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Tunisia for Beginners - By Neal Teplitz
I couldn't go just anywhere for my first trip on my New
World Tourist. I had done lots of touring on my old bikes, but never to Tunisia.
Why Tunisia? Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Mostly, Tunisia is
a small country with lots of unusual yet accessible attractions. Most of the population
and road signs are bilingual, Arabic and French. Since I speak French well, it
was easy for my friend and I to get around. The roads are good, and traffic was
fairly light along our route. The downside? Tunisian boys aged approximately 12-16
that go berserk when they see foreign cyclists.
 Throughout
the country, especially in areas which see few tourists, it was not unusual for
boys to run out in the road and try and physically block us. One boy tried to
pull my bike over while I was riding it. Another aimed a horizontal leg at my
bike as he descended a hill on his own bike. A few boys threw small stones at
us, and one boy threw part of a date palm branch at me, hitting me on the helmet.
Maybe the above is why we didn't encounter a single other touring cyclist during
our 12 day trip.
If you can survive the street urchins, Tunisia is a fascinating place. We begin
cycling on the island of Jerba, off the southeast coast of Tunisia. Though Jerba
receives thousands of European package tourists during the beach season, we had
much of the island to ourselves in November, when temperatures are ideal for cycling
(every day was in the 70s). Jerba is populated with several different traditional
cultures, and its sights include ancient mosques along the Mediterranean, a fabulously
ornate synagogue, and flocks of flamingos.
 Back
on the nearby mainland, we biked to troglodyte villages where people live in caves
or underground pits (which are a lot cooler in the summer). Parts of the Star
Wars movies were filmed in this region. From cave villages, we continued on to
the edge of the Sahara. We biked through a string of data palm oases, and crossed
a dry salt lake bed (the most desolate landscape I've ever seen) to the enormous
oasis of Tozeur. The lushness of Tozeur was startling next to its utterly barren
surroundings.
We took a bus back north (it was easy to transport our 
bikes on Tunisian buses), and completed our cycling on the verdant Cap Bon peninsula
which juts out toward nearby Sicily. Its landscape of orchards and vineyards (yes,
Tunisia produces wine!) contrasted nicely with the desert south. We ended our
trip in Tunis which has a superb medina and numerous other sights. A hotel there
was kindly storing my Bike Friday® suitcase for me while we toured. This trip
took place in November, 2000, 10 months prior to the terrorist attacks on the
US However, violence had resumed in Israel prior to our trip, and we had some
trepidation over how we would be received as Americans. Tunisians have a reputation
for hospitality (someone forgot to tell the urchins), and we encountered no hostility
as Americans. We did have two interesting political discussions, however.
Tunisia is a very inexpensive country to visit. Prices
for our hotel rooms ranged from US$6 to $28. Food is also
quite cheap and tasty. We ate well. The best times for
touring are spring and fall. It's way too hot in the summer,
and the winter brings cool temperatures and rainfall in
the northern part of the country. We had perfect weather
every day.
 Neal
Teplitz is an intrepid NWT owner from Maryland who's been it, seen it.
Contact him at [email protected] |
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