Tunis does not hurry to impress you. It sits between a salt lagoon and the Gulf of Tunis, with a wide boulevard, Avenue Habib Bourguiba, running through the French-built part of the city and the old medina rising behind it. The medina's maze of covered souks climbs to the Zitouna Mosque, which dates from the eighth century and anchors the whole quarter. Cafes spill onto the pavements, men play cards and drink coffee, and the smell of grilled meat, jasmine and spices rolls out of the alleys. About seven hundred thousand people live in the city proper, with several million more in the larger area.
Traffic is lively and a bit chaotic. Lane markings are suggestions, roundabouts are tests of nerve, and cars stop wherever they find a gap. As a rider, you should stay alert, keep your speed under control and be ready for pedestrians crossing between lanes. The best time to leave the city is early in the morning, when the sun is low and the main roads are clear. The route out to the north-east leads along the coast, toward Carthage and Sidi Bou Said, on the road that follows the lagoon and the sea.
History is thick on the ground. The Phoenicians founded Carthage around the ninth century BC, and for centuries the city rivalled Rome until the Romans destroyed it in 146 BC. The Bardo Museum, in a former palace, holds one of the best collections of Roman mosaics in the world, and is worth a morning if the weather is poor. French influence remains in the cuisine, the language and the architecture of the avenues, and the mix of Arabic and French in conversation is a pleasure to listen to.
For practical needs, the capital has everything: fuel at stations on every major road, workshops, hotels at all prices and good food. Try a brik, a fried pastry with an egg in the middle, or a bowl of lablabi, a chickpea soup eaten at breakfast. Spring and autumn are comfortable, while July and August can be brutally hot and humid.