Time in Tunisia

Two weeks ago I took a 2 hour plane to Tunis, Tunisia. I spent four and a half days exploring the city, meeting new people, and experiencing a real Tunisian wedding. 

My plane there was delayed 5 hours because of an airport strike in Tunis. Unfortunately that meant that I missed one of the wedding parties because of my late arrival. Nonetheless, I didn't let the delay ruin my quick stay. 

Saturday morning I went to Sidi Bou Said, located 20 km north of the capital. I took in the beauty of the blue sea and starch white houses. I walked away from the tourist traps and down a little shady path only to come across Ennejma Ezzahra, the famous home of Rudolphe d'Erlanger. A French artist and music lover, d'Erlanger is the one responsible for the "white paint, blue shutters" rule in Sidi Bou Said. d'Erlanger was very interested in Arab music to say the least. He created a six volume book, "La Musique Arabe. He was the first person to ever write down these famous songs that generally were passed down from musician to musician by word of mouth. Interestingly enough, his son married an American who just happened to have the most luxurious part of the house. The now ex president of Tunisia, Ben Ali, tried to take d'Erlanger's lovely mansion to add to his collection of material possessions. Luckily UNESCO took over and never allowed that to happen. (Side note: While in Tunisia, i watched a short news clip on all of the cars this president owned before he was overturned. Disgusting!) The tour guide saw that I was interested in the history of the mansion and allowed me to take pictures (which is typically illegal) and enter into rooms that are normally off limits. He explained how everything was done in symmetry. Useless doors were added just to give the feeling that everything was equally balanced. Fountains flowed throughout the hallways to provide what we would call modern day air conditioning. There was even a huge stage for live concerts. Moments like these make traveling so worth while. When you come upon someone that is more interested in teaching you about their local history than taking your money, you know that your visit will be one that you will never forget. The most bizarre part of it all was that we spoke to each other in French, neither my nor my tour guide's first language. 

Stretch of big businesses that run along the Lake. This area is of course nicknamed "Miami"

The view from the walkway up to the mansion

d'Erlanger's famous mansion and now UNESCO site

View onto the harbor

Second story of the mansion...always symmetrical in this house.

One of d'Erlanger's paintings of the locals

Where the American wife slept....yes that is a real gold ceiling.

8 string violin HOLLA!

Inside the house. A mixture of Moroccan, Spanish, and Tunisian architecture and design. 

Ahhhhh this was heaven

One thing that I remarked about Tunisia was the lack of scooters. In Morocco, the only cars I really saw were taxis. Here, cars were very popular even in the local neighborhoods. They also had a pretty reliant tramway system (although no air conditioning even in the 90 degree heat). Tunis was a lot more industrialized than I had imagined before arriving. I had figured that it would be a lot like Morocco. The food was a lot more diverse, the wannabe American attitude was all over the place, and not as many people were wearing the traditional dress in the streets. The trash that piles up all over the city is quite devastating. You look out onto a field and the sheep are munching on some dried up grass in the company of Coca-Cola bottles and cookie wrappers. Despite that, I cannot get over how friendly Tunisian people are. "Eat, drink, eat, drink, here a present, here eat this, let me take you here, eat another, please take this money and go buy yourself a little present." They never stop offering you food, drink, or little knick knacks to take home as souvenirs.

The highway.

Of course I had to take a picture of this guy!

That night I rented an evening gown (for 5 euros) and headed off to the last party (before the official wedding). While it's not exactly equivalent to the American Bachelor/Bachelorette party idea, it sure as heck was fun. I learned that each family hosts their own party: one for the bride and one for the groom.  The point of this party is to be with family and friends rather than get drunk and enjoy being "single" for one last time. The groom's family invited a famous band to come play along with a very popular local singer. Although I didn't know exactly who he was, I was more than happy to experience the live music and Tunisian traditions. The drummers had to heat up their instruments every 20 minutes or so. Another local tradition is that the friends and family are expected to donate money to the soon-to-be groom. The singer announced every time someone donated and by the end of the night, the groom made 3,000 euros. Talk about easy money.

Here's a bit of what I saw Sunday while helping the family prepare for the official wedding.

Some funny advertisements for local comedians

Town center

Ressembles Big Ben a bit, no?

Where the Tunisian Revolution started in December 2010!

Florist street

The car all done up for the wedding

The wedding.

Inside the Town Hall

The most amazing thing about the whole wedding process was how long it takes. If you do an official Tunisian wedding, it takes a full week. Each night has a specific purpose. The groom's sister told me that the bride to be has two days just for hair and make-up preparation. The bride to be has three nights of henna. The groom has to sacrifice a lamb.  So on and so forth. In my honest opinion, the make-up was too much considering how beautiful the bride was au naturel. What's custom is custom though! I definitely would not be up for highlighting my hair just for photo ops. On the official wedding day, the groom goes to the bride's house. There, they drink a glass of milk to purify their past and create a blank page for their future together. Then they sit down in front of family and friends and tie the knot in the living room. This wedding was an exception since we went to the Town Hall for the ceremony. Apparently that is a big deal.

The following day I went to the beach. Unfortunately it was a bit cloudy but I was more than happy to splash around in the lake-like Mediterranean Sea all day. 

My last day I took a quick trip to the Souks.

A building near the Souks

Pretty door

Porte de la France.

Main entrance to the souks.

While I had a great trip, the effects of my henna tattoo are making me regret my choice to live it up like the locals. Let's just say avoid at all costs. My hands and feet are itchy, red, and bumpy!