Tozeur is an
oasisIn geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
and a city in south west
TunisiaTunisia , officially the Tunisian Republic , is a country located in North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and Libya to the southeast. Tunisia is located southwest of the island of Sicily and south of Sardinia. Its size is almost 165,000 km² with an estimated population of just...
. The city is located North West of Chott el-Djerid, in between this Chott and the smaller Chott el-Gharsa. It is the capital of the
Tozeur GovernorateTozeur Governorate is one of the twenty-four governorates of Tunisia. It is situated in western Tunisia, bordering Algeria. It covers an area of 4,719 km² and has a population of 98,000...
.
With hundreds of thousands of palm trees, Tozeur is a large
oasisIn geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
. The
datePhoenix dactylifera , commonly known as the Date Palm, is a palm in the genus Phoenix, extensively cultivated for its edible sweet fruit...
s that are exported from Tozeur are very well known. In ancient times, before the advent of motorized vehicles, the oasis was important for the transportation through the
SaharaThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
, which took place in
caravanA caravan is a group of people traveling together, often on a trade expedition. Caravans were used mainly in desert areas and throughout the Silk Road, where traveling in groups aided in defense against bandits as well as helped to improve economies of scale in trade.One example is a camel train.-...
s. The name of the city in antiquity was Tusuros, it was an important Roman outpost.
In the
medinaA medina quarter is a distinct city section found in many North African cities. The medina is typically walled, contains many narrow and maze-like streets, and was built by Arabs as far back as the 9th century CE. The word "medina" itself simply means "city" or "town" in modern day...
(old city) of Tozeur, one can find traditional architecture, fashion and workmanship. Like elsewhere in Tunisia, the local population is generally very hospitable towards tourists, and there are also many tourist facilities. From Tozeur one can make trips on a camel, explore the
Sahara DesertThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
and get to know the Chott el-Djerid, where one can see
fata MorganaFata Morgana may refer to:* Morgan le Fay , the half-sister of King Arthur in legend* Fata Morgana , a mirage and optical phenomenonFata Morgana may also refer to:Literature...
's.
Architecture
Tozeur has lots of distinctive brick architecture.
Tozeur, and the Jerid region (named after the leaf of the Palm tree), is very famous for its yellow/brownish brick architecture. Fascinating patterns in simple and rich geometric designs form the façades of most buildings in the old city and the new tourist zone. The old town of Ouled El Hwadef is an exquisite example of the local brick work. Mandated by the local government, the old town narrow streets, walls and facades were decorated with bricks resulting is one of the most distinct and beautiful architectural styles of Tunisia. This work took more than 10 years to complete and the result is a must see when one visits the town.
Weather
Although the weather is pleasant most of the year, the summer months can be extreme. Temperature can reach 45
o outside.
The average yearly weather is :
| Month |
Avg. High |
Avg. Low |
Avg. Precip. |
| January |
58.5°F / 15°C |
39.4°F / 4°C |
0.90in / 21 mm |
| February |
62.6°F / 17°C |
41.7°F / 5.5°C |
0.70in / 15 mm |
| March |
67.5°F / 20°C |
45.9°F / 8°C |
0.90in / 21 mm |
| April |
74.5°F / 24°C |
51.3°F / 11°C |
0.50in / 13 mm |
| May |
83.7°F / 29°C |
58.6°F / 15°C |
0.50in / 13 mm |
| June |
92.7°F / 34°C |
65.7°F / 19°C |
0.40in / 10 mm |
| July |
98.2°F / 37°C |
70.3°F / 21°C |
0.00in / 0 mm |
| August |
97.2°F / 36°C |
70.7°F / 21.5°C |
0.30in / 10 mm |
| September |
88.9°F / 32°C |
65.8°F / 19°C |
0.90in / 21 mm |
| October |
78.3°F / 26°C |
57.2°F / 14°C |
0.80in / 20 mm |
| November |
67.6°F / 20°C |
47.1°F / 8.5°C |
0.70in / 16 mm |
| December |
59.7°F / 15°C |
40.5°F / 5°C |
1.10in / 29 mm |
The best time to visit the region would be in the fall or the winter, where hotels are not full and the city is the middle of its palm dates harvest. In fact the international festival of oases takes place during this time of the year (Nov/Dec.).
Transport
The city is served by buses, taxis, railway, louage (shared or group taxi), and an international airport with national and international services from London, Paris, Rome and few other European countries (international flight services are mostly during the summer tourism season). Actually, Tozeur lies on the edge of the Sahara desert. Tourism activity is more lively in the fall and winter months with Douz Festival among others in late December
The city has plenty of car rental agencies (
AVIS-Acronyms:*Associazione Volontari Italiani Sangue, or AVIS, the major Italian blood donation organisation*Andover Village Improvement Society, the oldest conservation society in the eastern United States-Business:...
,
HERTZThe hertz is a unit of frequency. It is defined as the number of complete cycles per second. It is the basic unit of frequency in the International System of Units , and is used worldwide in both general-purpose and scientific contexts...
, etc...) where one can rent a car without prior reservation. Visitors are advised to plan ahead especially during the peak tourism season (Summer and Fall)
Within the city limits, there is a reasonable taxi service (24 hrs a day) that is priced reasonably. Taxis can take you anywhere if you do not feel like walking.
Otherwise walking within the city limits, the old city (a must see) to the tourist zone is possible and in fact fun.
