I've just returned from a two-week holiday in Tunisia. It was my first visit to a country that I'd describe as Greece meeting the Arabic world, with a bit of French thrown in for good measure!
It was a lovely relaxing time, mostly spent on the beach enjoying the warm Mediterranean sea or reading and sleeping in the sun. We did take a coach tour; travelling over 1,000 km in two-days. It wouldn't normally be my first choice of how to travel but it was a great way to learn a bit about the history and geography of the country from a very knowledgeable local guide who seemed to speak multiple languages (Arabic, French, English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian) with ease!
We went to El Jem, the 3rd largest remaining Roman Coliseum in the world and also where scenes from the movie 'Gladiator' were filmed.
We drove through the harsh mountainous landscape, where scenes from 'Star Wars' were filmed.
We visited the home of a Berber family, carved out of the mountainside. Although many families have relocated to more conventional homes in towns or villages about 600 families still live in these cave homes, which remain cool during the daytime and provide warmth at night.
The first day ended with a camel ride in the Sahara Desert to watch the sun set.
The second day started at 5.00 a.m. with a sunrise drive across a huge salt lake.
We visited a desert date palm oasis before travelling on to the edge of the Atlas Mountains to see a mountain oasis fed by water springing up from underground and bringing life to an incredibly hot and dry place.
The tour ended with a visit to Kairouan; the fourth most holy city in the Muslim world, with a mosque dating back to the 7th century.
And then it was back to the beach.
I really should do this holiday thing more often...