Postcard from Tunisia

This comes to you from Sfax, Tunisia, 270km south of the capital Tunis. It's a coastal port town, quite industrial, and not very touristy. The walled medina (old city) is fantastic - full of market stalls selling food and everyday items - not tourist tack and souvenirs like, for example, the old souq in Damascus or Istanbul's Grand Bazaar.

The language here is mostly a mix of Arabic and Tunisian Arabic (I can't tell the difference) but is interspersed with French words - especially in business conversations. Unlike countries like Syria the numerals used are often western, not the Eastern Arabic numbers (٠.١.٢.٣.٤.٥.٦.٧.٨.٩).

French influence is here in the food as well - instead of the flat bread of Syria, Jordan and Lebanon the long French baguettes are everywhere. There are French style cafés everywhere, plus a lot of Italian restaurants and pizzerias. The coffee is good, and strong. The speciality in Sfax, however, is the fish - there's a big fishing industry and it's fresh and normally served whole and grilled. Sea bass (loup) seems to be common. But look up loup in your French dictionary and it comes up with wolf. Fillet of wolf? I hope not...

The architecture here seems to switch between French and north-African arabic styles. The new city centres are unmistakably French:



Photos are here and I'll update as I go.

Mike's guide to Tallinn...

A friend of mine has asked me for some tips on Tallinn, so here's 5 of my favourites, in no particular order. For the latest info on clubs and events check out Tallinn in your pocket:
http://www.inyourpocket.com/estonia/city/tallinn.html.

Kompressor‎‎ - Good place for lunch in the old town. I recommend the pancakes with blue cheese and champignons.
3 Rataskaevu, Kesklinn, Tallinn

Oleviste Church - You can climb the tower for a view of the city.
50 Lai, Kesklinn, Tallinn, 10133, Estonia

Kiek in de Kok - A museum of Tallinn's history, in the cannon tower, part of the city walls.
Komandandi 2, Tallinn, 10130

Karja Kelder - A cellar bar with a huge range of beer snacks.
www.karjakelder.ee
Väike-Karja 1, 10140 Tallinn

Seiklusjutte maalt ja merelt (Travellers' bar and club) - A bar/restaurant a bit out of town, on the way to the bus station. Less touristy, good Estonian pub food and a big beer garden.
Tartu mnt 44, 10115, Tallinn
Map here: http://www.seiklusjutte.ee/kontakt.html

Earthquake!

There was an earthquake here this morning, about 6.20am. Reports say it measured 4.7 on the Richter scale and the epicentre was around 20km east of here - between Malmö and Ystad.

I woke up to the sound of a big bang, and the house shook for about 20 seconds as it tailed off. It's the biggest earthquake in Sweden since 1904 - that one was a 6 - much bigger. No damage here to report, but there were a lot of calls to emergency services and may be some cracks in building facades. It could be felt across the water in Copenhagen.

See the news report here and the US geological survey report here.

Back from Syria...

Back from Syria... I've uploaded the photos in full resolution, including those from the last blog post. You can see them here.

My trip took me to Damascus, Palmyra, Homs and Deir Ezzor, as well as the drilling rig sites in the deserts and hills north east of Palmyra where the Bedouin still herd their sheep. Highlights were the Roman ruins in Palmyra and the seemingly endless market stalls and alleyways of Damascus. In the west there are olive groves, almond trees and vineyards, giving way to desert in the east. The Euphrates river passes though Deir Ezzor, not far from the Iraqi border - the river valley is very green and fertile.

The people were friendly and hospitable and the food was good - olives (grown locally), hommus (sometimes with tahini), halva, lentil soup and everything served with flat bread. Also good was the Lebanese wine - from Chateau Ksara or Clos St Thomas.

Postcard from Syria

On assignment in Syria. I'm staying in Der Ezzor at the moment, and it seems there's no agreement on how to spell it - not in the Latin alphabet, anyway. It's on google maps as "Dayr Az Zawr". So far the weather has been good and the people friendly, but finding internet is not so easy... Here's some photos of Damascus and the Roman ruins in Palmyra.

Early autumn...

A few photos from the start of the autumn.


In Häckeberga, a nature reserve in Skåne.


The house in the autumn.


Apples by the hundreds.


Summer barbecues still continuing.

Lamb roast beef

Spotted in a restaurant in Malmö: "Lammrostbiff". Time to ask the obvious question -is it beef, or is it lamb?

"It's lamb roast beef". We're none the wiser then.

Turns out lammrostbiff is lamb sirloin or chump - the "rostbiff" implies the cut, not the animal.

Reminds me of a trip to eastern europe, where the english description of a menu item reads "Chef's special turkey".

"What is the turkey?", I ask the waiter.

"Is like... you know, big chicken."