\paperw4260 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 \fs24 The region of Dahar, in the south of Tunisia, is still inhabited by fifty thousand \b \cf1 \ATXht9 Berbers\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 , man
y of whom live in the subterranean villages of Matmata, truly phantom cities set in a lunar landscape.\par
The \i houch\i0 , as this type of underground dwelling recorded as far back as the time of Herodotus is called, has a complex structure. The cent
ral court, looking like a shell set in a crater, is the only part open to the sky and provides access to the rooms excavated in the ground on several levels. These include the rooms of the house itself, storerooms for food, and workshops for those who pr
actice handicrafts.\par
Life goes on in the court, invisible from the outside. Here clothes are washed, ô\b \cf2 \ATXht10306 couscous\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 ö ground, and guests received. Matmata is a place of great historical significance, a precious testimo
ny to a past that runs the risk of being destroyed forever by tourism.\par
