© Lonely Planet Publications 157 The Jebel Nafusa &

The barren Jebel Nafusa (Western Mountains) is ’s Berber heartland and one of Libya’s most intriguing corners, a land of stone villages on rocky perches and otherworldly Berber architecture. The fortress-like architecture of the jebel reflects the fact that this is a land of extremes. Bitterly cold winters – snowfalls are rare but not unheard of – yield to summers less punishing than elsewhere in Libya, though the southern reaches of the Jebel Nafusa merge imperceptibly with the scorching Sahara.

It was to here that many retreated from invading Arab armies in the 7th century, and the Jebel Nafusa remains one of the few areas in Libya where Berber culture still thrives. Con- sequently, the jebel’s human landscape is as fascinating as its geography and architecture.

The Jebel Nafusa merits as much time as you can spare. From the underground houses of in the east to the crumbling qasr (fortified granary store) and old town of in the west, imagination and necessity have fused into the most improbable forms. Nowhere is this more true than in Qasr al-Haj and where the wonderful qasrs look like a back- drop to a Star Wars movie. Elsewhere, the abandoned stone village of Tarmeisa surveys the coastal plain from its precipitous rocky perch, while Yefren makes an agreeable base.

Beyond the jebel on Libya’s western frontier lies one of the world’s best-preserved oasis towns. Ghadames is an enchanted spot, a labyrinthine caravan town of covered passageways, intricately decorated houses, beautiful palm gardens and a pace of life perfectly attuned to the dictates of the desert. Ghadames one of our favourite places in Libya. THE JEBEL NAFUSA

HIGHLIGHTS & GHADAMES

Qasr Lose yourself in the labyrinthine lanes of the magical old al-Haj Nalut city in Ghadames ( p164 ) Yefren Tarmeisa Imagine yourself in a galaxy far, far away in the Kabaw perfect Berber granary store of Qasr al-Haj ( p160 ) Pick your way through the best preserved old town in the Jebel Nafusa at Nalut ( p162 ) Picnic amid the enchanted troglodyte qasr at Kabaw ( p162 ) Ghadames Crawl to the edge of the precipice at the abandoned stone village of Tarmeisa ( p161 ) Watch the sunset from the terrace (or your balcony) in the Yefren Hotel ( p159 )

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