Chapter 2 - Olives and the Coast

The drive south from Tunis was not at all what I expected.  I know that Tunisia has a lot of agriculture and used to be the breadbasket of ancient Rome, but I must say I was startled by the lushness.  We literally saw amber waves of grain (along with the requisite grapes and olives).  Tunisia actually produces 19% of the world’s olives!  They are very yummy, too. 

As we worked our way further south it started looking much more arid with only olive trees (see 19% above).  But again, we could easily have been driving through Italy or Spain or Greece. I guess that’s just the thing.  It’s a very Mediterranean culture much as southern Europe.  They all have the same basic roots and culture and certainly the same climate.  A bit naïve and elitist of me to assume that it should be so much different (but I’m falling back on my Egypt experience, which looks much different)

The music here on the radio and in cafes is quite a mix.  We were listening to classic Arabic music one moment and then Sting or U2 the next.  They seamlessly move back and forth, much as they do with their language (they almost all speak French and Arabic, I have heard them using both in conversations.)  I wish I could do that.  I theoretically studied French in high school and college, but I sound like an idiot now.  It doesn’t help that the little Spanish I have learned keeps slipping out (three keeps coming out tres!)

Mahdia is a very pleasant little seaside town sitting on a little peninsula.  Cobblestone streets. Old homes, large fort from a thousand years ago, some pretty old mosques.   We just strolled around today and the highlight was having mint tea in a tiny plaza with wonderful shade trees (the sun is brutal) with the old men who just hang out there.  Very calming.

Okay, so where are the dogs?  Lots of stray cats (apparently cats are prized in Islam).  We usually see lots of stray dogs, which upsets one of us very much.  But not here.  None.  Haven’t seen one canine at all.  We heard one in Carthage, but that was it.   Coming from a town that is so dog heavy, it’s a bit like some kind of Twilight Zone episode: The happy couple goes on vacation, but little do they know that this vacation is to a different place, a place without dogs.  This vacation is to the Twilight Zone.  Then our hapless heroes go through some misadventure, only to find out that they’re in some diorama that a puppy has built for show-and-tell at his dog school where they all talk and keep us as pets!

There’s a very large police force here.  They stand on the side of the road in pairs and trios and then randomly pull people over to check their papers.  In two days of driving we’ve been stopped twice: First time by a really scary looking dude.  Large, overweight, mean looking mustache.  He asked for papers.  Then he asked for the rental car contract. Then for my license.  He studiously reviewed them and then waved us along.  I don’t know if he was targeting us or not, but it was a bit freaky.  The second time we were stopped, we tried to hand them our papers but we were just waved along.  Don’t know what that was about. 

Moving away from the coast we next stopped at El Jem.  It’s an old Roman town with no natural water but was a major crossroads in North Africa so strategically placed.  It also happens to be a kickass place to grow olives.  There are olive trees everywhere. As far as the eye can see on the rollinghills you see olive trees. This was true even as we continued all the way west into the desert.  In fact, we must have passed an olive oil plant at one point because it smelled of olive oil in the air for several miles –yum!

 And the olive oil was the point for the Romans.   Tunisia quickly became the leading producer of olive oil for the empire (sorry Spain – you got bumped) and thus led to the riches of the old Roman town of Thysdrus (now El Jem).   With this wealth they built an enormous amphitheater (think Coliseum) for “circuses” (as in bread and circuses) that was the largest in Africa. 

It is pretty amazing to be driving through some dusty town and boom out of nowhere there’s a coliseum! 

It’s very well preserved and you can even go underground and see where they kept gladiators, animals and other victims for the games.  They would actually be hoisted up on elevators through open air shafts that are still present.   The Romans may be cruel, but they were awesome engineers.

As we stood there thinking about all of the blood spilled and how it was often done for political jockeying purposed (i.e., keep the people happy, sponsor a game to win an election, etc), Rachel commented how some things never change. Soap box moment – skip to the next paragraph to avoid.   We were born wild animals and we will perish as wild animals always looking for our advantage over our brethren no matter what the cost.  Preaching done.

El Jem also sports a nifty mosaic museum.  They were very big on mosaics in Roman Africa.  The best part was that they recreated a villa that they had unearthed so that you could actually see what it looked like. They even put the mosaics they found at the dig in the recreated villa.  Quite a lovely home.  I mean it’s no McMansion, but with the courtyard and pool and glorious mosaics, very nice place to live (if you were rich).  Apparently, making mosaics, while clearly an art form, was not well appreciated by the Romans.  A mosaic artisan made about the same as a baker.  I mean I like a good pastry and all, but a good mosaic isn’t something that you can just whip together like so much dough.

Tunisia May 2010

Greetings all. I thought I would try making this travel journal thing a blog. The journal is a bit longer than normal, so I will post a new chapter every couple of days.

Chapter 1 – Bienvenue a Tunisia!

Greetings, everyone, from Tunisia! For the first time, I’m writing this journal on my Netbook. So here’s what I have to say about that. Very nice to have our own computer and pick up Wifi where we can (although in fewer places than expected). That being said, I have an older model with a smaller keyboard and my fat fingers keep hitting extra keys!

Anyway, you don’t care about that. You want to know what’s going on here along the Barbary Coast. That’s right. We’re hanging out where the pirates once roamed. It took the early US marines to wipe them out (shores of Tripoli…just one country over!).

