Things to see and do Sahara

A 17 km before arriving in Aoussard, a white stele includes an Arabic inscription. A 4 x 4 track requiring a X allows to arrive at the Glat.

It is also possible to visit the old town of Jedid, the historic heart of Sebha now emptied of its inhabitants. Quite difficult to find. Ask "medina al-gadima Jedid".

It is now inhabited by Correspondent, the great nomads living between Libya, Niger and above all Chad. There is a beautiful Ottoman fort at the palm wood door, which can be visited when the guard is there.

Much more impressive is the market visit to the camels of Sebha, one of the most important of the country, where sheep and camelidae arrive from the Niger and Chad. Very impressive during the days preceding the Eid holidays. Difficult to find. The simplest is to take the outer boulevard of the city side west and then to ask the road to the Al-Jimal souk. you will have to go into a very modest area of barracks, enclos and workshops before reaching the market.

Overlooking the city and built near the airport, it was built by the Ottomans and occupied by Italian troops (1929-1943) and French (1943-1951). This garrison function is still current, and you will not be able to visit or photograph it.

A length of 22 m, it presents 26 columns with capitals. There is a koutab (school) where children learn the Koran. The prayer room is closed to the visits (it only opens for Friday prayer), but the corner of des, with its half-subterranean niches, supported by twisted columns. This mosque marks the border between the two large districts of Ghadamès, the Beni Oulid and the Beni Ouazit. Columns, capitals and decor come from a church of the Byzantine era and were recovered to dress mosques and public squares.

Located at the western end of the city, the founding source of the oasis of Ghadamès was 6 m deep in its centre and "water at 30 ° C. It irrigated virtually all the gardens of the palm grove, directly via seguia, small canals where the water ran towards each plot.

Where séguia did not surrender, balancier wells (dalou) were allowed to extract and transport water. The amount of water allocated to each garden was cleverly determined: a percé cup, the gâddous, was the unit of minimum irrigation time, the quantity of which then varied depending on the day and night: The day noûba had fifteen times fewer units of hydraulic time than the night noûba. Similarly, each seguia had a number of different hydraulic time units depending on the quantity of gardens served.

However, the sophistication of the hydraulic system did not prevent the flow of the source from at the end of the th century falling. Work was undertaken that Italians continued in the 1930 s, even to build a deep well to extend the palm grove to the east, but without great success. Under French administration, in the 1940 s, another well was drilled and the concrete irrigation canals, as seen near the gardens near the Ain el-Faras source. In the mid th century, the Ain el-Faras source was used only for irrigation in the northwest and southwest of the oasis.

In December 2005, important work on upgrading dry artesian well was carried out in partnership with UNDP. The source has been renovated and refurbished, and during the event the children have come diving so it is true that it has the size of a beautiful swimming pool. During our last passage, she underwent further maintenance work. The approaches of the old town behind the source have also recently been the subject of renovation by the UNESCO programme, such as the large door overlooking the oasis on the right, surmounted by a growing and star.

To the west of the source, you can see a former water where the camels come refreshing after their long Saharan crossings.

This small mosque in the middle of the cemetery, each of which is a small stone, is the oldest in the city. Founded by the first Arab conquerors, it continues to be maintained, although the inhabitants no longer pray.

UNESCO participated here in the restoration of tombs, requesting the help of bricklayers who made the new bricks in the site of the site. Of the 132 tombs of this site, the most collapsed, some have been renovated. The dead were buried vertically in a burial chamber or burial mound, around which the masons reconstructed walls of pyramid form, ranging from 3 to 3,5 m ² on the ground and 3,5 m in length, on the height.

The old town of toub (dried bricks) is well damaged. It's at the end of the first century. that the inhabitants left the mountain of Zinkekra to settle there. We follow the tracks of a small train that was used to evacuate the land during the archaeological excavations conducted by the Italians. In the first part of the site, the stone foundations were Roman buildings. The highest building was certainly a garamantique castle, which became the old kasbah (house of the city's governors), which now looks at the dried oasis.

