We spent the first few days in Tunis, Tunisia’s very modern capital. While we enjoyed our time exploring Tunis’s medina and the many attractions in the surrounding area, we were eager to get back on the bikes. We woke up early and set off. Immediately, there was horrendous traffic. The road was congested and polluted, cars blew past us at ridiculous speeds. “Yup, this is familiar”, we joked. “Just like that first day in Egypt”. We were thrilled. Here we were cycling in Africa again, only this time without our little red boxes, without the yellow tape to mark our way. We would decide where to go and when to stop; the decisions, the mistakes, the successes would now only be our own.
Our first stop was Kairouan, considered to be the 4th holiest city of Islam. Cycling into its busy medina was incredible. The colorful streets were full of people going about their day; shopping, working, pushing carts, riding bicycles, talking, having coffee. Arabic music blared from the stands selling CDs; the Call to Prayer rang out from the loud speakers. It was messy, chaotic, noisy, different and exhilarating. This is exactly why we came back.
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