In our previous post we drove further South in Tunisia and deeper into “Berber country”. We explored a few Ksars, especially Ksar Hadada where “The Phantom Menace”, a Starwars movie, was shot. In this post we will explore Toujane (A) and drive North, to Sousse (D) where we booked a room in Dar Badia for a few nights.
Hotel Sidi Driss is made up of a few of these underground structures that are linked and it was used in 1976 as a filming location for Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (the original series), in which it was featured as the home of Luke Skywalker, his Aunt Beru Lars and Uncle Owen Lars on the planet Tatooine. It was featured again in 2002 for Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (subsequent series).
In 900 BC, Hadrumetum or modern day Sousse, was a Phoenician colony, established as a trading post and waypoint along their trade routes to Italy and the Strait of Gibraltar. Like other western Phoenician colonies, it became part of the Carthaginian Empire in 570s BC. During the Third Punic War, Hadrumetum supported the Romans against Carthage and, after Carthage’s destruction in 146 BC, it received additional territory and the status of a free city in thanks. Hadrumetum became one of the most important and wealthy communities in Roman North Africa because of the fertility of its hinterland (modern Tunisia’s Sahel), which made it an important source of Rome’s grain supply. A breathtaking legacy of mosaics survived from this Roman era.
How could the Roman territories around the Mediterranean become so wealthy?
A) The Romans implemented and policed the rule of law in their Empire. There was no piracy at sea and also on land it was relatively safe. This resulted in an explosion of trade and economic growth.
B) The different territories were relatively autonomous (sovereign) and were allowed to keep their own language, customs and religions. This dramatically reduced the chance of uprisings.
This is not to say that the empire was trouble free. There were still internal and external wars. However when the Roman empire collapsed, the rule of law collapsed and Europe and the Mediterranean entered the so-called dark ages. Piracy returned to the Med with people abandoning the coastal area’s retreating to the mountains for safety. The number of sea and land wars increased dramatically with all kind of smaller kingdoms vying for power. No more monuments were built or masterpieces of art made. Trade came to a halt, agricultural production collapsed. It would take almost 1000 years before stability returned.
The many ports along the coast were the first to profit from the wealth for which they served as an outlet. The rich landowners and ship owners, enjoying the exceptional prosperity of the region, build themselves sumptuous dwellings while at the same time gratifying the cities with lavish monuments, ensuring that the splendour of the decoration was equal to if not greater in magnificence than that of Rome.
Medusa, the only mortal of the three Gorgon sisters, is a woman with living snakes as hair and having two wings on her brows. Her appearance was so hideous that anyone who looked into her penetrating eyes, turned to stone. On the Greek and Roman soldiers’ breast plates, Medusa’s head image would protect them.
The mosaic, top left, comes from the private baths of Dar Mela, a “villa” near Sousse where it adorned the warm bathroom.
The mills are always interesting with smells of freshly ground cereals and spices. After a leisurely stroll we arrive at the Ribat of Sousse.
This concludes our sightseeing in Sousse. Tomorrow we will visit a few coastal towns South of Sousse, but that is subject for a next post.
Thank you for reading our travel stories, Liza and Frits.