Here is a description of the places made by a French ethnographer in the 1940 s, shortly after his abandonment: " The former Jerma, abandoned in recent years [1932] because of malaria, is a fortified town. Built in amphitheatre on a mound, surrounded by palm trees, it has two narrow main streets. It is surrounded completely by a ditch filled with water by outpouring of the water table […] and continuous ramparts encompassing a less ancient unit of appearance in the East […]. The Kasbah which forms the centre of the locality, all at the top, has 5 or 6 high and massive towers combined with a high wall of 4 to 5 m. that a circular lane separates from houses. The whole household in its middle is a vast place in which one accesses one door. This Kasbah is built in sun-dried terracotta bricks, while stones and clays were used to build homes. '»»»»

J. Lethielleux, Le Fezzan: its Gardens and Palms, 1948, Publications of the Institute of Fine Arabic Letters, Tunis.

After a kilometre on a bad path, the rocky spur dominates on the right (left is a dump site…): it was on this spur that the Garamantes built first their city, whose houses ranged from the houses to the top dominating the valley. Surrounded by an enclosure, the town remained inhabited until the end of the th century. C.C.

A large sand dune where one rises to contemplate the sun lie behind the dunes of the Sahara. Taxis or local guides will take you if your agency has not already done so! High arrivals of tourists during the season. On this occasion, camels are posted for tourists, a tour costs between 5 and 10 DL.

These are two small salty lakes surrounded by tamarisks, in the desert! You can bathe.

From the ruins of the desert, we have a beautiful panorama on the border with Algeria and Tunisia. Originally built by the Romans, it was stormed by the Arabs at the time of their conquest of Ghadamès. Local guides or drivers can drive you there.

The mausoleum dates from the first century. C.C.

A museum entirely dedicated to the region of Fezzan, from prehistory (photos of engravings and cave paintings, tools) until today, passing through the exposure of a mummy and reconstitution of a garamantique tomb, with a skeleton in folded position, and giving a good overview of the thousands of garamantiques tombs of the Wadi El-Ajal (also renamed Wadi el-Haya). Explanation in English.

When the guard is not there, the door is sometimes left open. Set at the bottom of an enclosure encompassing a mosque and a large closed paddock serving as a stable, the fortress was built by the Ottomans in the th century. Originally, it was the Moroccan conquerors Aoulad Mohamed el-Fassi who, taking Mourzouk as capital in the th century, built a strong castle at the location of a defensive building. Their reign lasted until their defeat by the Ottomans at the beginning of the th century. After the Turks, Italians used the fortress before they preferred a more modern construction. Made of local materials, rubble and mud, the fortress was designed to support long seats. At the northeast corner, we will notice the killer that was used strategically to protect the entrance. We then move towards the pretty, round and closer minaret at the summit, from the small Jama'a Jouma mosque, in the style more African than Libyan, and where the inhabitants still have their prayers.

Although built by the Ottomans, the mosque is local architecture, perhaps because it interfered in its redevelopment by the Turks. The prayer room has a profusion of pillars - 25 in all -,

the quantity here to compensate for the weakness of construction materials. In front of the prayer room, the tomb of a Ottoman soldier is recognized. The old stables are closed to visitors. Once a year is the local festival of the town of Mourzouk. Before leaving, climb the staircase on the terrace of the enclosure to admire the beautiful overview.

If you go to the city centre, more specifically on the street, which overlooks the major sports stadium, you can stroll through the souk to vegetables under a large cover covered with sheet metal and between the stalls and trinkets held by women.

The funerary temple of Ramses II, originally a splendid structure designed to remind his descendants of the glory and prestige of his reign, is today rather dilapidated, but still imposing.

The average archaeologically-inclined traveller will see almost as much of it from the outside as he will by entering the enclosure, and will thus make substantial savings. The facades of the two pylons, partly destroyed, depict the pharaoh's warlike exploits against the Hittites. Every year, from October to January, the Ramesseum conservation team resumes its excavation and restoration work. You can play your part in safeguarding the site by purchasing a Ramesseum excavation booklet, the proceeds of which are donated to the association in charge of promoting the site.

In the first courtyard between them, the upper part of a colossal pink granite statue of Ramses II lies on the ground. With its pedestal, it must have measured some 18 m, and its weight is estimated at at least 1,000 tonnes.

The great hypostyle hall preserves 29 columns (out of the original 48) supporting a few fragments of ceiling. It is followed by two chambers, the first of which retains a ceiling decorated with astronomical scenes. The brick stores behind the temple (clearly visible from the mound alongside the road) served as warehouses. They are the only visible remains of the extensive outbuildings that surrounded the Ramesseum. For Marguerite Yourcenar, it was the most romantic temple in Thebes.

The Oasis of Salima is located approximately kilometres west of the shelter. It is one of the largest oases in Sudan. Desert trekking enthusiasts will certainly enjoy getting lost, especially since this oasis has a long history, linked to the ancient caravanière route of which Salima was an important step.

