Tunisia: early impressions

Well here we are, thoroughly settled in our winter haven in Monastir, Tunisia. There are about 200 yachts here, many locked up for the off-season, but plenty with folks living aboard. The majority are French cruisers living on very functional boats – not too many luxury craft here, rather, older boats that have been well-used, loved and worked on over the years. On our dock there are three boats with families – seven children makes for a lively and interesting environment. They are very resourceful kids: give them a tub of water and whatever junk they can find on the dock, and they’ll invent a game that can last for hours. Several French stereotypes have been reinforced – a Sunday barbecue with great food and copious amounts of wine; beautiful, elegant women married to men with 'lived in' faces, just like every French comedy you’ve ever seen; the classic shrug, the stinky smokes, the earthy humour. I’m managing to communicate pretty well with the French cruisers and the locals, for whom French is a universal second language. Belated thanks to poor Monsieur Bassett (aka Fred), who managed to teach the language so well that forty years on, it’s all coming back to me. Terry is enjoying his new status as 'Monsieur le Capitaine'.

First sight of land

First impressions of Tunisia are generally positive ones. The weather is great, the beaches are clean and calm – still very swimmable. Local food is good – north African staples enlivened by very fresh seafood and the French influence (good bread, cheese etc) – and the people are friendly and welcoming. Contrary to what we'd been told, wine and beer are readily available, and quite acceptable. The young guys all look like French gangsters from the 60s – skinny trousers, cool jackets, smoke in the corner of the mouth, general insouciance – then it appears they transform into amiable, portly middle-aged blokes with gappy smiles. The women go from gorgeous to invisible – either wrapped and scarved or literally invisible; you simply don’t see them in public. Cafes are full of men, all seated facing the street, smoking, drinking coffee or mint tea and no doubt discussing matters of importance. This is a relatively liberal and tolerant Muslim country, however, and clearly there are many educated women in professional roles.

So far we haven’t done much sight-seeing or cultural stuff, apart from the local medina and a trip to the Saturday market. Great fresh produce, but almost everything else came off a container ship from China, sadly. Tunisian jewellery, ceramics, carpets and textiles are beautiful, but this market was clearly not the place to find them. We’re planning a couple of trips to see Roman ruins and other interesting sites, then it’s home to catch up with everyone over December and January.

Au revoir!

Footnote: Just went to the dentist in Monastir. Check up, X rays and extraction of a rotten wisdom tooth done on the spot, expertly and painlessly. Total costs: 25 Dinar (about $15) for the X ray and 25 Dinar for the consultation. Codeine tablets at the pharmacy: 2.5 Dinar. We've discovered that it is a waste of time worrying about health care overseas - it all seems to be better and cheaper than you imagine (though I'm thankful we didn't need anything major in the USA).