La Goulette

Friday we docked in La Goulette after having an "at sea" day.  I didn't realize how tired I was until I had the opportunity to do just about nothing for an entire day and most of which ended up being a long nap!  La Goulette is the port for Tunis, Tunisia (North Africa).  Tunis (Carthage in Roman times) is a city of about 2.5 million people with there being about 12 million living in the country itself.  The predominant language is Arabic although Berber and French are also spoken.  

La Goulette has long been a cultural gateway to the Mediterranean.  Once fortified by the Spanish and later then Ottomans, its historic roots remain visible in old ramparts and narrow streets.  Famous for its fresh seafood restaurants along the waterfront, La Goulette blends local Tunisian traditions with a cosmopolitan flair.  La Goulette is at the mouth of a canal which links Tunis to the Mediterranean.  Built by the Spanish in 1535 and later taken by the Ottomans in 1574, it became a strategic naval base.  Over time, it evolved into a lively summer resort known as La Petite Sicile, home to Sicilian, Jewish, Maltese and Italian communities. 

I had picked a shore excursion for this port of call.  I am trying more and more to avoid them and search out independent tours when we are in port instead.  This is for a few reasons – first, Azamara excursions are often quite more expensive; second, the group size is always much bigger than with the independent companies; and, lastly, I have found the value for dollar not good and have had some very poor shore excursion experiences.  However, sometimes I have no choice – either because I can’t find a suitable independent tour or the timing for when our ship is in port doesn’t align with available tours.  The one I picked today was called Panoramic Tour.  There were 36 of us – too many as far as I am concerned - on a big tour bus with dirty windows that made it hard to see out of.. 

We left the port of La Gaulette about 9 and headed into Tunis (formerly Carthage).  Our first stop was where a lot of the government buildings are in the city’s medina (old city) which is a World Heritage Site.  We spent about ½ hour walking through the casbah and seeing some of the souks.  

After that, we boarded the bus and went to see another huge building – not sure what it was – before going to the North African American Cemetery and Memorial.  We did stop there for a break.  The North Africa American Cemetery in Carthage, Tunisia, is a 27-acre World War II military cemetery administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission, honoring over 2,800 American war dead with burial sites and a Wall of the Missing for over 3,700 more.  Like so many other military cemeteries from the two world wars I've visited, being there, for me, just underscored the futility of war.

Next we went stopped at some of the Roman ruins, including the amphitheater and aqueduct.  I couldn't be bothered to get off the bus for those as I've seen umpteen Roman amphitheaters. Our final stop was Sidi Bou Said.  This is a charming clifftop village near the port known for its white and blue architecture, sea views and cafes.  We were given about 40 minutes to wander around there but many of us, including me, only walked a bit before heading back to the bus.  Think what turned us off was when the guide said he would take us to some shops he knew on the back streets where we could use credit cards.  From there we were taken back to the ship.  

While the village was quite cute and I know there are some spectacular 5 star resorts on the coast, I won't be coming back here anytime soon, if ever!  The scenery as we sailed away from the north coast of Africa toward Malta was quite stunning.