Déjà already mentioned a Commercial Road through the Desert that connected Egypt to the heart of Africa. A road that required a trip length of "40 days". Still, the track through the sands is borrowed by the nomads and retains its nickname of "El al-Arbain" (track of the forty), although the route has evolved and that the duration of forty days has little relevance!

Historically, the runway began at the oasis of Kharga in southwestern Egypt. Kharga is the largest oasis in southern Egypt, and another route connects it to the Nile. It crossed the Desert desert to Kutum, near the current El Fasher, the historic capital of Darfur. Over time, the word'runway'was used to designate all the desert caravan roads from the far north of Sudan to Khartoum or in Kordofan, in addition to Darfur. Following a trail of known Bedouin wells, these roads had the merit of avoiding the large consuming loops formed by the Nile in northern Sudan, but also limited the risk of caravanes the caravans. From the end of the th century, the English reduced traffic trailers specialized in the slave transit. The marginalization of both Darfur and the hosting roads in the next century, with the development of the railways, has definitively put an end to the permanent use of the runway.

If you're interested in this "40 days" journey, check with specialist tour operators or get started in adventure, provided you are properly equipped and equipped with the necessary permits. It's much better to be already a great breed of such expeditions.

The last thing: for security reasons, forget the Libyan border and Darfur.

Azjars is one of the best Saharan agencies in Libya. The teams are fantastic, friendly and very professional. You can prepare with them for 4 x 4 or trekkings expeditions. This local agency is also a reference to French agencies. To have a francophone interlocutor, ask Hamza. Take the time to prepare your project with them as much detail as possible.

Fatimid tombs whose domes can still be seen are located behind the Nubia Museum, and a few metres from the unfinished Obelisk, the largest carved monolith lying on the ground. The marble plaques that adorned the tombs are mostly in Cairo, they bore the names of the deceased. The authorities do not appear to have marked the locations. The tombs are topped by a dome and small cement walls that delimit their rectangular contours. Some marble slabs have calligraphy on them.

You will find all the answers to your questions and even to the ones you don't ask yourself! A veritable mine of information for everything that is a historical visit, it will also help you with the logistics on site: accommodation, catering, excursion agency... And as for transport: it is much more practical to contact us here rather than going to the station to try to find out which buses leave where and at what time. In case of problems, you can even call the person in charge on his mobile phone who will be happy to help you out.

The kiosk of Kertassi is a small temple dedicated to the goddess Hathor or the goddess Isis. It was located 40 km south of New Kalabcha, until it was moved in 1960 by the Egyptian antiquities department during the rescue of the Nubian temples. It was to serve as a stop for the procession of the sacred boat in the Ptolemaic period, of which it is probably a contemporary. The columns of this kiosk have either papyriform or hathoric capitals. Maybe he's a contemporary of Trajan's kiosk at Philae.

This temple built by Augustus was dedicated to the gods Serapis and Isis. It was located 50 km to the north before it was relocated due to the Aswan Dam construction project in 1960. This temple was never completed, and has no inscription, so it is difficult to attribute it to the Romans. It is of modest dimensions, and consists of a hypostyle hall with fifteen columns. A terrace is accessed by a spiral staircase, which remains unique in Egyptian architecture. The temple was transformed into a church.

The temple of Dakka has been moved 40 km from its original location. It dates from several eras, including Ptolemaic and Roman. It was dedicated to Thoth.

Pylon: Augustus had it built in a disproportionate way in front of a rather modest temple; it is dug multiple chambers.

Portico: In the purest Ptolemaic style, the portico is openwork in its upper part, giving access to a classical pronaos, followed by a rectangular vestibule.

Sanctuaries: two sanctuaries follow each other, one from the Arkamani period, the second from the Augustan period.

The temple was built by Ramses II, called here "the beloved of Amon". It was originally located 4 kilometers east, where Lake Nasser is now. The temple known as "Ramses-love of Amun" served as a resting place for the sacred boat on its way down the Nile. Inspired by the lion-bodied stone sphinxes guarding the central aisle, it was named Ouadi es-Seboua, the Valley of the Lions. The temple has a progressive classical structure with three pylons.

First pylon: has disappeared, but gives access to a first courtyard lined with sphynxes with human heads topped by the double crown of Lower and Upper Egypt.

Second pylon: has disappeared, but gives access to a small courtyard lined with falcon-headed sphynxes in front of which stands a statue of Ramses II; a stepped staircase extends the courtyard and leads to a terrace.

Third pylon: is still standing; one notices a monumental statue of Ramses II, on the left, flanked by his daughter Bentanat; the pylon is decorated with bas-reliefs narrating the victories of Pharaoh.

