Where Carthage Stood

Happy Vesak to the Buddhists around the world! May the Fourth (Force) be with you! (It’s the informal Star Wars Day!! – Just because of how the date sounds like, haha!)

There’s no reason for this post, other than that I have these last photos of Tunisia in my laptop which I wanted to post, but can’t seem to link it to anything. Vesak was just a coincidence and Tunisia has nothing to do with Vesak, but Tunisia figures big time for the Star Wars movies franchise (since so many scenes were filmed here). So, what the heck! It’s Star Wars Day. Here goes.


The Gulf of Tunis at dusk from Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia – This was where Carthage was located in ancient times

Carthage was an ancient maritime empire and rival of Rome. They fought 3 wars called the Punic Wars. (Oh, it was in our history books. Yup, somehow in my days, the Sejarah books in Malaysia had a section on this! If not, where would I have known about it?) At the end, Carthage lost and was conquered by Rome, spelling the end of Carthage. The ancient ruins now are in a suburb of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. Here you can still spot the ruins among houses and gardens, and what have you.


Another view of the Gulf of Tunis from Sidi Bou Said. This must be how the view looked like in ancient Carthage. Imagine Roman ships approaching the Carthaginian coast…




The ruins of Carthage dot the place. Some are fenced off and form part of a series of archaeological sites and museums


The Acropolium of Carthage sits on top of Byrsa Hill, one of the archaeological sites of Carthage. It used to be a Roman Catholic cathedral, built by the French during the colonial times. It was built on top of the ruins of an old Punic temple. It’s now used as a concert hall or convention centre


The Malik ibn Anas Mosque at Carthage


The blue and white suburb of Sidi Bou Said occupies a significant area of the promontory which Carthage used to be


The Café des Délices, in Sidi Bou Said has a commanding view of the Gulf of Tunis. "Romans approaching, fire at will!!!" (I think they have catapults, don’t they?)

Here’re some photos of us in Sidi Bou Said.


Yours truly, outside the Café des Délices


Exploring Sidi Bou Said


The courtyard of our hotel in Sidi Bou Said, Villa Landalucia. Did you let the bird out of the cage?? Just kidding. There was no bird actually. They're still waiting for a suitable bird to put in there...


Breakfast at Villa Landalucia – nice cuppa coffee, eh?

That’s all folks! See you next time.

Some Cool Colours for the Holy Month

Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia

It’s Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting. Happy Ramadan to all the Muslims! Ramadan so happens to be my favourite month working in the UAE, ahem. It’s generally less hectic, the jams are less and the working hours shorter. What’s not to be liked?

This Ramadan though, we’re travelling, as it coincides with the school’s 2-week Spring Break. We’re off to India (yes, again). Gotta get the friggin bank problems in India sorted out, and visit the family. So, I’m gonna leave a quick photo post till I write again after the holidays. Ramadan Kareem!

Here’re more photos of the blue and white suburb of Sidi Bou Said in Tunisia for the occasion (since I’ve scores of photos from this place which I did not post in my earlier Sidi Bou Said post. Besides, blue and white looks so serene).


What better place to start than the house of the person who started this blue and white trend. The Ennejma Ezzahra, the Star of Venus


Ennejma Ezzahra was the house of Baron Rodolphe d’Erlanger, a French aristocrat and artist who first introduced the blue and white theme to this place (but for some reason or other, his front gate’s door isn’t blue. It’s yellow! I think he’s a secret member of the Hufflepuff)




The gardens of the Ennejma Ezzahra


It has great views of the Mediterranean


The interior of the house






A walk around a blue and white town


A mosque at the centre of town


Another photo of the picturesque Café des Délices




Dusk in Sidi Bou Said


Ciao! Till we meet again! Happy Fasting! Selamat Berpuasa!

