two to tunis

our next and final destination in the country was tunis so we woke up early hoping to make our way back to the capital. we'd hoped that going to a bigger city might make catching a louage a bit easier. it wasn't quite so straightforward, unfortunately. we made our way to the station only to be met by big crowds and a tiny ticket office. i left JR to stay with our bags near the louage marked 'tunis' while i went to buy our tickets. (why we couldn't buy them on the louage itself here was unclear.) i jostled for a spot in line outside the station near a ticket window only to learn, several minutes in, that i'd have to order a ticket for tunis inside. of course the inside was packed with people jammed up in lines. the line was interminably slow but i did only see a few arguments break out and a couple of people jump to the front of the line for whatever reason. fiiiinally i got our tickets and went to join JR at our louage. we had a bit of time to get some last minute snacks at a kiosk before our van was full and ready to go.

asla (meaning honey), our temporary pup

the trip itself was largely uneventful and in a few hours we were back in tunis. now it was a matter of finding our airbnb. while it wasn't in the labyrinthian streets of the medina it was just out the city walls in a small alley which turned out to be perhaps even harder to find. after a number of (probably expensive) confused phone calls to our host and plenty of frustration we finally made it. happy to drop our bags - and the wrapped up carpet that poor JR had lugged all over - we said hi to the friendly dog and tried to relax a bit. our host left before we got the wifi password from him (oops) but we tried to make a plan for the day with the maps and info we did have at our disposal.

we had once again managed to miss the typical lunch hour so finding food was proving difficult. in the bustling streets outside the medina we managed to find a little stall where someone was making what looked to be savory crepes, but the meat was some kind of nondescript flat, red circles and the cheese came in a little foil wedge. whatever, it would do and it at least had harissa on it. with some food in us we were a little less hangry and ready to take on the rest of the afternoon. we hopped on a local train to take us out to carthage, just a quick ride across the water.

overlooking carthage, or what's left

from the station it was a bit of a walk to the historical site (which you'd think would be better marked, right?) but we managed to find it. once there, we tramped around the ruins of carthage (such as they were) in the late afternoon sun, enjoying identifying what was left of the various buildings and store rooms. it really was pretty well decimated. the museum on site had some great mosaics and quite a few interesting artifacts but we only had about 45 minutes to enjoy it. JR was eager to find more ruins (and, indeed, there were random roman columns and sprinkled all over the place without sign or ceremony) and so we tramped around in search of old things.we managed to stumble across some aqueducts, a possible temple (well, columns) and an old amphitheatre. most had no signs whatsoever and were littered with garbage.

sunset views from cafe essaude

we found another train station and hopped on the train a few more stops to make it to sidi bu said, which we'd wanted to hit before the sun went down. it was just starting its descent so our timing was fairly good. the town was full of tourists but we made our way through the busy street to a cafe advertising a rooftop terrace (i, of course, wanting to catch the sunset from a nice vantage point). this one fit the bill - it had mint tea and cocktail shisha. we lingered a little longer and JR tried his first turkish coffee - served with a syrupy 'flower water' that was delightful. leisurely sipping out drinks and chatting into the night was definitely a highlight of the day for me.

by around 8pm we figured we should probably try to head back to tunis before it got too late. we made the short walk down from the town's main drag and caught the next local train. there were some young guys inside goofing around, trying to jump in and out while the train was still moving. we watched but didn't pay them much mind. then all of a sudden as we were approaching a station one of them grabbed for my camera bag and started to run. luckily i had it and my purse secured under my arm (as i nearly always do when traveling) and of course i held on tight. he pulled me up off my seat but i kept my grip tightly and eventually he fell backwards onto the platform. JR immediately jumped up ready to put up a fight but it all happened so fast and almost as quickly as he had lunged for me he was on his back in the station. no harm done really but we were a little shaken up. just a good reminder to always secure your stuff and be aware of your surroundings!

the next metro ride was short but we sat in the station forever just waiting for the train to move so we didn't end up getting back until almost 9. the streets of the medina were dark and nearly deserted - it was a little eerie, to be honest. at some point we were walking through a dark passage with little light to see the dirty ground.. and i managed to slip in whatever was covering the ground (likely at least some percentage of that was poop). fortunately i fell forward onto my knee and not onto my back, but still - ew. nothing seemed to be open so clearly we missed mealtime once again. eventually we passed a few open cafes but JR was nervous and anxious to get back (probably a good idea to follow your instincts in such scenarios) so we stopped at a little kiosk near our place to grab some chips, sodas and a snack that was 'oriole' flavored (we think they meant oreo..). back at the airbnb we realized we still didn't have the wifi password so our attempts to watch a movie were thwarted. all in all not our best day but still an adventure.

