My second day in Djerba I hired a driver to take me off of the Island to the desert to go To Tataouine and the surrounding area. We drive off the island (there is a bridge / a sort of a road that the Romans built apparently) onto mainland Tunisia. The landscape grew more and more deserty, with just small, dry shrubberies and clusters of palms.
Our first stop was at a salt lake that rivals the dead sea for its salt content. The shores were glimmering white, crusted salt flats.
From there we drove to Tataouine, after which the Star Wars Tatooine took its name. Huge chunks of the early Star Wars movies were filmed around Tataouine and on Djerba. I think one can organize a tour of just the filming sites.
One of the Star Wars sites is Ksar Ouled Soltane. (It was some slave quarters in one of the original films – I don’t know more details, but I’m sure there are a about 5000 websites with that information.) A ksar (or ksour) is an old fortified village. Amazingly, it was totally empty. You would think there would be an admission fee, a souvenir stand selling key ring light sabres, and a coffee shop called ‘Java the Hut’…but I had the place to myself. It was so cool to wander around and climb up the staircases, looking out over the desert. Definitely cinematic. There are many other Ksours in the area, each with their own George Lucas connection, but they all look pretty much the same, and having only one day, this was the one I picked.
After that we drove to an abandoned hilltop village with a white mosque. I don’t know the name, but the steep climb afforded good views.
Next the driver (Nasr) and I had lunch at a huge, soulless restaurant that obviously catered to bus tours. The atmosphere was awful (and it is, based on my experience, the only non-smoking restaurant in the country) but the food was good. Vegetable couscous with Harissa, baguettes, and olives.
I then connected with an English speaking young man from the ares who took me on a walk through the Berber village of Chenini. It is partly inhabited by a large Berber population, but the draw is the now abandoned villages built high into the mountain in around the 11th or 12th century. My guide, who was not at all winded by the steep climb, told me all about the history and how the structures were built to protect against invaders.
He also knew the good spots for photos.
The place was pretty quiet. I saw only two other tourists.
Before falling asleep in the car I saw camels and one canine (the driver said it was a jackal). I woke up in time to take in a few more views of desert and the lake before being dropped off back in Houmt Souk. It was a long day of driving and I was exhausted. I don’t know how sitting in a car most of the day makes me more tired than walking all day, but it does. So I had dinner of vegetable tagine and a cigar before going to bed early.
If i had longer, or if i had decided to spend my time differently, I would have gone on a camel trek further into the desert, which would be great, though I know from experience that doing so solo with a non-English speaking guide can be a bit too quiet for my liking. I bet the stars would have been lovely though.
And overlooking it all is a cathedral on a hill.
The weather was perfect and the city begged to be explored. Sousse dates back to about 9th century BCE and is centred around a walled medina just blocks away from the harbour. The medina is smaller than the one in Tunis but is no less interesting, the souq is bustling with mostly locals and the streets are filled with vendors selling nuts and sweet treats, kids playing ball, and people going about their daily lives.
