Hola
Our marina wifi stopped working Monday morning. I’m sending this from the small café here at the marina which has a different wifi source. I went to the marina office today and the woman behind the desk seemed unaware of the problem but called the technical support for the service and told me to talk to him. His English was heavily accented and the phone was a strobe phone so I understood about every third syllable. The bottom line is that he knows there’s a problem but has no clue when it will be fixed. We’d paid 24 Euro = $34 for a week of internet access. That’s the most we’ve paid anywhere so far. Another cruiser in the office told me to go to the next town over and get a Vodafone mifi device which would work in more than one country. There is a Vodofone office in La Linea but he said they didn’t know much about the device, but that was last year when it was new. We might try there later this afternoon before we move on to the step of hiring a taxi to try to find the Vodofone shop the next tone over.
La Linea is really turning into a boat repair stop more than anything else. But boat needs and weather are two things you have to put tops on the list when you live on a boat. I really can’t wait to get to London.
Ru
One of the reasons I don’t read Paul Theroux travel books is that he’s so negative about most places he visits. At least that’s the way it seemed to me the first few I tried years ago. Actually lots of years ago so maybe he’s mellowed since then. At this point I prefer women travel writers anyway, and wish that Rosemary Mahoney would hurry up and write something new. The point of all this is we’re feeling a bit less interested in places the more we’re pushing to get to London. And it’s getting to be tourist season so there are more crowds. That said, I’m not sure we gave Tunisia a fair shake while we were there. Maybe it was too similar to Turkey and Israel so we felt as if we’d been there done that. Especially the pushy carpet/souvenir tourist hassles. But Brits Jo and Mick love living in Tunisia and ourAmerican friends who lived there for 2 years loved it too. I definitely know I would have liked being somewhere other than a resort area which, unfortunately, is where the marina is located. Because of the crowds we bypassed Sidi bou Said with its hillsides of white homes with blue doors and we also skipped Carthage and the cemetery for the American soldiers. We just couldn’t make ourselves deal with the heat and crowds. We did, however, decide to give Nabeul and the Hammamet Medina a whirl the final day of our road trip. We actually spent several hours in Nabeul. As for Hammamet, we pretty much drove in, spent 10 minutes in the very hot, empty, souvenir shop filled Medina, had something to drink, and left. It was in the restaurant in Hammamet that we were told about the impact of “all inclusive” packages were having on the small local hotels and restaurants.
Nabeul is famous for its pottery so that’s why I wanted to go and it’s just about an hour or so from Port Yasmine. We drove there and found a parking space on a side street off the Medina. We had a small map of Nabeul so I asked a man passing by to show us the street on the map so we could ever find the car again. He spoke little English but another man coming along jumped in to help. He then insisted on showing us the way to the Medina…but his real motivation was to lead us to a carpet shop just outside the Medina. I kept saying we were there to see and not shop, but that made no difference and the head guy of this government run shop made us go through the whole bit, demonstration, mint tea, looking at carpet after carpet. At this point the last thing we need is another carpet!
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It took me a few tries to get the hang of it; Tunisian carpets are single knotted rather than double knotted like Turkish carpets. But many are quite lovely. |
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The man on the left was our “guide” and the one on the right seemed to be in charge and the head carpet seller. |
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We do have an interest in carpets so we looked. Most carpet sellers don’t mind if you look, but here it was a mistake as we were then expected to buy something. There were some lovely woven blankets but I didn’t dare ask about them because that would have led to more unpleasantness if I’d not bought one. |
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After the tea, which you really can’t refuse without being rude, we tried to leave. Head guy just kept going on and on so Randal got up and walked out. I’d planned to give something to the woman but started out the door after Randal when the head guy told me I should pay for my tea since we didn’t buy anything. We had never heard that in Turkey or India for that matter, and I was pretty aghast that he would say such a thing. Then he fumed out of the shop probably to find more unsuspecting tourists. I walked back in and gave a bunch of coins to the weaver and told her that the coins were only for her and said it twice. One of the shop staff saw me so I can only hope she actually got to keep all of the money, maybe about 8 or 9 dinar, about $5. Our initial “guide” started to walk with us and I told him that we really were unhappy and wanted to just walk ourselves. He took the hint and left us. So right away we’re not so happy with Nabeul. But it got better and walking through the Medina wasn’t so bad. Later in the day we saw the “carpet seller” again walking through the Medina. He called out Virginia and came to walk with me. I told him we were very unhappy with the treatment and his behavior. I think he looked a tiny bit remorseful, but I might be making that up. He certainly took the hint and walked away. |
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Tunisia is famous for their white bird cages |
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I would have bought one but Rhino Randal would have been jealous. |
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Once upon a time these covered balconies were used by the women so they could see out but no one could see them. |
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Symbols of Nabeul; pottery and oranges just outside the Medina |
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We made one pass through the Medina and then decided it was time for lunch so set off down the main street of Nabeul. There were several street vendors selling interesting looking food, but we needed a place to sit down that also had a WC. We picked Sofrat el Bey Restaurant and Pizzeria and it was a good choice as the owner was the total opposite of “horrible carpet man.”
Ben Amor Salim and Randal We had a lovely lunch and chat and learned about the architectural details of the restaurant; traditional Tunisian designs.
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I think we were told it took 4 men three months to create this ceiling from molded plaster from which the design was cut out. |
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Each glass-topped table had some type of decoration be it carpet or scarf. Wood door decorated with painted wood studs is traditional Tunisian. |
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After lunch we went to visit the Center for Tunisian Arts and Crafts |
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Wrought iron shop; we saw the same overhead light as had been in the restaurant, so perhaps made here. |
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Edward Scissorhands and friends outside this shop selling more decorative than utilitarian work. |
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Two different types of painted glass; these bottles were quite lovely but not made for moving boats. |
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We left the workshops without finding something we just had to have and walked back towards the Medina. The pottery though hand made looked more mass produced. We were told by Jo that pottery could be bought in Port Yasmine from the souvenir shops and it would be about the same price and perhaps more choices. |
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A metal door that worked like a chalkboard |
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Blue is the predominant color for decoration : Sun sea and Sahara = blue and white |
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Repairing or maybe creating a wall. |
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A wedding carriage : Disney/Barby is alive and well in Tunisia |
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Nabeul souvenirs. Our first pass through the Medina I bought the bigger basket and the second time we bought the smaller one. Tunisia is famous for woven baskets. We’ve used the one with handles for lots of things but most recently to hold all of our chippy snacks during the passage from Tunisia to Spain. The small one will be a good bread basket |
The info below was written by an xpat Brit a few years ago but it was helpful for our visit to Nabeul.
“Located in the Cap Bon the most fertile and most attractive region in the whole of Tunisia;
surrounded by lush countryside, beautiful gardens and the cool, blue, Mediterranean Sea
lies Nabeul which for many, including myself, lays claim to being Tunisia’s "Jewel in the Crown!"
Becoming an expat can be a challenging, rewarding and exciting experience, but living in a country with a completely different culture and a strange language can be quite nerve wracking at times! Most new residents find that life in Nabeul, however, is an easy and gentle introduction to Tunisian life! Everything that a would-be expat is looking for can be found here! The town is not too small or too traditional which could provide a culture shock for some and certainly not too touristic as to not be able to experience the local way of life! http://www.nomarmiteintunisia.co.uk/nabeul.htm
https://www.facebook.com/pages/SOFRAT-EL-BEY/327401667274352 is the web address from our restaurant. Not so much there now, but he was such a nice man.