classic view of tunis' rooftops

the next day we slept in all the way until 9.20 - what luxury! our host, hamza, offered to take us to breakfast in the medina. anxious to get a meal at the appropriate time we acquiesced. he took us to a fabulous little cafe filled with antique chairs, rugs, and various textiles and lanterns covering every surface. most people around us were start in on the shisha but we decided to stick to coffee and tea accompanied by some little almond cakes he snagged at a kiosk around the corner. we had a nice conversation about his work and travels - all in french. funny, while he said he's learned spanish, italian, and russian he said he'd never managed to learn english. i translated as best i could for JR. of course we weren't getting away without being taken to a few carpet shops, many of which feature rooftop views of the city and the signature minaret of the great mosque. having secured our major rug purchase already we listened politely to their spiel but demurred when they urged us to buy another. hamza was very gracious and made it clear we weren't being pressured to buy anything. back in the medina he took us past his friend's perfumerie. here i got suckered into buying some argan oil (which i'm positive was incredibly overpriced, but we wanted to be nice). in fact it was apparently so overpriced that they threw in some perfume oils, which i appreciated.

cafe mrabet still life

here hamza left us and we explored the souqs on our own for a bit before it was about lunchtime. we were in the middle of the medina and - miracle of miracles - actually found a restaurant open and had a proper meal. our host had recommended el ali cafe and it was indeed very nice - clearly where folks have business lunches or rich housewives come for a break. we had a 'brik au thon' (flaky fried pastry with egg and tuna) along with 'briwettes' with shrimp, almost like an eggroll but perfectly fried in flaky dough. for our entree we shared a plate of what was essentially tunisian bolognese. it was huge and quite tasty, with a bit more red pepper than the italian version. from lunch we wanted to pop into the mosque but (once we eventually found the door on the giant structure) were told it was closed for prayers. logical, since it was still around lunchtime. we were told to come back at 2.15. to pass the time we stopped in some more souqs and took a little break at the historic cafe mrabet, with its landmark red-and-green painted columns. people were stretched out, lounging over shishas and lemon drinks. we got lemonade with mint and shisha although eventaully all the smoke (from cigarettes as well) started to give me a headache.

i like any place that gives tiles their due

we left and went by the mosque again - closed for prayers, we were told. (really??) we swung by the airbnb to drop off our purchases and use the wifi (we had the password, finally!) only to discover that the internet wasn't working. still, we tried to find our way to the sidi qasim zelliji zawiya - a mausoleum for a famous tilemaker. anyone who knows me knows this is right up my alley. we had vague directions and between that and the map on my phone we were eventually able to find the place, but not without getting turned around several times. there was actually a little workshop going on so we were able to see some artisans at work and the small place itself was indeed covered with tiles as promised. from here we figured we'd have enough time to get to the bardo museum before it closed at 4.30. the cab ride took about 15 minutes so we got there at around 3.45... only to discover the museum actually closed at 4. argh! definitely a disappointment missing that. we got out of the cab here, figuring we could hop on the metro instead. well this turned out to be a mistake. the metro came to a halt before we had even made it one stop. it finally did move again but at a snail's pace. instead of taking it all the way to the main transfer point we got off and grabbed a taxi to the station where we could get on the local train for carthage. all of this took nearly an hour.

one of the crowded punic cemeteries we explored

eventually we did make it to carthage. JR had found a few more sites he wanted to try to see. one was something called a trophet, which as far as we can tell is a place used for child sacrifice, a practice done in the punic religion. it was walled off with a little guard station but we were able to walk right in and see the little chambers and stones, whose purpose we could only guess at (there was no signage, naturally). we walked on, the sea just to our left, and passed a number of other ruins that we admired through the iron bars that walled them off. JR still really wanted to see the american cemetery though, realizing that not much or any of it may be visible. after a lot of walking we did find it, discovering that it was closed (although it was unclear if we would have been able to enter even if it hadn't been). unfortunately the big wall around it made it virtually impossible to see any of it. from here we tramped through a large field (full of snail shells, we noticed) in search of the nearest train station. figuring we'd rather get a meal rather than head back to tunis and be disappointed, we set off again for the touristy town of sidi bu said. we went up the now familiar main drag and settled on the place we'd been to the night before because at least we knew they had food and a view. here we had a a panini and a waffle with nutella (basically your universal tourist fare) and of course enjoyed our last shisha of tunisia. we lingered over our drinks as the night grew darker and just enjoyed each other's company. before leaving the town we popped in a few of the souvenir shops to get some gifts and spend some of our last tunisian dinars.

