Markets: An afternoon in the souq

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A fellow WordPress Blogger, Ailsa over at “Where’s my backpack” did it again with this week’s travel theme of Street Markets.  What a fantastic topic for who doesn’t love the vibrant colors and fragrances of a world market?  Markets are amazing as they give you such a slice of culture.  Whether it be the divine floral markets of Paris to the brilliant indigenous markets of Peru, a market always has a treasure to find.

One of my favorite markets of all is the souq.  In the spring of 2011, I spent a week volunteering in Rabat, Morocco and had a wonderful time exploring the ins and outs of a Moroccan souq.  You could truly find literally every thing for sale; pretty much whatever your heart desired.  The colors, the sounds, the people, the smells and the diverse offerings of goods made the souq one of my favorite places to wander and buy gifts for my family and friends.

Follow me through the winding paths of Rabat’s central souq….

There is always a mosque shooting up towards the sky and summoning the daily call to prayer.  The sound of the call echoes throughout the souq, bouncing off the curvy walls of the serpentine streets.  

Olives in every color, taste, size and shape are available fresh for sale. 

Dried fruits such as raisons, figs and dates lay soaking in the afternoon sun.

Handmade soaps and beauty products such as savon noir for sale by the scoop. 

And my most favorite rice of all…..couscous!  I could eat an entire bag of this stuff!

For a long and happy life, pet turtles for sale. 

If you want to buy “babouches” (Moroccan slippers), you can find a pair in any color you desire. 

The jelabas (robes with pointed hoods) and caftans (robes without hoods and usually a v- neck adorned and decorated) which are the traditional dress in Morocco.

Brilliantly colored, handmade scarves, blankets, pillow covers and table clothes made me go crazy!  I loved the vibrant colors and had to buy a ton to bring back for gifts. 

Any one into belly dancing?  Outfits for sale!

Or just junk like cheap American blue jeans, clothing, bras and underwear, plastic toys….you name it, it was there in the souq. 

Leather shops with purses, belts, wallets and shoes made to order.  

Lovely Moroccan lamps…cat not included. 

To see other entries for this week’s challenge click here. 

24 thoughts on “Markets: An afternoon in the souq”

    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed! I have a lot of nice colorful ones from my recent trip to guatemala in April. If you haven’t checked them out, you may find them interesting! 🙂

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Great! Glad you loved it as much as me Helen! 🙂

      Reply ↓
  3. ailsapm – wheresmybackpack.com – Hi there! I’m Ailsa Prideaux-Mooney. I’ve lived in many places, and travelled to many more. I had a lot of fun getting there and being there, wherever there happened to be at the time. I climbed a castle wall in Czesky Krumlov, abseiled down cliffs to go caving in the west of Ireland, slept on the beach in Paros, got chased by a swarm of bees in Vourvourou (ok that wasn’t fun, but it was exciting), learned flower arranging in Tokyo, found myself in the middle of a riot in Seoul, learned to snowboard in Salzburg, got lost in a labyrinth in Budapest and had my ice cream stolen by a gull in Cornwall. And I’m just getting started. If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read so far, I’d love you to follow my travelogue - wheresmybackpack.com - and remember, anyone who tries to tell you it’s a small world hasn’t tried to see it all.
    ailsapm on said:

    A blaze of colour and that food looks yummy – that’s one fat cat! I absolutely adore that first photo too, Nicole, lovely! xxx Ailsa

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Ailsa! You are coming up with such great photo challenges! How long have you been doing them? You also have quite a following! Let’s see if WordPress copies you again with the weekly photo challenge! They should hire you to do it! 🙂

      Reply ↓
      • ailsapm – wheresmybackpack.com – Hi there! I’m Ailsa Prideaux-Mooney. I’ve lived in many places, and travelled to many more. I had a lot of fun getting there and being there, wherever there happened to be at the time. I climbed a castle wall in Czesky Krumlov, abseiled down cliffs to go caving in the west of Ireland, slept on the beach in Paros, got chased by a swarm of bees in Vourvourou (ok that wasn’t fun, but it was exciting), learned flower arranging in Tokyo, found myself in the middle of a riot in Seoul, learned to snowboard in Salzburg, got lost in a labyrinth in Budapest and had my ice cream stolen by a gull in Cornwall. And I’m just getting started. If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read so far, I’d love you to follow my travelogue - wheresmybackpack.com - and remember, anyone who tries to tell you it’s a small world hasn’t tried to see it all.
        ailsapm on said:

