Tunisia 2008 - 04 Golden beaches and affordable luxuries...

"Happiness is an inner joy. It is a delicate balance between what we want and what we have..."

(White sandy beach of Sousse)

Day 04: 12 March 2008

(Gabes - Sousse - Tunis)

Owing to its location, Gabès has unusual seaside oasis and attractive beaches, which are popular with locals, as well as, with tourists. In Gabès you will find mountains, oasis, desert and sea all in the same city, making it one of the most unique places to visit in the world. There are many things to do in Gabès, if you have the time. The city is quite famous for its nightlife, especially during Ramadan when the desert becomes alive. Shops are set up in the desert and feasts take place almost every night in Ramadan. Among other things to do in Gabès, include shopping from the city modern malls.

(The sun is shining bright this morning)

(A nice view from our room)

(Dining by the pool side)

We checked out early after a heavy breakfast in the hotel. Today we will drive on Auto Route 1 and Trans-African Highway 1 retracing our route back to the capital city of Tunis. The distance was about 450 km and would take us about 5 hours to reach Tunis if we drive non-stop.

(Driving on the Autoroute 1)

(Petrol top-up for the long-distance drive)

To break the monotonous driving and to stretch our cramped legs we stopped in Sousse. Our first stop was at one of the beautiful beaches. The long white sandy beach stretches from the centre of Sousse to Port el-Kantaoui, 10km away. There were not many people at the beach during this time of the year. But It is always crowded and quite dirty on the public beaches in summer.

 

(The access road to a private beach)

(Sunny windy weather at the beach)

(The beach with white fine sand)

(The blue sea water reflecting the clear blue sky)

(A leisure stroll on the beach)

(A long stretch of sandy beaches)

(Leaving our foot prints on the sand)

We drove to the town of Sousse and spent some time exploring the the labyrinth of the medina. The old souq, surrounded by ninth-century walls offers plenty of distractions and attractions apart from shopping for souvenirs and trying out local delicacies.

(Heavy traffic entering town)

(Looking for a place to park)

(One of the many entrances)

(One could get lost wondering)

(Colourful ornaments on display)

(Souvenirs of local crafts)

Sousse has an abundance of sights and an excellent tourist infrastructure. For something more entertaining, you can hop on the toy trains that run up and down the main road of the tourist strip. They go from the northern end of Ave Habib Bourguiba in Sousse to the marina in Port El Kantaoui. Trains are colour-coded and leave every 15 minutes.

One could also take a ride on a calèche, the horse-drawn carriage between Port El Kantaoui and Pl Bou Jaffar in Sousse.

(The calèche for tourists)

(A toy train ride around town)

After spending so much time walking the narrow street of the medina and visiting interesting places around town we drove direct to Tunis. It was quite late when we arrived at Hotel Carlton. 

👈 2008 Tunisia: Tunis

2008 Tunisia: Matmata/Tatouine 👉