تطاوين
Remote town in a desert far, far away
Yes, you read that right, Tataouine is indeed a real place. Fair enough, it’s not spelled in quite the same way as Luke Skywalker’s home planet, but it was nonetheless the inspiration. Tataouine is one of the southernmost towns in Tunisia, on the fringes of the Sahara. The town itself is not especially old, being founded by the French in the late 19th century, but it is surrounded by a variety of much more venerable Berber sites including various granaries and ghost towns.
It’s no wonder that George Lucas was inspired when he came here – what a strange place it is. Alien-like landscape and architecture, every bar was the Star Wars bar, and oddly I don’t think I saw a single woman the whole time I was there. I sought out cheap lodging upon my arrival by louage, and seemed to be the only tourist in town. Many of the sights are scattered around about, so I rented a taxi for the day to check them out.
Although not classic Sahara, the desert landscape around Tataouine is evocative, with the odd artistically-located date tree.
Ksar Ouled Soltane is perhaps one of the most otherworldly places around Tataouine: a very well preserved granary which doubled as Mos Espa slave housing where Anakin Skywalker grew up in Star Wars Episode I. It was good fun to explore by climbing up the little flights of stairs.
Sticks and platforms on the outside of the mud-faced granary cells were used for hoisting and landing grain.
The ksar dates from the 15th century and is mostly three to four levels around a pair of courtyards. As you can see by the light I was there later in the day, which was a perfect time for photography.
Unfortunately there’s not a lot to see inside the ghorfa cells, beyond the occasional ruined built-in pottery.
Some distance away is Ksar Hadada, at which more scenes for Star Wars Episode I were shot. The modern mosque in the background here adds to the ambience.
Some of the ksar had been coated in either mud or roughcast designed to look like mud, more in fitting with Ksar Ouled Soltane.
Inside Ksar Hadada, this area was used as a restaurant for the short period that the ksar was briefly operated as a tourist hotel.
More of the old hotel section – many of the rooms had electrical fittings but it all still looked pretty rough and basic. No evidence of toilets or showers…
Onwards to Douiret, an abandoned Berber village which stretches up a steep cliffside.
The village possibly dates back to the 15th century, and was built up the hillside for ease of defence. Over three thousand people once lived here, but it is now a virtual ghost town.
A local donkey busies itself outside one of the few remaining intact properties in Douiret.
As the village crumbles away, the multi-arched structure of granary cells is revealed.
View of the lower part of Douiret and the odd surrounding landscape, not unlike the topography you might see in Arizona.
Chenini was the last stop for the day, another ostensibly abandoned village, but this one was crawling with tourists, whereas Douiret was empty. I managed to get beyond the crowds and found my way right to the top to walk over that little bridge on the right.
Looking down from the summit ridge of Chenini, across collapsed rooftops to the modern village below. The hilltop ruins date back to the 12th century.
There is a prominent modern mosque built further along the ridge, but it was difficult to navigate the ruins without causing further erosion – this is as far as I got.
View of Chenini as I headed back to Tataouine. In the Star Wars universe, Chenini is the name of one of the moons of Tatooine.
Back in Tataouine town itself, and all the blokes were out at the marketplace. On the mountainside behind, strangely reminiscent of the Hollywood sign, is a giant “Marhaba” welcoming all.
Hundreds of colourful plates for sale at Tataouine market.
Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of the hotel I stayed in, and it no longer appears to exist, but it was in the southern part of town right next door to La Gazelle hotel. I went there for dinner in its thematic restaurant (my own hotel lacking any dining facility), and was the only customer all night. The French chef was more than happy to cater for me, and it was indeed a very good meal.
The patio outside Hotel La Gazelle. The complete lack of customers certainly added to the weirdness of my experience in Tataouine, but the staff were nice enough to set me up with a car and driver for the day. The following morning I was off by louage again to Douz and the Sahara.
Created 2008 | Updated 2023
SnapHappyRoss 