so, all in all, we learned that things tend to take longer than expected in tunisia. we certainly made some mistakes and if we'd had it to do over again we definitely would have done some things differently. but overall we enjoyed a beautiful new country together and i'm so glad JR got to see a different part of the world.

almost halfway to hajj

corsica in the distance

our 24-hour ferry ride was largely uneventful. we spent most of it in our room as the ship had little to offer in terms of entertainment. the pool stood drained and empty and the tiny casino didn't seem enticing. we spent some time in one of their cafes, enjoying an aperol spritz and campari soda as i wrote some postcards and JR read. we were very grateful to have brought some snacks along with us as the food on board, as anticipated, looked both underwhelming and overpriced. we made picnics in our room of italian focaccia, french cheese, dried meats and wine. (pro tip: bring an insulated lunch bag that will fold flat in your luggage) we were even able to watch 'dial M for murder' on my iPad that i had downloaded from the library before we left. there wasn't much of a view on our journey but we did get a glimpse of corsica off the starboard side just as the sun was going down.

getting off the boat was almost as confusing as getting on. luckily we had earlier discovered we needed to visit a kiosk to get a form to disembark earlier in the trip. in spite of having messages about various cafe and shops opening in four languages, there was never any indication we needed to go here. it was only our curiosity about why people were suddenly lining up at the photo kiosk that led us to figure it out. most people on board were clearly seasoned ferry-goers so we gathered in one of the cafes with everyone else, waiting to be told we could get off. eventually we did and made our way onto african soil! another continent for JR. just outside the little building we happened upon an ATM so we could get some of the local currency. after a few moments (and thanks to my smartphone) we got our bearings and walked towards the train station that would take us to the main part of town. on our walk we bought a much-needed liter of water and noticed the various dogs and people roaming through the mostly empty streets. finally we found the train station and after determining that it was not in fact abandoned we discovered the tiny ticket window and bought our passage onto the little train (a whopping 18 cents apiece). i was very thankful to be able to speak french again, even though we'd only been in italy for less than 48 hours. after a few minutes it arrived and we made our way across the water and into the main part of tunis. from the stop it was another 15 minute or so walk to the louage station, our bags enduring the uneven cobblestone and dusty streets. we could tell we were close to the louage station as the shops around it seemed much more active. fortunately, being in a big city, we were able to get onto a shared taxi to kairouan right away. we took the last two spots, squeezing into the back seat of the van with our backpacks on our laps.

kairouan streets

the ride took several hours with one brief stop at a gas station (where we picked up some local snacks). we spent most of the ride quietly watching the scenery go by, although towards the end the gentleman we were sharing a seat with struck up a conversation. he asked where we were planning to go and suggested a number of far-off towns with roman ruins (none of which seemed very accessible) before giving us his opinions on the 'modern tunisian'. he was nice but our interest was flagging and it was a little tiring to keep up the conversation. not too long after, though, we arrived in kairouan and were let out on the side of the road.

a little disoriented, we saw a walled structure that we first believed to be part of the city walls. when we walked inside, though, we realized it was a courtyard of what was probably a mosque. we then saw a group of people processing in what we guessed might have been a circumcision. we quickly decided this was probably not where we wanted to be. after a quick look at the smartphone we realized the direction we needed to be going and started off. as it turned out we weren't all that close to the city walls but at least now we knew where to go. we were a bit tired, getting dusty, and probably a little cranky. which is probably why what happened next struck us as so funny. as we were walking we started to notice little piles of wool or bits of sheep hooves. we realized there was probably a festival going on (and later confirmed it was eid al-adha). the streets were fairly empty but at one point we found ourselves behind two young guys on their scooters, one with a plastic bag dangling from the handlebars. the first guy stopped short, causing the guy behind him to swerve suddenly. the bag fell off the handlbars and.. a goat head rolled out. the guy was clearly upset but we couldn't help but find the whole thing faintly hilarious. we were probably a little loopy but it just tickled us. even hours later thinking about it brought us to tears laughing.

at this point you may be wondering why we chose tunisia for our honeymoon. well, we knew we wanted to go a few different places and we decided on the mediterranean as a general location. i'd been wanting to go back to france since i hadn't returned since living there. but we wanted to mix it up too - and i wanted J.R. to experience a non-western country (we're working our way up to india). plus tunisia has the advantage of having beautiful buildings both to admire and to stay in (as you can see below). and while the little arabic i once knew is all but gone i knew we could easily get by with french. the ruins of carthage and the roman empire were icing on the cake.

