"Ghadames" a Baladiyat Ghadamis Travel Page by sachara

Ghadames is one of the oldest pre-Saharan cities. The name Ghadames means ''the day after'', because before the foundation of the town people were looking for water without any result, but found it after they spent the night in the oasis. The architecture of Ghadames is an outstanding example of the knowledge, how to deal with the extreme climate of the Sahara. The alleyways are covered with roofs, so the temperature is there much lower than outside. Ghadames is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The architecture of the houses is characterized by a vertical division of functions. At the groundlevel of the alleyways is the public life and the storage of supplies. At the next level lives the family and at the top there are open-air terraces for the women, allowing passage for them from one house to another for gathering or visiting each other.

In 1986 the about 10.000 inhabitants moved out of the old town to the more modern village nearby, because of lack of water and the impossibility to construct a good waterpipe system in the old town. In summertime the old town and oasis are still very popular, because of the good shelter against the extreme desert heat.