Scrubbed

Yesterday we had some disappointing news. Eid will start on Wednesday, not today, Tuesday. What this means is that Ramadan lasts one more day and the parties will not start until tomorrow. My friends and I will be out of town Wednesday and Thursday visiting the beach town of Hammamet and won't be able to celebrate Eid with our families.

We decided to maximize our free day by taking a trip to a hammam with our host mother. A hammam is a Turkish bath of sorts. My roommates and I have never done anything like this and had to look completely to others in order to have some sort of example to follow. The first step is to sit in a steam room modeled like an underground cave and soak your feet in a bucket of steaming water. Some women just sit and relax, others would rub soaps on their body and pour water on themselves. After you've been sitting in the steam room for a decent period of time you become very sweaty and are ready for the next step. At this point you lie down on a granite slab and a woman pours warm water over your body. Then she proceeds to scrape you viciously with a netted glove. Large amounts of dead skin peel off your body. Then more water is poured on you and more scrubbing of the skin transpires. It feels good until you hit that point that you feel she has stopped scraping off dry skin and started scraping off live skin cells. After this she rubs your body down with soap and a clay-rosewater mixture, stretches out your legs and arms, massages your feet and sends you to shower off. It was really an awesome experience. My skin feels silky smooth... and it all cost me around $8. My roommates and I intend on going back before the end of the program, multiple times if possible.

In other news, my host sister-in-law's water broke today! It seems like everyone has different information... from what I can tell the baby will either be born in a few hours or a few days. Updates to come.

The Glory of Carthage!

Yesterday the OSU group went on our first of several day trips to Carthage, a neighborhood of Tunis. At it's peak, Carthage was an empire that extended across Northern Africa and included the Southern half of the Iberian Peninsula and Sicily. Then Rome decided that enough was enough and destroyed it during the Punic Wars, although Carthage, lead by Hannibal Barca, put up a valiant fight in the second. After the Punic Wars it took Carthage about 100 years to recover from the salting of their farmlands. At this point the Romans extended their empire to enclude it and set to work building a Roman city there. For the most part, all Punic ruins from the glorious days of Carthage are gone, but many, many Roman ruins exist on the site.

Our first stop was at the Carthage Museum and it's nearby ruins. The view from the hill that the Museum was on was absolutely breathtaking. Priceless peices of statues and pottery dotted the yard that overlooked the Mediterranean and the mountains on the other side of Tunis. The pictures I took really don't do it justice.
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We wandered around the ruins for a while before heading into the museum to look at artifacts dug up during the excavation of the site. There were many mosaics, pottery, coins, sculptures, etc. It made me remember my days working as a museum guard at the Oriental Institute.


Our next stop was even more impressive. The Antonin Baths, also in Carthage, are even more complete ruins than the ones we were previously at. We could still see the channels where water ran underneath the floors of the baths and some mosaics were still visible on the ground. The area around the baths was once the playground of rich Tunisians. The ruins of the more upscale schools, churches (yes, a Roman Catholic church, not a mosque), and living areas were also there for us to explore. I guess that I should mention that Carthage is STILL the playground of the rich and famous. The President's palace butts up against the Antonin Baths. Tall white walls surrounded the Palace as well as numerous guard booths filled with guards and guns. Though it doesn't seem to be an ideal situation, putting the president's palace right next to an extremely tourist filled site, after I thought about it for a second I realized that were I the president I would want my palace looking out over the ruins. That way I would remember how rich the history my country was and would be inspired to live up to the past.


Following the baths, we headed to the American Battleground Memorial Cemetery. Everyone had different reactions to the Cemetery. First off, I need to explain that it was all VERY American. Manicured lawns, Arlington style white crosses, patriotic music playing every hour or so for the tomb of the unknown soldier. There were some touches of Northern Africa-- mosaics depicted the movements of the American and British forces and where battles were held, Tunisian style fountains were on the lawn, etc-- but that being said, it still didn't feel like we were in Northern Africa. Karim told us that it is probably the best maintained place in all of Tunisia. I believe him. It was really a fitting tribute for the men and women who lost their lives in Northern Africa. If I had family members buried there I would be happy to know that they were so well taken care of. I hope that the overseas graveyards where my relatives lie are similar to this one. Some members of our group were unsettled, feeling that this was just a little too weird, a little too American. Others felt really comforted and at home just being in a place with English on the walls and an American flag in the sky.

Our final stop was very rushed. 30 minutes in beautiful Sidi Bou Said. Sidi Bou is a white and blue town (the richest in the Tunis area) on the top of a hill on the coast. Tons of tourists everywhere, tons of souvenir shops and cafes. Still, in my opinion, despite the touristy nature of the area, it was really beautiful and certainly worth a second, third, and fourth trip. I can imagine how awesome it'd be to sit in a cafe on the top of the hill and drink tea as the sun sets. I think we'll go back sometime very soon.

