48 Hours in Tunis

By Ali Wood

There is little doubt that most of you choose to visit Tunisia for enjoying the renowned sunny beaches of Djerba and Hammamet. Most would overlook visiting its capital Tunis, and miss the opportunity of getting a feel of the old city.

There is little doubt that most of you choose to visit Tunisia for enjoying the renowned sunny beaches of Djerba and Hammamet.

Most would overlook visiting its capital Tunis, and miss the opportunity of getting a feel of the old city.

Day one: Touch down

Tunis-Carthage International Airport is conveniently located, hardly 8km north-east of the city. Every half an hour you find a bus leaving for the centre (Route No. 35) and charges you just one dinar for single journey. Even taxis are not expensive. These are metered and you reach destination much faster. The fare wouldn't exceed the twenty minute ride to the center of the city, Avenue Habib Bourguiba.

Getting to know the town

There are two focal points of the city centre, separated by a time gap of a thousand years. The western part has Medina with its distorted paved but narrow streets, thin and shady shopping lanes, souks, mosques and minarets, built more than 1300 years ago. Get a taste of French architecture in the north and east part of this city. You will be delighted to find a Ville Nouvelle of broad, tree-lined boulevards and charming, belle époque buildings that have been adequately refurbished in modern times.

The eastern part of the present city holds the stronghold of Carthage, ahead of Lake Tunis that has a jetty to accommodate both, the road and railway.

Check in

Just 100 meters from Kasbah and Dar El Bey, the 1st ministry building, and close to the most striking places is Dar El Medina, a much sought after stop-over in Tunis.

Its 12 rooms, mostly suites, pivot on two patios to accommodate the most discerning traveler of modern age.

In line with its historical past, Dar El Medina extends you the opportunity to relax in one of its tea rooms, Moorish café and a café on terrace with an unobtrusive view of the whole of Tunis.

Go shopping

There are plenty of shops prompting you to buy souvenirs at very low prices. Perhaps you would like visiting on the few traditional souks that have managed to survive still. Hone up your negotiating skills while buying from one such. Items you may like to buy include leatherwear, brass plates, jewellery in silver and pottery. There are a lot of leather products to buy in Tunisia, from handbags to puffs. You get it cheaper here than in Europe or America, and there's a lot of variety. You also get very good carpets, but make sure to check its authenticity by a metal tag at its back. It's interesting to visit one of the dimly lit workshops and watch the craftsmen using very basic tools to transform the metal into beautiful shapes or stitching the Tunisian equivalent of the fez, the chechia.

Leisurely afternoon

Even if you planned holidaying only at a beach resort in Tunisia, a day trip to Tunis and its famous Bardo Museum is a must. The Bardo Museum in Tunis has one of the world's most impressive collections of ancient Roman mosaics, and is housed in a palace of 13th century on the outskirts of Tunisia's capital. It houses exhibits covering the Prehistoric, Punic, Roman, early Christian and Islamic periods of Tunisian history but is most renowned for its Roman relics, especially rooms full of enormous, colorful mosaics.

You Shouldn't Miss This

Here's your chance to patronize light rail built by the Britons that takes you across the lake to the Carthage. Get off at Sidi Bou Said, one of the most attractive towns in this region of the Mediterranean. Sidi offers you a panoramic view of the mountains and the sea. Its cobbled streets, white-washed houses and bright blue doors and window grills, provide great photo opportunities, even though you may find it little overrun with tourists! Keep climbing past the very inviting cafes and tempting doughnut stalls till the thoroughfare comes to an abrupt end beneath a lighthouse that overlooks the Mediterranean. Have a great lunch high above the Mediterranean Sea while sipping on mint tea, a local favorite.

Enjoy Local Food

Close by at the port of La Goulette you find a number of superb restaurants scattered all over the place. This is the place for eating fresh fish accompanied with one of its kind Tunisian wine. For a more personal eating experience pass thru another untidy street to be at Dar Belhadj, at 17 rue des Tamis, and get enchanted by the beauty of the place. The layout of tables is in a covered courtyard. Or for a more intimate experience be at its first floor gallery to admire the ornamental ceiling pillars and arches, and enjoy your wine and food in the soothing live music of sitar, played by locals.

Second day: Getting lost in Carthage ruins

Practicalities

There is too much to be explored like Punic port, Antonine baths, theatre, Punic remains and Cathedral on Byrsa Hill, the museum, building with columns, and archaeological garden. You can't even visit all these in one day, leave aside its exploration. You need at least a week to understand and appreciate these pieces of Roman ruins, spread over a large area. To grab the best in the least possible time that you have it will be worth hiking to the top of the Byrsa Hill to get a magnificent view of the entire complex. From here you could walk thru the remains of the Punic Quarter that was set up in the 9th century BC to be entirely ruined by the Romans in 146 BC and rudiments of the city that they built in place of what they had already destroyed. This place became the third largest acquisition of the Roman Empire, after Rome and Alexandria, only to be robbed by others when the empire bowed out.

Get rejuvenated at the end of your trip

Before flying back home get your body rejuvenated by visiting traditional Tunisian hammam. Your skin gets polished by an amazing but highly satisfying combination of hot water, steam, mud and a scrubbing mitt roughly applied by a killed male or female masseur. It has a highly stimulating effect on you. There are old traditional hammams too, spread over the entire city and if you venture visiting one, you would have truly experienced bathing yourself, the Tunisian way.

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