FRANCE: OO LA LOIRE!

GLASS ACT: Hotel Domaine le Martinet, Bouin

Breakfast in Hotel Domaine le Martinet in the heart of west central France’s Breton Marshes was a three-course affair — hail with the cereal, rain with the croissants and sunshine with the coffee, all in the space of an hour.

The weather is clearly fickle in the Vendee department of Pays-de-la-Loire in April, and it looked like our cycling expedition would have to be cancelled. I wasn’t too bothered as I’d have happily spent the morning reading in the conservatory, stealing admiring glances at the rustic decor and brushing croissant crumbs from my lap.

But the clouds parted, the rain called it a day and a window of brilliant blue sky signalled it was time to say merci beaucoup and au revoir to our charming hosts Charles and Camille Salaud, saddle up and go exploring.

Domaine Le Martinet, a converted 18th century mansion where pets are welcome, is a favourite base for ramblers and cyclists. Hidden in a quiet backstreet in Bouin, halfway between Pornic and Noirmoutier and just 50 kilometres from Nantes Atlantique airport, it’s a haven where jarring alarm calls are hardly necessary — the well-mannered local church bells which sound as if they’ve been lined with felt do a much gentler job.

WHEELY GOOD FUN: Cycling among Vendee's salt pans

The last time I went cycling, along the Great Western Greenway in County Mayo, I was attacked — well, startled — by two wild mountain goats and ended up in a ditch full of icy water. Fortunately, there are no mountain goats in the Breton Marshes because there are no mountains (the greatest danger posed by wildlife involves riding into telephone poles while watching hares boxing and bounding in the fields). There are, however, 1,000 kilometres of cycle paths that run flat and smooth throughout this 45,000-hectare expanse, so bikes are the ideal way to get around.

Oyster farming on a massive scale is a mainstay of the local economy, and after three hours of pedalling up an appetite I couldn’t wait to try the fruits of the farmers’ labours. It was a treat to sit down for lunch at a beautifully-laid table in Restaurant Relais du Gois in Beauvoir-sur-Mer. Actually, it would’ve been a treat to sit down anywhere as long as it didn’t involve my knees going up and down like a fiddler’s elbow.

The restaurant, which specialises in seafood, overlooks the Passage du Gois, a 4.5-kilometre paved causeway that disappears alarmingly quickly twice a day at high tide, almost as quickly as nine succulent fat oysters disappeared down my throat.

OY-STARS: Lunch time in Relais du Gois and,
below, Tour de France riders on the Passage

The Passage, which links the mainland with the Atlantic coast island of Noirmoutier where the Vikings launched their first raid on continental Europe in 799, has three times featured in the Tour de France, most notably in 1999. That was the year when, during Stage 2 from Challans to Saint-Nazaire, the slippery causeway was the scene of a pile-up involving two dozen riders that proved decisive. The incident put paid to the hopes of several favourites, and Lance Armstrong went on to win the first of his record seven consecutive Tours.

Each June, one of the world’s weirdest — and wettest — athletics events, the Foulees du Gois, takes place here when 30 French and international runners set off across the causeway as soon as the evening tide first laps the paving stones. Seasoned competitors often cross the finishing line with water halfway up their shins, while those less accustomed to the quirky conditions end up lagging behind and having to swim for it. They’re known as bathletes. The current record-holder, pun intended, is French Olympian Dominique Chauvelier who dashed and splashed from one end to the other in 12 minutes and eight seconds in 1990.

READY, WET, GO: Runners in the Foulees du
Gois and, below, tide submerges the Passage

Depending on the time of year, the Passage can end up under four metres of water, but there are several safety platforms where walkers who get caught out can climb up and wait to be rescued by boat or, if none is available, for the waves to recede. Motorists can check the tide tables posted at both ends and drive across for the novelty of it, but the vast majority of traffic uses the road bridge that connects the island with Fromantine, eight kilometres from Beauvoir-sur-Mer.

