Tunisia (2023)

Sousse

As mentioned earlier, I was actually in Tunisia for business. Otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have come here so quickly and certainly not to Sousse. This is one of those places with wide beaches and large all-inclusive resorts that I try to avoid as much as possible. Career-wise, the conference was a significant and important step for me. The work presented here was the first of three papers I need to publish before I can start my dissertation. And so, despite everything, I looked forward to the next few days. The prospect of air conditioning naturally added to that 😉

With the Louage to Sousse

A few minutes’ walk from my accommodation in Tunis was the Louage station. Louages are shared taxis, similar to Colectivos in South America. They have specific meeting points from where they depart. There is no schedule; when the vehicle is full, the driver sets off. Passing by the Tunis Marina Station, from where I set off to Carthage a few days ago, my path led me to an industrial area. Here, there were numerous auto repair shops and stores with all sorts of electrical devices and spare parts. Eventually, I stopped and looked around: This is where the marker on my map led me, but where was this Louage station now? A man, around 40 with a broad sun hat, approached me. He spoke French, but when he realized that this language wouldn’t help us, he managed to pull out a few English phrases. He looked like one of the drivers, so I asked where the Louage station was. Where did I want to go, he asked. Sousse. He gestured for me to follow him. We walked through a gate into a driveway and across a parking lot, and suddenly, we were indeed in a large hall full of minibusses.

There was a lot of hustle and bustle here. Louages were leaving, luggage was still being loaded. Drivers who had nothing to do at the moment stood in groups, smoked, and chatted. The man led me to a counter. Fortunately, I understood the written Arabic here much better than the spoken. Various cities were listed at the booth with their corresponding prices. I had never seen anything like this before: a regulated market for shared taxis! When it was my turn, I was actually charged the listed price and not a dinar more. Usually, I’m used to negotiating in such situations because, as a naive blonde, I naturally appear as easy prey to be charged double or triple the price. In exchange for only a few euros, I was given a ticket. My companion with the sun hat was already waiting for me. Well, at least he surely wants a few dinars for his help. I already had a few coins ready. He looked at my ticket to make sure Sousse was written on it, then led me further into the hall. To my surprise, he didn’t want any money from me. Instead, he turned to me and asked for my phone number in broken English. Now I understood. I held up my right hand and pointed to my wedding ring. To my surprise, the man suddenly became very subdued. It was visibly awkward for him that he had just tried to flirt with a married woman. He quickly led me to one of the minibusses and then immediately disappeared.

The driver tore off the bottom part of my receipt, asked again, “Sousse?” to which I confirmed, and then gestured for me to board. Two boys around 18 years old were already sitting in the back seat. To my surprise, they were learning German together. I turned around with a grin and greeted them with a “Good day.” The two boys looked at me with wide eyes. The surprise turned into enthusiasm, and they immediately tested their German skills on me, bombarding me with questions: Where exactly in Germany I come from, how I liked Tunisia, what I was doing here, and how long I would be staying. In return, I asked them a few questions. I learned that the two had just finished school and were taking a little vacation in Sousse. They were learning German because they wanted to study in Germany. When I asked what they wanted to study, the next surprise came directly: Computer Science.
While we chatted, the minibus filled up. Two more men sat next to me, and another woman boarded in the front. Then the nearly two-hour journey to Sousse began, and before I knew it, I was already there.

Welcome to all-inclusive hell

The conference hotel, like all-inclusive resorts, was not in the city center of Sousse but in Port el Kantaoui, about a 20-minute drive north. I arranged for another Bolt, which seemed a bit surprised by the address, and I didn’t blame him. After the ride, I was once again completely sweaty, my sun hat made me look more like an adventurer, and admittedly, my clothes really needed to be washed. And he was supposed to take me to a 5-star hotel?

