el-jadida
Portuguese Cistern
The vaulted Portuguese Cistern of El Jadida, its ceiling reflected in shallow water
An underground cistern built by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century, rediscovered in 1916 when a shopkeeper's floor collapsed. The vaulted stone ceiling reflects perfectly in the shallow water below. Orson Welles filmed Othello here — the light hasn't changed.
The Portuguese Cistern is the reason we include El Jadida on coastal itineraries. The reflection in the water hasn't changed since Orson Welles filmed it.
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