Wednesday 24th April

Set out at 7.00am. First stop was the market in Gabes where we bought some Frankincense rocks apparently with different perfumes & some saffron. The markets tend to be somewhat similar to each other which is a bit frustrating. From here we travelled via Sfax, the 2nd largest city in Tunisia to see the Roman amphitheatre of El Djem which is truly remarkable both in size & in state of preservation. It is a miniature colosseum built in the 3rd century AD in Hadrian's time & apparently held about 35,000 spectators. Jane visited in the late 60s when apparently it stood alone but now there is a thriving town around it. The building rises to 3 levels but apparently was never completed due t turmoil in the Empire. We then visited the Archaeological Museum which held some of the most magnificent detailed mosaics taken from the floors of local villas. These were beautifully executed & attest to the competence of their artists & craftsmen. The road is the main route between Tunis & Libya & is full of trucks taking foodstuffs, building materials & equipment to Libya.

All along the roadside there are little thatched huts with fuel drums & plastic containers of diesel & petrol for sale. This is openly smuggled from Libya as their fuel prices are so low in comparison. The fuel is poured or pumped into the buyers’ vehicles all quite openly & it looks incredibly dangerous. Apparently the legitimate filling stations struck for government action as they were going broke but nothing appears to have happened in the remoter areas.

Eventually we arrived in Sousse at another very modern, extraordinary hotel with 618 rooms & all the fruit etc. The weather is still cool & windy & our coach is covered in mud splashes from the occasional half hearted shower. We are here for 3 nights.