Tunis, Tunisia

The people of Tunis were ready for the tourists! The music was blaring as we walked down the ramp from the ship and there was another guy to the side with his camel offering rides for a fee. The people love the tourists. Bruce and I had a cab driver follow us all the way to the ATM trying to sell us a ride around town. We eventually lost the cab driver and opted to take the local train to Sidi Bou Said. We met probably the only other LDS couple on the ship here in Tunis. It happened to be a Sunday and I had prayed that we might find some way to have it feel like the Sabbath. The Duncans were great to hang out with.

Isn't this a great door to add to Bruce's collection?

The blue doors are a trademark of Sis Bou Said. Bruce found a magnet that he bought to make as our ornament from Tunisia.

This one is for you mom! My aunt and uncle were in the Peace Corp in Tunisia and brought back my mom a bird house. I remember wondering about it when I was a young girl. This picture is mostly for nostalgic purposes and to say that they still have them. I still don't get their significance.

We trekked to the top of a hill in the city to enjoy these great views and capture them on camera. Luckily for us the Duncans were much more adept at our camera than we were, so they cranked out some great pictures for us.

Bruce just thought that this light post was cool.

There seems to be cats wherever we go!

On the way back down the hill we got separated from the Duncans in all the confusion. We got schooled really quickly in the art of Tunisian bartering. These salesmen were ruthless! Talk about secret signs and combinations! They would do anything to make a sale. We did pick up some great souvenirs. Bruce had to carry our 2 bags full of plates and bowls all day. By the time we were done shopping, I needed a breather. We sat on the benches at the bottom of the hill to catch our breath before we got up for more.

After our rest, I dragged Bruce to Carthage to enjoy the ruins there. It was a bit of a different experience getting into the grounds without enough dinar in hand, but I guess they desperately need the tourism! It was even stranger watching the armed guards standing around the complex. The man working the entrance kindly offered us to leave our backpack and bags full of Tunisian wares so we wouldn't have to carry them around with us. We reluctantly accepted, not knowing if they would be there when we came back. This model is of the Baths of Carthage.

This is my favorite view! Gorgeous, isn't it?

Any kid would have so much fun here among the ruins. You could explore them at will. We wandered in and around the cavernous arches and rock walls and Lincoln loved the fun of climbing and running and jumping in between and on top of everything he could.

tomb in the complex

Small underground Chapel

Wall decorations on the way down to the chapel

Floor mosaic on the chapel ground

Early Christian church ruins. This section was were the baptismal font once was.

Lincoln got pretty cantankerous and refused to get into the backpack again, so I decided that carrying him to the train wouldn't be too bad. It wasn't that bad, until he fell asleep in my arms. I held him on my lap the whole train ride and carried him all the way from the train back to the port of call and then on to the ship. My arms felt like they were going to fall off. We definitely wore him out though! He didn't even wake up when I laid him down, and then he slept for another hour afterward.

This was our night time surprise after we returned from dinner. Gideon got a kick out of the fact that his sunglasses were apart of the creation. I had no idea the talent that was on the ship!