• First impressions of Tunisia

September 21, 2004

Unpacking supplies at the campsite	Softer sands may mean more recovery work!

We are in Tunisia now. The day in Tripoli went by quite fast. We roamed the town, entering souks and mosques. At night, we had the pleasure of dinner at the house of Malaysian Embassy's Head of Chancellory. We left Tripoli quite early as we were going to cross the border to Tunisia. On the way, we managed a quick stop at some Roman ruins.

The border crossing was uneventful, but we had to be patient with a long wait. Four hours later, we were through and drove the 100 meters to the Tunisian authorities. To our surprise, it only took half an hour to clear customs and immigration!

A quick check on the radio and we headed off to Tataouine, a small town at the edge of the Northern Sahara. After refueling at the small town, we checked into our hotel for the night. The hotel is beautiful, set at the foot of some hills, built in traditional Tunisian style.

Everyone was tired but relieved that we had made it into Tunisia, especially Halim, whose car was repaired in Tripoli, thanks to some very helpful people - we will not forget you! With handphones back to normal, the team updated loved ones back home with stories of the Sahara and promises to call more often. Little did they know that the signal would be lost as soon as we entered the desert.

We are now at the Ksar Ghilane campsite. After a short introductory drive in the Tunisian Sahara, the team drove into the oasis for a well needed rest. The sand here is much softer; the team will have to remember all the skills they learnt the past week in Libya. More reports as the team tackle a different type of dune in PETRONAS Trans-Sahara 2004!