Wicked places in Africa

Few films have had more impact on pop culture than the Star Wars series. With an almost cult-like following some fans are willing to go to the ends of the Earth to capture to smallest part of the iconography. But why go to the end of the Earth when all you need to do is visit Tunisia? Scattered throughout the country are a myriad of sets, still in tact, from the filming. Everything from Luke Skywalker's home in the village of Matmata, to entire villages where Anakin prepares for pod races. Some of the best sets are in the middle of the desert and only available on tours, like the sets outside the town of Tozeur. May the force be with you!

Ever wondered what a post-apocalypse wasteland would look like? Look no further. Crossing the border between Western Sahara and Mauritania is probably your best chance to experience the post-apocalypse first hand. The approximately four kilometres of dirt tracks between the two border posts are officially named No Man’s Land, given any potential residence there a cool address. The whole area is littered with thousands of old cars and, strangely, old televisions. The best explanation for the dumped cars is that they are stolen European cars that were too expensive to import to Mauritania and have there been left "outside" the country, then ripped for spare parts. We have no idea about the televisions. Adding to the feeling of Armageddon are the tens of thousands of landmines that still curse the border area. Tourists and locals alike have been killed here, by mines, during the last decades by straying too far off the tracks. However, anyone sticking to the well-worn tracks should be safe.

According to conveyorbeltguide.com (yes, that is a real website) the longest conveyor belt in the World is found in Western Sahara. Well, technically, it is actually 11 belts making up the world's longest conveyor belt system. Running for no less than 98 km (61 miles) the belts have transported phosphate rock and dust from the interior’s mines to a specially made port for the past 30 years. The system starts in Boucraa, south-east of Laayoune, and reaches the coast at the harbour south of Laayoune Plage. If you are travelling in the region, you will inevitably cross the belt on the main highway running north-south or drive parallel with it between Laayoune and Smara. Should you be interested, but not be willing to make the trip to West Sahara is the belts clearly viable on Google Maps: look for the long, straight, white line in the sand, phosphate dust blown off the conveyor belt have left a clear mark, stretching for tens of kilometres.