Arriving at the gates of the hotel, the security staff intercepted our vehicle. They, too, were initially skeptical that we were in the right place. It was only when I showed them my German passport along with the reservation and they inspected the trunk and the underside of the vehicle that they let us pass. Who travels here in a local Bolt instead of a tour bus or a shuttle service, after all? I gave the driver an extra tip for the additional checks and said goodbye before immersing myself in a completely different world for the next few days.

My luggage was immediately taken from me and passed through the obligatory scanner. I, too, went through a metal detector. However, on the other side, I didn’t simply get my luggage back; instead, a bellboy took it and explained that he would bring it to my room. Well, that’s how it goes. I would, of course, have to give him a few dinars as a tip later. So, without luggage, I went to the reception. A well-dressed Tunisian man, around 40 years old, greeted me. I showed him my reservation, and he gave me a form to fill out. When I returned the filled form to him, he took one of the many room keys, only to retract it at the last moment. No, I would get a different room, he explained. However, my room wasn’t ready yet, so he asked me to wait in the lobby for a short while.

After I, still dirty and sweaty, sat down on one of the couches, I finally had the opportunity to look around. The lobby was huge and luxuriously furnished. There were two bars where you could get drinks and, in some cases, small snacks like pastries. At the back, there was an enormous glass door through which you could see the pool area. Two entertainers were leading water aerobics, and the pool as well as all the loungers around it, of which there were plenty, were crowded. Next to the glass door, there was a monitor showing the schedule of activities. Fun and relaxation were clearly well-scheduled here. The first activity, simply labeled “Gym,” started at 10:00 a.m., and the last one, “Show Time,” was at 9:30 p.m. In addition to the ongoing water aerobics, there were darts, table tennis, dance lessons, a mini disco, and much more. No wonder Carthage was empty. Amidst all these activities, there was no time to leave the hotel and explore the country being exploited. Yes, I have a very negative opinion of all-inclusive tourism, and listing everything here would undoubtedly exceed the scope of this post.

My gaze fell on the other guests. There were three categories in total. Firstly, there were the Tunisian families. It was a long weekend, and many families took the opportunity for a getaway. I held no resentment towards them. Next, there was the Boomer+ generation. I could vividly imagine them annoying friends and family back home with boring pool and buffet photos while telling stories of how poor the country was and warning to be cautious of people outside the hotel. Lastly, there were women around my age with plump lips, waterproof makeup, and overly long fingernails, parading around in “sexy” beach outfits alongside their bodybuilder boyfriends with more muscles than brains, constantly taking new selfies. In the background, the music from the water aerobics continued to blare.

An employee snapped me out of my thoughts, informing me that my room was finally ready. I returned to the reception and received the key. Meanwhile, my suitcase was in the corner. “Don’t worry, it will be brought up shortly,” assured me the man behind the counter. Alright, let’s go to the room then. I took the elevator for once and then walked through endlessly long corridors covered in carpet, all looking identical, until I finally stood in front of the door with the correct number.

My room was huge. I had my own double bed, a bathroom, and a balcony. Across from the bed was a television, and next to it was a floor-to-ceiling mirror. The most important thing for me, however, was the air conditioning, which blew pleasantly cool air from the wall. It was perfectly set, and I dropped onto the bed to enjoy the pleasant room temperature. I couldn’t wait to jump into the shower and come out not as sweaty as I entered. Besides, I wanted to finally wash my clothes because they could be hung up on the balcony. However, one thing was missing for all of this: my suitcase! I waited and waited, but nothing happened. Eventually, I decided to go down to the reception, still dirty but at least not as sweaty, only to see that my suitcase was still in the corner. There was no sign of the bellboy. Well, then, no tip for him.

I grabbed my suitcase without anyone noticing and took it to my room. A short time later, showered and in fresh clothes, I felt reborn. I relaxed in my room for a moment before going back down to the reception. One thing was still missing in this hell: my all-inclusive wristband. The wristbands had run out just as I received my key, and I was asked to come back later. Now they put a purple plastic bracelet on me, which meant I had an all-inclusive package without alcohol. That suited me just fine because I don’t drink alcohol anyway. Instead, I went to one of the bars in the lobby and got myself a black coffee.

