Day 119 to 120- 26th to 27th February- Tunisia

Point of departure: Medinine

Point of arrival : Tunis

Accommodation: Phebus Hotel

Km travelled today: 534 & 292 km Cum: 21 749km (gravel 0km cum 4 649km)

Countries so far: 11/16

Where to next? Sicily

No of photos: 64 (cum 5 513)

Tunis (in Arabic Tounès) takes you by surprise with the hustle and bustle of a modern Mediterranean city, not quite what we expected. There are two worlds side by side in the centre of Tunis - the old and medieval Medina (old city - over one thousand years old) with its souks and the modern metropolis of Tunis.The Medina has been classified by Unesco as a World Heritage Site.

The Bab-el-Bahr Gate (Arabic for "Sea Gate" and so named for its close proximity to the sea), built by the French (in the colonial era) separates the old city from the new.Before the French colonised Tunisia, Lake Tunis lapped up against the walls of the Medina. The French drained the ground and built around it and today, the Gate is about 1,5km from the lake.

Marina was on a bit of a mission for floor rugs, a speciality of the Berber tribe. The souks are quite something! While fairly crowded and buzzing, they are much more organised than those we have seen e.g. Omdurman (Sudan). These were a series of many shops off closed or covered arcades and narrow alleys, with plenty of opportunities to spend money.

There are various souks: arts and crafts and traditional work; brass, silver and copper trays, vases etc; clothing and household textiles; jewellery (including Berber bracelets and necklaces); ceramics (including tiles, jugs, platters, and bowls displayed in every colour, hue and design) and leatherwork: hats, pocketbooks, carryalls, jackets and coats.

After finding the Souk de Trouk (for carpets) we visited the recommended shop from our DK guide and spent a pleasant hour having the carpets and rugs spread out across the floor for us, trying to co-ordinate colours and sizes. Then the final step negotiating price and closing the deal. They even delivered them to our hotel, neatly wrapped in paper and plastic for the Beast's roof carrier.

The carpet shop has a roof terrace which provided us with a lovely view of the Great Mosque (being Friday no visitors allowed). The Great Mosque has been at the heart of Tunis since it begun in the 8th century and forms the axis of and towers over the souks. Note to ourselves: visit the mosque on our next visit to Tunisia.

After a bit of additional shopping for us, and on behalf of friends, in the Souk (Marina doesn't mind whose money she spends) it was lunch at a pavement café, very reminiscent of Paris and in fact the French influence here is quite pervasive once one is out of the Souks. After a stroll down the Avenue de France, dual carriageway, pavement café after pavement café and manicured trees and shrubs, a crepe for desert as we walked, it all felt quite civilised.

Then back to our hotel (after a couple of unintentional detours) to resort the Beast and prepare for the arrival of the rugs.All set for our departure tomorrow, although we have enjoyed the little we have seen of Tunis and Tunisia. We could envisage a return, possibly as part of a North African trip sometime in the future.

Day 120 - our last day on the African continent! After checking out, we headed north west to Cap Blanc (67km from Tunis) - the northern most tip of the African continent. We have stood at Cape Agulhas - the southern most tip of the African continent, and had to do the "tourist" thing and see the northern point. After driving through Bizerte, we pointed in the direction of Cap Blanc and it took a combination of common sense and further local advice for us to get there. Not one single sign identified this landmark! However, we did find it and took our photographs, including one for the Beast.A local on a scooter confirmed what we had assumed was Cap Blanc was in fact the spot.

Then back to Tunis and Sidi Bou Said, perched on a cliff overlooking the Bay of Tunis and Tunisia's version of Santorini with its quaint narrow streets, whitewashed buildings with their blue doors, shutters, roofs and ornate window grilles.

Doors in Tunisia are symbols reflecting the fortune and happiness of the households within and usually painted blue (sometimes brown or yellow) and with two doorknockers - the one on the left used by women and the one on the right by men. Each family member has a recognised knock. European fashion influenced the colouring and decorative motifs of the doors.(source DK Tunisia guide)

Sidi Bou Said is famous for its beautiful ornate wire bird cages usually painted white. The design resembles the curved window grilles found in the wooden shutters of Arab homes. These bird cages are not only used for birds but also as decorations or mailboxes. We ambled the streets and stopped for lunch at Café Turk overlooking the bay.Afternoon tea was taken at the famous Café Nattes on the main street, the village hot spot for a traditional glass of mint tea.

On the way to La Goulette (ferry port), a quick stop at Carthage (Hannibal and the city of Carthage who dared brave the might of Rome) - here lie the ruins of these two great empires - and a quick visit to the Roman amphitheatre - one of the largest in the Roman Empire - as by now we are "theatre'd out". Mental note: all the Carthage ruins worth a re-visit, in any future trip to Tunisia.

We gave ourselves more time than we really needed for the port, but had it to spare… 18h00 arrival for a 23h00 departure. The first thing we had to do was check in and get our ticket at GNV (Grand Navi Veloci) but the ticket office only opened at 19h00. We got in the queue, and inevitably the office opened late.We only completed this formality at about 20h30. Then to the entry gate with the Beast and another wait… this only opened at 21h00 and, inevitably, opened a little late. We then entered here and got into the queue for Customs and Immigration, which looked quite organised on the surface but turned out to be a bit chaotic and then we witnessed the arrival of our ferry, already a couple of hours late. With Customs and Immigration completed we then sat for over an hour, until finally we moved onto the quay side to await loading, and further wait… until 2am! Then to our total surprise another police check, including unloading of luggage for inspection… for some reason Marina was able to charm the police officer, who waved us through without unloading the Beast. We think it looked like too much work! And finally, onto the ferry at about 2.30am. By now we were "gatvol" (Afrikaans for "fed up") of the ferry disorganisation but were pleasantly surprised with the comfort of our cabin and the size - enough to swing a few cats - right at the bow of the vessel, and a panoramic view of the sea. A hot shower and we hit the sack. We sailed at 3h30am instead of 23h00.

Goodbye Tunisia and Africa (until we meet again in June).

See Italian blog for the next chapter of our ferry saga.