass.

    The tea is served with a bowl of equally spicy cake. I'm not completely sure what the cake contained, but it certainly had cinnamon and sesame seeds in it. It was something of an acquired taste, but I became quite fond of it by the end of my stay.

    A glass of tea and a bowl of cake costs just 4 Dhs (approx. 0.25 GBP).

    Stop by the Ginseng and Cinnamon Tea carts on a cold night to warm up your insides!

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: Freshly squeezed orange juice!
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  • SWFC_Fan
  • By SWFC_Fan on March 4, 2007
  • Marrakesh Page by SWFC_Fan
  • Orange juice cart at Djemaa El Fna - Marrakesh
    Orange juice cart at Djemaa El
    Fna
    by SWFC_Fan, 2 more photos
    Each day, from early morning to late at night, the Djemaa El Fna square is lined with carts that sell freshly squeezed orange juice.

    This orange juice is as fresh as it comes - you'll often find pips and bits of peel in your glass of juice!

    The glasses are not quite as fresh as the juice, and several guidebooks warn of glasses not being rinsed properly and then being reused throughout the day. I drank at least one glass of orange juice from Djemaa El Fna each day and never suffered any ill effects.

    Each cart that sells orange juice has a unique number, so I made a few notes on some of the various carts that I bought orange juice from:

    On my very first visit to Djemaa El Fna, I was beckoned over by the owner of Cart #8. This was common practice throughout my stay in Marrakech, with owners competing against each other for custom. Quite often I'd hear a "Hey Mister" being called out at me from a nearby cart. I bought a glass of orange juice and paid 14 Dhs. The owner didn't have any change for the 20 Dhs note that I gave him (would I be cynical in thinking that he perhaps *did* have change?), so he half filled my glass again once I'd finished.

    One evening, I went to Cart #7, a cart decorated with FC Barcelona stickers and paid 10 Dhs for an ice cold glass of orange juice.

    Another day, I visited Cart #27. On this occasion, the owner hadn't hassled me to go and buy from him, I just walked over towards his cart of my own accord. The owner was friendly, we had a good chat and I paid 10 Dhs for the coldest, smoothest orange juice I had had to date!

    .

    Later on in my stay, I went to Cart #23 for my daily orange juice. I was beckoned over by the owner and, despite the price of 10 Dhs being displayed on the side of an orange, he told me that the price was 20 Dhs (and that the price of 10 Dhs related to grapefruit juice only!) I told him that I could buy my orange juice from the nearby #27 cart for just 10 Dhs so he relented and I handed over my 10 Dhs.

    On my final day in Marrakech, I went to Cart #63 and paid a mere 5 Dhs for my juice. There were no crowds around this cart, no beckoning, no friendly chit chat - just the cheapest orange juice of my stay!

    Be sure to try the fresh and refreshing orange juice from the Djemaa El Fna carts!

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: People asking for money
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  • diageva
  • Updated By diageva on April 3, 2005
  • Marrakesh Page by diageva
  • Its true that there are people asking for many ... to tourist and to muslim ...
    is it not a part of the coran that they must give money to whom is aking for it ...

    I saw people seeting at the mosque's doors asking for money ...

    but to me ...while I was walking ... only I was asked for money 3 time in 5 days ... not so much ...
    The funny thing is ... " are people needed of that money ????? " if they need the money ... why they ask you for euros :)))

    I was asked by a little boy for money ... he wanted 2 euros from me ... :)))) he spoked me in spanish when he new I was from there .... I told him that I didnt had euros ... I did only had dirhams ... but he refused dirhams ... .... he had a wonderful face ... I loved the face of that little boy ... so smillling face ... so bright ... so clever .....

    I dont use to give money at the streets to people that ask for it ... I dont think is a good thing ...

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: Djemaa el-Fna
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  • sachara
  • Updated By sachara on August 15, 2004
  • Marrakesh Page by sachara
  • Koutoubia Mosque at sunset - Marrakesh
    Koutoubia Mosque at sunset
    by sachara
    In the late afternoon we could sit for hours on the roof of a cafe at the Djemaa el-Fna, waiting for the dusk and the lights at the square.
    After a long rest at the rooftop of the cafe we went down, back in the crowd on the square, to experience the streetlife again.

    Having a drink on a rooftop of a cafe at the Djemaa el-Fna and see the sunset with the silhouette of the Koutoubia Mosque in front.

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: Jamaa Al Fna square
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  • johnsakura
  • By johnsakura on June 8, 2003
  • Marrakesh Page by johnsakura
  • marrakesh morocco - Marrakesh
    marrakesh morocco
    by johnsakura
    The Jma-l-Fna is an unbelievable experience. It is a market scene straight out of the movies with snake charmers, musicians, dancing bears, acrobats and storytellers. Around the square there are numbered stalls that sell very cheap freshly-squeezed orange juice in the morning and afternoon. At night there are tables set up that you can eat at for a very reasonable price.

