As we wandered, we stumbled into a really cute little square, the Place Chrib Atay. It looked like it would be a good place for a fine vegetarian meal, but we were committed to fresh grilled fish at one of the stalls in Place Moulay Hassan. Or maybe a good place to paint a canvas of shops and facades, but we weren’t there long enough for that. It was, however, a good place for a few photographs, and here they are.

In the heart of the old medina, at the intersection of the two main thoroughfares, lies the Souk Jdid, the main fresh produce and meat market of the town. It’s laid out so that whichever direction you approach it from, you must enter through a gate. It’s pure theatre of city planning–and it works.

Through the gate we went, and into the broad street beyond. With its arched colonnades and bounded by a gate at either end of the block, this could have been the finest street in this city of fine streets.

Inside the souk were the usual assortment of meat and produce vendors, with perhaps a special emphasis on fish–as you would expect.

We only had an hour or two to wander Essaouira’s streets before eating a quick lunch at one of the fish stalls and meeting our ride to Casablanca. We made the most we could of the time, but I’m sure we missed a lot. I regret this. Though it’s small enough to get a good sense of its character in this short time, I learned that Essaouira would be a good place to linger for several days. A place to explore every little street. A place to enjoy the beach and the food and the art and the shops and the texture and patterns of everyday life. A place to come back to. 

And we do hope to come back to Morocco some day.