Ouadane

The ancient travellers city of Ouadane is located northwest of Mauritania, on the Adrar Plateau. Originating from 1147 by the Berber tribe Idalwa the Hadji, it has become a meeting place and caravan transit site. The Portuguese established a trading centre here in 1487. Today, after having suffered the siege of Saharawi troops in the last century, the old city is uninhabited and in ruins, although it has been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site. Next to the old city there is another sparsely populated Ouadane, with poor resources for its inhabitants. The friendliness of its people was evident throughout our visit.