Alluring markets & tasty cuisine The best place to begin is in Tunis, the capital city. Head straight for the medina – the medieval quarter, where time’s relentless script has spared the souks (markets) from a vanishing way of life. Jammed together in covered passageways and a labyrinth of small streets, the souks offer an incredible collage of people and merchandise, a kaleidoscope of colour, a cacophony of sounds, a mélange of pungent scents and an endless parade of images from another century. The souks are grouped according to commodity, be it cloth, carpets, slippers or silver. Wander through the dim corridors, haggle for glimmering brass and copper souvenirs and pay a few pennies for a dab of jasmine perfume from a glass-stoppered bottle. You will find that the price of an object is fixed not by its actual value, but by how much you want it. Although primarily French and Arabic are spoken in Tunisia, most vendors can help you in English, or Swahili for that matter! They will probably also invite you into their shops for sweet mint tea and conversation – whether you buy their wares or not. Tunis is also a good place to sample local food specialties. Try couscous, the national dish of steamed semolina topped with a spicy stew of lamb and vegetables. Brik – a crisp, flaky pastry stuffed with tuna and egg – is a popular appetizer. For dessert, enjoy kab el ghazal (gazelle horns) – horn-shaped pastries stuffed with ground almonds and sesame seeds and soaked in syrup. Fascinating day trips Much of Tunisia’s fascination, however, lies beyond Tunis. You can take a day trip to El Haouaria where, in ancient times, more than 3,500 slaves quarried rock to build Carthage. One of the greatest cities in the ancient world, it had a population of 500,000 at its peak. Little remains of Carthage today because stones from its buildings were used to build Tunis, as well as Italian, Spanish and Turkish cities. It’s worth a visit, though, to watch archaeologists reconstructing the ruins and to see the Roman theatre which was one of the Tunisian film locations for the Monty Python movie, Life of Brian. Other day trips can be made to Kelibia – a picturesque fishing village dominated by a 16th-century citadel, to Nabeul – a city of ceramics craftsmen and to Hammamet – a beach resort. Even more appealing is the dazzling white village of Sidi Bou Saïd, with its arched blue doorways and wrought-iron window grilles. Climb the cobbled streets to viewpoints overlooking elegant villas and the Bay of Tunis. The panorama is more Mediterranean than African. CSANews | WINTER 2024 | 15 Travel
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