Inside the Portuguese Cistern at the Portuguese City of Mazagan
One of the main sights so see at the Portuguese City of Mazagan is the Portuguese Cistern. I was wondering where to find that place turns out that it can be accessed via a nondescript door which leads inside the building. Once you purchase tickets here, you then descend a flight of stairs into the cistern. The cistern was originally used as a warehouse. It is large because the Portuguese would need to store up on provisions since local supplies can be cut off and ships can’t come everyday. The cool climate inside the cistern also helps reduce spoilage of food. It was also theorized that artillery might have also been stored here.
Closer Look at the Central Skylight at the Portuguese Cistern
Over the years, it was eventually converted into a cistern. Arguably, water would be a more important resource to save up on especially if you are in a foreign land. These days, it is a tourist attraction. There is a skylight which lets light in through the roof and it illuminates some of the chamber below. There is also a pool of water on the ground which lends itself to reflections. If you are lucky, you can get great photos if the sunlight it tilted and you can see the light and shadows interplay here. Unfortunately for me, the light was coming straight down so I didn’t get any of those nice light rays coming down. The place wasn’t totally dark since there were bright lights which illuminate the walls. I thought that these light ruined the atmosphere of the cistern. It would be nice if only the the central skylight was the sole light source but that make it too dark to see other parts of the cistern. It doesn’t help that the lights here are all direct light and not reflected at the ceiling. I think it would have made for an even more atmospheric place.
[xmlgm {http://www.worldwanderings.net/kml/PortugueseCistern.kmz} zoom=19]