Third courtyard: surrounded by ten Osirid pillars leading to a portico by an inclined ramp.

Hypostyle hall: small hall consisting of twelve monumental pillars, overlooking a vestibule serving two side chapels and a three-part sanctuary. If Amun-Ra is worshipped there, the great gods of the time of Ramses have a special place there. The temple was transformed into a church as the representation of Saint Peter on the bas-reliefs of the sanctuary attests.

The oldest temple in Nubia, built in Dynasty 18, contains beautifully coloured bas-reliefs made under Thutmes III and IV and under Amenophis II.

Hypostyle Hall: it is reached by crossing a grey brick pylon built by Seti I to protect the temple; Thutmes IV is represented there; in front of the portico, it is Thutmes III who is represented on the walls of the temple.

Vestibule and sanctuary: it is mainly Amenhetep II who is represented on the bas-reliefs and in the sanctuary.

This small rock temple is located in the same place as the Kalabsha temple. It was built by Ramses II to be one of the first buildings used for public relations purposes. It is entered through a courtyard where Pharaoh's battles against the Nubians on the left and against the Libyans and Asians on the right are depicted. The vestibule is decorated with Ramses II presenting offerings to Hathor and Khnum. The sanctuary is decorated with Ramses facing Ra and Khnum. The small temple of Beit El Wali is in many ways fascinating.

The fortress occupies a cliff overlooking the Nile, dominating the site of Aniba, seat of the governor of the province. The first vestiges of the reign of Amenophis I are dated. The present remains are a mixture of a Coptic cathedral and an Ottoman fort commanded by Selim I. For three centuries, the descendants of the first Ottoman soldiers lived in these places, until 1811. The Aswan High Dam transformed this place into an island and drowned its surroundings. Qasr Ibrim is the only site in Lower Nubia to have survived the Nile floods.

This is the only Nubian tomb that survived the flood. It was carried out for Penout, a high-ranking official of Ramses VI. It was located 40 kilometres south of its present location, not far from Kasr Ibrim.

The tomb consists of a chapel and the tomb itself, dug out of a niche. The burial well, which opened in the middle of the room, remained in place when the monument was transferred. The frieze representing the deceased and his children is particularly beautiful, the linen veils of the clothes being very refined.

Partly buried, the temple was built by Ramses II and was dedicated to Ra. It is remarkable for some of its colourful representations.

First hypostyle hall: it is accessed by crossing a pylon; at the back four Osirid pillars support some ceiling elements.

Second hypostyle hall: six columns supporting a reconstructed ceiling. Ramses II stands in front of a splendid ished tree. Then follows the sanctuary flanked by two side chapels. The chapel on the left is remarkable for the representation of the sacred bark of Amon.

Ay is the twelfth and penultimate pharaoh. He ascended to the throne through his marriage to Tutankhamen's widow, Queen Ankhesenamun. Ay's tomb is not completely finished. Ay had had a tomb dug, and when the city and the cult at Aten fell, he had to dig a new tomb in haste at Thebes. His short reign did not allow him to complete more than the decoration of the burial chamber. It shows Ay hunting the male hippopotamus, and twelve baboons who gave the name to the valley. The stone sarcophagus is still in situ.

This is one of the stops on a dahabieh cruise.

On the west bank of the Nile: numerous graffiti and stelae show the importance of this place of worship where, as the flood raged, Hâpy and the elephantine triad, considered to be the masters of the river, were celebrated. Three sanctuaries built by Merenptah, Seti ^I and Ramses II have survived in part, and the ceilings still retain their colors.

On the east bank of the Nile: impressive sandstone quarries, stelae and ex-voto statues.

The construction of this small chapel, dedicated to the goddesses Nekhbet and Hathor, is attributed to King Amenophis III and his father Thutmes IV. The chapel, almost square, is supported by four columns with Hathor capitals. The interior is decorated with paintings that have retained their original hue. This small chapel was used as a resting place for the statue of Nekhbet during certain processions. The goddess protected the important mineral resources of this part of Egypt. In front of the entrance was a small hypostyle hall with four columns.

Ahmes son of Abana, born of a soldier father and a mother named Abana, is a soldier who played an important role under the orders of three pharaohs. His biography, on two walls of his tomb, relates all his feats of arms especially when the north of Egypt was annexed by the Hyksos. Born under the reign of Seqenenrê Taâ and died under that of Thutmes I: he took part in the various wars of reunification led by the pharaohs. He received seven times the supreme honorary decoration, the decoration of gold, from the hands of three different kings.