First Few Days in Tunis: May 29 - 30, 2011

First Day - Sunday, May 29, 2011
We decide to go for a drive in our "new car".  Now this is a very nice car, but rather large by Tunisian standards.  Normally this would be a nice thing, but if you saw how people drive here, you quickly realize smaller and more agile is the better.  Thank goodness Roy has become fairly adept at getting around!  We spend most of the day driving and soon see that there is little evidence of the recent uprisings.  In fact, there is a great deal of construction going on.  I notice that there has been a few new road overpasses built since I was last here a year ago and the start on some brand new communities.  This is definitely a country with progress in mind.

After driving for a while, we decide to stop for gas.  Now normally this wouldn't be cause for comment, but another thing about being here is that most purchases are done with cash.  We have absolutely no "Dinars", their local currency, so we think we have gotten lucky when we found a gas station with a VISA sign.  We have them fill the car, present our VISA for payment and then learn "No, cash only".  Yikes!  The gas is in the car and no Dinars ... so this was resolved when one of the gas station attendants joined us in our car and escorted us to a bank machine.  So is this how business is done here?  Thankfully, we were able to get some local currency, pay our debt and be on our way.  Sometimes the bank machines do not always work!  So we were lucky on that account.

Second Day - Monday, May 30, 2011
Order of business is to start furniture shopping.  I've joined Roy as he heads to work, reconnect with his work colleges and then arrange to have a driver take me around to go shopping.  My driver is a young guy, same age as Jessica (25) and is a gracious as they come.  I know that if I was to tell a typical Canadian young guy that he had to drive an "ol lady" around furniture shopping for the day, there would be a whole lot of attitude.  Not so with "Aimen", I probably have not spelt his name right, but it sort of sound like amen, with an "i" in there somewhere.  He is very patient with me and not a lick of attitude!  We visit ~ 6-7 shops before I finally found a place that had a decent selection.  So I made a snap decision, ordered a sofa, loveseat, coffee table, ottoman, dining table, 6 chairs, a wall mirror and buffet table.  All for < $5,000 Canadian!  And it's rather good sturdy stuff too.   I was doubly surprised as most of the stores we went to prior to that place had similar prices but not nearly the quality.  The best part is they had all the pieces available immediately and agreed to deliver it the next day.  Oh Yeah!  We will have something to sit on!