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Tunisia

The Tunisian Washing Machine
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The Tunisian Washing Machine

The intuitiveness of washing machine models in foreign countries tends to reflect the extent to which women have been "liberated". In Tunisia, the washing machine was particularly silly. You had to put the clothes in one side where they were sloshed around in water and then they had to be moved to the other side for the spin cycle. The clothes dryer was the metal grid-like contraption sitting there in front ...
Tunisia Travel: Tunisian Police Encounter
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Tunisia Travel: Tunisian Police Encounter

We visited Tunisia for five weeks in the winter of 2014 during the country's presidential elections. Out of all the countries we've visited, we felt the most unsafe in Tunisia. In this video, a Tunisian policeman had just waved John over because he thought that we were taking pictures of him. Jennifer started recording because she wasn't sure what was going on, and thought that having documentation of the ...
Tunis Tourism: Taxi Ride in Tunis
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Tunis Tourism: Taxi Ride in Tunis

The driving in Tunisia was relatively straightforward. Unlike in some places like Egypt and India, we didn't feel unnerved by the traffic situation in Tunis. This video shows a bit of a taxi ride through Tunis.Related Posts:Tunisia Travel: Tunis Traffic (video)Tunisia Travel: Arabic Language in Tunis (video) ...
Tunisia Travel: Tunis Traffic
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Tunisia Travel: Tunis Traffic

This video documents a traffic jam in Tunis in 2015 when we visited Tunisia for five weeks. In comparison with places like Egypt and India, the traffic in Tunisia was reasonably organized and safe.Related Posts:Tunis Tourism: Taxi Ride in Tunis (video)Tunisia Travel: Arabic Language in Tunis (video) ...
Tunisia Travel: Outside the Medina in Tunis
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Tunisia Travel: Outside the Medina in Tunis

Outside the Medina of Tunis, the city is laid out with the familiar logic of the grid system. But the inside of the medina (and most medinas in the Arab world) is a mess of small corridors leading off to who knows where and narrow, crowded "main streets" lined with vendors selling everything from clothing and shoes to fresh vegetables and homemade food.Related Posts:Tunisia Travel: Inside the Medina ...
Tunisia Travel: Inside the Medina in Tunis
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Tunisia Travel: Inside the Medina in Tunis

This video is a brief look into Tunis's bustling medina (the old city). It's an interesting destination to visit if you're in Tunis. Medinas are different everywhere in the Middle East; the medina in Fez, Morocco was especially notable. In the Medina of Tunis, Lydian bartered in Spanish with a shopkeeper who spoke five languages fluently.Related Posts:Tunisia Travel: Outside the Medina in Tunis ...
Tunisia Travel: Call to Prayer from Carthage Overlooking Tunis
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Tunisia Travel: Call to Prayer from Carthage Overlooking Tunis

The call to prayer in Tunisia was elusive. We hardly ever heard it from our vacation rental in Tunis. After visiting Turkey and Morocco where the calls to prayer were more dramatic, we were surprised. In this video, we finally capture a faint echo of Tunis's call to prayer as we stand overlooking the city from Carthage.Related Posts:Tunisia Travel: At Carthage Overlooking Tunis (video)Tunisia ...
Tunisia Travel: Bocce Ball and an Attack Cat in Tunis
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Tunisia Travel: Bocce Ball and an Attack Cat in Tunis

Just outside the ruins of Carthage, we stopped to step inside an ornate mosque. In the area outside the mosque, there were some men playing bocce ball and an "attack cat" who wasn't too pleased with our presence.Related Posts:Tunisia Travel: Call to Prayer from Carthage Overlooking Tunis (video)Tunisia Travel: At Carthage Overlooking Tunis (video) ...
Tunisia Travel: At Carthage Overlooking Tunis
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Tunisia Travel: At Carthage Overlooking Tunis

Ancient Carthage was once a major trade port in the Mediterranean, but today, the ruins of the city aren't much to behold. But, the view overlooking Tunis is oddly pretty. The modern city of Carthage (just outside of Tunis) has streets lined with trees that create a nice shady path. On our way back to our vacation rental in Tunis, we stopped at a grocery store in Carthage before continuing on.Related ...
Who’s an Assal: How to Say a Boy Is Cute in Arabic — By Jennifer Shipp
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Who’s an Assal: How to Say a Boy Is Cute in Arabic — By Jennifer Shipp

I recently read a theory set forth in the 19th century by a Muslim man who married a French woman. In summary, it said that one of the reasons why the Arabic world lags so far behind the west in terms of economy and power is because it subjugates it’s women. Our Arabic language instructor, a woman named Mona, told Lydian recently that if she wanted to say that a boy was cute, she should say, "Hoowa Asaal." ...
Missing Information in Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp
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Missing Information in Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp

Today, the Internet is being heavily censored. More heavily censored than usual. The presidential elections are going on and web sites like Aljazeera, and Facebook are either not loading at all, loading only partially, or loading very slowly. Certain web sites appear to have disappeared altogether. Earlier this morning, John saw an article by the New York Times about Tunisia’s instability amidst the ...
Our Time in the Orange Zone in Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp
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Our Time in the Orange Zone in Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp

I’m having trouble writing about our trip to Tozeur and Douz in Tunisia because I know I can’t post what I write until we get out of the Middle East. Just thinking about the possibility of Internet censorship kind of kills my desire to share our experiences. I may be paranoid about the extent to which our internet accounts are being watched, but then again, I may not. The Internet in our apartment ...
Terrifying Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp
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Terrifying Tunisia — By Jennifer Shipp

I've had to wait to post all of our experiences about Tunisia until we left the country because I was afraid of being stopped, detained, and who-knows-what else at the airport. Only a few days ago, Al Jazeera in Egypt was shut down, and Charlie Hebdo in France bombed for saying the wrong things about the wrong people. Censorship is something we've experienced in China, but the political tenor was quite a ...
Livin’ on the Edge…of Total Boredom — By Jennifer Shipp
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Livin’ on the Edge…of Total Boredom — By Jennifer Shipp

There’s a part of me that would like it if everyone at home thought that we lived our lives on the edge. If they thought that every moment of our journey was filled with suspense and excitement as we travel the globe…Globetrotters …that’s what we are! We live for excitement and our days are filled with it!... But no one can live like that. The Law of Diminishing Returns says that the more excitement I get ...
Venice to Tunis: Photo Gallery
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Venice to Tunis: Photo Gallery

Related Posts:Venice, Italy: Photo GalleryLivin' on the Edge...of Total Boredom -- By Jennifer ShippStanding in Line with Terrorists and Ebola Victims -- By Jennifer ShippLoved and Praised, Hated and Rejected...in Arabic:On Learning a New Language -- By Jennifer ShippWorking to Relax in Tunisia -- By Jennifer ShippWhat to Do in Case of a Tourist Infestation -- By Jennifer Shipp ...
Navigating the Foggy Streets of Disillusionment in Mestre, Italy — By Jennifer Shipp
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Navigating the Foggy Streets of Disillusionment in Mestre, Italy — By Jennifer Shipp

Mostly, we view all of the booking and planning of our trips as part of our adventure. We meet people when we set up our vacation rentals and sometimes they become friends. It’s always a challenge to deal with airlines, but we have a system now and we’ve gotten quicker at researching and booking our flights. Getting to and from classes, the grocery store, or tourist attractions is always an adventure once ...
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