˜STAY: Hotel Domaine le Martinet, Place de General Charette, Bouin, (telephone 0033 251 492323, www.domaine-lemartinet.com). DINNER: Restaurant Le Martinet, next to the hotel. LUNCH: Restaurant Le Relais du Gois, Route du Gois, Beauvoir-sur-Mer (0033 251 687031, www.relaisdugois.com). BIKE HIRE: Marais Promenade (0033 614 016778, email corlayg@wanadoo.fr).

In Ireland we have the humble spud, but there’s nothing humble about the potatoes grown on Noirmoutier. These uber tubers known as La Bonnotte are cultivated nowhere else and can fetch up to — wait for it — €600 per kilo. That makes them as expensive as matsutake mushrooms, Kobe beef and the world’s dearest coffee, Kopi Luwak, which is brewed from beans collected from the droppings of the Asian palm civet, hence “crapuccinno”.

SUPER SPUDS: For the price of one kilo of La
Bonnotte potatoes you could have a family holiday

La Bonnotte are the caviar of the potato world, so delicate that the annual crop of just 20-odd tonnes which is harvested in the first week of May is hand-picked to avoid the damage that would be done by machinery. The seaweed used to fertilise the fields gives the potatoes their distinctive salty flavour with, connoisseurs say, a hint of nuttiness. All I can say is that anyone who would pay €600 for a kilo of spuds is a bit nutty too.

Ten thousand people live on Noirmoutier year-round, but come the height of summer the island is invaded by 100,000 holidaymakers, more than half of them on bikes, many in camper vans and a good few in top-of-the-range Porsches and Range Rovers (these are the old money multi-millionaires who desert Paris every August for their grand seaside villas overlooking Dames Beach).

Noirmoutier is home to Restaurant La Marine whose owner-chef Alexandre Couillon, who won his first Michelin star in 2007, is described in France’s Elle a Table magazine as “a man who’s in tune with the desires of his clients”. His crockery’s in tune too — ping a fork off your plate and you get a perfect C. This may be a fluke, but it was no accident that everything on our chosen fixed menu (€90 with wine, €56 without) hit a high note.

MICHELIN MAESTRO: Chef Alexandre Couillon

Alexandre’s wife, Celine, proudly described each tantalising dish as it arrived: sea urchin with seaweed and liquorice; grilled cuttlefish with turnip and coconut; oyster and squid in bacon broth; lobster cooked with pine needles and garnished with cauliflower, beetroot and blackberries; burbot (a freshwater relation of the cod) with parsnip, pears and blueberries; eucalyptus sorbet with seaweed and chocolate; and La Bonnotte ice cream in a miniature cone. It was a memorable meal, not least because having mislaid my notebook I nicked the menu, otherwise I couldn’t have recorded what I’d eaten.

Noirmoutier’s 12th century fortress overlooking the Bay of Bourgneuf is impressive, as is the museum and art gallery inside that houses many fascinating exhibits. The velvet-upholstered, tatty old armchair with musketball holes through the backrest has a particular resonance for Irish visitors. This is the chair on which counter-revolutionary General Maurice Joseph Louis Gigost d’Elbee was executed by firing squad on the nearby beach on January 6, 1794, a scene depicted in Paris painter Julien Le Blant’s 1878 work Mort du General d’Elbee that can also be seen in the museum.

WHITE HOUSE TOUR: Noirmoutier fortress and
museum and, below, execution of General d'Elbee

Le Blant, who specialised in military scenes from the Vendee Wars of 1793 to 1797, was by dint of family history a committed royalist whose sympathies lay with the Grand Catholic Army in which d’Elbee had served, and his painting of the General’s death is at once powerful and pathetic.

D’Elbee, who had been severely wounded at the Battle of Cholet in October, 1793, somehow clung to life for three months while his comrades retreated from the advancing republican forces. Despite being in constant agony and drifting in and out of consciousness, he remained defiant when finally cornered in Noirmoutier. As soldiers stormed his room, he stared the arresting officer in the face and cried: “Yes, here I am! Here is d’Elbee, your greatest enemy! If I had been strong enough to fight or stand upon my feet, you would not have taken me in my bed!”

Five days later he was stretchered outside, placed in a chair and shot dead, as was wounded Irish republican leader James Connolly following the Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916.

