Tunis, Tunisie- le 16 avril

So, I know it's been a while since I've written, but I'm going to try to do better. I have a few things to catch up on, but I want to start with my trip to Tunisia. I had to keep a journal while I was there, and I'm just going to translate my journal entries from French to English and put them on the blog, so here goes!

I just arrived in Tunisia and I am finding it extraordinary! It's really funny for me to imagine being able to go to Africa by taking an hour-long flight- it's really crazy what technology has given to us!

The first thing that I noticed was that even though Tunisia is a country with a strong Muslim presence, and a lot of extremists (according to my Maghreb class), there are a lot of people who dress with a western style. Personally, I don't know if it's because we're in a big city which has a really strong European influence, or if the people here just have western habits, but it's a image that we don't get to see very often when speaking about Africa.

On the trip from the airport to the hotel, I noticed that there was a lot of construction. I wonder if it's because the area is developing and Tunisia's growing bigger or what. It's a question that I will have to ask later... perhaps. I also noticed that people drive a lot more here in Tunisia. In Aix, you don't really need a car for everyday things- the city's small enough that you can walk everywhere! In Tunis, however, I see only a few people walking; most people are driving in cars or riding on the bus.

Another thing, I noticed that there aren't as many recycling bins as there are in Aix. Granted, we're in the middle of a touristy city, but it just seems to me that recycling isn't as important here as it is in France. The driving and the lack of recycling makes me the think of an American city...

On the other hand, I realized to what point tourism is important for this city. I dare say that I've met more foreigners here that "real" Tunisians- and it's really shocking! We talked a lot about how tourism is the big industry here before we left Aix, but I never realized how big it was! I've met Englishmen, Germans, Asians, etc.- and it's really interesting.

The other big thing that I noticed is that the hotel staff is a little curt at times. They don't have a lot of patience. Even so, I try to speak to them politely in French... they're a little spéciaux. Despite that, the hotel is AWESOME! It's on the beach, there's a pool, a tennis court, etc.- it's great! I also really like the other guests at the hotel too- they're really nice.