Architecture sights in Kairouan
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Kairouan Medina
Less commercial than other medinas in the country, Kairouan's feels even more like it ebbs and flows to a different rhythm than modern Tunisia. Most of it is given over to quiet residential streets whose rather derelict façades are set off by grand and ornate doors, and windows, arches and shutters in bright blues and greens, more reminiscent of the Caribbean than of North Africa.
It's possible to wander much of the medina without being confronted by a single souvenir-buying opportunity as virtually all of the commerce is restricted to the main north-south thoroughfare of ave 7 Novembre. Here you'll find several carpet shops selling high quality products and all the usua…
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Aghlabid Basins
These cisterns, built by the Aghlabids in the 9th century are more impressive because of their engineering sophistication than as sights in themselves. Water was delivered by aqueduct from the hills 36km west of Kairouan into the smaller settling basin and then into the enormous main holding basin, which was 5m deep and 128m in diameter. In the centre of the main pool was a pavilion where the rulers could come to relax on summer evenings.
Most visitors do nothing more than peek at the cisterns from the rooftop of the syndicat d'initiative office nearby, but you can enter with the multiple-site ticket.
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Bir Barouta
The Bir Barouta, just north of ave Ali Belhouane, was built by the Ottoman ruler Mohammed Bey in 1676 to surround the well that features in the city's foundation legend. Its waters are supposedly linked to the well of Zem-Zem in Mecca. The scene itself is a little staged for the uninitiated with a blinkered camel turning the wheel to draw water from the well for people to taste.
That said, this is an important religious moment for most visitors, many of whom genuinely believe that the well is connected to Mecca. Entry is with the multiple-site ticket.
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