Loose in Tripolitania, Libya

There is lots to do for the enterprising traveler, who is not afraid to get off the beaten track.

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Now largely uninhabited, about a dozen houses are open to visitors. There are also a few shops and mosques to visit (just before prayers is the best time). The houses are made of sun-dried brick, white washed and beautifully decorated on the inside. The walls of the principal visitor's room of the house -- majlis -- are generally covered with ornaments. The interconnected roofs are a curious feature of the city. This enabled the women of the city to meet and visit each other without actually 'leaving' their house. The men went about their business in the lower part of the dwellings and the streets.

Around the city are innumerable palm trees and a spectacular cemetery.

This incredible city has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO -- and with good reason, DON'T MISS IT!

The city itself is nothing to write home about until you ask to see a traditional house. You are taken to what looks like a small shed, which encloses a staircase that takes you down about two floors. At the bottom of the stairs is a corridor leading to an open light-well, which serves as the courtyard of this sunken house. All around this courtyard one finds the rooms of the house which are excavated in the live rock.

The whole point of this type of dwelling is to beat the heat and indeed the rooms are very comfortable. There is an upper layer of rooms which serve as storage spaces.

At the end of the visit be sure to tip your guide and then, perhaps, join him for a glass of mint tea at the local cafe.

These houses are similar to the ones found at Matmata (Tunisia) - and they are certainly worth a visit.