Sousse, Tunisia, 25 September, 2008

I returned to Sousse this afternoon: I needed to escape the little town where I'd been staying, and I wanted to do some further exploring as well. I had read about some catacombs just outside the Medina, and I was terribly proud of myself after eventually finding them...

Ksars, Tataouine, Matamata, Tunisia, 21 September, 2008

We began the morning at 8:00, climbing north out of the desert and doing a little off-roading along the way. The day was spent visiting several ksars, which is a Berber word that basically means fortress. Ksars were built for defensive living: located atop mountains...

Kairouan to Tozeur, Tunisia, 19 September, 2008

In the late morning I took the bus from Enfida to the town of Kairouan.  Kairouan is one of Islam’s most holy cities, the place where the Arabs first established a base as they began to move eastward into North Africa in the 7th Century.  The town has gained a...

Enfida, Tunisia, 17 September, 2008

This little town where I’m staying is, by virtue of being a small town, simultaneously representative and non-representative of Tunisia as a whole. It serves as a microcosm in that the country is mostly composed of small, conservative, rural towns like Enfida. But...

Takrouna, Tunisia, 15 September, 2008

Takrouna is a small village that sits atop a hill slightly Northeast of Enfida. The city was originally settled by Berbers, and is presently an artisan community. I was driven up to Takrouna on a small scooter by Slim (Sa-leem), the young man in whose house I'm...

Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia, 14 September, 2008

When you think of Sidi Bou Said, a wealthy suburb resting on the Mediterranean east of Tunis, think of two things: white and blue. The city's located on a hill that climbs up and abuts a cliff, looking out eastward over the Sea. it's a beautiful area of small, winding...

Carthage, Tunisia, 14 September, 2008

Carthage is one of those places I recall from High School history class, back when the subject seemed like an endless series of dates and battles and rote events, none of which resembled any lived experience. Carthage sits on the Mediterranean east of present-day...

Bardo Museum, Tunis, Tunisia, 14 September, 2008

The Bardo Museum has one of the best collections of ancient Punic and Roman remains from what was the city of Carthage. Tunisia has been warred over and settled by virtually every imaginable tribal group you can name, and the pieces contained in the museum showed a...

Sousse, Tunisia, 12 September, 2008

Sousse is one of the larger towns in Tunisia and by far one of the most popular, both with Tunisians and Europeans, the latter of whom, riding the strength of the Pound, the Euro and recent Russian oil wealth, swarm the beaches throughout the summers. Tourism is...