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Morocco

Medinas & Souks

The old towns: walled medinas, souks and craftsmanship

A fruit vendor in the Marrakech souks

A fruit vendor in the Marrakech souks. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

The medina is the Moroccan old town: a walled maze of souks, mosques, madrasas and courtyard houses, still lived in and worked in as it has been for centuries. Fès el-Bali is the greatest of them; Marrakech's is the most theatrical.

The Chouara tannery, Fès
Fès el-BaliFès-Meknès · The 9th-century medina, UNESCO 1981: tanneries, madrasas, 9,000 alleys.
A fruit vendor in the Marrakech souks
Marrakech souksMarrakech-Safi · Metalwork, carpets, leather and spice pyramids around Jemaa el-Fnaa.
The medina of Tétouan
Tétouan medinaTanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceïma · The Andalusian medina, UNESCO 1997.
Fishing boats in Essaouira's harbour
Essaouira medinaMarrakech-Safi · The 18th-century grid plan, UNESCO 2001: thuya wood and galleries.
A blue-painted street in Chefchaouen's medina
Chefchaouen medinaTanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceïma · The blue-washed medina in the Rif.
The Kasbah Mosque, Tangier
Tangier medina and KasbahTanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceïma · The old town of the International Zone.

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