Not much time left until the registration for AfricaCrypt was about to begin. I used the time to make a call home and let everyone know that I had arrived safely. After registering, dinner started shortly thereafter. Having had only a few crackers and some olives from Ahmed for breakfast, I was quite hungry, so I went straight to the buffet as soon as it opened. I doubt that the other people standing there were as famished as I was, but they behaved as if they had just come out of a famine. As soon as the doors opened, they rushed in and piled all sorts of things onto their plates. A group of young people speaking an Eastern European language I couldn’t identify was shouting at each other about the variety of food. When one of them spotted the sushi, there was no stopping them: “Sushi!” he yelled, and his friends ran to him, piling one sushi roll after another onto their already overflowing plates. The other guests didn’t bring any better manners, and the buffet was plundered as if there were an impending nuclear war.

I served myself some pasta, steamed vegetables, potatoes, and bean salad on my plate, and for dessert, I settled for a few pieces of melon, while chaos continued around me. Of course, most people didn’t even finish their first serving, so plenty of plates full of food were left at the tables as people, stuffed, got up and left. Waiters quickly cleared the tables and disposed of the food to make room for the next guests. What a waste! And admittedly, the food didn’t even taste particularly good, but at least I was full when I went back to my room and went to sleep shortly after.

The sleep situation was a bit challenging because I didn’t factor in the promised parties and discos. While the echoes of the “Show Time” from my hotel were audible (whatever that was, it involved loud music), the neighboring hotel regularly lit up its light show through the gaps in my curtains, accompanied by even more loudly amplified music. I pulled the curtains tighter, covered my ears with a pillow, and miraculously managed to fall asleep at some point.

Off to the old town

The next morning, the conference commenced. It doesn’t quite fit to discuss the presentations here, so I’ll omit that part and focus entirely on the events outside the academic aspects.

I started the day with a few laps in the pool, observing the daily ritual of reserving the loungers with towels. After breakfast, where the behavior of the other guests wasn’t much more civilized than the previous night’s dinner, I spent the following time at the conference, where I met Razvan and Sabrina from Bordeaux and Joel from Stockholm.

After our work was done, we decided to share a Bolt and explore the old town of Sousse together. When we finally got out, I felt back in my element. Merchants were bustling around, the narrow alleys of the souks began in the distance, and you could hear the muezzin’s call to prayer. Although it was already quite late, we were allowed to visit the Ribat, a kind of Islamic fortress, and even climb the tower. Unfortunately, we were promptly kicked out of the mosque. Afterward, we went to eat together, and thanks to Razvan’s knowledge of French (he is originally from Romania but has been living in France for many years and is married to a Frenchwoman), we managed to convey the concept of vegan food to the waiter. He accepted it with a shake of his head and then brought me noodles with olives and a fiery hot sauce with lots of chili peppers. Well, luckily, I can handle spicy food 😉

El Jem

On the second day, AfricaCrypt had organized an excursion in the afternoon. I was thrilled when I heard where we were going because it was one of the places I wanted to visit: El Jem. There, you find the ruins of the third-largest Roman amphitheater, right after the Colosseum in Rome and the Amphitheater of Capua. Several buses took us to El Jem in just over an hour. We knew we had arrived when we saw large letters that read “I ♥ El Jem,” behind which the amphitheater was already visible. We were divided into several groups. The guide of my group was a tall older gentleman with white stubble on his head. He was indeed very competent in what he did, providing numerous pieces of information in a short time without overwhelming us or just throwing random years at us. Thanks to him, the amphitheater literally came to life. However, one thing caught my attention at this site: besides us, there was absolutely no one here. Almost 2000 years of human history, and no one cares?! On the one hand, it was, of course, super cool to have the amphitheater to ourselves. Our guide led us through the ranks and even through the catacombs, where you could still see where the lions were chained. On the other hand, I can once again only shake my head when I think of the many tourists in the all-inclusive hotel who spend their entire day lying by the pool or on the beach, entertained by animators, without ever bothering to engage with this country and its culture.

