The weather is cloudy and dull with a few spots of rain, so we're considering a walk into Hammamet to see the sights. David still wants to go haggle. It must be the Yorkshireman in him. But for now we're just relaxing in the hotel bar drinking coffee and orange juice and doing some web surfing. Free wi-fi is fabulous, although it doesn't always work in this hotel. I did manage to post some more pictures on Facebook and send Braden a picture of his rubber duck, which I have told him I'm holding hostage pending satisfactory dish washing while we're away!
There is a Scottish family here who seem to turn up everywhere we go. This is the same family from the restaurant last night who have the baby and two young boys, and they've come into the bar now and seem to have picked up two additional children! It wasn't very quiet before they came in here with the coffee machine going, people arriving and departing in the lobby and Germans laughing everywhere. I'm thoroughly enjoying it.
12.06 pm The walk into Hammamet has been postponed because the sun has come out. We decided to take advantage while we can. It seems to rain in the afternoons, though not much, so maybe I can convince David to head that way later. I doubt it, as this would cut into his siesta time, and he's a bit cranky again today.
We had a manic 20 minutes in the room trying to figure out where he put his wallet. Normally it goes straight into the safe, but this time, under the influence of cold medication no doubt, he hid it in a little pocket inside his suitcase. I think this is why he makes me responsible for money and tickets while we're on holiday!
Exchanging money here is interesting. There's a little man at a desk just off the hotel lobby with a computer and stacks and stacks of 10 Dinar notes. It's very convenient but very odd!
When I got back from exchanging money for our day trip tomorrow, David did the "While you're up fetch me a beer, woman" routine. The German couple behind us thought we were having a proper domestic because they couldn't see David winking at me. They're faces were priceless!
5.26 pm After lunch, David decided he wanted a walk on the beach. The last time he said that we walked as far as the boundaries of the next hotel and back again. This time we walked until we ran out of beach and ended up in the ancient medina.
In a way, the medina was a bit disappointing, with cheap knock-offs of things like Man U shirts and Nikes. There was enough fake Burberry there to make any chav happy! We did walk around the narrow streets past a lot of the shops, and I can see that it would be quite intimidating if you don't know what to expect because they do get right in your face to try to get you into their shops. You just have to say no unless it's actually a shop you know you're interested in. One guy never had a chance after congratulating me for being pregnant!
We did go into one little jewellery shop, more for the experience than for the fact that it had anything we wanted, but I saw a little wooden trinket box with mother-of-pearl inlay, which I thought would make a nice souvenir. The guy in the shop said it was made in the Sahara. When I told him it was my first time in Tunisia, he actually explained to me how to haggle. Then David got started, and it was so funny I couldn't stop laughing! The first price was 75 Dinar, David offered 5, and in the end we got both the box and a silver thumb ring David liked for 30 Dinar (£15). Like I said later, £10 for the goods and £5 for the entertainment!
We sat outside what we later found out was one of only two microbreweries in Tunisia, which is just outside the walls of the medina, and drank a lager, but only after a young boy shoved a flower into my cleavage for "gratis", then told David he wanted 5 Dinar.
We did also call into a chemist to see if I could get something for cystitis. They weren't the friendliest lot, but they understood what I was aking, gave me dosage instructions and charged me only slightly more than I would have paid for a prescription on the NHS. No complaints from me there!
There was a bit of a parade with a band going on, which we managed to find out was in support of the current President who is up for re-election next month. I can't see anything about someone opposing him anywhere.
9.11 pm The main restaurant was so packed tonight we ended up sitting in the smoking section. The fact that there is a smoking section was strange even though it's only been a couple of years ago that the smoking ban went into force in the UK. Now I remember what it was like before it came in, and I'm glad that it did! It ruined some of the flavours of the food, and normally I love moussaka. The smoke was the same in reception. I think I was one of the few non-smokers in there.
Tomorrow morning we're up early for our day trip to Carthage, Sidi Bou Said and Tunis. Like David said a little while ago, it's almost time for some history. He has been before, and I think it's lovely that he is willing to endure it all again for my sake.
No comments:
Post a Comment