˜STAY: Hotel Le Bois de la Chaize, 23 Avenue de la Victoire, Noirmoutier (0033 251 390462, www.hotel-noirmoutier.com). DINNER: Restaurant La Marine, Port de l’Herbaudiere, 5 Rue Marie Lemonnier, Noirmoutier (0033 251 392309, www.restaurantlamarine.blogspot.com). LUNCH: Restaurant La Potiniere, 27 Avenue Georges Clemenceau, Plage des Dames, Bois de la Chaize, Noirmoutier (0033 251 390961, www.potinierenoirmoutier.com).

BOW DO YOU DO: Solo sailor
Arnaud Boissieres on Akena

Sixty-five kilometres south of Noirmoutier is Les Sables d’Olonne, a popular holiday resort and the home port of professional yachtsman Arnaud Boissieres. He’s not the tallest guy on France’s Atlantic coast, but in the world of round-the-world single-handed sailing he’s a towering figure — and a born comedian. No matter how lonely the 40-year-old funny guy might feel when he’s out in the middle of the great oceans on his own, he’ll be in good company.

Arnaud will sail the 18-metre Akena Verandas in the 39,000-kilometre, three-month-long Vendee Globe race which begins in Les Sables d’Olonne on November 10. The Globe, known as the Everest of sailing, is recognised as the ultimate test in ocean racing as there are no stops and skippers, who get just five hours’ sleep a day, are allowed no external assistance. Since the first Globe in 1989/90 an average of only 40 per cent of competitors have completed the race (now a four-yearly event), which has claimed two lives.

The 16 competing yachts will sail south from Les Sables d’Olonne to the Cape of Good Hope, enter the Indian Ocean then the icy Southern Ocean, go clockwise around Antarctica, enter the Pacific and pass Cape Horn to port then head north past Brazil back up the Atlantic to Les Sables d’Olonne. The first winner was Tituoan Lamazou of France who finished in 109 days. Another Frenchman, Michel Desjoyeaux, won the 2008/09 race in 84 days (Arnaud was seventh in 105 days).

MAKING WAVES: Arnaud puts Akena through
its paces ahead of the gruelling Vendee Globe

I met Arnaud in his favourite hang-out, Le Poisson a Roulettes, a neighbourhood bistro-bar full of colourful characters including fishermen, artists and musicians. In stark contrast to Michelin chef Alexandre’s La Marine, Le Poisson a Roulettes (Fish on a Bike) looks like it’s been furnished from a junk shop, with no two chairs matching and wobbly tables, but the food, which could never be described as fancy, is fabulous. Try the hearty bean and bacon stew and grilled octopus washed down with the house red which is poured into bottles from a barrel behind the bar.

Some local folk singers in the backroom provided a lively musical backdrop, and as the evening progressed and the plonk kept coming the questions being fired at Arnaud by my female colleagues, who’d taken quite a shine to him, grew bolder.

But the boldest was: “Arnaud, when you’re out there all alone in the middle of the water, thousands of miles from nowhere with nobody to see you, do you ... ever run around the deck naked?”

I’d only ever heard the words “Sacre bleu!” uttered by that amorous cartoon skunk Pepe Le Pew, but that’s exactly what Arnaud said as his face went as red as the wine. What a question! But what a great guy, and what a great night. Come November 10, I’ll be following his progress in the Vendee Globe online at www.vendeeglobe.org.

CALM BEFORE STORM: Heading out on the
training yacht for a very rough ride in the bay

Intrigued by Arnaud’s hair-raising tales of his high seas adventures, I thought I’d try my hand at this old sailing lark. So, next day after lunch at Restaurant La Maree, I presented myself at the marina for an outing in the bay on board a titchy training yacht. All was going well as I tightened the straps on my lifevest and sat down. Then the skipper handed me a walkie-talkie, which in France is called a talkie-walkie.

“This is on channel 16,” he said.

“Oh, yeah?”

“Oui,” said the skipper. “In case of an emergency. If something happens, you call for help.”

“Aah. OK,” I said. “And, erm ... just out of curiosity ... what sort of something could happen?”

“This you won’t believe,” he chuckled. “Last week I fell overboard!”