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: A DAY AT DJEMA EL FNAA 7:00 am...
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  • SirRichard
  • By SirRichard on August 25, 2002
  • Marrakesh Page by SirRichard
  • Djamaa El Fna  - Square - Marrakesh
    by SirRichard
    A DAY AT DJEMA EL FNAA
    7:00 am At Mic Mac Bakery (1) (by the Post Office) or at the many cafes in the Bab Agnaou Street (2) (a pedestrian street) you can have an early breakfast. If you wanna see the square awakening from a terrace, go to the Cafe Glacier (3).
    9:00 am The first performers arrive: fortune tellers, orange juice sellers, henna women... Cross the Square to the Argana Cafe (4) and have a mint tea at the terrace. Buy a newspaper in the newsstand close to the CTM Hotel (5).
    10:00 am Enter the Municipal Market (6) to see the rush in this moroccan food market, buy some oranges (real cheap).
    11-13:00 Have an orange juice at one of the many stalls around (2,50 Dh). Wander around the souks, entering via the Souk Semmarine Street (7), the main long covered street of the the souks. If you get los (you will!), ask for the Djema el Fnaa Square, or just take a taxi back...
    13:30 Lunch at a terrace (shade required), for instance in Cafe de France (8) or at the Residence de la Place(9), witha nice view of the Square at noon.
    15-18:00 Back to the souks, bargain and wander.
    18:30 Take a ride in a Horse-drawn carriage (10) now that the sun is down. 80 Dh for 1 hour, 50 Dh for 1/2 hour, 30 Dh for a quick ride.
    19:00 The sunset is one of the main shows in Djema el Fnaa. The terraces (Cafe Glacier, Argana, Cafe de France...) get really crowded at 19, so go there in advance to take a place. The main performers start moving around, the square gets at its best!!
    20:00 The many food stalls (11) in the center of the square are a wonderful animated place for dinner or, if you don't dare, just to walk around and have a look at the many different foods served there. Smoke and lights all around.
    21:00 to midnightWalk around the square, look at the performers, bargain with the berbers that come to seel their goods at night. Relax and have a Mint Tea at one of the terraces, enjoy the show!!
    You can take a look at some pics & portraits at the travelogue

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: ....and Djemaa el Fna at nightime
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  • dabuwan
  • By dabuwan on February 15, 2003
  • Marrakesh Page by dabuwan
  • Djemaa el Fna at nightime - Marrakesh
    Djemaa el Fna at nightime
    by dabuwan
    When the sun goes down and the temperature becomes a bit more bearable, the square fills up with any kind of food stalls, street vendors, acrobats, snake charmers etc. The Djemaa el Fna in the evening is the place where everything happens. Many people and many attractions (more or less touristy).

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: Dinner all together!
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  • Veroali
  • Updated By Veroali on December 2, 2008
  • Marrakesh Page by Veroali
  • Djemma el-Fna - Marrakesh
    Djemma el-Fna
    by Veroali, 2 more photos
    This was the best in Morocco.
    Every day there are a lot of food-stalls at Djemma el-Fna. Every people all around were coming to have dinner over there and enjoy and talk to people. We were in Morocco during Ramadan, so it was even more excited, because everybody was waiting for that second, they could start eating. We met there a lot of people, it was really fun. Although it is full of tourists, so also there are many locals and we had chance to talk to them.

    If you are in Marrakesh, never miss dinner at Djemma el-Fna. The atmosphere is amazing and food delicious!

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: The town square in the day time!
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  • Cool-123
  • By Cool-123 on December 8, 2002
  • Marrakesh Page by Cool-123
  • Djamaa El Fna  - Square - Marrakesh
    by Cool-123
    Here you will find many local people selling goods, especially the medicine. They will show you how the medicine works on the animals.

    Ladies, if you want to have tattoo on your hands, you can try here but make sure you will like your orange hands for a month. You should ask the money first before you do it. My friend did it and they asked for more money.

    I think most people have tried the orange juice because it looks nice and the weather is hot.

    You can enjoy the monkeys and snakes shows with music. You can take some photos but you have to pay for it.

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    Djamaa El Fna - Square: Jamaa Al Fna 4
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  • johnsakura
  • By johnsakura on July 11, 2003
  • Marrakesh Page by johnsakura
  • marrakesh main square morocco - Marrakesh
    marrakesh main square morocco
    by johnsakura
    Cutobia ahead. Orange sellers on the right. Great orange juice. Go to number 6. Hassan is so nice! always with a smile.

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