our gorgeous room

so anyway we eventually made it to the beautiful streets of the old city, with its painted trim and elaborate doors. after that it wasn't long before we made it to our guesthouse, the dar hassine allani. it seemed there was only one other place to stay in town - surely a nice hotel but one that seemed a bit too much. the place itself looked like a citadel. all in all i'm so happy we chose to stay where we did. the building was once a family residence, with several stories of rooms built around a central courtyard. our room was gorgeously appointed, with a carved wooden canopy bed and of course beautiful carpets. the woman running the guesthouse offered us some tea as she made copies of our passports and told us a bit about the house.

who wouldn't want to get lost in these streets

it was still early afternoon so we ventured out to explore. the streets were relatively deserted - we figured the holiday had something to do with that, although kairouan is not exactly a super touristy city anyway. we wandered through winding streets and i tried not to take a photo of every single door. (so... every other door) most of the shops were closed but we did happen upon a little family home turned museum (which of course is really a rug shop). the rooms were beautifully decorated - as we explored further we admired the carved and painted wooden ceilings, and textiles covering every available surface. then when you get to the back room the sales pitch begins. we managed to get out with just a small rug but it's not like we didn't like it.

dusk over domes and minarets

by this time we thought we'd go back to the room and rest for a bit. we relaxed in our room until the sun started to go down and it was a bit cooler. then we thought we'd go up to the roof and enjoy the view. the whole rooftop area is beautiful - covered in small tiles, little potted plants, and wrought-iron birdcages. the lady of the house somehow intuited that we were up there and brought up some citronade, a lemony drink that's a bit sour at first but then finishes very sweet. from here we could see over the rooftops as the sun started to go down. just as it was getting a bit dark the call to prayers began. the principle mosque was first, and after that other calls started to begin across the city. the voices of the various muezzins floating across the breeze was really wonderful.

kairouan streets by night

by the time the calls to prayer ended it was getting to be dark and we figured we should probably venture out in search of dinner. as we wandered through some of the same streets we did note that there were a few more shops open than before - convenience stores and little cafes with lots of men drinking coffee and smoking shisha - but no restaurants. finally just outside of the city walls we happened upon a little restaurant filled with locals. thrilled to find any kind of food we ordered what seemed to be all they were serving - roasted chicken served with a spicy egg dish, vegetables, french fries, and the ubiquitous round bread. it was all quite tasty and we were fairly hungry so it didn't take us long to polish off most of the food. the place was fairly small and very crowded with both people and stray cats but we still had a nice conversation over our simple meal. the only thing that marred our dining experience was when we went to pay. the guy at the counter told us our meal would be 20 dinar - as much as the fare for both of us all the way from tunis. i asked the guy again, skeptically if that was the price and raised my eyebrows but short of causing a scene i wasn't sure what else to do. but at least he knew i knew he was ripping me off... right?

towards mecca

minaret from the arcade

the next day we woke up to an amazing breakfast complete with both french croissants and tunisian round bread, accompanied by strong coffee and mango (we think) juice. we were a bit nervous that everything would be as shuttered as it had been the day before but fortunately as we walked out into the streets we began to see some shops open. our first stop, though, was the mosque. the principle mosque, that is, and one of the oldest in all of islam with construction beginning as early as 670. i'd been to kairouan once before but had managed to miss the open hours to visit the mosque so this time i was determined. fortunately it was open and we were able to visit (once i had used my scarf to cover my head). we saw very few tourists during our entire stay in kairouan but here we happened upon a family or two, although they did seem to be tunisian. it was so interesting to see the different ways the roman capitals were repurposed to create the arches inside the mosque. and we noticed there were even a few stones with carved latin - one that was put in upside down. the courtyard was vast - bigger than the interior of the mosque (as was typical of most early mosque architecture) and allowed us to see the stocky minaret from a variety of angles. the existence of this very old mosque is part of what makes kairouan the 4th holiest city of islam - and a UNESCO world heritage city to boot. at some point during our trip we learned that if you visit kairouan 7 times it's equivalent to performing the hajj. so i'm making progress!