“What!” I yelled, and nearly fell overboard myself — before we’d even left the mooring.

Out in the bay, in Force 6 winds (laughably described on the Beaufort Scale as “a strong breeze”) and with two-metre waves crashing over us, it would have been impossible for me and that little yacht to part company even if it had gone under, mainly because my hands were clamped to the rail. Pathologists are well-used to seeing rigor mortis, but one look at my clenched fists and Quincy ME would’ve been phoning around his colleagues to see if anyone had a crowbar he could borrow.

IN A FLAP: A vulture dive-bombs spectators
during Ball of the Phantom Birds at Puy du Fou

As if being subjected to the threat of imminent drowning wasn’t enough (despite being tuned to channel 16), 24 hours later a big ugly vulture with a beak that could open a safe came gliding straight towards me at eye level. I ducked, but its trailing talons still brushed the top of my head.

It was my last day in France, and I was sitting in the stands watching the Ball of the Phantom Birds show in Le Puy du Fou theme park near Les Epesses (www.puydufou.com). I’ve visited some of the biggest and best theme parks in the world and been thrilled — and scared witless — on the roller coasters and other rides, but being dive-bombed by trained vultures, eagles, falcons and hawks was the most exhilarating experience ever.

Le Puy du Fou’s Vikings show, during which a full-sized replica Norse warship emerged from a lake and later disappeared below the surface with the crew on board; the Roman gladiatorial contest, with lions and tigers (but no bears, oh my!) and a chariots race; and the Richelieu Musketeers spectacle made for a fun-packed day out.

As I sat sipping a beer in Nantes airport while waiting for the flight home, I glanced at the till receipt and thought €6.85 for a pint of Heineken was a bit expensive. Nowhere near as expensive as €600 for a bag of spuds, of course. For the same price two adults and two children could enjoy 14 nights in a two-bedroomed apartment at Siblu’s Parc Le Bois Dormant and still have change for four bags of chips. That would be a Vendee-lightful way to spend a fortnight in this fabulous part of France.

˜STAY: Best Western Hotel Les Roches Noires, 12 Promenade Clemenceau, Les Sables d’Olonne (0033 251 320171, www.hotel-lesrochesnoires.com). DINNER: Bistro Le Poisson a Roulettes, 81 Rue Saint Nicolas, Les Sables d’Olonne, (0033 251 324787, www.lepoissonaroulettes.com). Restaurant Le Sloop, in the Atlantic Hotel, 5 Promenade Georges Godet, Les Sables d’Olonne (0033 251 953771, www.atlantichotel.fr). LUNCH: Restaurant La Maree, 19 Quai Emmanuel Garnier, Les Sables d’Olonne (0033 251 320638, www.restaurantlamaree.fr.gd). SAILING: L’Institut Sports Ocean, 1 Promenade Kennedy, Les Sables d’Olonne (0033 251 951566, www.institutsportsocean.com).

NORSE RACES: Viking ship emerges from the
water and, below, chariot race at Puy du Fou

GETTING THERE

FLY: Ryanair flies four times a week from Dublin and twice a week from Shannon to Nantes Atlantique (www.ryanair.com); Flybe has a daily service from Gatwick and flies four times a week from Manchester (www.flybe.com); Easyjet flies every day from Gatwick (www.easyjet.com); Cityjet flies daily from London City (www.cityjet.com); Air France goes once a week from Southampton.

RAIL: Les Sables d’Olonne is three-and-a-half hours by train from Paris via Nantes.

˜For more information on holidays in Vendee, see www.vendee-tourism.co.uk and www.rendezvousenfrance.com (email info.uk@atout-france.fr).

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THE FUTURE’S LOOKING ROSÉ FOR TUNISIA

TRAY BIEN: Try Tunisian wines, they're
surprisingly good and very affordable too

The plane was heading for Tunis airport when the turbulence hit. It wasn't too bad, just a bit bumpy for a couple of minutes, nothing to worry about. But the elderly lady sitting next to me clearly thought otherwise. She was as white as a sheet. So was I, but only because I hadn’t seen the sun for a while.