I took tons and tons of pictures of yesterday. I promise to get them up on Flickr sometime today or tomorrow. Today begins our little vacation for Eid. Since we don't know whether Eid (the festival at the end of Ramadan) is Tuesday or Wednesday yet (we need to look at the moon on Monday night) we are just getting Monday through Thursday off of school to cover our bases. Most of us OSU students have decided to stay in a resort in Hammamet, a big beach town, for a night or two. I'm in the group that has opted for one night in a three star hotel for 37 dinars (includes two meals) instead of two nights in a five star hotel. I'm pretty excited.

The Medina

These are a just a few pictures from my first trip to the Medina (last Friday). We got the chance to go up on the roof of a rug shop and look out over the rooftops of the medina. The rest of my pictures are posted on my Flickr.

Le Rentrée et La Goulette

Today was our second day of school and our first day of actual classes for the students in the program taking French. Yesterday consisted of a series of placement tests. First we had an oral test where I read a short passage so that my professor could see how my accent and reading skills were. Next I had to talk about a cell phone. I could say anything I wanted about it. I think most kids had more questions but this was pretty much all that my teacher needed to know. I will focus having conversations and giving presentations. He really just wants me to keep talking and push myself out of my comfort zone. Then I took a very easy written test. I got two questions wrong but the teacher still understands that my French is a lot better than the other students and is going to give me more advanced work to do. Today we had class with Prof. Leila, the professor that works with us on grammar and written French. The other five girls worked together with Prof. Leila as I worked alone on a bunch of higher level exercises. She says that tomorrow she’ll work with me and the other girls will do exercises. These exercises only served to remind me how much I HATE French grammar and that I never got great grades in it. How could I forget that? Although I find it easy to understand and to speak, I have holes in my understanding of grammar that have never been filled and I believe will never be filled. I really enjoyed the last French literature class I took and I don’t mind reading and writing papers in French but I can’t stand sitting around doing exercises. However frustrating it may be I need to take advantage of having some of the best French teachers in Tunisia at my disposal.


The school is dirty and falling apart. It’s downright disgusting really. I had to wipe my seat off with my hand in order to not get dirt on my white shorts. The floor looks filthy, there are cobwebs everywhere, and the huge florescent light fixture in the back of our classroom is hanging down on its electrical cord, just asking to fall on someone’s head. Our whiteboard was no longer white. Prof. Leila was really not happy with the condition of the room. I suppose she was even less pleased when the chair she was sitting on broke underneath her. She’s not a large woman either. She went and talked to the administration and apparently it’ll be better tomorrow. In addition, the bathrooms on the third and fourth floor are simply gutted out cement pits. I don’t know what happened there. I think (hope) they are installing new ones. I was really surprised at the condition of the school. This is the best language school in Tunisia and they can’t afford to hire janitors? I’m kind of confused about the economic situation here. New neighborhoods are springing up all over; I see buildings being built and cranes dotting the landscape. There seems to be a huge focus on expansion. I have yet to see a homeless person. Yes, in general incomes are lower than in the US and there are people begging every now and then… but really, not much of that at all. So explain to me why there isn't enough funding to fix the light in my classroom?

Today after class Alissa and Megan, the two girls studying Arabic that are living with me, and Victoria, another girl in our program, headed to the beach. Last week I went to the beach at La Marsa. I took plenty of pictures, which I would definitely put up if my internet connection was stronger. Today we went to La Goulette, a beach town much closer to Tunis. We lazed around on the beach for a while talking and then Megan and I hit the waves for a while. Although it was sunny after school, by the time we got to the beach it was cool out with a layer of clouds covering the sun. Even though it wasn’t that warm, Megan and I thought the water felt great and had a hard time getting out. Also at the beach we saw two young boys selling jasmine. Jasmine is the national flower of Tunisia, while it is in bloom it is sold everywhere by vendors. They bundle a bunch of blossoms together and they attach them to a stick. They tie a string around the blossoms. When the string is removed the blossoms bloom outwards. They smell delicious. We bought a few from these vendors. They gave one free to Megan but we thought nothing of it at the time. My host brother drove to the beach, but to return we took the cheap and convenient TGM train that connects Tunis to the coastal suburbs back into Tunis. On our walk to the train station we noticed that the jasmine vendors from the beach were walking down the same road as we were. We paused to take some pictures of an old archway when one of them ran up to Megan and pushed a folded napkin into her hand saying “This is for you.” He disappeared as quickly as he had arrived. There was a moment of startled confusion. We had no idea what he had given her. Should she open it? Should she just throw it away? Alissa thought it was drugs. Our curiosity got the best of us and she opened it. On the inside of the napkin he had written “In my life I am looking for something, can you guess?” Inside he had put a photo of him and a photo of the other boy, with their names, numbers, and addresses on the back. Tunisian boys are persistent. Her boyfriend should worry.

