The mellah stretches from here northwest along the river. Although its Jewish population has gone, the district still retains a few distinctive wooden-galleried houses and lanes so narrow two people can only just pass. In its heyday, the mellah was so dark and crowded that street lamps had to be lit even in the middle of the day. Today it has an edgy feel: some buildings are derelict and there have been reports of muggings.