When the senior flight attendant hurried up the aisle to the front and lifted the phone, my nervous neighbour lifted her right hand and blessed herself. She was probably expecting an announcement along the lines of: “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s been nice knowing you.”

Instead, we were advised to “ensure your seatbelts are securely fascinated”, which got a great laugh. It was the best malapropism I’d heard since my primary school pal Vinny Costello told Fr. O’Keeffe the Pope is never wrong because he’s inflammable.

We landed without further hilarity and transferred to the 5-star Hasdrubal Thalassa and Spa Hotel in the seaside resort of Yasmine Hammamet where I bounced on the bed once slept in by Colonel Gaddafi. The late Libyan dictator booked the penthouse suite for a year and stayed just 24 hours. This is no reflection on the hotel (his bagman happily settled the whole bill), which had long been a favourite with Irish and British holidaymakers.

GADD CHOICE: The 5-star Hasdrubal Thalassa and Spa
Hotel in Hammamet where Col Gaddafi stayed one night

Then came the popular revolution in January 2011 that ousted the rotten-to-the-core regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and triggered the Arab Spring. Ben Ali was a thief and a despot, but he wasn’t daft — he didn’t hang around to face the wrath of the people he had for so long terrorised and robbed. Rather, he and his wife Leila stuffed several suitcases with countless millions of dollars and, with their three adult children, hot-footed it to Saudi Arabia. There they live in the lap of luxury while their countrymen and women struggle to pick up the pieces after 20-odd years of oppression.

In the immediate aftermath of the uprising, visitor numbers plummeted as Tunisia descended into don’t-go-there chaos. But that was then. Today, it’s open for business again and holidaymakers are returning to this safe, sunny and cheap Mediterranean destination. Ben Ali won’t be returning any time soon — he’s been sentenced in his absence to 35 years in prison for money laundering and drug trafficking.

There’s a tangible air of can-do everywhere you go from the moment you step off the plane. It’s clear from the warm welcome visitors receive that a great weight has been lifted from the genuinely friendly and instantly likeable Tunisians. Not that they weren’t welcoming or friendly before. It’s just that they were always cautious, what with having to look over their shoulders all the time. That’s what comes from living in a country where the police used to — and I stress used to — routinely top up their salaries by fleecing their fellow citizens. No one ever ended up in court for a minor traffic offence. On-the-spot fines were pocketed by cops who never issued receipts. They were as corrupt as the regime they represented.

Things are different now. A respected government committed to widespread reform is running things, and instead of looking warily behind them, ordinary decent Tunisians are looking forward to a bright new future.

QUAY ATTRACTION: Fabulous Hammamet yachting marina
is one of the biggest and plushest in the Mediterranean

The Hasdrubal is the plushest place to stay in Hammamet, with 211 suites the size of parade grounds, four top-class restaurants, outdoor and indoor pools, a spa, sauna and gym. Better still in these belt-tightening days, its five-star opulence comes at three-star prices, and there’s free wifi throughout. With such a wealth of facilities and the beach just a pebble’s throw away guests could be excused for not wanting to venture far, but Hammamet is worth exploring.

This is where mass tourism began in Tunisia, just as Torremolinos was the first resort in Spain. However, while a risible snootiness often greets the mere mention of the popular Costa del Sol destination, which is a lot larger, no one looks down their nose at Hammamet, which is a lot cheaper.

It’s partly because Hammamet has one of the biggest and poshest marinas in the Mediterranean. Here you’ll see hundreds of multi-million euro ocean-going yachts and their multi-millionaire owners strolling in and out of the umpteen fancy restaurants, exclusive boutiques and piano and cocktail bars. Many of the yachts, some the size of frigates and with helicopter pads, remain moored from one year’s end to the next, but anyone who can afford one can well afford to keep it permanently berthed and pay the occasional visit while paying a permanent crew.

SOFA SO GOOD: Suite in Hasdrubal Hotel

It’s all very glamorous. Talking of which, don’t be surprised if the elegant lady in a big floppy hat and sunglasses sipping a glass of chilled rosé wine at a quayside cafe looks familiar — it’s probably Sophia Loren. The film star regularly stays at her villa just outside of town and, according to a waiter, is very generous when it comes to tipping. The same guy told me — why, I don’t know — that camels are bashful as well as bumpy and never mate in front of other camels.