rug shop views

at this point i remembered that there was a rug shop just across the road that offered beautiful views down into the mosque's courtyard so we ventured over. naturally we weren't about to enjoy that view without getting a sales pitch on carpets. we were in the market so of course we listened and looked at a number of them as the salespeople spun them around and demonstrated the number of knots but pulling up the corners. they had many varieties but since kairouan itself is known to be a hub for carpet-making we wanted one that was local. eventually we saw one we liked - red with chevrons in blue, black, and tan - and i haggled for what seemed like a fair price (who knows) of 325 dinar, or about $125. although JR agreed that he liked the carpet he didn't follow any of the rest of the conversation since it was all in french. but he played along when i looked disinterested and chuckled good-naturedly when they threw in a few phrases in english. ('wedding present') when i went downstairs to pay they made a show of plugging in an ancient credit card machine and showing me that it was not working. i'm certain this is done deliberately since cash is king (always) but i knew pulling out that much cash from an ATM would mean another hefty fee on my end. after berating them a little for trying to play me i told them if i had to use cash i'd be paying 300 - they acquiesced. we were content with our purchase - certainly the biggest of our honeymoon souvenirs - but this also meant we had to carry the carpet around until we could get back into the guest house to stash it. JR, wanted to be the gentleman, insisted on carrying it even as the twine they used to hold the paper together and create a makeshift handle was digging into his palms. we did stop by the guest house but we found that our hostess was out and were forced to continue on and try back later.

 

typical tunisian door

JR had been wanting to see the aghlabid basins, old cisterns that used to house water that was carried there from miles away. they were a bit of a hike, outside the city walls. we made our way there and were impressed by the size of them. the cisterns themselves held only a bit of green water littered with trash at the bottom. (our host later told us they used to be filled with clear water and the areas around them were often filled with families strolling and vendors selling toys and snacks.) still, JR was glad to have seen them, although surely would have been happier had he not had to carry the hefty carpet there. fortunately when we made our way back our host was there and we were able to drop the package off before setting out again. having wandered around the early part of the afternoon we managed to miss mealtime again. we finally found a little restaurant that seemed to be open in a small alley near the bazaar (fairly close, we think, to where parts of indiana jones was filmed). we had a 'brik' of tuna in flaky crust topped with eggs (which seems to be a popular tunisian dish) and coucous merguez with carrots and sausages. along with tea, tomato soup and nice bathrooms it made for a very pleasant lunch.

gladiators' view

having finally eaten we made our way towards the louage station in hopes of reaching el jem (sometimes spelled 'djem'), the site of a colosseum-like roman ruin. although it's a fairly straight shot we had to go through sousse which is more of a hub. we were able to get onto a van fairly quickly on both legs which was lucky, because it was already getting to be fairly late in the afternoon and we weren't even sure how late the site would be open. i hoped JR might sleep during some of the ride but he always seemed to be looking out the window. when we made it to the little town of el jem it was fairly obvious where to go, as the amphitheater rises up in the midst of an otherwise flat city filled with one and two story buildings. the town was what you might call bustling, at least for being as small as it was. we made sure to note where the louage station was and made mental notes of a few landmarks along the way. when we arrived it was nearly 5 and the sun was beginning to sink in the sky. fortunately the site was still open and we found a few bored attendants in the ticket offices and only one or two other families inside. the roman ruins don't seem to be marketed terribly well in tunisia which i suppose is both a blessing and a curse in that the lessened traffic probably helps to preserve them. still, there were some sites we heard or read about that seemed incredible but would have been all but impossible to get to.

that golden glow

in any case my historian was thrilled that we'd made it here and i have to say it was pretty incredible. the building itself was remarkably well preserved - like a mini colosseum but made of sandstone and much more accessible. by that i mean we could go virtually everywhere - up into the stands, down onto the floor and even down below where the people and animals would have been kept. for my part i was delighted we got there when we did because the golden light made the building and carved details that much more beautiful. JR had a ball, even going up into the stands and playing emperor. i was so glad we'd ended up going. we knew we'd better get back to the louage station sooner than later but on our way we couldn't help stopping at an intriguing little antique shop. it had all sorts of treasures including architectural elements, carved wooden objects and metal tea sets. we ended up finding a little wrought iron window grille painted light blue (although peeling and rusted in some spots, naturally) that we knew would make a great souvenir. and it had the added advantage of being somewhat flat and easy to pack. once we'd gotten that, and a red stone necklace for me, we made our way somewhat hurriedly back to the louage station. at some point we picked up a local who pretended to be guiding us somewhere (presumably the station) and motioning for us to hurry (which of course we knew was nonsense as louages don't leave at prescribed times). we ignored him as best we could - we knew perfectly well where we were going - but it didn't deter him. when we got to the station he acted as though he had guided us there and of course motioned for some payment for his 'services'. i told him plainly in french that he didn't do anything and we knew where the station was. he didn't make a fuss and left fairly quickly.

