One
of Europe's most popular vacation destinations, Tunisia did not fail to
disappoint, as its hefty list of attractions was surprisingly comprehensive,
given the country's relatively small size. Our ten day visit took us through
Roman ruins, palm tree oases, mountain ksour, salt lakes, desert dunes,
and many other types of exotic terrain and scenery.
The North
We spent three days in Tunis trying in vain to obtain travel visas from the unhelpful Indian Embassy. Even though we failed in this task, we put those days to good use by visiting the ancient city of Carthage (what's left of it anyway), the touristy but picturesque town of Sidi Bou Said, and the wonderfully peaceful Old Port of Bizerte, at the northernmost point of Tunisia. On the first day of our trip south after leaving Tunis, we checked out the fabulous Roman ruins of Dougga.
The Roman ruins of Dougga, with the Capitol overlooking
the town and the olive trees in the valley below
Making our way to the South
After sleeping in a unique room at the Hotel de la Source in Le Kef, we hit the road hard making our way south through Gafsa to the desert oases of Tamerza and Chebika. Making great time in our rental car, we had time to spare to take photos before ending up at the Ksar Jerid Hotel in Tozeur, treating ourselves to a nice swim to wash away the dust from the road. Crossing the Chott el Jerid, the expansive salt lake, we passed through Kebili, Douz, and Zafraane, for a look a the edge of the Sahara desert, before heading east to Matamata, Medenine and Tataouine. After a night's stay at a simple hotel in Tataouine, we had a fascinating day exploring the ksour and their mountaintop villages (click on the link below to see a special page on this).
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Click here to
see the amazing Ksour of the South, and our travels through Matmata, Tataouine,
Douiret, Chenini, Gourmessa, and Ksar Hadada.
The Island of Djerba
While we knew most of Djerba island was catered to tourists, we did want to get a taste of the eastern Mediterranean coast of Tunisia, and enjoyed a full day and night at a little pensione on the north side of the island. From our room, we could see and hear the Mediterranean, and also enjoyed a massive dinner buffet at the "exclusive" resort nearby.
Returning back North
Our trip back north took us to Sfax for one night, where we got brief glimpses of one of Tunisia's most successful cities. Our last day on the road took us up through El Jem to see the Roman amphitheatre, and then through Kairouan, where we hired a guide to take us through some of the more famous sites that the Holy City had to offer. We then make our way up to Tunis where we prepared for our flight the next day to Malta, after a morning visit to the infamous Bardo museum.
© 2003-2004 Winston & Jennifer Yeung. All Rights Reserved.