City Style and Living - Spring 2008 - (Page 50)

We marvel at the ease with which Adel converses in Arabic, French, Italian, German and English. Yamen too says he picked up Italian from his customers. “For me learning a language is easy,” says Yamen one afternoon as we are driving. We are intrigued, having spent years learning French, and ask why it is so easy for him. Yamen responds, “Because nothing in life is difficult.” His words carry a wisdom that goes back to the pillars of Tunisia. del is waiting for us to choose bottles of perfumed oil. His charming manner and helpfulness make us quick friends. He tries to convince us to buy semi-precious jewellry, from his store in Hammamet. His mother owns the shop and he is busily taking customers’ requests, stocking goods and talking. “I have been selling in this shop since I was fifteen and it has already been ten years. I’ve seen and met all sorts of people,” says Adel. It is something we would see again and again in Tunisia, young boys learning a trade whether painting ceramics, hawking goods in the medina, or some other activity. Even Yamen tells us, “I’ve trained to be a driver since I was young.” It seems that all the young men in their twenties that we meet have been plying their craft for close to a decade. They are committed to their work and happy doing it. A In our attempt to unravel the layers of Tunisia, Yamen takes us to Kerkouane, an ancient village on the edge of the Mediterranean that has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In ancient times it supplied shellfish-derived purple dye to royalty, though a port was never built here. As we wander the site, we discover Tanit, the lunar deity that reappears throughout Tunisian art and lore. Her symbol is a circle atop a triangle, intersected by a 50 | SPRING 2008 | citystyleandliving.com As we drive, Yamen points out wind-powered turbines that dot the countryside. Though considered an emerging economy, Tunisia remains as progressive as it is enduringly ancient. Virtually everywhere cranes dominate the skyline. There is construction taking place in every city we visit. One day, we decide to take a train to Nabeul, known for its pottery and ceramics. As we walk on cobblestone streets through souks, laden with filigreewired bird cages, tajines and Berber-silver jewelry, we are slightly uneasy with the beckoning of shopkeepers and the entreaties to buy. At times in Tunisia we are frustrated by the language barrier (despite our best efforts to get a crash course in Arabic from Yamen) and the sometimes aggressive commerce. As we follow the maze of streets toward the medina we see construction workers removing one entire layer of tiles that decorate a mosque. We take a piece of the façade of the Mosque they are redoing as a souvenir. One layer of tile is being replaced by another. http://citystyleandliving.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of City Style and Living - Spring 2008

City Style and Living - Spring 2008 Contents Editor's Note Behind the Cover The District Need It Want It Fusion Sweet Secret Restaurant Inspiration Eat Like a Locavore Covet Helen of Troy Prêt-à-Porter Anatomy Of Spring Fashion Trends Secret Garden Passport Bookcase Great Eats in Maui Tunisia Ombudsperson Horoscopes Final Thought

City Style and Living - Spring 2008

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