Tunisian 'Winter Sun' in Worldrover

It was the drum that woke me first, the pattern of four beats and a pause, growing ever closer.

It was four in the morning and outside in the northern Tunisian town of Hammamat all was dark.

The drum was a wake up call for the local residents so that they might eat and be ready for prayers.

It being he time of Ramadan they would then fast until sunset.

I drifted off to sleep but woke again as the first light of dawn shone across the Mediterranean and bathed the turret of the minarets in a rosy light.

From the loudspeakers on top of it came the sound of the Muezzin calling the faithful to prayer.

The call drifted across the valley "Allah u akbar....... Allah u akbar ....La ill’ Allah...”
(God is great...God is great...there is no God But God....)

It was a wonderful introduction to a holiday, where you were definitely aware of being in another culture, indeed another continent.

Scotland might be in the middle of a freezing winter but you could be slopping the sun oil on and toasting in the sun.

I stayed in the Hotel Sol Azure which looked something like a cross between a sultan’s palace and a giant white wedding cake and it being off season, the crowds were missing so you got extra attention from staff.

Beyond Hammamet’s ancient fort there is a beach where waiters will serve you coffee at tables in the sand and a tall man dispenses bouquets of jasmine from a hat decked with sweet smelling posies of flowers

We visited The Medina which contains a labyrinth of narrow lanes encircled by walls that were built in the 15th century

There are some phrases that can help you cope with bargaining as you run the gauntlet of the persistent local traders;
“Mandish Loose” means I have no money! “ Nooshie, ” Enough! and
“Yissi!” .... well, that gets rid of small boys flogging scorpion paperweights!

Your nationality seems to determine what you pay.
Germans are charged most, followed by French (because they once occupied the country,) and then the Irish because when they arrive the bar profits go through the roof and word spreads.

Report by Allan Rogers

BOOKMARK

It was the drum that woke me first, the pattern of four beats and a pause, growing ever closer. It was four in the morning and outside in the northern Tunisian town of Hammamat all was dark. The drum was a wake up call for the local residents so that they might eat and be ready for prayers. It being he time of Ramadan they would then fast until sunset. I drifted off to sleep but woke again as the first light of dawn shone across the Mediterranean and bathed the turret of the minarets in a rosy light. From the loudspeakers on top of it came the sound of the Muezzin calling the faithful to prayer. The call drifted across the valley "Allah u akbar....... Allah u akbar ....La ill’ Allah...” (God is great...God is great...there is no God But God....) It was a wonderful introduction to a holiday, where you were definitely aware of being in another culture, indeed another continent. Scotland might be in the middle of a freezing winter but you could be slopping the sun oil on and toasting in the sun. I stayed in the Hotel Sol Azure which looked something like a cross between a sultan’s palace and a giant white wedding cake and it being off season, the crowds were missing so you got extra attention from staff. Beyond Hammamet’s ancient fort there is a beach where waiters will serve you coffee at tables in the sand and a tall man dispenses bouquets of jasmine from a hat decked with sweet smelling posies of flowers We visited The Medina which contains a labyrinth of narrow lanes encircled by walls that were built in the 15th century There are some phrases that can help you cope with bargaining as you run the gauntlet of the persistent local traders; “Mandish Loose” means I have no money! “ Nooshie, ” Enough! and “Yissi!” .... well, that gets rid of small boys flogging scorpion paperweights! Your nationality seems to determine what you pay. Germans are charged most, followed by French (because they once occupied the country,) and then the Irish because when they arrive the bar profits go through the roof and word spreads. Report by Allan Rogers BOOKMARK
	-	COOL WINTER DEC 2004 - JAN 2005 Volume 4 Edition 6