Sydney’s Corner: Chellah

Chellah was a Roman City in Morocco.  It was built in 40 A.D.  It is one of the most impressive sights in Rabat.  After it was abandoned by the Romans, a mosque was built on part of it. I think it was awesome.  You should go there.  I loved it because of all the storks.

There are a lot of storks.  I think that the storks stay there because a predator can easily get lost in the ruins. The storks make awesome clacking noises with their beaks. They make this noise during the spring.  They make the clacking sound to attract a mate. I even saw baby storks. They were really cute.  I saw a lot of nests.   The nests look like huge dome circles.

Here is a video of the storks clacking their beaks:

When you enter into Chellah, there used to be a statue of Jupitor.  In Greek, he was called Zeus.  I think in Roman times, the houses had mosaic floors with the Gods on them.  Sadly, there were no mosaic floors left.  There are not much Roman walls left because of an earthquake.  But it is fun to climb on them.

The minaret is still there with a stork nest on top.  I also saw tiles on the walls of the mosque.  The tiles are in patterns, which I really like.

I saw eels in the pond near the mosque.  I liked watching them. I also saw cats, chickens, and roosters.  The cats were looking at the eel.  I think they were thinking, “Should I dive in and eat him and get wet or stay dry and not get eely.” I thought that was funny.

I was playing hide and seek in the ruins.  I was playing with Mom and Dad. I fell out of a tree, because the branch broke.  I hurt my leg.  I got a scrap from the branch dragging me down. I was hiding from dad.

Facts about Chellah:

1. There are lots of storks there.
2. Women believe that feeding hardboiled eggs to the eels in the pool will help with their pregnancy.
3. The Romans used to call it Sala Colonia.
4. An earthquake in 1755 caused a lot of damage to Chellah.
5. The Phoenicians were the first to settle at Chellah.

 

Now you know all about Chellah