Day 70: Tunisian Independence Day

We arrived to Tunis at 5am and marked several cafes near our hotel for coffee, knowing Google isn’t always accurate on opening times. Even though Dakar and Guinea are 95% Muslim, we found that the people did not strictly follow the Islamic practice of fasting during Ramadan. However, Tunisia is not the case and almost all cafes and restaurants are closed until 6pm for breaking fast. Further research also showed us that March 20th is actually Tunisian Independence Day to celebrate their freedom from French colonialism. The streets were decorated with their flag.

We arrived at our hotel, which is owned and managed by mother Raja and her two daughters Farra and Ferial. We learned the wonderful story that Raja always wanted to own a boutique hotel and her family and friends thought she was crazy. She bought the property and then started adding floors and decorating it with timeless pieces, including traditional Moroccan architecture. It’s now one of the most successful boutique hotels in Tunis and it’s absolutely beautiful. Recommend that if anyone visits, they stay at Dar Souad Boutique hotel.

They checked us in at 7:30 am so we could sneak in a nap, and next we ventured out to Sidi Bou Said neighborhood which Tunis is famous for. Loved walking around the streets, water, and beaches and eventually found a tourist based restaurant that was open to grab some couscous (their National dish).

Finally, we headed to the ruins of Carthage to see some of the Roman bath houses and coliseums. The ruins are littered through modern neighborhoods and next to tennis courts, cathedrals, and parks where we met a very nice street kitty.

We ended the evening with a traditional Ramadan Iftar where everyone joins for a meal after breaking fast. The restaurant was packed and had a pre planned meal of the day. It was really cool to see the chefs and wait staff rush to hand food out as fast a possible to all the people. 10/10 amazing experience!

Hotel: Dar Souad Boutique Hotel

Restaurants:
Café Essaad
El Mida

Food:
Couscous Royal
Couscous Fish
Soup frik hout
Brik a louef
Duo de Salads
Grilled merguez
Grilled Daurade
Doucer dEl Mida
Mint Tea

Spots:
La Marsa
Sidi Bou SaidRead more