From Gabes to Matmata

Take a carriage ride through the oasis of Gabes, which palm trees numbering in the hundreds of thousands. In the shade of the tall trees grow several types of fruit tree: at the beginning of summer, admire the pomegranate trees whose flowers will give way in the autumn to fruits bursting with sweet juice. Explore the windy alleyways and covered passages of the Old Menzel neighbourhood. In the colourful market of Jara, buy spices and powdered henna, the plant used for dye and medicinal purposes grown in the oasis. Gabes also has beautiful beaches where herons and pink flamingos frolic in multitudes. In the backcountry, old Berber villages clinging to the hillside are camouflaged in the rocky landscape. Hidden in this region are some of the most astonishing sites in Tunisia: Matmata, where the ground is pierced with countless craters dug into the soft rock. In reality these are the interior courtyards of the ‘troglodyte’ dwellings: the inhabitants live in underground chambers, sheltered from the baking heat.

A major coastal city, Gabes will offer you fish and seafood prepared in all sorts of ways: grilled red mullet, stuffed squid, dogfish stewed with salted vegetables, or the little ouzef fish in a bell pepper salad. The lamb of the nomadic herders also has a treasured place in southern cuisine. Try it roasted or in couscous. If you stay in Gabes over autumn, take advantage of the season to try the oasis pomegranates. Restaurants aimed at tourists are rare in the Gabes region, but hotels can have their own restaurants. Otherwise, go for the little local restaurants that serve a simple fare typical to the region, although generally no alcohol.

Exceptional for its seaside location, the oasis of Gabes has been known since ancient times: “There is in Africa, in the middle of the desert (...) a city known as Tacapé, where the land, well irrigated, is miraculously fertile” wrote Pliny the Elder. In the 11th century, it was “Qabis, large city surrounded by a wall of large stones” according to El-Bekri. Many monuments from the 17th century can be found in Gabes: mosques, the mausoleum of Sidi Boulbaba, and a madrasah that today is transformed into a museum of folk art and traditions. In the neighbouring Saharan regions a very old Tunisian tradition still persists: the troglodyte, or cave, dwelling. The Matmata dwellings are thus set up according the typical floorplan of Tunisian houses, a central courtyard surrounded by bedrooms; but these are completely subterranean. Other villages, such as Tamazret, are nestled around a mountainous peak, their stone houses are camouflaged against the rock; a small mosque dominates the labyrinth of alleyways.