I'm an animal lover and share my house with my 5 rats (and my husband). My hobbies are learning lang...
I'm an animal lover and share my house with my 5 rats (and my husband). My hobbies are learning languages, tap dancing, figure skating, snowboarding and scuba diving.
Member since:02.02.2001
Reviews:30
Members who trust:11
The first time I went to Tunisia was when I was sent there as a holiday rep and it took a bit of getting used to. Tunisia was one of the first package holiday places along with Spain in the early seventies but you wouldn't know it. It doesn't seem to have moved on any since then. That's kind of what I find appealing about it.
I'd been to Morocco previously and believed it would be similar. I like both countries but I think I prefer Morocco.
When I started work I got lots of tips from holidaymakers about the dos and don'ts of the country and I learned to recognise a few of the scams as well. Women get a lot of hassle from the local men and it's worth remembering to cover up when going out and not to walk around unaccompanied, although I must admit this doesn't really deter them. It can be difficult not to let this level of harrassment ruin your holiday. Scams include locals asking you to change out of date 5 dinar notes for them but my favourite has to be the one they use to entice you into their shops. Sometimes locals will approach taxis carrying tourists arriving at the main square of Sousse. They'll shout to the taxi drivers, in Arabic, asking which hotel they'd picked their fare up from. Then they approach the tourists and tell them that they work in the kitchen of their hotel and ask them if they would like to see around their brother's shop. The tourists have no reason to disbelieve their story because they knew which hotel they were staying at. Some people have spent a couple of hours in the shop and have eventually had to pay to get out.
I also found that locals get extremely annoyed if you start bargaining with them for goods you're not really interested in buying. It's a good idea to take a couple of bottles of whisky over with you to Tunisia as you can use them in exchange for goods in some of the shops as whisky is pretty expensive there.
Locals are forbidden to drink on the Friday, which is the holy day, and they sometimes ask you to buy alcohol for them in the supermarkets. Don't be tempted as the penalties are high if you're caught.
Going to any of the Arab countries when there is a festival such as Ramadan or Eid el Kebir (the sacrifice festival) is not a good idea as during Ramadan most of the shops are closed, and during Eid you can hear the bleeting of the sheep throughout the town the night before they are slaughtered. Not pleasant if you are an animal lover.
Taxis are probably the best means of getting around but agree a fare before you get in. The trains are extremely slow and can take double the time it would take by bus. One of my favourite towns to visit is Sidi Bou Said where all the houses are painted blue and white and is the place famous for making the ornate wrought iron bird cages.
My favourite thing about Sousse is the abundance of fast food shops selling tasty snacks such as fricassee (a deep fried savoury doughut)and brique a l'oeuf (a deep fried filo pastry filled with egg, fish and potato). In the restaurants the specialities tend to be couscous, salata mechouia (a delicious grilled salad) and tajine (a meat omlette). It's easy enough to get good vegetarian food.
The medina in Sousse, with its many market stalls and various cafes, where you can drink the delicious mint tea, was my all time favourite place. It's a maze of winding streets, shops and market stalls and I'm proud to say that I could find my way around it easily after months of traipsing through it on my days off. I would recommend Sousse, or any part of Tunisia for the holidaymaker who wants something a little different. However, if you're after a good night life forget it, as there aren't that many discos and the only pubs around are those in the hotel complexes.
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![Global Treasures Sousse Tunisia [DVD] [NTSC]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/83339623.jpg "Global Treasures Sousse Tunisia [DVD] [NTSC]")
Feb 14th, 2001
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