kairouan from the guesthouse window

unlike earlier we did have to wait a bit for a louage this time. finally we managed to cobble together enough passengers to head to sousse and we left just as the sun was going down in earnest. in sousse we had a bit of a wait as well and we were beginning to realize this would be our best opportunity to have some sort of food. there was a little sandwich shop open in the station so i dashed over there to get us some food. there were a number of guys milling around and we weren't at all sure who our driver was so i made sure to teach JR how to say 'wait for my wife' just in case it looked like they were starting to leave. i got us some chicken schwarma on baguettes with harissa (spicy sauce) and french fries from a nice guy who - like many people - seemed very surprised that i was american. americans don't much come to tunisia, i imagine. we tried a different flavor of boga cola this time - purple. we guessed either plum or tamarind. as it turned we still had a bit of a wait even after we finished our sandwiches. eventually we did get going though and good lord i don't think i've ever been on such a harrowing drive. that's really the only word for it. it was clear the guy - a young guy who seemed to be trying to impress the other cool dudes back at the louage station - was going WAY too fast by the speed at which the headlights were zooming by. and listening to incredibly loud music or talking on his phone the whole time! i couldn't look (i just clenched JR's arm) but JR said he's never seen anyone come that close to hitting other cars when passing them. as soon as we got close enough to the city in an area we recognized (near our dinner spot from the night before) we jumped out, glad to have made it back in one piece. i've been on some scary drives before but nothing like that!

we were glad to get back to the sleepy town of kairouan although somewhat sad to pack up our things. we'd missed the one mausoleum i'd wanted to see (we did find it but it was closed) - still we made it to the mosque and bought our much-anticipated carpet which were definitely the top two items on my list.

desert-ed

our main objective in coming to douz was to visit the desert. we left with our guide, zou, at about 2 in the afternoon, when the saharan sun was still high and bright. we took a van from the center of town to the outskirts where we met our camels. they were loaded up with our stuff, and then we jumped on ourselves. and when i say jump, i mean we hoisted ourselves over the layers of blankets and held on for dear life as the camel lurched forward and back. the extra joint in their leg makes the process rather interesting.

we continued on in pairs, with my camel at the lead. his name is amir, incidentally, which means king. we learned a bit about our camels during our two-hour trek. firstly, if left to their own devices, they will eat any vegetation in sight. secondly, camels have a very interesting mating practice. and apparently mating season is december-february. it consists of them sticking a big, lumpy tongue-like object out of their mouths and make a gross gurgling noise that sounds something like jabba the hut swallowing. no spitting, though.

the camel ride itself was rather uncomfortable but not altogether unpleasant. we were really enjoying the hot desert sun and exploring the terrain. once you leave civilization, the expanse of empty land is quite impressive. the white sand was different than the red sands of morocco.

when we arrived at our campsite, we were asked to gather brush and sticks for firewood. once our guides got the fire going we took it upon ourselves to play in the desert, walking around barefoot, jumping off dunes and making fun silhouettes when the sun went down.

once our dinner (couscous with vegetables and lamb) was prepared we gathered around the campfire for traditional (or maybe current top 40) tunisian songs accompanied by zou on the drum. once the stars came out we heard about the constellations over a dessert of oranges and tea. we ended the night with more songs and jokes until the moon came up and we were too tired to stay awake.

we retired to our tents, two people in each. the one that jasmine and i shared had a broken flap so we were instead given zou's paper-thin dress/shirt as a covering. even with our four thick blankets and my nice warm socks it was a long, cold night. we woke up several times, waiting for the sun to come up. this was not made any easier by the prospect of going to the bathroom out in the cold. "the sun comes up at about 5 right?" more like 7.30. it was the longest awaited sunrise of my life. wow.

when it was finally light outside we gathered around the fire and sat in a stupor, wrapped in our blankets. dazed and still cold, we watched as zou's partner (mufta?) stoked the fire and made delicious desert bread out of just flour, water and salt that he baked right in the sand under the hot embers. it was delicious and filling. after we had eaten our fill of sand bread (surprisingly sand-free) we remounted our camels and continued back to douz. our camels were lively, making plenty of disgusting noises (some of which i'm convinced lucas must have been inspired by).

it was quite an experience, and i think we were all glad we had done it. plus now whenever i have to do something i don't want to do, i tell myself, 'i peed in the desert; i can do anything.'

hammaming it up

our next destination was the small town of douz, which was the most remote and least touristy of the cities we visited. one of the most memorable experiences in this little town was our visit to the hammam, essentially a public bathhouse. men and woman visit separately (for obvious reasons) and after vince explained his trip there we thought we knew what to expect..