So it’s a very interesting place and not what I expected at all. Having spent some time in Egypt and Jordan, I kind of thought I would be getting a repeat, culturally speaking. Not so. Tunis (the capital) has a very European flavor. In fact, if there were no Arabic writing, I would’ve sworn we were in Italy or Greece or maybe Spain. Same wide boulevards with beaux arts architecture and cafes lining the street. Oh, and everything’s in French as well as Arabic, and everyone speaks French.

Everyone is basically dressed in western clothes – even most women. Some are wearing scarves over their heads but many are dressed quite provocatively (just like home). I think the French influence has really had an impact here. But more importantly, they have had a very liberal Islamic influence due to their past two presidents. Women have equal rights, hold jobs, and are educated (74% female literacy rate).

There are some big differences though, that upon second glance make you realize something is different. At night, the cafes and bars (yes, there is some liquor served here) are full. But they are full of men only. It’s quite odd actually to look around at the hustle and bustle and realize there’s not a woman around (unless she’s a tourist). There are some local women out at night, but they are always just strolling or eating an ice cream – never sitting and having a coffee. That’s just the men.

Let’s talk about those men for a minute. So it does seem a bit odd that they are out every night (and I mean every night. No difference between weekend and weekday – always out). They also, by western terms, are very affectionate with each other. Men walk down the street arm in arm or arms over their friends’ shoulders. This is the kind of behavior you would expect of couples at home but here, it’s solely a male domain. Very few male/female couples have any kind of PDA. It’s quite interesting to think about given how harsh this culture can be on gay men (some are out, but it is definitely frowned upon).

So enough of the culture. To the sights. Spent the first day walking around the Tunis Medina (old town). It was Sunday so everything was closed and it was a bit eerie. That being said, there were a few places open and it felt much like very other old towns we’ve been to. Charming old buildings – some in good shape, some decrepit. Always people hawking souvenirs and trying to get you into their shops. Again, if we were plopped down here we could be in any number of places and not realize we were here.

Many have asked us why Tunis, and I always say Carthage! Well, we went there, and it was very cool. To stand in the area that Hannibal once strode and see the remains of such a mighty city state was humbling. Much of the ruins are in pretty bad shape. It didn’t help that after the third Punic War Rome razed the city and, to make sure it stayed that way, even plowed salt into their fields. But we did see some old ruins of actual Punic Carthage as well as Roman ruins (they did rebuild later and made it a major hub for African commerce). The baths were particularly amazing in their enormity. Several football fields long and a couple wide, they must have been quite the experience in their day. The other quick tidbit was that we saw some razors from 3^rd century BC. Kind of like a straight razor, but nothing I would want to put against my face (even if they weren’t rusted!).

It’s a bit surreal going to Carthage, as it is actually now a very well-to-do suburb. You take the equivalent of the LIRR out there (loud teenagers included – except that here they get to hang out the doors!) and suddenly you are in a beautiful, well-manicured part of town. The ruins are here and there and spread over a few kilometers and sit among the current presidential palace and an exclusive tennis club (I didn’t know such things actually existed!).

So the current president has been in office for 20 years. He’s certainly brought stability but must have quite a few enemies. As we were walking outside the palace (along a major thoroughfare), a plain clothes guard made us move sides of the street. We then saw half a dozen other plain clothes guards as well as half a dozen uniformed guards. What was quite amusing about the plainclothes was that they were standing there trying to look casual in a place where no other pedestrians were congregating. So why plainclothes? I don’t know, but I guess you stay in office for 20 years partially by posting the right guards.

We went to the Bardo museum, which has one of the world’s great mosaic collections. What we saw was quite stunning (most of Roman era). Mosaics that were literally 3 stories high (or higher) and some as wide. The patterns were so intricate and the portraits looked as if they had been painted. Unfortunately, the museum is under reconstruction, so much of it was closed off. A guard took us back to see some of them (for a tip, of course) which was wonderful because those were some of the best.

Sidi bou Said is a lovely town just north of Carthage perched up high on a hill. With stunning vistas of Tunis and Cape Bon (major mountainous cape in Tunisia), it’s a real treat. The buildings are all whitewashed with blue trim and it’s very reminiscent of the Greek isles.

So doors are a big deal here. I haven’t figured out why yet, but they are very large (sometimes with the inlaid smaller door – kind of like a large doggie door, but for people). They also are very well trimmed sometimes with marble and have enormous circular handles. They also have large nails in them in various patterns. Really makes strolling a treat as you always come across these charming porticos (often with bougainvillea hanging off them too to add to the effect).

Food has been very good. In many ways, I’m in heaven. They really really dig spicy food here. Every meal starts with a plate of harrissa, which is crushed chili peppers garlic, salt and caraway seeds. It comes with an entire baguette. And then you order your meal, too! Couscous, of course, is delicious. The seafood is quite tasty and simply prepared. They also have a spicy salad of roasted peppers and harrissa called mechouia. Throw in some mint tea and Turkish coffee, and it’s a delicious food extravaganza. Of course we’ve rented a car and aren’t walking as much, so we’re adding some mass.

Ah, the car. I had some trepidation about driving here, what with the stick shift and some reputation for bad drivers. But it went pretty well. On day 1, I got into first on the second try and even managed not to stall out in a couple of traffic jams. Of course, couldn’t figure out how to get it into reverse until the rental car guy showed me (you have to pull up on it- never seen that before!)