Travelogues

MAURITANIA - Chinguetti, Ouadane, Atar

The ancient towns of Chinguetti, Ouadan and Atar were important centre for camel caravans, when salt, dates and gold were the main merchandise transported to Timbuctu.

Atar is a very lively town, an important market centre for a vast region, with nomads coming into town in order to stock up, as well as sell their products (mainly foodstuffs and animals). Atar is the most important town in Adrar.
Atar was founded in the 17th century and became the first market in the area, instead of Chinguetti and Ouadane.

Of attractions Atar, offers a ksar with narrow streets, and a French fort from World War II. The date palmeraie of Atar is a must for people spending time in Atar, green and luscious, and with an impressive irrigation system.
The market of Atar is active all through the week, and one of the more interesting sections of it, is the quarter of the smiths, which provide for the local market.

La moschea di Chinguetti risale al XIV secolo

This remote place is the most frequently visited tourist spot in Mauritania.
The old city is fairly old, the western side dates back 700 years.
The age has to do with most of old Chinguetti being constructed from stones.
The main attraction in the city is the old mosque. But as Chinguetti once was really venerated as one of the most holy cities in Islam (ranked, even today, as number 7), this is off limit to non-Muslims.

Ouadane has some of the most impressive ruins of Mauritania.
It is all set in the hillside, with buildings that blend with the rocks, both from colour and now their crumbling status.
Well, with 800 years since the construction, one should rather be impressed with how much is still there.
Of the ruins, the old mosque and the Ksaru l-Klali stand out.
There is still a village here, situated above the old one, and inhabited by the Idawalhajj tribe, of Berber origin.
The positioning of the whole village is strikingly beautiful, with an oasis, palmeraie, and sand dunes.