Mediterranean Navigation Day 6
Mediterranean Navigation
Day 06 - Friday, March 7, 2025 – Tunis, Tunisia; Visit Carthage; North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial; UNESCO Medina of Tunis
During the night we could hear the wind and rain on our deck. The morning was almost as dark as the rain continued.
We had breakfast early and then at 8:15 we joined our Red Team to drive to Carthage. On the way, Anais gave us an overview of the legends of the gods and goddesses of the ancient world. Carthage, in its height, was the supreme power of the Mediterranean Sea. Their naval fleet was unsurpassed, but they managed to lose both of the Punic Wars to Rome. More information about Hannibal and famous battles got us to the archeological site of Carthage.
Our Tunisian hosts were very happy to see the rain, liquid gold! There had been a severe drought for the last four years, so the rains were very welcome.
The bus windows were fogging over, so we couldn't even see the buildings he was pointing out to us. We put our cameras away and enjoyed the morning with the most positive attitudes we could muster.
In the downpour, we visited the ancient harbor and the Roman baths. The rain was torrential, flowing over the pathways and flooding the streets. Anais reorganized the morning's plan and we drove further on to see the North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial.
Arthur was our guide at the cemetery. He explained that the dead of all the North African campaigns were brought here together. The 27-acre memorial is the final resting place of 2,841 American military dead and also honors 3,700 soldiers whose remains were never found.
Beautiful mosaic maps depicted the major battles and Arthur explained how important the North African campaign was to the Allied success in World War Two.
As the skies cleared a bit, we all got back on the bus to drive back to the ship for lunch. Everyone was soaking wet; we hung our wet things in our cabin and turned up the heat to help them dry out.
After lunch, our Red Group was supposed to go the Medina of Tunis. Some people opted not to go out again, but we want to do as many activities as are offered. Tonight will be an overnight at sea and we will sail the whole day to reach Algiers.
At 2:45 our group got back on the bus to visit the UNESCO medina of Tunis. We began in the government square while Anais explained the many government buildings. We walked to the old part of the city; because of the holy month of Ramadan, there were hardly any shops open and very few people were milling about.
Anais gave us more information about the typical fez hats, called chachia and we stopped at a shop to see the many stages of the production of these wool felt hats worn in many Arab countries.
By the time we were on our own and could walk through the souk, the vendors were starting to open their shops and display their wares. The rule of thumb is not to make eye contact with the vendors or look too interested in the delights. As we were the only tourists in the medina today, the vendors were very anxious to engage us and talk to us. They were very polite, interested in where we were from, but also very willing to give us a "bargain".
Anais gathered us together for one last look at Tunis before heading back to the ship at 4:40. We had time to sort our photos, fill in the journal events for the day and get ready for the Port Talk at 6:45 and dinner at 7:00.
Our Clio left Tunis at 8:00 PM and then will sail for 33 hours on to Algeria.
Accommodations: M/V Clio
Comments
To bad for you with the rain but I still see a lot of people wearing sunglasses in your picture. Looking forward to follow you on the remaining part of this trip.
Post a Comment!I just looked it up - I was on the Athena on Hidden Gems of the Dalmatian Coast when the captain of our ship was Davor Zecevic, who was the Ice Captain on the Antarctica trip that we all took together. Is he your captain? I am sure there are many that come from Croatia.
Aziz, our Tour Leader
The Red Group at Dougga, Tunisia
North Africa American Cemetery in Tu...
The Tunis Medina
Shops in the Souk
Featured Journal
Day 17: Mediterranean Navigation
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