Sousse, Tunisia
Tunisia is a small country bordered by Algeria to the west and Libya to the east. It does not share in their oil wealth and is a relatively poor country. For such a small country it has varied landscapes ; it has a long Mediterranean coast, desert to the south and mountains on its border with Algeria.The country is slightly larger than England and Wales (or Florida if that helps) and has a population of 10 million, 99% of whom are Muslim. It seems to wear Islam rather lightly ; alcohol is available and most women dress in European fashion and do not wear veils or headscarves. The government was once rather anti-religious but that has changed and although religion is respected, fundamentalism is banned and such tendencies closely monitored. Arabic is the main language with French widely spoken and many signs are in Arabic/French. English is spoken in tourist areas and among the younger people.
Sousse
My primary purpose in going to Tunisia was to find some winter sun. Things looked promising with temperatures in the mid to high 60s in the week before my departure. Another cold front was due in London so I enjoyed the first few days in Sousse when it was warm and sunny. A chill wind and rain came but it was still reasonable.
I had the most basic holiday I could find .. the hotel was only £75 for a fortnight (that is £5.35 or $8.20 a night with breakfast) and proved to be just fine. My large clean room overlooked a park with trees. The bath was colourfully tiled and had lashings of hot water from the powerful shower, Breakfast was basic but so is mine at home, so no problem there. Sousse has changed a lot since my visit back in 1971 (I've changed too). It is recognisable but in general more developed and far more prosperous. It is now highly geared to tourism and the Medina now has many lanes of souvenir sellers compared to my previous visit. My big disappointment was that the Museum of Archaeology is closed for restoration (it was due to reopen in 2009). I particularly remember the collection of fine mosaics. The other change is that the railway no longer goes through the centre of the city ; it now terminates at the railway station. Many trains bypass Sousse and you have to go out 8 km to a junction station to catch the southbound services. There are several trains a day to Tunis and they have some excellent new rolling stock for that journey.
Sousse
My primary purpose in going to Tunisia was to find some winter sun. Things looked promising with temperatures in the mid to high 60s in the week before my departure. Another cold front was due in London so I enjoyed the first few days in Sousse when it was warm and sunny. A chill wind and rain came but it was still reasonable.
I had the most basic holiday I could find .. the hotel was only £75 for a fortnight (that is £5.35 or $8.20 a night with breakfast) and proved to be just fine. My large clean room overlooked a park with trees. The bath was colourfully tiled and had lashings of hot water from the powerful shower, Breakfast was basic but so is mine at home, so no problem there. Sousse has changed a lot since my visit back in 1971 (I've changed too). It is recognisable but in general more developed and far more prosperous. It is now highly geared to tourism and the Medina now has many lanes of souvenir sellers compared to my previous visit. My big disappointment was that the Museum of Archaeology is closed for restoration (it was due to reopen in 2009). I particularly remember the collection of fine mosaics. The other change is that the railway no longer goes through the centre of the city ; it now terminates at the railway station. Many trains bypass Sousse and you have to go out 8 km to a junction station to catch the southbound services. There are several trains a day to Tunis and they have some excellent new rolling stock for that journey.
Museum Taieb
I was the sole visitor and what a trippy place it is. Official name is Musee Dar Am Taieb, Musee Prive d'Art Contemporain. The founder is Taieb Ben Hadj Ahmed and he must be one very eccentric artist. There are 8 rooms of displays plus several outdoor spaces. Broadly speaking it breaks down into fine art .. sculpture in marble with smooth finish (most pieces no higher than 2 feet). They are in a style similar to Henry Moore's small works and some very good. Then there is the rest .. which defies description. From a huge collection of junk ( I am not even in the minor divisions when it comes to collecting), he has created both installations and individual art works. Everything is grist for his artistic mill .. watches, pots and pans, Italian coffee makers, electricity meters, buttons, WW II helmets, brass water fittings and boilers, to name a few of his source materials. The building is a maze threaded through with plain white walls and well detailed staircases but off the courtyard there are several workshops which are raw peasant spaces. Much of it is tiled in mosaic from broken tiles but then an archway will be 'tiled' in clocks. I loved it .. not at all what I expected but so much more than a 'primitive'. My favourite pieces were animals made from brass water boilers but the installation of WW II helmets was eerie and moving.
Photo Gallery
Sousse Museum closed for restoration