we arrived in the morning, when the women usually visit. we were directed into the first room, which is lined with lockers for clothes. this is why we were somewhat surprised when a woman came in and motioned for us to give her our clothes to put outside (?). we reluctantly obeyed. slowly we undressed and continued on to the back room (the first room) in our underwear. this room was what vince described to us as "the rainforest", basically a giant sauna where the women use scalding hot water to scrub themselves. we quickly realized we were the only ones who were not half naked so.. doing as the locals do we decided to follow suit. (it was awkward for us at first but as you'll see by the end, we quickly got over that.) this ended up being a good decision, as we were covered in sweat within a few minutes.

once we had stayed in the rainforest as long we could stand it, one of the hammam ladies ushered us into the next room where we were expecting our massages (as per vince's description). the woman asked who was first and we graciously volunteered paloma. we quickly learned that it was not a massage so much as a complete bathing. the women treated us like giant babies, washing us quite literally from head to toe. they had no shame, setting us on their laps or pulling our underwear this way and that. they scrubbed us until our skin was raw; jasmine's right arm was red for several days afterwards.

after the scrubdown (not rubdown), we went to the individual showers to soap up and wash our hair. this we did by pouring water from buckets. after the hammam ladies (with whom we had become fast friends) asked for our shampoos and body gels we went back to retrieve our clothes and redress. in the meantime another girl came by offering putting makeup on us. we kind of felt like giant baby dolls. we were still damp as we left the hammam and went back into the cool morning air. as they say, it's harder to leave the hammam than to go in. but we definitely felt refreshed and our skin felt cleaner and lighter. probably because we left half of it on the hammam floor.

kairouan, southern sun

the next stop was kairouan, which i had pretty high expectations for. it is, after all, the 4th holiest city of islam and home to one of the world's oldest mosques. in addition it's called the "city of fifty mosques." as we arrived in town we were greeted by many shops with cow's heads hanging in the window. (not particularly shocking after seeing goats' heads and cows' hooves in the markets in tunis).

we enjoyed walking around in the warm southern sun and exploring the winding streets of the old town. i suppose the streets were very similar to the other towns we had been to - simple white walls with colorful doors and windows - but somehow it seemed less touristy and more 'real'. eventually we made it to the great mosque which we weren't able to go inside (we had just missed its open hours) but had a lovely view of from a nearby terrace. we stayed at the store to be polite, and for a nice carpet show with tea. kairouan being the carpet capital of tunisia, we were able to see some beautiful silks as well as big berber rugs. we were all enjoying ourselves but jasmine's enthusiasm was apparent - particularly when she lunged for the carpets, fingers splayed. needless to say she ended up spending a little dinaro (ha) there. not one, but two rugs! they were beautiful, of course. somehow as we came back we found ourselves in another carpet store where paloma and vince bought rugs as well.

we returned to our hotel, right next to the medina. it was a splurge at 13 dinar (around 7 euro) for our private room. its best feature was the open rooftop which we decided to take advantage of. we went up just before dusk with the idea of spreading out on our rugs and enjoying our hookah and pastries as the sun went down. we had some issues setting up the hookah - it turned into a 2-hour ordeal of replacing parts and finding a working lighter.

but in the meantime we enjoyed a beautiful sunset and watched as the lights went up in the medina during the call to prayer. we waited until the stars came out before we went out for a dinner of 2 dinar chapati (omelette, tuna and veggies in a pita) during which we were invited into what we think was a living room and serenaded by american hip hop music. a fun ending to our nice evening.

pas de soussis

our next stop in tunisia was the seaside town of sousse (pronounced soussa), which we got to via the preferred mode of transportation, shared taxi or 'louage'. basically you wait until a van fills up with enough people to go to your destination. seems sensible enough though as we discovered it takes patience.

sousse itself wasn't terribly impressive - sort of a beach resort town - but we still had a good time exploring the old city and, naturally, the markets. after a long lunch, accompanied by a creepy yanni tribute concert, we walked along the beach and enjoyed the other side of the mediterranean. we continued on until we reached the walls of the medina where we found the ribat which translates approximately to fortress. from there we had a nice view of the city and the port below. it reminded me quite a bit of the medieval castles i've been to in england.

we continued wandering the rest of the medina, finding the souqs (markets) much less overwhelming than in tunis. this must have showed because we all walked away with some kind of big purchase - poufs (leather ottoman), carpets, spices, brass plates, all kinds of little wonders. the best purchase by far, however, was made by paloma. it can best be described as a diaper dress -it has a long piece of cloth that goes under your legs and comes back over your shoulders. she insisted she was only trying on clothes for jasmine to see which is why we were all stunned when she walked out of the store with the weirdest thing she had tried on. it did make for a lot of fun jokes though.

