Blogs from Tunisia, Africa - page 4

Advertisement

Africa » Tunisia » Tozeur April 19th 2015

This morning we saw the Great Mosque at Kairouan. It dates from around 800 AD and is a place of pilgrimage for North Africa. We were not allowed to go inside, but we could enter the courtyard (see picture with me in the foreground and Uncle Jim in the background). From Kairouan we drove to Sbeitla to see the ancient Roman ruins. I was particularly looking forward to these ruins because the First Armored Division was here in February of 1943 and the book of the official history of the division has photographs that were taken here. I attempted to recreate the same pictures, but the site has been archeologically examined since then and vegetation has grown up, so there is not an exact match. Our tour group is continuing southward and we are getting close ... read more
image
image
image

Africa » Tunisia » Kairouan April 18th 2015

I transferred my photos this morning. I am beginning to suspect that the camera needs to be fully charged to successfully download photos to my iPad. By the end of a full day of sightseeing, the batteries in my camera and iPad are both getting pretty low! Anyway, I will try to include some pictures from the last couple of days in today's blog entry because I didn't take many today. Today, in short, we spent the day driving from Tabarka to Kairouan. The scenery was not uninteresting, but would not translate well to photos - lots of green fields, olive trees, and rocky hillsides. We are now ensconced in our hotel room and I will send this brief blog and photos while I have a chance. Photos include: the souk in Tunis, the Ulysses mosaic ... read more
image
image
image

Africa » Tunisia » Tunis April 17th 2015

I was unable to download the pictures from my camera, so the next two blog entries will be picture-less. I'm sorry about that, but am hopeful that I will get the connection back on track tomorrow. Today was our first full tour day and we covered a lot to sights. Our first destination was a walk through the souk (traditional Arab market) located in the heart of the old part of Tunis. While some of our group shopped for souvenirs, I sat down to have a coffee. Our tour bus then took us to the other side of town to visit the Bardo Museum. It is famous for its huge collection of mosaics from the Roman world. North Africa was part of the Roman Empire and many of the floor and wall mosaics have survived from ... read more

Africa » Tunisia » Tabarka April 17th 2015

Again today I have no pictures to share, but I am hopeful for tomorrow!This morning we had an early start because we did a lot of riding in the bus today. We drove out of Tunis toward the west. First stop was Testour, a town where we walked up and down the main street which was largely taken up with a very busy market. Uncle Jim pointed out that it is Friday, the Muslim holy day, so few people are working and everyone is free to socialize, shop, and be out on the street. The locals mostly ignored us. Our group certainly stood out because of our ethnicity and clothing...and cameras. I took a photo of people harvesting orange blossoms for use in fragrances and cooking. We drove on to Dougga, a well-preserved ancient Roman site. ... read more

Africa » Tunisia » Tunis April 15th 2015

This morning I woke up in Paris, France and tonight I am going to bed in Tunis, Tunisia. Tunisia was a "protectorate" of France between 1881 and 1956, so French is the second language here after Arabic. But to get back to this morning, I took one final walk across the Seine to see Notre Dame cathedral, then collected my bags, checked out of the hotel, and caught the train to the airport. Three years ago I flew out of Charles Degaulle airport and Air France has "upgraded" its check-in process since then. I had to navigate through crowds of passengers to use the kiosk to check in, print and tag my own luggage, weigh my suitcase, put it on the conveyer belt, and find my way to the security lines. I miss the old days ... read more

Africa » Tunisia » Hammamet November 2nd 2014

As the Indian summer comes to an end in England, my brother and myself escape for some winter sun in Tunisia. We had found a good deal through a travel agent which offered 10 nights all inclusive for the price of 7 nights. We decided to go with low expectations on the hotel after reading mixed reviews on TripAdvisor with comments like 'faulty towers' Our first day resulted with a painful early flight which was at 6am and meant a couple of hours sleep for us both. Upon arrival at Tunisia, we found the airport to be slow as hundreds of tourists queued to get past immigration. Although our first time in Tunisia, it was not our first time to north Africa and so we expected to be pestered by locals once we had cleared customs. ... read more
Faulty Towers
Medina in Tunis
Carthage

Africa » Tunisia » Hammamet October 6th 2014

Hammamet sits on a coastal plain south of Tunis. Brown hills ride the northern horizon. Silver frosted olive groves carpet the flats. At mid-day there are no shadows. The roads are fenced with fat budding cactus. Windblown plastic bags rag the spines. It is here that you will find the sheep. Gathered in flocks ranging in size from one to twenty animals, the pens stretch for miles. Each flock shepherded by middlemen trying to make a buck on Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice). The hard, dusty ground is covered in straw. The sheep stand together in an unsuspecting huddle or forage through roadside trash. Tunisian families pull up in 4-door sedans to inspect the goods. They are immediately set upon by men dragging bleating animals behind them. A sheep will run you $200 US. Deals are ... read more
Claus Takes A Rare Rest
From The Terrace Restaurant
The Old Mosque

Africa » Tunisia » Sousse » Port El Kantaoui October 1st 2013

We rolled off the ferry in another continent. The ride from the northern-most part of Africa to the most southern stretched out ahead of us, a blank canvas of potential. Jaap and Fre were stamped through the border in about 2 minutes each. It took me 3 hours. For some reason as a New Zealander I needed a visa. A mysterious and protracted immigration process culminated in me being presented with a full page visa, complete with a photo of me in green. The Indelible Hulk. Morsi had invited us to his family home in Sousse, so we headed south, and were treated to half a dozen incredible dishes cooked by his mum. Their hospitality blew us away. Morsi, you're a good dude. We went for a beer after dinner, and checked out a crazy hotel ... read more
Me, Morsi, Jaap, and Fre.
Djerba camp
Star Wars country

Africa » Tunisia » Tunis September 22nd 2013

Geo: 36.7899, 10.21The Tunisia National Museum and city centre bazaar and marketplace. These were todays activities on our last day in North Africa. Again, we had little option but to take the dreaded taxi. It was a similar arrangement to yesterday, a driver arranged with the hotel who would pick us up and drop us off at each location, and return us back in due course. It was a little more expensive than yesterday, caused mainly by a longer drive to reach the museum. Overall, the day was not as enjoyable as yesterday. Less history and impressive things to look at, alot of haggling and a driver that spoke even less English. Todays driver Othman, still did a good job, but there was little room for small talk or charades. We discovered we had better chance ... read more
Nat Bardo
Bardo Museum
Aurelius and Claudius

Africa » Tunisia » Tunis » Carthage September 21st 2013

Geo: 36.8565, 10.3306What a fantastic day in Tunisia. Carthage was the centre of the Carthaginian Empire in antiquity. The city has existed for nearly 3,000 years, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC into the capital of an ancient empire. This city was a major draw card in my decision to visit Tunisia. We had hoped the ruins might be walking or public transport distance from our hotel, but alas it didn't really seem to be the case. The hotel recommended we do a tour with a cab. Oh boy, here comes rip off city. Fortunately this wasn't the case. We had a great day out thanks to the guidance of our Tunisian cab driver come guide, Nourah. The hotel recommended him as their best English speaking guide. His English vocabulary and understanding ... read more
Nat Roman Ampitheatre
Roman Ampitheatre
Roman Ampitheatre




Tot: 0.124s; Tpl: 0.009s; cc: 12; qc: 80; dbt: 0.0581s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.3mb