Settlement near the mountains

Ilona with local friends

Bench between two trees providing shadow

Balta's Landscape

Old stonewall with opening to a garden

Donkey with donkey child

Researcher Ilona holding a small bird

Every year in August, a big festival in honour of the saint brings together folkloric shows, popular arts and local heritage, culminating in the visit of the saint’s tomb, ḏikr and praising ceremonies.

It is home to about 11,000 inhabitants. Ayn Draham is famous for its sulphurous hot springs that were already used by the Romans.

Originally a French military base, it started to become an inner-Tunisian tourist destination in the 1930s, being known for its unique cold and humid climate and its colonial heritage (especially the red-tile roofs).

It has the highest average rainfall of 1,534 mm per year in Tunisia and is frequently covered with snow in winter. This uniqueness in climate and landscape is reflected in its dense forests of beech, oak trees (including cork oak), and pine trees of which the famous zgūgu is made.

black: state government’s capital
red: towns and smaller cities
green: villages and places in the countryside

However, the working conditions are not that easy for the researchers. Tunisia’s scorching sun means that locals rarely leave their homes throughout the day during summer months. Interviewees are hard to catch as they are usually found at home, enjoying a siesta in the shade. These circumstances demand late-night hours interviewing those who are available after their afternoon naps. Being flexible allowed us to adapt to the timing and availability of potential interview partners.

Nonetheless, the lack of infrastructure often restricted our eager plans. Many regions – rural areas and small towns – do not offer any public transportation after five o’clock. Sometimes there is even no connection before five! Our partial reliance on local guides had somewhat of an impact on our schedules, and meant that early mornings, coupled with evening ḥōš-assemblies*, were the general order of the day – taking every opportunity for Franziska and Aleksandra to catch valuable sleep. Ilona, for her part, acquired a taste for the local’s daily rhythm and happily adopted their siesta custom gaylūla.

 

All the more, we are very satisfied with our fieldtrip’s outcome: The work in the governorates Beja and Siliana is completed, the wide parts of the governorate El Kef covered and even first sites in Jendouba opened up. Moreover, though working separately in different governorates, our researcher team manages to meet up in the capital for a joint lunch, strong hugs and to compare their notes and as their trip draws to its close.

* ḥōš: depending on the Tunisian dialect variety, the word ḥōš, also pronounced ḥūš, can imply either the meaning “house” or – as in this case – “courtyard”, in which family members, neighbours and friends gather in summer nights. People tell stories and jokes and sometimes even sing songs during those late-night assemblies.