It seems that pretty much every night at dinner our host brothers and their wives discuss what brand of bottled water has better quality. Some prefer Safia, some prefer Sabrine, still others prefer Marwa. I picked up the bottle of Marwa water and read the fine print in French on the back of the label: “Marwa mineral water facilitates renal function, it is recommended against obesity and constipation.” Alissa, Megan, and I burst out laughing. We thought that it was hilarious that a bottle of water would claim that it was better at fighting against obesity and constipation than any other bottle of water. Our host family was only slightly amused.

The fast is about to break and I haven’t had that much to eat today so the smells coming from Souad’s kitchen are making my stomach rumble. The big family meals we’ve been having during Ramadan are fun but I can’t wait for it to be over so I can start frequenting cafes and other restaurants during the day. I really am excited to be able to sit back, drink a glass of tea (the Tunisian specialty is a sweet green mint tea with pine nuts floating in it) and watch the people pass by.

Moving In

I'm currently sitting on the couch in the living room of my new host mother, using her next door neighbor's wifi. I'm seriously happy that I'm online again.

Last night I was told that I'd be moving in with a married couple with no children. The father is a jeweler and the wife is a pastry chef. Then, this morning I was told that the pastry chef had too many orders and was completely overwhelmed. She could no longer take me on in addition to her work. So, here I am, staying with two other girls in my program at the home of a widow with four married sons (none of which live at home). Her neighbor is a Chemistry professor at a university in Bizerte and somehow got in touch with my program, telling them that her neighbor had a nearly empty apartment and needed a few girls to mother. I'll only be here a few weeks until a new host family can be set up. Apparently there were a few families willing to take people on after Ramadan. Souad is very sweet and eager. She has set about the business of spoiling us rotten. Also, much to our astonishment, she brought us drinks and snacks this afternoon. Souad explained to me that she doesn't follow Ramadan because she takes medication. In that case, my roommates and won't be following it anymore either.

The main issue with my current situation is language. My two roommates are both taking Arabic. They've only taken it for a year, so they can't understand it or communicate well with it yet. Honestly, I can communicate more easily than anyone in the program. Not everyone speaks French, but most do or at least understand it and I haven't found it difficult to be understood. Actually, on the train ride back from a day at La Marsa (spent floating happily in the Meditteranean) a group of boys thought I was French because of my accent when I spoke to them. Our host mother understands French but speaks it worse than I do. This makes for an interesting situation. She speaks to me in French and I translate it for the other girls. She tries to speak to them in Arabic and teach them some words, but they can't really understand her. Me being here is making it harder for them to find ways to communicate with her.

Bienvenue à Tunis!

My flights both left on time and arrived early. This has been my smoothest international travel venture ever. The flight from Rome to Tunis was unbelievably short. It probably lasted less than an hour in all. As we swooped down over Tunisia I saw beaches covered with sand, mountains, and small towns. The Mediterranean sparkled all around. According to the Tunisian people it is now too cold to go to the beaches. I disagree. It's at least 85° out today, I consider that beach weather and I'm dying to take advantage of them. I was met at the airport by Karim and Laura, the couple from OSU that leads my program. The first thing I remarked was the rather reckless driving style of the Tunisians. Lanes and stop lights are really optional and pedestrians don't seem to have the right of way. I've also never seen more gutsy pedestrians than in this city... they freely walk into oncoming traffic and wait between lanes for an open spot to run through, then look angrily at the cars as if infuriated that they think they have the right to drive in the streets. Yesterday was fairly calm, I spent a majority of the day sleeping in the hotel. At 7:30 I met Laura and Karim for dinner at a restaurant. During the day the restaurants were boarded shut, chairs and tables piled up. People crowded the streets and shopping malls. Karim explained that during Ramadan people have nothing to do so they wander the city and shop to take their minds off their hunger. As we left the hotel for dinner the streets were completely deserted, not a car in sight. Everyone was responding to the call to prayer before digging into their meals. My meal was excellent and cheap. I started with a soup course, then a course of briq, which is a variety of egg roll, then sea food spaghetti followed by a dessert of fruit. After this we went out for tea and baklava. My tea was very sweet and minty with a layer of pine nuts floating on the top.

I'm the first student here, two more will be arriving at 3:30 today and then one more in the middle of the night, the rest come between now and Sunday. On Sunday I'll be moved from my hotel to a host family. Classes start Monday. This morning I walked to Laura and Karim's offices and met with Jihene, a 20 something Tunisian girl who works for Karim's borother but helps with the OSU program doing errands and tutoring and such in the fall. I spoke to her for about a half an hour in French to start getting myself in the habit of using it again and then took off with her to attempt to unblock my old French cell phone. Now I'm in CEMAT (Center for Magreb Studies in Tunis), OSU has a deal with them that allows us to take advantage of their internet and small library. I'll spend the next few days lying low, attempting to adjust to the sleep schedule and eating schedule while getting to know my fellow students.

Every thing is completely different here, I have many more observations to that I can't wait to share.