After visiting the amphitheater, we went to the Museum of El Jem. The museum was rather small, but there were plenty of impressive and surprisingly well-preserved mosaics to admire. Once again, our guide accompanied us, explaining numerous details, such as references to individuals and stories from Roman mythology or the representation of the four seasons. Of course, we were once again the only visitors.

Eventually, we went to a large joint dinner in Monastir. A gala dinner is a part of every conference. The organizers (yes, they were all women who organized it) had reserved a restaurant in the middle of Monastir. The staff was a bit puzzled by my vegan diet (when they asked about special dietary needs beforehand, and I was the only one who mentioned being vegan, one of the organizers came to me afterward and asked for further clarification about what that actually meant), but they still managed to veganize all the dishes (sometimes by omitting certain components). Only the sweet pastries for dessert were not vegan, but since I don’t really eat sweets, I had no problem with that.

Upon entering the restaurant, the organizers suggested that we sit inside, but we wanted to enjoy the lively atmosphere on the main street (there were people everywhere, and brightly lit carriages passed by constantly), so we all sat outside. This shows that we all came from colder latitudes because, of course, it didn’t get much cooler at night, and we were sweating profusely. This was to the chagrin of a violinist who was hired to provide entertainment with his instrument and a sound system in the background. He played really well, even though, apart from the table with all the Tunisians who were enthusiastically singing along, hardly anyone knew any of the songs. Unfortunately, the heat took a toll on him, and he had to interrupt his concert from time to time to change into a new shirt in the restroom because the old one was soaked with sweat. Eventually, he achieved his goal when some of us from the “foreign” table (myself included) got up and started dancing with our Tunisian organizers.

The celebration lasted late into the night. As a farewell, we received wonderfully fragrant jasmine bouquets and refrigerator magnets before boarding the buses again and returning to Sousse. I didn’t experience much of the return journey as, like most people, I fell asleep immediately.

Avoid crowds of people

On the last day of the conference, it was finally my turn to present. I had the somewhat challenging slot right after lunch. This allowed me to set up the slides on the projector and test the technology in peace. However, since everyone was in a post-lunch slump, especially after the short night, I didn’t receive a single question. Well, perhaps it’s for the better?

After the conference was ceremoniously concluded, I joined a larger group of people to visit the old town once more. While others explored the Ribat, Razvan, Sabrina, Joel, and I sat in an adjacent café. I sipped on Arabic tea while waving to the others who were now on top of the tower. Next, we all went to a small snack shop on a side street (no one was in the mood for touristy restaurants). The owner was almost overwhelmed to suddenly find such a large group of customers in front of his shop (there were 13 of us) and promptly pushed all his plastic tables together. I ordered Makloub, a sandwich made of pizza dough resembling a calzone. It was even veganized for me by omitting the cheese and substituting mushrooms for meat. And what can I say? My Makloub was truly delicious!

Today, the streets of Sousse were noticeably busier than before. This was not only because it was Friday but also because there was a large free open-air concert in the city featuring a famous Tunisian singer. We didn’t want to miss it. After paying (with a generous tip, of course – the friendly owner really deserved it, probably making the sale of his life today!), we followed the crowds down to the beach. Barriers were already set up, and everything was filled with people. The travel warning from the Foreign Office, advising to avoid crowds in Tunisia, lingered in my mind. However, none of us felt unsafe here. Families with children were everywhere, and everyone was in a festive mood. The only thing that didn’t seem to start properly was the concert. Occasional sound checks or opening acts were performing 1-2 songs, but we saw nothing of the famous singer.

After about 2 hours, we gave up and returned to the hotel, where the “Show Time” was still ongoing. Someone had brought a few women from the audience onto the stage and placed them on chairs. Now the audience was supposed to rate the women based on various criteria. What a strange spectacle… I shook my head and went back to my room, where I tightly closed the curtains, pressed the pillow against my ears, and shortly after, drifted off to sleep.

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