Ghardaia Market Square

Ghardaia is the largest of the five towns of the M'Zab, built as a cone of flat-roofed houses rising to a mosque with a pyramidal minaret, and its market square sits at the foot of that cone: a rectangle enclosed by low arcades with shops behind them, opening onto the lanes that climb into the ksar. It is a working market rather than a display, selling produce, dates, spices, tools and clothing, and in the morning it is where the carpets the region is known for are auctioned, carried through the buyers by criers. The valley's community has strict conventions about photography and dress, and visitors are expected to observe them.

What you actually see

• The arcaded square - low colonnades enclosing the market.
• Morning carpet auctions - rugs carried through the ring of buyers.
• The ksar rising above - flat roofs climbing to the pyramidal minaret.
• Dates, spices and tools - the everyday trade of the market.

When to go

October to April; from late spring the heat here is punishing. Half a day, arriving in the morning for the auction. Fridays are quiet.

Honest expectations

Photographing people, and women in particular, is not acceptable here and causes real offence. Entry to the upper ksar requires a local guide. Summer heat is severe. Carpet prices at auction assume knowledge visitors do not have.

Nearby

Beni Isguen is south; El Atteuf lies in the same valley.