Blogs from Tozeur, Tunisia, Africa
May 1st 2012
Tunisia! The place from which so much of the visual imagery of Star Wars came. The Sahara Desert. Ancient Troglodyte homes. The Ksars (ancient granaries that later became stacked stronghold desert villages). Phoenician and Roman ruins. And more shades of blue on the Mediterranean coast than one could possibly imagine! But to get from the airport to the start of our weeklong adventure was about to become quite a challenge. A challenge that would only be smoothed out by the incredibly helpful people of Tunisia. With the best of advice from the Carthage International Airport Information Desk, we hopped on a public bus, bound for the train station. Whoops, the wrong train station. With the helpful advice of a gaggle of young men outside that train station we set of on foot - with bags - ... read more
August 11th 2011
Ovviamente non mi trovo a Tozeur. A dir la verità, neppure ci sono mai stato. Tuttavia "I treni di Tozeur" resta la colonna sonora che amo ascoltare: - seduto alla scrivania, quando il progetto del viaggio prende forma - al check-in, quando preferirei aver affittato un treno intero per i bagagli - alla dogana, nella speranza che non controllino in tutte le tasche - per tutti i pensieri (fossero poi tanti) e le impressioni che mi colgono lontano dalle mie valli, dalle mura di casa, da quel senso di protezione che mi culla. Ne deriva che Tozeur potrebbe anche non esistere, ma resterebbe sempre il mio punto di partenza. Il piccolo centro di gravità che, nella lotta ai pregiudizi, mi aiuta a ritrovare me stesso e lasciarmi guidare dall'istinto. Che non farò lo scrittore da grande ... read more
April 18th 2010
La journée commence par une visite de Tozeur, ville prospère du désert irriguée par 200 sources débitant 800 litres d'eau par seconde. Puis, en route vers Chebika. Chebika est un petit oasis où on peut observer les ruines d'un village ancien détruit en 1969 par des pluies torrentielles. Un nouveau village a été construit en contrebas. Nous grimpons à flanc de montagne pour redescendre un sentier en lacet et admirer 2 magnifiques cascades. Prochaine étape, Millès, d'où nous apercevons la frontière algérienne, située à seulement 6 km d'où nous sommes. Des bornes blanches nous permettent de bien voir ses limites, tout en haut de la crête montagneuse que nous longeons. À Millès, nous pouvons nous approcher tout au bord d'un profond canyon au fond duquel nos regards courent entre plusieurs petits oasis. Une vue à couper ... read more
April 17th 2010
Bon, me revoilà... les 3 derniers jours ont été sans internet à l'hôtel. Je vous avais prédit que ça arriverait... D'entrée de jeu, je vous fais un correctif de photo. Vous avez effectivement vu une coupole pas de coupole. Trop pressée la madame, un mauvais copier coller. Voici donc la coupole de la Grande Mosquée. Je voudrais vous faire admirer le travail du plafond de l'hôtel Jugurtha Palace où nous avons dormi à Gafsa (et non Garsa). La photo ne rend pas hommage au travail de l'artiste, mais en donne quand même une idée. Une marche dans la médina de Gafsa nous plonge dans la vie de tous les jours de ses habitants. Départ pour Tozeur en 4x4 Land Rover. Nous nous sommes arrêtés pour une petite séance photo devant le décor du Patient anglais. La ... read more
Kebili An old abandoned village and the heart of the Saharan slave trade
Published: March 23rd 2010Africa » Tunisia » Tozeur
March 20th 2010
From Tozeur we had intended to make our way up the Western edge of Tunisia. Our experiences of taking louages and other forms of public transport in remote areas put us off somewhat. Instead we abandoned those plans and headed back over the Chott El Jerid salt lake to the town of Kebili. We stayed in the Hotel Kitam on the Northern edge of town. We were the only guests and it was rather more expensive than we had hoped for. At 50 dinars (£22) for a double room we expected something really nice but as the only guests it seemed we were just an inconvenience to the tranquil life of the owners. They made Basil Fawlty look like a guest relations specialist and breakfast the following morning saw a pot of coffee on the table ... read more
Tozeur On the Star Wars trail in the land of the Palm Tree
Published: March 22nd 2010Africa » Tunisia » Tozeur
March 18th 2010
Tozeur, what a cool place! We couldn’t get in at the hotel we wanted to stay in so we ended up in the Residence Warda. It’s very close to the town centre and we had a great room on the top floor which would have been nice and quiet but for a large group of Tunisian women on the floor below celebrating what we presume was a wedding. Their singing and ululating went on into the wee hours of the night! Then we were woken at 6am by a vociferous dawn chorus as a squadron or two of sparrows had taken residence in the bougainvillea outside our window!! The brickwork on the houses and mosques of Tozeur and neighbouring Nefta is unique in Tunisia. The yellow handmade bricks protrude from the surface of the wall to ... read more
August 15th 2008
"What a difference a day makes... 24 little hours" For those of you who haven't seen "Run Lola Run", do it. Anyway: Reasons I was Tired Yesterday 1. lack of sleep 2. that freaking call to prayer at 430am 3. its hot 4. did i mention its hot? 5. two long bus trips back to back 6. giant backpack 7. lack of sleep Anyway, I was really ready to call it quits yesterday. Thankfully, my sarcastically mentioned 'genius idea' actually ended up being a pretty good one- no mosquitoes (where would they breed anyway? This is the Sahara desert), no bed bugs, sleeping with the cool breeze under shady palm trees and the stars. I also ran into two of these German girls that I met in Tunis. We had a nice long rant about Tunisian ... read more
August 14th 2008
Im tired. Its hot. Im tired! It sucks- Im in TUNISIA, on the verge of going to see both the desert and Star Wars (yes, I'm a geek) sites, and all I can think about is doing absolutely nothing. Going back to Cairo, and going to sleep. Argh! In dire need of kind words of encouragement, please. Either that, or a very good night's sleep. Which, as my choice of budget 'this might be an interesting experience' bungalow camping- no aircon, lots of ants- accomodation, might not be in the cards. Stacey... read more
December 2nd 2006
Got off the train, took taxi to Residence Karim which turned out to be a GREAT little place to stay; only 25 dinar a night for a double (12.50 each); very well kept with beautiful tiling all around. Right across the street is the palmerie which is HUGE, and they grow all sorts of fruits like dates, bananas, pommegranites (sp), jasmine, etc. Was gonna walk around it, made it past the rodeo of horses and carriages at the front but then got talked into a ride further down the road (started at 8 dinar, but managed to turn it into 20 by the end). Palmerie is divided into lots that are owned and operated by different families; many are surrounded by walls with BIG, beautiful gates at the front. Went to the "Jardin de Paradis" which ... read more
