Tag Tunis

Olympos – Olympos is a relatively concealed and close-knit community of hostels and beach-style tree-house cabanas. Very few tourists visit the location, which is filled with backpackers, hippies and Europeans trying to get in touch with their inner child. The town is located 200m from the beach and surrounded on all sides by ancient ruins dating back to the Hellenistic period, and spruced up by the Greeks and Romans in later years. Ruins sit in the jungle along the coast waiting to be discovered, and the rocky beach offers cliff-jumping opportunities along with crystal blue swimming waters.

Fethiye – This small, Mediterranean coastal city is exactly what the doctor ordered for yachters and wealthier travelers. With a charming cove harbor where you can dock your boat directly in front of sea-side restaurants and cafes, what isn’t to like? A castle overlooks the entire scene from atop a hill, and ancient Greek and Roman crypts draw history buffs from around the globe, who can climb atop and even inside the crypts to wonder at ancient methods of entombing the dead. Old town is particularly nice, and offers exotic shopping, eating and drinking opportunities.

Ephesus – While classified more as the Aegean than the Mediterranean, Ephesus hits the top five list because of its amazing history and coastal location, and because early trade routes indicate that Ephesus was in touch with more to the east and west by sea than previously assumed. We enjoyed the ruins of Ephesus, and the nearby ancient cities and religious sites. It would be easy to spend weeks here.

Malaga – Located in southern Spain, Malaga is known for its wine, its castle and its impeccable sense of style. While expensive, this city makes the list because its wide, clean boulevards were filled with live entertainment and bohemian human art. The castle, while groomed and recently rebuilt, still offers great views of the Mediterranean, the harbor and the city itself, making it a fine place to spend a few days if you can afford the luxury digs.

Tunis – The capital of Tunisia sits directly in the Gulf of Tunis, which protects the city from wind and water without hampering the amazing Mediterranean views. The water is warm and teeming with fish, which gives the residents of Tunis opportunity to board themselves in tiny boats and run pattered grids across the harbor at all hours of day. Tunis is close to Carthage, or Roman legend, and offers shopping, spices and a real Middle Eastern atmosphere of entrepreneurship.

Since I was a little girl I always dreamed of going to Africa. When we arrived I could not stop repeating in my head, “I can’t believe I’m in Africa!” I was so excited I literally ran through customs and in my rush didn’t even get my passport stamped! No one seemed to care, a small band of three men in red suits played drums and had a hawk sitting on a stick which people were paying to hold or pet. Further down several men in traditional garb were offering camel rides while past that two men blowing into exotic animal skins were making strange and peaceful music. Another man and his companion ran around passing out flowers on the other side of customs while yet more stood around offering cab rides or taxi tours of the city.

We arrived in Tunisia at 7am and quickly walked into town. There was not a lot to see in Tunis itself, but Carthage and the Old Town were several kilometers outside Tunis and transportation costs were extremely outrageous. The taxi drivers by the border were a bit on the untrustworthy side, and they charged in Euro (with a small print 20 Euro per hour sign taped discreetly to the back window). We decided not to take a cab (and buses were not available) to any of the big tourist sites, and opted instead to just enjoy the capital for what it was.

Tunis rests on the Mediterranean, not far from Italy and thus in a prime spot for warm, clean air. The weather was hot and dry by 9am as we strolled through the city’s colorful streets snapping pictures and waving at friendly locals. The number of cats in the city was beyond startling, and rivaled Bulgaria, which also had a preponderance of felines. We walked along the coast watching the early morning fishermen bring in their catch. Many were fishing with nets only, and their return for the morning looked meek. We passed several homes with BMWs parked in the front while along the shore we spotted several women brushing their teeth in the tide.
We walked deeper into town and, although I was feeling a bit ill with a mild case of the flu, decided to just park ourselves on a bench for a while and watch the street activity. A white paneled truck pulled up in front of our spot and began unloading. From our angle it was a ghastly and horrifying sight! The truck had roughly 12 dead cows hanging from hooks drilled into the ceiling, the floor was literally a pool of blood. There were more flies than I have seen in any one place in my life, and when the doors to the truck opened they flew out as if choreographed. The driver got out and grabbed a saw from under his seat, and when he pulled on a leg to begin sawing I felt my stomach do a few cartwheels. This could have been because of the flu, or because I was watching a leg be sawed in half. The passenger nudged a cow’s head (complete with fur, horns and eyeballs and all!) further into the pool of blood and helped the man hold the led as he sawed. While I was watching all this I didn’t notice that a small group of men unloading frozen French-fries out of another truck had stopped to laugh at my horrified expression. When I finally noticed them they were having a hilarious time laughing at me, which was all in good fun.

The smells in Tunis were enough to add to the flu symptoms and the cart wheeling from the massacre in the truck, so after not long at all I decided to call it a day and head back to the room. By 11am it was nearing 90 degrees, and although Mike was insisting it was hot out, I felt extremely cold, which was also a bad sign for my flu being on the rise instead of the fall. Nevertheless, we enjoyed a nice long walk back to the room while Mike hummed various oldies and I snapped pictures of the wonderful blue and white buildings dotting the coast.