Tozeur and the Desert

As you might expect travelling to the exotic reaches of the Sahara desert is not the easiest of tasks to accomplish. From my overnight stay in Matmata I set out at a reasonably early time to journey to Gabes, one of the larger cities in the southern region of Tunisia and main transport hubs. With no direct means of transport this alone took two louage journeys. Arriving, after a short walk from the local louage station, at the main louage base of this unattractive and dirty city I was informed that it would take a further three louage rides to reach my destination of Tozeur. I was at an impasse. I greatly desired to reach the depths of the Tunisia desert but I was tired of the travelling and I was having a hard time coming to grips with three more louage journeys and the sheer length of time it would take to reach my destination (ten to twelve hours). I had to make an executive decision there and then. I knew there was a train from Sfax, where I had stayed almost a week earlier on my voyage south from Sousse, to Tozeur but I didn't know the schedule. There are only two trains daily to Tozeur so I said to myself that I would take the train to Sfax and if the train to Tozeur was timetabled within a reasonable period I would make the journey otherwise I would head north to Tunis earlier than planned.

As it turned out I made the right decision. My train arrived into Sfax around 1.20 pm and the train to Tozeur departed at 1.30 pm. I was over the moon with joy at my lucky reprieve and was soon rattling along the metal tracks in an air-conditioned carriage. It was still a five hour train ride but in the grand scheme of things that was almost the blink of the eye.

The sun was setting over the golden sand dunes that surround the northern and western outskirts of Tozeur and, as I disembarked, I wound my way through the cobbled streets and alleys of this arid region. Tozeur is a smallish city located on the western frontier of Tunisia and is a sleepy town in comparison to some of the bigger cities. The buildings are mostly made from much smaller and more intricate brickwork and after dark the locals congregate in the nnumerous little cafes that line the main streets.

My hotel, Hotel Residence Karim, was situated on the main tourist drag and when I arrived I was greeted by the patron who refers to himself as Fred. A one armed Tunisian of short stature he was very welcoming. Safely nestled in my dilapidated room I then signed up for a 4x4 tour of Chebika, Tamerza and Mides for the following morning.

Chebika is a tiny little area set in the mountains some fifty kilometres outside Tozeur. A desert oasis home to an old Berber settlement it has a tiny flow of natural water, now channelled through an aqueduct, and palm trees making this one of the only areas with any vegetation for miles around. A beautiful little spot with paths into the hills it's only drawback is the vast swarms of tourists dumped by the infinite number of 4x4 tours buzzing around the desert - including myself, evidently.

Moving on and the next location of this half day excursion was a small canyon at Mides. A remote location with yet another Berber ruin set upon the peak of the canyon wall it was only one kilometre from the Algerian border. Along the route into the canyon there is the intimidating fortress of the Tunisian military, fenced off with barbed wire, nestled on a high peak. A blot on the landscape you wonder what type of atrocities this site has seen and been party too over the years.

Tamerza was a different place to visit altogether. A vast contrast of old and new I was dropped at the entrance to a modern complex. Inside the complex was a selection of refined shops and a brand new hotel. At the back of the building was a balcony overlooking the mountains behind Chebika. In the valley between stood another Berber village which looked to be in restoration. It was a bizarre sight, the modern, clean lined structure overshadowing the old relic.

Tour over and it was back to Tozeur for lunch. During the morning I had been with Tina and John, an Australian couple holidaying in Tunisia, who were staying in the same hotel. They agreed to do the afternoon 4x4 tour to Ong Jemel and the surrounding area of Nefta. Before hand they very kindly agreed to drive me out to Chott El Jerid, the desert salt lake to the south of Tozeur, in their hire car. A short journey into another region of this vast desert wilderness I was reminded of the salt flats of Bolivia as we drove through the mirage of this white expanse. With barely a sign of life anywhere other than on the main highway that cuts through the centre of this region it's a true sight to behold.

If you are bored of my talk of Star Wars locations then you can probably skip the next few paragraphs but for a geek like me and those that are interested the afternoons tour was the pinnacle of all the sets and locations I visited. Our 4x4 driver was a lunatic, haring along the beaten desert tracks at ninety kilometres an hour, he made short work of the drive to Ong Jemel. Ong Jemel translates as Camel Neck. The area is given it's name from the rock formation on top of a hill in the arse end of nowhere to the north of Tozeur. It is also the location used in A New Hope, Return of the Jedi, The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones. As we approached the location we could see how it earned it's name. The head and neck of a camel protrude from the hill and the lumpy section behind serves as the hump. From the base of this hill you can also imagine Luke Skywalker scanning for Artoo Detoo as you gaze across the barren terrain.

Moving on and we headed for Le Grand Dune. A golden sand expanse where you can sometimes find some of the old fibre glass bones that where made to create the carcasses of the ancient beasts in A New Hope - I didn't find any. It was here that our psycho driver made a total prat of himself though. Bouncing over dunes and pummelling his 4x4 he headed up the largest of the dunes where other 4x4's had stopped at the top to allow the tourists to have a view across the desert. His innate stupidity shone as he changed gear on the way up this dune and caused a complete loss of momentum...

We were to discover this wouldn't be the last of these occurrences!

The next spot, however, was every Fanboys dream. Mos Eisley Spaceport; Never will you find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy

You'll be glad to know that is the last of the Star Wars entries.

The final part of the tour was to head to some remote location a few kilometres to the west of Nefta, a smaller cousin of Tozeur and bereft of anything of great interest to tourists. It was a question mark in our minds why our driver had brought us here. For a great part of the afternoon we had been surrounded by other tour drivers, here there were none to be found. We had a few minutes to walk around the almost non-existant Souq before we drove out to the sand dunes to see sunset. This is where the tour began to crumble like a house of cards. Our driver had left it too late and the sun set as we made our way out - very disappointing - and just as we left the road and drove over the sandy plains our driver performed his trick of changing gear at the worst possible moment and stalled the vehicle. We knew there was a problem with the car since the earlier incident but this time we were well and truly up the proverbial creak without a paddle. The 4x4 wouldn't start and was stuck in the sand.

Have you ever had one of those moments in your life when you thought that perhaps you had got yourself into something you would struggle to get out of? Well this was it for me. We were in the middle of the desert as the sun had set and there was barely any other people around other than a few hawkers who try to sell crummy hand made dolls to tourists on the dunes and they were fast disappearing to some unknown home. We had no choice but to start walking toward the main road and see what we could do about getting back to Tozeur, roughly fifty kilometres away. As we trudged, dejectedly, towards the road we heard the roar of another 4x4 somewhere in the distance behind us. We turned to see this 4x4 stop alongside our own and then pull in behind and hook up a tow rope. A glimmer of hope. We stood and watched as any attempt to extract our vehicle failed and then the 4x4 started moving off on it's own. As it approached we wondered what would happen until it stopped alongside us and we were offered a lift in the three spare seats in the back - what are the chances! Relief! We made it back to Tozeur with no further drama and were also grateful for the partial refund we received.

The following couple of days in the desert were extremely low key. Exploring the massive palmerie, an area of the city with over 200,000 palm trees, being the high-light. Made all the better when, as I became lost in the massive grove, I was found by a local who then took me to his house, introduced me to his family - my inadequate French highlighted even more - and then drove me around the Palmerie on his moped and took me to his favourite cafe in Tozeur. Thanks Youssef!

My time in the desert and the south of Tunisia had come to an end. After four days in Tozeur I packed my bags and headed to the train station. I was extremely glad to have made it after all the troubles getting there. I climbed on board the train and settled into my seat and awaited departure for Tunis, my final stop in this North African state.