Djerba Island . Island located in North Africa , belonging to Tunisia .
Summary
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- 1 Geography
- 2 History
- 3 Attractions and entertainment
- 4 Source
Geography
Djerba is an island of about 500 square km located in North Africa, belonging to Tunisia, whose official name is the Tunisian Republic. Djerba or Jerba is a good alternative for sightseeing in Tunisia, where there are dunes, palm trees, a pleasant Mediterranean breeze that invites us to rest. Djerba is also known as “the island of a hundred mosques”, with its simple, not ostentatious sanctuaries that are a faithful representation of Mediterranean Islam.
History
Delving a little into its history, Djerba arises for the first time through the Carthaginians who give it the name Meninx , which in the Phoenician language means “lack of water”. A lack that would not prevent its prosperity as a commercial center, in a strategic point in the Mediterranean as an exporter of oil and other agricultural products. Then, with the arrival of the Romans, the main product was the production of purple, a natural dye that was extracted from murex, a very abundant mollusk in this part of the Mediterranean.
Since then, and until the Modern Age , Djerba has become a strategic point on the route of the caravans that came, both from Africa and the East , on their way to Europe . Not only would exotic products pass through its territory, such as ostrich or ivory feathers, but also slaves and numerous fugitives who found in this small paradise the most perfect of refuges.
Attractions and entertainment
Djerba, an excellent Mediterranean tourist destination, enjoys an exceptional climate with temperatures that do not drop below 20 ° C from April to November. Therefore, spring and autumn are two suitable seasons to visit the island. In Djerba you can find two different sectors; the part of the coastline where there are a large number of hotels on the shores of the best beaches that occupy more than 125 km of extension, and the other, the western part that remains practically virgin.
Those who make a trip to Djerba will not only be able to enjoy its beaches on the shores of the Mediterranean and its exotic landscapes, but also its rural areas in the interior of the island, where olive groves alternate with menzels; typical houses whitewashed with lime and surrounded by an orchard delimited by walls. You can also find herds of goats, and camels resting under the shade of palm trees. Therefore, in addition to sun and beach tourism, they can also do rural tourism in Djerba.
On excursions to the interior of the island, you can also discover other characteristics of Djerba, an example of this are some particular constructions of a Muslim sect, the Ibadites or Abadies who built their mosques that look like small fortresses due to their geometric shapes, and which have almost no minarets. Another construction is the famous La Ghriba synagogue, where every year Jews celebrate one of the largest religious festivals in the Hebrew world.
For its part, in Houmt-Souk, the administrative capital of Djerba, it is a place full of life and a lot of activity, where markets and squares full of cafes abound within a building framework formed by the heritage left by the French who they are mixed with other Turkish constructions and other older ones. After a long day of enjoying its beaches, towns, attractions and more, nothing better than savoring a mint tea in some of its cafes that abound in its squares, always scented with oranges and spices. And why not taste freshly caught fish and crustaceans in its restaurants, accompanied by good Tunisian wines , liqueurs or aperitifs.
Djerba offers multiple options to visitors, from its beaches, incredible sunsets, camel rides, different excursions, tennis , water skiing , horse riding , diving, cultural festivals, a whole range of possibilities that enrich the trip to Djerba.