For the Love of Blue & White

Café des Délices, Sidi Bou Said

Was looking for some romantic settings or flowers to post for Valentine’s. Valentine has gone past by more than a week now. But I finally found something which I think will do for romance. It’s a quaint little village which is almost entirely painted in blue and white. It’s like a friggin village of Police Stations of Malaysia! Nah, just kidding, blue and white is quite a nice combination. Santorini in Greece is famous partly because of it. (Maybe that’s where our police got their inspiration from). But this is no Greece. It’s across the sea in another part of the Mediterranean – Tunisia!


This is the village of Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia – it was near where ancient Carthage stood. A long time ago, a policeman came from Malaysia… OK, enough of that lame joke. Wikipedia says that it was actually a French aristocrat and artist, Baron Rodolphe d’Erlanger that introduced the blue and white theme to Sidi Bou Said, and that caught on, and it never turned back




The Baron even built his home aka palace in Sidi Bou Said – this is the garden of his home, the Ennejma Ezzahra (the Star of Venus in Arabic …didn’t know Venus was blue??)


Sidi Bou Said sits high on a promontory overlooking the Mediterranean Sea…


What’s to do in this place? Just walk around, take photos of things in blue, like doors…


Lots of doors, …pick up a souvenir or two


And eat! Couscous with fish is one of the typical Tunisian meal you’ll find


And this is a Brik with tuna and egg, another common Tunisian fare


And Bambalouni… doughnut Tunisian style (we didn’t take a photo of the Bambalouni we had in Sidi Bou Said). This photo was the one we had in Tunis… (that's why there's less blue in this photo)


Meet some locals – the kids and some friends they made at the Tunisian restaurant in Sidi Bou Said while waiting for our food – Le Chargui Restaurant, Sidi Bou Said


And relax in the hotel, Villa Landalucia, Sidi Bou Said


Breakfast at Villa Landalucia


The cobblestoned street outside our hotel, Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia


Finally, family pic with falcons (which the handlers just trusted into our hands …and heads, while we’re walking past …and of course, they were expecting a big fee, but we just insisted on a small tip and went our way – no complaints. Only hustlers we met in our whole Tunisian trip). Nice place! Ciao!

A Door for Every Occasion

Eid Mubarak everyone! Selamat Hari Raya! Alas, Ramadan has to end sometime. Ramadan happens to be my favourite month, haha. Less pressure (except for this Ramadan), shorter working hours, less traffic jams, less crowd, except at night after Iftar…

Here’s a short picture post, before I go off for the long weekend!

Here’s our adventure in the heart of Tunis in Jan 2020! The city of Tunis is nice and planned on one side, and a crazy maze on the other side, and that’s the fun part – venture in if you dare!


Here’s the planned and organized eastern side of Tunis city centre, the Place de l'Indépendance. The church there is the Cathedral of St Vincent de Paul


Papa and kids, Place de l’Indépendance, Tunis


Habib Bourguiba Clocktower


This is the dining room of our hotel, the Tunisia Palace. Our hotel is on the planned side, just before the start of the crazy side


Ready for the maze? That arch, called the Bab El Bhar, with the Tunisian Flag, is the gateway to the old city. Here we go!


Mommy at Victory Square, just beyond the Bab El Bhar


That’s the old city. It’s a maze of alleys, shops, houses, mosques, you name it!


What’s with the colour coded doors? Do they mean anything? Is this the doorway to a Ravenclaw club?


What about this? Hufflepuff? Most of the doors are blue, second most I think is yellow… Somebody enlighten me, willya?


Hey, here’s a mosque, time for some rest – the Zaytuna Mosque, Tunis, Tunisia


Minaret of another mosque… I think it’s the Sidi Youssef Dey Mosque


And when you’re tired, you can stop at one of the hundreds of cafes, restaurants – Here’s us waiting to tuck into our couscous with fish meal


Another Hufflepuff facility, with matching window and car…


Say bye boys! Tunis, Tunisia, Jan 2020 - This was our last overseas trip before COVID-19 hit.

Have a blessed and joyful Eid, Hari Raya and holidays!