Mauritania
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Overview
Driving through the vast, sun-bleached landscape of Mauritania, you'd be forgiven for expecting to see a tricked-out post-apocalyptic hot rod from Mad Max on the horizon. Instead, a solitary, turbaned figure tending a herd of goats tells the story of survival amid millennial-old geological forces. Mauritania, with one of the world's lowest population densities, is almost equally divided between Moors of Arab-Berber descent and Black Africans, a striking cultural combination that is part of its appeal.
Attractions
Must-see attractions
Réserve Satellite du Cap Blanc
Mauritania
A small nature reserve with an excellent information centre, dedicated to the colony of endangered Mediterranean monk seals (phoque moin) that live here…
Parc National du Banc d'Arguin
Mauritania
This World Heritage–listed park is an important stopover and breeding ground for multitudes of birds migrating between Europe and southern Africa, and as…
Mauritania
This little-known national park is a sister to the adjacent Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary in Senegal. It has important mangroves and acacia forest (any…
Mauritania
As you arrive across the sands or plateau from Atâr or Chinguetti, the stone houses of Le Ksar al Kiali seem to tumble down the cliff. The top of the hill…
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