Midoun is the second town of Djerba, and Temlel lies just beside it, a rural zone of walled plots, olive trees, palms and whitewashed houses in the east of the island. It is the kind of place that a guidebook would skip, and yet it is exactly what the island's World Heritage listing is about. In 2023 UNESCO recognised Djerba as an outstanding example of how a community lived on an island with no rivers, by dividing the land into small family holdings, each with its well, its cistern, its olive press or oven, and its orchard, grouped in neighbourhoods called houmas, around a mosque and a market.
Walk or ride the lanes and you see the walls of palm trunks and mud, the arched doorways, the domed cisterns on rooftops and the careful rows of olive trees, many of them centuries old. Djerba has been known for its olive oil since antiquity, and the groves still make a living for many families. The island is said to be the land of the lotus eaters in Homer's Odyssey, where Odysseus's men forgot their homes, which locals will gladly mention with a smile.
Midoun has the fuel stations, cafes and shops, and its weekly market on Friday is lively, a good place to buy pottery, woven baskets and spices. The tourist hotels line the beaches further north-east, and the roads between them and the villages are busy in summer with taxis, buses and quad bikes. Away from the coast, the lanes are quiet, narrow and often unpaved.
Riding here is gentle and flat. Watch for sand on the road, hidden junctions, and dogs, goats and children. Summer is hot, around thirty-five degrees in August, so mornings and evenings are best. Winter is mild but can be wet and windy. Spring brings flowers among the olive groves, and autumn is sweet and calm.
Try fresh bread baked in a clay oven, olive oil poured over it, with a glass of mint tea.