© Lonely Planet Publications 184 lonelyplanet.com THE CENTRAL COAST & KAIROUAN •• Sousse 185 The Central Coast & Kairouan The Central Coast History THE CENTRAL COAST The Sahel, the large coastal bulge between 0 20 km & KAIROUAN 0 12 miles the Gulf of Hammamet and the Gulf of To Tunis To Tunis & Kairouan Gabès, has always been a battleground (80km) 1 (80km) Enfida Gulf of for other people’s wars. Sousse, the home 3 Hammamet 2 base of Hannibal in the Carthaginian bat- Port el-Kantaoui Sbikha ὄ48 MEDITERRANEAN tles against the Romans, again found itself Sebkhet Sousse on the losing side when Pompey made it Kelbia Monastir Considered by many to be the heartland of Tunisia and home to one of Islam’s most impor- his headquarters in his doomed civil war Sahline Ksar Hellal 12 Moknine Jemmel tant mosques, several of the country’s largest beach resorts and its most impressive Roman against Julius Caesar (based at Monastir). Kairouan Sebkhet Raqqada Moknine Sebkhet Mahdia monument, this region is hardly lacking in superlatives. Its diversity, from fortified ancient It was finally destroyed by the first wave Sidi el-Hani To Sbeitla of Islamic armies that swept across North Ksour Essaf medinas to exclusive modern beach resorts, from religious conservatism to western hedon- (85km) Africa in the 7th century. These Islamic ὄ87 ὄ1 Salakta Bouhaija ism, from bastions of the tourist-industrial-complex to quiet, timeless villages, is belied by SEA armies founded the holy city of Kairouan Souassi El-Jem Chebba the short commute it takes to get from one to the other. This is the Tunisia of postcards and ushered in the reign of Islamic dynas- 96 2 82 and brochures, where architecture and landscapes unchanged for centuries meet facilities ties, the most productive of which were the El-Hencha Ouled 81 119 Aghlabids (who left a splendid architectural Haffouz designed for the busloads of foreign visitors that fuel much of the economy. Jebiniana legacy in all of the coastal towns) and the 13 To Sbeitla Île The fortified medinas of the central coast, which once protected these cities that became Cairo-based Fatimids (whose mark can still (75km) Menzel Chergui ὄὄὄChaker ὄ 1 be seen in Mahdia). Kerkennah wealthy from the trade of the Mediterranean and the Sahara, house Tunisians going about Islands For some reason, the indigenous Ber- Sfax Remla their everyday lives in what, to the average foreigner’s eye, looks like an elaborate and ex- Ferr bers took umbrage at their traditional land To Gafsa 14 y Sidi Frej (100km) Sidi otic Hollywood set. Each is distinctive: Sfax’s is the least touched by tourism, Mahdia’s looks Youssef Île Gharbi being taken over by foreigners. Whether 2 like a Greek fishing village and is by far the most inviting, Sousse’s is a shopping Mecca confronted with the Roman Empire from Mezzouna Oil Pipeline Mahrès and Monastir’s the birthplace and final resting place for the country’s independence leader, the north or the Islamic dynasties from the ὄὄὄ 1 east, they fought them all, mounting rebel- Habib Bourguiba. lion after rebellion, one of which destroyed To Gabès Skhira (50km) It is also Tunisia’s Islamic heartland, with Kairouan ranking only behind Mecca, Medina Kairouan. During another, they held out against vastly superior numbers in the col- and Jerusalem as one of the holiest cities of Islam. The well preserved colosseum of El- osseum of El-Jem. or Mahdia, while visiting El-Jem at sunset Jem rivals that of Rome’s in terms of sheer size but may be an even more spectacular, and In modern Tunisian history, Monastir requires some planning (see the boxed text, certainly more incongruous, sight. During the summer months the beach resorts along the is revered as the birthplace of the nation’sὄ p208 ). Mediterranean become the holiday playground for what seems to be all of Europe. founder, Habib Bourguiba. ﺳﻮﺳﺔ SOUSSE Climate pop 173,000 HIGHLIGHTS Tunisia’s central coast gets very hot in sum- This raucous city – by Tunisian standards – mer but you’re never too far from a sea doesn’t make a great first impression. The Become part of the vast parade taking a sunset Port el-Kantaoui breeze. The further you go inland, the hot- city centre mix of modern high-rise build- stroll along the promenade of Sousse’s Sousse ter it gets – Kairouan and El-Jem bake in ings and derelict port do nothing to explain Boujaffar Beach ( p191 ) Kairouan summer, but can be quite cold in winter. Sousse’s popularity. However, once you’re Be rendered speechless standing in the middle of settled in and you’ve grabbed your beach North Africa’s most impressive Roman Getting There & Away towel, the