reorientfilms

Sunday

We went downtown for an exhibition of Jewish life in Tunisia. Most of the Tunisian Jews seem to be more on the side of justice then the Israeli political establishment. The exhibition was held in the very elegant stable of a former palace. Many of the artifacts and photos were from Djerba, an ancient center of Jewish life where one of the older synagogues in the world is located. One photo which was simply labeled, “La Femme Tunisien”, was a woman dressed in a keswa smoking a cigarette. A keswa is a traditional outfit of enormous pants woven in silver thread worn by women at weddings (see: Kalthoum Bornaz’s excellent feature film KESWA). It was delightful to be in the medina on a Sunday. The streets that normally team with buyers and sellers were mostly deserted. Until the 70s this neighborhood dating to the Ninth century was still inhabited by the old families, the Tunisois. As wonderful as it is now, it must have been heart-achingly fabulous before most of these privileged characters abandoned it for the newly chic suburbs of the new era of independence.

Tunisian cuisine is different from other places I have had the pleasure to dine (Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Algeria), where one might expect to find similar fare. A big surprise in the dishes and markets is the complete absence of cardamon, but there are many strange and wonderful spices and preparations to take up the slack for this favored flavor of mine. The height of my day yesterday was a salad of aubergine, tuna and a magic melange of herbs and spices, which was the starting point to a divine 5 course lunch with the sister of my host.

A foodie discussion here concerns the price of tomatoes, a mainstay especially in the kitchens of the working class. The price suddenly is elevated from an average of .6 dinars per kilo to 2.8 dinars per kilo. There will probably not be a protest march, but there is a lot of protesting in the market.

When I came across live turtles in the market, i was nervous for them, but I was assured that they are only kept as pets as they signify many positive attributes to life. My local pet Ms. Tortoise likes to take a tour of my studio everyday, hopefully spreading her good fortune.

The home of my friend and host is a rare Bauhaus house with many of the original appointments from the tile in the entrance to the chandeliers…the style is well suited to the environment. Up the street is a university of agriculture, which has the feeling of an abandoned town. Some of the buildings are splendid examples of modernist Tunisian architecture. A local citizen suggested that the campus may have been given to disrepair so the wife of Ben Ali could claim the well situated grounds for one of her gaudy, self-serving projects. I include a couple of photos of the elegant edifices set in patches of unchecked vegetation.

Off to spend the day in La Marsa by the sea…

There is something strange afoot here…only food that is in season is available in the market. Last week the orange and grapefruit season ended and today there were only previously frozen oranges at one or two stands. Fortunately there are still a few last crop dates on stems for sale. I learned to look for the clear dates.

Tomorrow I will spend the day with a meat eating friend, tasting lamb chops in the medina. In the evening we will attend a wedding and eat special pastries available only in Tunisia.

This little country has many unique products and eccentricities.

My home in Tunis is a rare Bauhaus house with two turtles in the yard. The garden also has an orange tree, a fabulously extensive lemon tree, two palms, an olive tree that is currently busy maintaining a carpet of sticky flowers on the garden tiles, some mint. heritage roses with the scent prized in Grasse, pretty roses 3 bougainvillea and a variety of other plants that I cannot name. The neighbors, who clearly have a shallow history with canines, maintain 2 watch poodles, who like to bark their sharp songs deep into the night. There are many feral cats to keep the dogs busy. Some of them are beautiful…seem to be Abyssinian.

Today was the first protest. It was a mostly festive atmosphere with cotton candy and popcorn sellers, adorable children waving the red flag (a very venerable flag), smiles and camaraderie under the perfect sky on a beautiful tree lined boulevard.

The politics are less pleasant…truly hair raising proposals are being set forth by some invitees of this “moderate” Islamic government…more on that tomorrow.

Did I mention that the food is tasty?

This posting is a test of my new blog. This activity is the sort that I find myself engaged in while waiting for the car to the airport.

Will be in strolling around Carthage in less than 24 hours…Hurray.