Dar Bel Hadj

Today after work I headed up to Lee's place for a quick nap while he went for a swim and then we headed downtown to the new hotel just off of Ave. Bourguiba called Tunisia Palace. It's a 4-star hotel, and is quite nicely done. It's managed by a competent chain called Golden Yasmin. In the hotel is a large dining room with Tiffany-esque windows and also a small and clubby bar with plenty of wood called 1900. There, we met up with Simon, an anthropology Professor from the States who did Peace Corps and Fulbright work out here, plus Larry, the director of CEMAT, and his daughter and her friend who are out here visiting. After a Turkish Coffee (I'm keeping drinking to an absolute minimum during Ramadan), we walked into the medina to the restaurant Dar Bel Hadj, which is right before the Zeitouna mosque.

The Restaurant, like Dar El Jeld and one other one in the Medina, is a restored Bey's house. the central open area functions as a very nice formal dining room, and the service matches the quality of the surroundings. We had a traditional Iftar dinner, starting off with a thicker tomato-based soup, a Brik, a small salad, and then I had Mosli with Sheep - a dish with potatoes, green peppers, and saffron, thyme, rosemary, red pepper and black pepper (I know the ingredients because Rim recently cooked up a really great version of it). After that, we had a light desert and some tea. Overall, I'd recommend the place for its ambiance, and I think it's a bit less expensive than Dar El Jeld, which is around 60TD.

The conversation was good as well - Simon has two masters as well as PhD and focuses on linguistics, so he knows Tunisian Arabic very well and has done a lot of work on the educational system in Tunisia. After dinner, I went down to clear up some rental stuff with Farouk at Cafe L'Univers, and then back to check out his apartment. My lease here in Ariana is up in December, and I'm considering moving downtown to have a change of environment. (If anyone knows a place that is furnished/heated let me know!)

I know this is a bit sappy, but it's nights like this that I really enjoy being in Tunis. The city has a lot to offer if you know where to go, and it's satisfying really being at a place now where I feel quite competent in going around, knowing where to go, what to see, etc.