That’s the sort of fascinating fact that can clinch a pub quiz tiebreaker. And here’s another, based on extensive, exhaustive and exhausting research: Tunisian wines are excellent, especially the rosés which account for 70 per cent of the total production. You can’t go wrong with the Magon label, but if beer’s your tipple the local Celtia lager is every bit as good as Heineken and Carlsberg and costs half the price.

ROCKS STAR: Stroll below the walls of Hammamet's medina

In the old part of Hammamet, a short stroll from the marina, visitors to the imposing 13th century seafront fortress and the 15th century medina within its walls step back in time to the days when the only boats on the water were manned by fishermen. Or, on a bad day, Spaniards intent on filleting something more substantial than a net full of sardines. In 1601, more than 300 Spaniards stormed the fortress and took 700 prisoners, mostly women and children (the male defenders did a runner as soon as the sails appeared on the horizon). Four years later the Spaniards came back, but this time the resident Moors turned the tables and massacred 1,200 of them on the beach.

It was on that same stretch of sand that Field Marshall Erwin Rommel took his daily run before breakfast during his ‘visit’ in World War Two (he couldn’t afford to stroll as the Allies were closing in); Paul McCartney wrote Another Girl for the Beatles’ 1965 album Help between bouts of sunbathing; and German-Swiss expressionist painter Paul Klee (1879-1940), whose paintings fetch millions of dollars at auction, found the inspiration during a 1914 sojourn that made him a major player in the art world. Klee’s watercolour, Hammamet With Its Mosque, hangs in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, and prints of it and his other Tunisian works are among the most popular souvenirs on sale in the narrow streets of the medina.

Wannabe Klees sitting on little stools at their easels abound in and around the souk, but it’s the young women who do face painting for the kids (and henna tattoos for their mums and big sisters) who make the most money. Being a child-friendly resort, Hammamet is a smart choice for family holidays, especially as it’s wallet-friendly too. Among the top fun attractions are Carthage Land theme park and Aqua Land water park, and there’s a replica pirate ship that offers half-day cruises with lunch included. Once out in the bay, dolphins will often provide a free show by shooting out of the water ahead of the ship, and when the anchor’s dropped there’s the chance to walk the plank and go for a swim. Rather than buy your tickets from hotel receptions, get them at the quayside kiosk where they’re cheaper.

˜STAY: 5-star Hasdrubal Thalassa and Spa Hotel Yasmine Hammamet. (www.hasdrubal-thalassa.com). DINNER: Restaurant La Bouillabaisse, La Marina, Yasmine Hammamet (www.labouillabaisse-tn.com).

TAN-TASTIC: Hammamet's seafront fortress provides the
backdrop as holidaymakers soak up the rays on the beach

A visit to the real Carthage, 15 kilometres east of Tunis, and the nearby hillside village of Sidi Bou Said is well worth the two-hour round trip from Hammamet.

An address in modern Carthage is the most coveted status symbol in Tunisia. This is where the super-rich live, as was the case 2,000-odd years ago when the city was one of the most prosperous in the Roman empire. But day-trippers don’t come to admire the magnificent mansions of the wealthy, who no doubt own some of the biggest yachts in Hammamet. The ancient ruins are the principal attraction.

Carthage was founded in 814BC by the seafaring Phoenicians who ruled the Mediterranean for hundreds of years from this strategically located port. In 146BC, following the Punic Wars, the Romans sent the Phoenicians packing and demolished everything in sight. They then rubbed salt in the wound in more ways than one by flooding the fertile land with seawater so that for decades no crops could be grown. A century later, in 44BC, Julius Caesar displayed his recycling credentials by telling his lads to get busy with their trowels among the ruins and put all that old rubble their predecessors had created to good use. The city he established became second in importance to Rome itself, and by the early third century AD had a population of 300,000.