around dusk, just after the call to prayer we bought a sampling of pastries and wandered back to the new part of town where we hoped to find a nice place to sit along the water. once we got to the water we were greeted by a stunning view of the full moon coming up over the water and, just around the corner, a perfect little seaside cafe for tea and hookah. i had a delicious pine nut tea and we sampled/devoured the pastries we had bought. it was a nice end to a nice day.

ruined?

our second full day in africa was spent outside tunis in the neighboring towns of carthage and sidi bu said. we were hopeful because the skies had cleared and we could see some blue. we set out for the train station, about a 15 minute walk. we reached it and were first directed to the metro across the street and then to the other train station across town. we were told to continue on and follow the tracks. we did, and they led us to a part of town i doubt we would have seen otherwise. along the way we saw lots of jackhammering/construction, empty restaurants, a dead dog (yeah, sorry), and an old couple wading through a small flood in their street. we were literally walking on the tracks and eventually we did approach the train station, though likely not how most people do. when we got there we realized we could have taken the major boulevard the entire way down. but we preferred our scenic route anyway.

the train to carthage, which was really more of a metro but sounded like a car, got us there in about half an hour. and our first site in this ancient city? monoprix. nothing like a french convenience store to put you in the old world mindset. at any rate we continued on to the site of the basilica (not the basilisk, as jasmine referred to it) where we found the remains of a church and some (authentic?) mosaics which we did not disturb at all. ahem. the highlight of carthage was probably when jasmine and i decided to 'translate' the historic guide we were given by making up a history of our own. the best part was when vince took a picture of the "original phoenician remains" of the stone wall under the "subsequent roman construction". it wasn't until they discovered that there was no description of the basilica that all was revealed.

the remains of carthage itself are pretty minimal, as we had heard. we climbed to the top of the hill where we could see the mediterranean as well as the ruins that remained. several columns, some statues and the outlines of buildings below. another fun fact about carthage: it contains the presidential palace, which cannot be photographed under penalty of up to three years in prison. we had heard rumors of this but saw no trace of the actual palace. nor do any come up in a google image search. we're still skeptical as to the palace's actual existence. after exploring carthage the rain began so we ducked into a restaurant where we had a lovely lunch of bread/olive oil (seems to be the standard appetizer) and pizza and pasta that we realized afterward we had eaten in silence because we were so hungry.

from there we went on to sidi bu said, a lovely little tourist trap known for its white walls and universally blue doors and windows. it was charming but would have been even more enjoyable had it not still been cold and rainy. nevertheless we wandered the streets taking pictures of strangers' doors and lemon trees. we had a look into a private home in what i think is known as the 'family house' where we enjoyed mint tea and a view from their rooftop terrace (the precise moment at which it started to rain again, naturally). the city was cold but still cute and totally redeemed itself with a lovely hookah bar that was beautifully appointed and had delicious flavored hot chocolate. we gave it 5 out of 5 smoke o's (our hookah rating system).

despite the weather, we had a fun day outside tunis and still made it back in time for the delicious hostel dinner (approximately 2 euro).

open door policy

i've just returned from a lovely holiday in tunisia, or, tunissiya, as the brits (apparently) call it. the four of us (jasmine, paloma, vince and myself) spent a week there and were completely enamored of this fascinating country. we experienced some interesting aspects of the culture and i'll try to hit the highlights for you.

vince set the tone for the trip on the taxi ride (naturally, the shuttle was on strike that day) to the airport: "i assume there will be low to minimal judging on this trip." it ended up being very appropriate, as lodging (read: bathrooms) were sometimes questionable and showering was never a certainty.

we began our journey in tunis, where we arrived at the airport and took a cab to our hostel in the medina (roughly translated to old, walled, wind-y part of the city) which was surprisingly easy to find. we knew we were in a totally different place. the obvious things of course, like the language and the labyrinthian city. but also little things like the money: they use three decimal places which means they count up to millimes (thousandths). for example a coin with 100 on it is really 100/1000 or one tenth of one dinar. but a 1/2 dinar coin would be 0,500. this took some getting used to. also, the locks in the doors turn backward. no righty-tighty here. what a country.

immediately two aspects of landscape became very apparent: the flags and the doors. both were everywhere but the latter was the more captivating. for those of you who don't know, i happen to enjoy taking pictures of interesting doors. i had heard tunisian doors were particularly beautiful (and warned my travel partners about my habit well in advance) and i was not disappointed. door capital of the world, as far as i'm concerned. it seemed like every door was painted a bright color or patterned with studs. it doesn't seem like much, but it really added so much to the city.

more to come...