WINTERING IN TUNISIA

Liz Hammick Scott, Roving Rear Commodore

(Liz and Mark Scott sail a Rival 38 with their daughter Chloe, who is almost three.)

The idea of exploring the coast of Tunisia and wintering there during our Mediterranean cruise first came to us when we were loaned a copy of the Imray North Africa cruising guide which Anne was reviewing for Flying Fish. Reading it in bed in New York City, during one of the coldest winters on record -- snow was lying a foot deep on our roof terrace -- made the sun and warmth seem particularly appealing. Much later, discussions with fellow cruisers in Gibraltar and the Balaerics confirmed that Monastir marina on Tunisia's east coast was safe, reasonably cheap, and should have places available. We enjoyed our month between Gibraltar and Menorca but were more excited than usual as we made our landfall at Tabarca, only seven miles from Tunisia's border with Algeria. The four day passage had been in light airs with plenty of motoring.

The harbour at Tabarca, overlooked by a 15th century castle, has a small new marina. We stayed a week, exploring the town and trying to get a feel for the new culture. The officials, there and everywhere else since, were friendly and helpful, but firm about certain rules such as not allowing yachts to remain anchored in the bay at night `for security reasons' and not allowing local people to visit foreign vessels without first informing the police. Tunisia is as liberal an Arab country as you could get, but one still senses that the people cannot, and dare not, step very far out of line. The authorities, while genuinely welcoming to tourists and cruising yachtsmen, don't want too many western influences creeping in.

Our money seemed to go a very long way at the local market and we feasted on excellent bread, tangerines and dates. Fresh vegetables were limited in choice but good, the cheese was disappointing until we discovered the local camembert, every bit as good as its French ancestor, and the butchers' shops so off-putting as to turn us into semi-vegetarians. In fact the local meat is extremely fresh, but the displays outside are not for the faint-hearted. From Tabarca we ventured inland on a local bus to Bulla Regia, site of a Roman town and unique in having several of the villas built underground for shade and coolness. Many of the best mosaics have been removed to the Bardo Museum in Tunis but plenty remain -- over the next month we visited several more major Roman ruins in Tunisia and never stopped marvelling at the abundance of wonderful historical relics, and the lack of fences, glass or guides to stop us touching them. Going in November meant no crowds, and we were often the only visitors.

From Tabarca we sailed fifteen miles along the coast to Cap Serrat, where we spent two peaceful nights anchored off a perfect beach with only a few fishermen for company. It was a bit cold for swimming but Chloe enjoyed digging in the fine, honey-coloured sand. We were miles from civilisation, so no officials to bother us. Next stop was Bizerte, a major port and in 1963 the last stronghold of the French before it was liberated by the Tunisians, who had gained independence in 1956. We stayed for a week, alongside a new concrete jetty with several other (mostly French) yachts. High points were the hot showers, an interesting old town with a particularly good produce market, an authentic medina (old walled area with narrow streets) and several good local restaurants. By now our rusty French was improving, but we never made any progress with Arabic.

The wind had whistled and howled for several days but seemed to have eased up when we left on 16 November to sail east. Two hours later we were bowling along in big seas, sunshine and 30 knots of wind. Two reefs and a severely rolled genoa kept Lone Rival under control and the seas flattened out a bit as we beat into the Bay of Tunis and south towards La Goulette, the port for the capital city. We bypassed the expensive marina at Sidi Bou Said and by nightfall were tied bows-to at a rather derelict but handy yacht club in the fishing harbour. It turned out to be ideal for ten days of exploring. With Tunis only fifteen minutes away on the `metro' train, and Carthage a similar distance up the coast, we seldom spent a day on board. Carthage was founded by the Phoenicians in 800 BC, completely destroyed by the Romans by 146BC and rebuilt by them a century later. At its height, Roman Carthage had half a million inhabitants and enjoyed peace and prosperity, supplying Rome with wheat, wine and olive oil. The ruins are spread over a wide area, with luxury villas belonging to well-to-do Tunisians amongst, and no doubt covering, more of them. We spent two days seeing as much as we could, including the excellent museum. Chloe gave the custodians heartfailure as she tried to touch everything -- two-year-olds and priceless relics don't mix! She was much safer outside, climbing on the marble statues which lay around in droves. Not one had a nose left -- 5th century Vandals had seen to that.

An early start from La Goulette ensured we would round Cap Bou and reach Kalibia before dark. We motored most of the way, with a few short periods of sailing in light winds. The fishing harbour at Kalibia can cope with half a dozen yachts alongside the policeboat pier but isn't really geared for them. A colourful place, with a huge fishing fleet and overlooked by a Byzantine castle, the harbour has good shelter and lots of local restaurants in summer. We took a bus trip from here to Kerkouane, the best preserved Punic village in North Africa, and founded in the 5th century BC. Excavations started forty years ago. The small Phoenician houses each had their own bathroom, with red tiled tubs, in contrast to the Roman towns where baths were communal, a social event. Lack of a temple or other public buildings at Kerkouane led early archaeologists to suggest that the village had been a seaside resort -- a sort of 5th century BC Cub Med! It wasn't, but nevertheless the inhabitants were only yards away from a beautiful beach and the sea.

December was fast approaching so we pushed on to our final destination until March (and where we are as I write) Monastir marina. Built about ten years ago, it can take 400 yachts and has good shelter in all weathers. As well as water and electricity available to every berth, the facilities include numerous tourist restaurants and caf's (too expensive and Western for us), a handy supermarket (not the best prices but useful for odd items and fresh bread -- only 10p for a baguette!), showers and a bath (not the cleanest or best designed, but they could be much worse and the water is usually hot), and a travel-lift and haul-out area. The marina clubhouse is a focal point for activities -- keep fit, art class, children's art class (Chloe loves this!), TV in the evenings for those who want it, a book swop, and Trivial Pursuit on Sunday nights, mostly attended by the twenty or so English speakers. French and German yachts are in the majority, but with almost everyone speaking a least a little of another language we all get on well. Occasional Sunday barbecues are attended by fifty or sixty people and go on into the late afternoon. The friendly atmosphere, with plenty of help available if you need it, is one of the things we have enjoyed most -- definitely a good community spirit. All this plus lots of sunshine for only about œ65 per month for 10-12 metres! Water and electricity is extra, calculated on a daily basis, but still inexpensive.

After leaving Monastir we plan to spend a month exploring southern Tunisia, including the island of Jerba, before heading east to Malta, Greece and Turkey, and Israel by Christmas. We've seen very few OCC burgees since the Azores and would be delighted to welcome any members on board.

(1385 words)