        Thanks for the compliment, Nicole, it’s a recent thing – WordPress was late one week with their photo challenge, so rather than wait around, I suggested a theme and a bunch of people jumped on board. It was so much fun, the following week I decided to post another, but wanted to make it a travel theme seeing as there’s already a general theme being run by WordPress. It seems to have taken off and I’m loving every minute of it. 🙂 Who knows, maybe WordPress will like the idea of a travel theme, but for now, I’m really having a lot of fun hosting it on my blog. So many wonderful bloggers out there, who have visited so many fascinating places. 🙂

  4. Jo Bryant – New Zealand – I was born in the land of Banjo Paterson, gum trees, and weather extremes. I am a freelance photographer. I love to make images that make people happy. To capture forever a precious moment. I am also a freelance writer/editor. I live in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, but still like to claim my Australian heritage. I graduated with a Bachelor of Communications in 2008. I am writing my first novel. I love to write poetry, short stories, and also write for the web. And there is nothing that is on a par with a sunny summer's day spent at Waihi Beach.
    Jo Bryant on said:

    Love the mannequins…oh and the cat. great series

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks! Aren’t they hilarious? The whole souq was so fascinating. If only I took more pictures! I was too mesmerized by it all to remember! But I didn’t forget to shop.

      Reply ↓

  5. Pingback: Travel Theme: Street Market ~ Pasar Simpang Dago Bandung | Blog Kemaren Siang

  6. It’s the same here. You can find most thing on street market. And additionally, they are everywhere!
    Nice collection. Hope I can visit there sometime in the future. Love the fifth picture the most.

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Where are you from? I would love to have these kinds of markets! We get lots of farmers markets here in Minnesota in the summer. I love them! 🙂

      Reply ↓
  7. Meghan Johnson – I currently work in sustainable investing in commercial real estate. Interested in impact investing, sustainability, writing, feminism, travel, finance, altruism, economics, and running.
    Meghan Johnson on said:

    I have been itching to see your Morocco posts/pictures ever since hearing you volunteered there with CCS. I can’t imagine a better place to explore markets! This is gorgeous, Nicole!

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Meghan! If you have a chance you can scroll down to the bottom of my site and click on Morocco. There I have a ton of posts about my experience there. Glad you enjoyed! 🙂

      Reply ↓

  8. Okay, I’ve been away from my computer for most of the weekend, so I don’t know what else I might have missed, but this post is great. I love to visit markets when we’re overseas, and this one looks amazing. How fun. And that kitty at the end looks very pregnant!
    Hugs,
    Kathy

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Kathy! I bet you have a lot of wonderful market photos as well! Check out my entry on doors! I love that one. Hope you have enjoyed your weekend! 🙂

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      You’re welcome! I only wish I took more pictures! There was so much to see and it was really cool.

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thanks Madhu! I sure love markets and I really enjoyed the souq. I bought lots of treasures and enjoy them brightening my home!

      Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Glad you enjoyed! My kids loved the turtles too and wish I could have brought one home!

      Reply ↓
  12. Aaron – London, England – A love of photography and travel have led to me creating this blog. I'm also interested in science, technology and the outdoors. I currently live in London with my beautiful wife and work in the telecommunications industry.
    Aaron on said:

    Some great pics here, and I couldn’t agree more – North Africa and the Middle East have far and away the best markets anywhere! Great post!

    Reply ↓
    • thirdeyemom – Writer, traveler, hiker and global humanitarian traveling the world and doing good. Member of Impact Travel Alliance Media Network. 40+ countries and still wandering sharing my journey along the way.
      thirdeyemom on said:

      Thank you! 🙂

      Reply ↓

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