REMAINS OF THE DAYS: Ruins of ancient Carthage and,
below, the colourful nearby hillside village of Sidi Bou Said 

The Vandals conquered Carthage in the fifth century, but despite their name they developed rather than defaced and it continued to flourish. However, by 650 the harbour had lost most of its trade to other Mediterranean ports, and by the time the Arabs took up residence in 698 the city’s glory days were long gone.

Today, Carthage — the place which down the centuries was so fiercely fought over — is again in ruins and a fraction of its previous size, but this sprawling World Heritage Site retains enough architectural gems of days gone by to merit the bus journey. Among the highlights are the imposing remains of the massive Antonine baths which were the biggest the Romans ever built anywhere. You can walk among the underground chambers of the baths where slaves sweated in temperatures of 50C-plus keeping the furnaces stoked while the Roman bigwigs upstairs sweated over their selections for the day’s chariot races.

Sidi Bou Said with its whitewashed houses and vivid blue doors and balconies — even the bouganvillaea clinging to the buildings is blue-ish — is by far, and then some, the most beautiful village I’ve ever set foot in anywhere in the world, which is probably why ambassadors have their residences here. Step inside the lovingly-preserved Family House for a taste of life as it was lived by the well-to-do lawyer who built it in the 18th century — it’s still owned by his descendants, who serve cold drinks, mint tea and snacks to visitors. From the rooftop patio there’s a fabulous vista of the Bay of Tunis far below, but the very best views are from the terraces of Aux Bon Vieuz Temps restaurant and the Cafe Delices.

I didn’t come across the hardware store that sells all that blue and white paint that’s in constant demand, but I’ll bet that if the owner’s car was parked outside it was the flashiest set of wheels in town. He must be the richest guy around.

BLUE-TIFUL: Balcony and orange trees in Sidi Bou Said

Tunis’s main boulevard, the Avenue Habib Bourguiba, bears the name of the respected first president of the Republic of Tunisia who served for 30 years from 1957 until he was declared medically unfit and removed by Ben Ali in a bloodless coup.

There was nothing bloodless about Ben Ali’s response to the popular and peaceful uprising that reached its peak in January last year and which at one point saw half-a-million people pack the capital’s principal thoroughfare, which is 60 metres wide and 1,600 metres long. More than 300 civilians died at the hands of the despised police and security forces in the four-week revolution that was triggered by the self-immolation of 26-year-old Mohamed Bouazizi. The young street vendor’s wares and vegetable-weighing scales had been confiscated by police after weeks of harassment and he was allegedly humiliated by a female officer, Faida Hamdi. An investigation that saw Hamdi arrested twice ultimately cleared her when Bouazizi’s heartbroken mother withdrew her complaint.

ARMOURED CAR-THEDRAL: The Roman Catholic
Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul in central Tunis

Stroll along the Avenue Habib Bourguiba today and cops will salute and step out of the way when you pause to take pictures. They might even pose, whereas 18 months ago they’d have insisted on seeing ID and tried to extract a fee for a “photo permit”.

There are still signs that the revolution wasn’t all that long ago. It was odd to see razor-wire barriers, heavily-armed soldiers and armoured cars in front of the splendid Roman Catholic cathedral of Saint Vincent de Paul (1882) until I realised they were guarding the Ministry of Defence across the street. It was odder still to see a guy sitting on the steps of this neo-Romanesque church in a judo suit and wellies — either the poor fella wasn’t the full dinar or he was waiting for the launderette to open so he could collect his washing. He had a black belt around his waist, so I wasn’t going to ask.

Tunis isn’t big on must-see sights (the rest of the country more than makes up for it), but the Finance Ministry as viewed from the fountained garden outside the entrance looks as if it was built with photos in mind. A whitewashed wonder with black and white Moorish arches on pillars, it’s topped by a clock tower from which the red national flag adds a splash of vivid colour against the clear blue sky.

WONDER-NEATH THE ARCHES: The splendid Ministry of
Finance and, below, shopping in Tunis's bustling medina

Le Bardo National Museum, in a renovated 13th century palace, contains the world’s biggest collection of Roman mosaics brought from throughout Tunisia and ancient Greece, and is considered one of the two great museums in North Africa along with the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. It’s four kilometres from Avenue Habib Bourguiba, but taxis are cheap and, if you’re feeling adventurous, hop on the metro to Bardo station.

