In the center of the medina of Marrakech is the Djema’a el Fna, the assembly of the dead. It is said that in this large plaza, the sultan used to behead people. Today, the plaza is a large asphalt square that borders the souk market places and is the heart of the city. Although the place is filled with marvels, the charm is that the marvels are not there for the benefit of the tourists but for the benefit of the locals.
These then, are the noises of the Djema’a el Fna:
-the haunting and somehow sad sounding calls to prayer issued from the nearby mosques
-the completely exotic yet familiar shrill music played by the snake charmers on their black pipes
-the callings of food vendors and shop owners (in French) to come look at their wares
-the banging of cups as the men in extravagant traditional Berber clothes sell water from hairy flasks and pose for pictures
-the passionate voices of old men telling stories or jokes in Arabic to appreciative crowds
-the murmuring laughter of a crowd of men gathered around two young boys with boxing gloves taking the occasional nervous yet gentle swing at each other as the promoter urges them on
-the electric twang of banjos and guitar like instruments that are hooked to small amplifiers and form the foundation of little bands that play traditional music. Men beat hand drums and sing and the audiences seem to always know all the words
-the soft thump of shoes striking the asphalt as young acrobats do flips
-the screeching of monkeys kept on leashes and used to entertain adults and children alike
-the hiss of cooking food that fills the sky at night with smoke from hundreds of different food carts that sell everything from lambs heads to couscous
-the loud and constant oceanic swelling of conversations