seductive simplicity of the warm monument, El-Jem’s awesome colosseum ( p208 ) Mahdia All the towns covered in this chapter are water, the soft sand and the ready availability El-Jem Breathe in the sea air while wandering the shady well-connected to the rest of the country of all manner of quick bites becomes appar- cobblestone streets of the charming medina at by bus, louage (shared taxi) and (apart from ent. Throw in a vibrant medina with several Mahdia ( p211 ) Kairouan) train, which is easily the most historical and religious sites and an enor- THE CENTRAL COAST THE CENTRAL COAST Listen for the call to prayer in the holy Islamic comfortable and convenient mode of travel. mous selection of hotels and it’s easy to un- city of Kairouan ( p199 ) Many buses heading north or south origi- derstand why Sousse is one of the country’s & KAIROUAN nate elsewhere and are often full by the time most highly touted holiday destinations. Indulge in the cosmopolitan luxury at the beach Sfax they arrive here. In the summer it feels like Europeans resort of Port el-Kantaoui ( p195 ) outnumber Tunisians. The dress code, es- Explore the bustling alleyways of the best Getting Around pecially for Tunisian women, is more lib- medina in the country, to see how residents of Again, louage or train are the easiest ways eral here than other parts of the country. & KAIROUAN these ancient cities live and work, in Sfax ( p215 ) to get around. There are no direct connec- During the day, the beach is packed with THE CENTRAL COAST THE CENTRAL COAST tions between Kairouan and either El-Jem Tunisians and foreigners alike, but it’s from 186 THE CENTRAL COAST & KAIROUAN •• Sousse lonelyplanet.com lonelyplanet.com THE CENTRAL COAST & KAIROUAN •• Sousse 187 Sousse 0 500 m SOUSSE 0 0.3 miles early evening till late when Boujaffar Beach Information really comes alive and young people and INTERNET ACCESS ACB D families take part in a nightly ritual, essen- Publinet rue Remada (Map p188 ; 2nd fl, rue Remada; per To Salon Steakhouse Grill & Disco Pub (2km); tially the equivalent of teenagers cruising hr TD2; h8am-midnight); Mongi Slim (Map p186 ; per hr Clinique Les Oliviers (3km) Hôtel Orient Palace (3.5km) up and down the strip. TD2; h9.30am-midnight); ave Mohamed Maarouf (Map Port el-Kantaoui (14km); 1 ὄὄὄὄM E D I T E R R A N E A N The Ville Nouvelle streets are lined with p188 ; per hr TD2; h8am-10pm Mon-Sat, noon-10pm Ave Taeib Mehiri Ave Mongi Bali S E A hotels and restaurants. Inevitably shops in Sun) The latter, near the post office is the largest and has Ave Hedi Chaker Blvd the medina cater more to tourists than to the fastest connections. 7 de la Boujaffar Beach To Tunis 11 Corniche residents. (140km) Rue Mongi Slim via GPI Rue 2 Mais 1934 MEDICAL SERVICES 10 Ave 2 History Clinique Les Oliviers (x73 242 711) North of town; it 9 Le opold Sedar 12 Founded in the 9th century BC as the Phoe- is more used to dealing with insurance forms. Rue de Constantine ὄὄὄὄ8 nician outpost of Hadrumète, Sousse fell Farhat Hached University Hospital (Map p186 ; 5 Rue du Ribat x73 221 411; ave Ibn el-Jazzar) The city’s main hospital, 6 under the sway of Carthage from the middle Place 14 2 Sidi Se of the 6th century BC. The famous Carthag- northwest of the medina. nghor Naceur Bey Boujaffar Hugo inian general Hannibal used the town as his Rue MONEY Ave Victor Jardin base against the Romans in the final stages Ave Habib Bourguiba Public of the Second Punic War in 202 BC. Almost all of Tunisia’s banks have branches ὄὄὄὄAveὈ Hassouna Ayachi The town allied itself with Rome during here; many are located along ave Habib Ave 20 Mars 1956 Ave Tahar Sfar the Third (and final) Punic War (see His- Bourguiba and blvd de la Corniche and al- Aout Ave Train tory, p24 ), but Hadrumètum, as it became most all have ATMs. de la RépubliqueStation Rue Docteur Moreau Place Farhat known, later chose the wrong side when it Ave 3 Ave Hached Ave became Pompey’s base during the Roman POST & TELEPHONE 3 Ave ibn el-Jazzar Ave Mohamed Marouf civil war, and suffered badly after his forces There are quite a few Taxiphone offices Mohammed 1 Omar were defeated by Julius Caesar at the Battle around the city centre and along rue de la ὄὄὄὄben University Yahia of Thapsus in AD 46. Sousse’s formidable Corniche. el- Eroui Blvd defences proved of little use when it was Main post office (Map p188 ; ave Mohamed Maarouf) Ave Mohamed Karoui Just up from place Farhat Hached. Ave Habib Thameur levelled, wall and all, by Okba ibn Nafaa Ave Ave al-Fihri, falling to the Arabs in the late 7th Ave du Marechal Tito Ave Mohammed V Mohammed Ave Mohammed century.