Back in the centre, it’s very easy to lose your bearings in the medina once you enter the souk, but ever-smiling guide Kamal was on hand to lead the way through the warren of alleyways to the Dar Bel Hadj restaurant where lunch awaited. As soon as we stepped inside I felt like hugging him. I’ve been in many a fancy place where the food failed to live up to the decor, but Dar Bel Hadj, occupying the 400-year-old former home of a nobleman who was clearly mosaic-mad, scored top marks all round. From the ferociously hot harissa dip containing piri piri, chili peppers and garlic (plus two sticks of dynamite) to the tasty lamb tagine and the best dessert I’ve ever tasted — a rose water-flavoured cold custard topped with crushed pistachios — it was heavenly.

˜LUNCH: Dar Bel Hadj, 17 Rue des Tamis, La Medina, Tunis (www.darbelhadj.com).

TREE-MENDOUS: Outdoor pool at El Mouradi Palm Marina

Sixty kilometres south of Hammamet is the purpose-built tourist resort of Port El Kantaoui, where I spent a couple of very enjoyable nights at the 4-star all-inclusive El Mouradi Palm Marina Hotel that opens on to the long sandy beach. From the shore, if you dare, you can get strapped into a parachute and go up for a bird’s eye view of the area while being towed behind a speedboat.

The resort, which welcomed its first overseas tourists in 1979 while the paint was still wet, is a buzzing modern suburb of historical Sousse and is packed with great-value restaurants plus several more upmarket ones in the marina for a swankier evening out. The Hannibal theme park and the water park provide day-long fun, and for golfers there are two PGA-approved 18-hole courses (green fees from €40/£33, special five-day rate of €172/£139).

A 20-minute ride on the frequent local bus service takes holidaymakers to Sousse for a few hours of gawping and shopping in the souk (vegetarians and camel-lovers should avert their eyes when passing the butchers’ stalls); but the best excursion in all of Tunisia involves a 70-kilometre coach ride from Port El Kantaoui to the third century Roman amphitheatre at El Djem. Pronounced “gem”, it more than lives up to its name. The Monty Python team thought so, as did director Ridley Scott, as it features in The Life Of Brian and Gladiator. Don’t miss the opportunity to sit high up in the steep terraces from where up to 45,000 spectators watched gladiators knocking — and lions biting — lumps out of their unfortunate opponents.

˜STAY: 4-star El Mouradi Palm Marina Hotel, Port El Kantaoui (www.elmouradi.com). LUNCH: Le Mediterranee (www.lemediterranee.com.tn). DINNER: La Daurade. Both restaurants are in Port El Kantaoui marina.

GRAND CIRCLE: Ancient Roman amphitheatre at El Djem

Tunisia has had its well-documented woes. In the aftermath of the revolution, those who’d been visiting for years understandably gave the place a wide berth, and the consequences were sorely felt. Last year, tourism revenue — the country’s lifeblood — almost halved from 2010’s €1,800 million. Happily, the latest official figures show that the peace and stability that followed Ben Ali’s overthrow have encouraged holidaymakers to return.

Long-time visitors are re-acquainting themselves with Tunisia’s many attractions, and first-timers looking for a cheaper option than already-cheap Portugal and increasingly-expensive Spain have been discovering a destination that doesn’t leave them scrimping.

Optimism has replaced oppression. Charter flights are full, hotels are busy and unemployment is coming down. For a country that produces more pink wine than red or white, the future’s definitely looking rosé.

GETTING THERE

Sunway Holidays offers seven nights all-inclusive at the 4-star El Mouradi Palm Marina in Port El Kantaoui from a bargain basement €619 per person sharing. Seven nights B&B in the 5-star Hasdrubal Thalassa and Spa Hotel, Yasmine Hammamet, costs from €1,099pps. Prices include return flights from Dublin, transfers, free baggage allowance, resort representative service and taxes.

˜See www.sunway.ie, call 01 288 6828 or contact your travel agent.

˜See also www.cometotunisia.co.uk

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