Economy
Although still the largest part of the local economy, dates and farming are becoming less appealing to the young, preferring the 'fun' and unstable business of tourism and contact with westerners.
Tourism is heavily developed and promoted, and Tozeur is considered a center of "desert tourism" . This becomes very evident if one visits the city during the "International Festival of Oases" in November/December of every year.
The government initiated two large scale projects:
1) Tapping of deep aquifers by wells, this led to a series of severe problems
Depletion of most natural springs (Tozeur is very famous for these springs, which counted more than 2500 few decades ago)
Abandonment of the traditional irrigation canals. Tozeur's oasis has been irrigated based on an open surface canal system designed in the 1200s by the famous engineer Ibn Chabbat. This traditional irrigation system is currently being replaced by an 'eye sore' system of concrete pipes. Moreover, water, that was traditionally free to farmers, is now being sold to offset the cost of these projects and pipes. It is important to note here, that the traditional system of irrigation canals supported a delicate ecological system of endemic fishes and small animals, most of them either gone now or severely endangered with no protection.
2) The second part of these local projects is the initiation of new (young) oases around town. Very poor planning, corruption, and disregard to local traditions meant a futile effort at best. These oases' productivity is very low and their future highly unstable.
This situation is slowly leading to the decay of the old oasis (due to
salinitySalinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. It is a general term used to describe the levels of different salts such as sodium chloride, magnesium and calcium sulfates, and bicarbonates...
, poor planning, lack of skilled workers, etc...) with productivity plummeting and the health and future of the oases questionable.
The overall region, not only Tozeur, is seeing a large influx of unemployed workers and their families (some of them native to the Tozeur area, but migrated in search of jobs decades earlier), that are migrating from the once rich Phosphate region of Metlaoui, Gafsa, Oum Lerrayess, etc... in hope of work in the Tourism sector. The phosphate mines are no longer productive and the government opted to sell them to European investors, who chose to let go of thousands of workers as the first step to rehabilitating them.
Unfortunately this influx caused problems to Tozeur, where the unemployment rate and crimes skyrocketed.
Overall the region, and Tozeur in particular, is going through a tough time. The region is embracing the very unstable tourism economy and shying away from its traditional agricultural based economy that provided security for centuries. If history is any indication for the region, during the first
Gulf WarThe Persian Gulf War , known also as the Gulf War, the First Gulf War,or often as the Second Gulf War and by Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein as The Mother of all Battles, or commonly as Desert Storm, for the military response...
the sector suffered tremendously with a loss of large number of workers and an increase in unmployment. The same happened twice during
September 11, 2001 attacksThe September 11 attacks were a series of coordinated suicide attacks by Al-Qaeda upon the United States on September 11, 2001. On that morning, 19 Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners...
and the current
Iraq warThe Iraq War, also known as the Occupation of Iraq or Operation Iraqi Freedom, is an ongoing military campaign which began on March 20, 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a multinational force led by troops from the United States and the United Kingdom.Prior to the war, the governments of the United...
.
Banking and Money
The city is served by all Tunisian banks. One can find easily banks, ATMs, and money exchange offices. Most Western money is accepted directly (albeit not legal, one needs to exchange his money first). Most credit cards, like VISA, MASTERCARD, DINERS CLUB, are also honored in hotels, restaurants, and artisans shops.
Famous people
Aboul-Qacem EchebbiAbou-Al-kacem Echebbi was a Tunisian poet. He is probably best known for writing the final two verses of the current National Anthem of Tunisia, Himat Al Hima , that was written originally by the Egyptian poet Mustafa Sadik el-Rafii.Echebbi was born in Tozeur, Tunisia, on 24 February 1909, the...
(b. Tozeur, February,1909; d. October 9, 1934), is a famous Tunisian poet and known and respected throughout the Arab world for his elegant style and powerful words. The current Tunisian anthem is based on one of his poems.
One of his most famous poems is titled "To the tyrants of the world".
A famous Tunisian and contemporary singers
LatifaLatifa Bint Alayah Al Arfaoui , better known as Latifa , is an Arab pop music singer.The word Latifa is Arabic for "Soft", "Delicate", "Gentle" or "Sensitive".-Career highlights:...
Arfaoui sang this poem in support of Palestinian kids killed by
IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
under the rule of
Ariel Sharon' is an Israeli general and statesman, former Israeli Prime Minister...
.
The following are few lines from this poem:
To the tyrants of the world
To the lovers of the darkness
To the enemies of life...
You ridiculed the pain of the frail people
Your hands covered in their blood
You deformed the charm of existence
And you've grown but seeds of sadness in their land
Wait, don't let the spring, the clearness of the sky and
the shine of the morning light fool you
Because the darkness, the thunder rumble and the blowing of the wind are coming toward you from the horizon
Beware because there is a fire underneath the ash
Who grows thorns will reap wounds
You've taken off heads of people and the flowers of hope; and watered the sand with blood until it's drunk
The blood's river will take you away and you will be burned by the fiery storm.
ألا أيها الظالم المستبد
حبيب الظلام عدو الحياه
سخرت بأنات شعب ضعيف
و كفك مخضوبة من دماه
و سرت تشوه سحر الوجود
و تبذر شوك الاسى في رباه
رويدك لا يخدعك الربيع
و صحو الفضاء و ضوء الصباح
ففي الافق الرحب هول الظلام و قصف الرعود و عصف الرياح
حذار فتحت الرماد اللهيب
و من يبذر الشوك يجن الجراح
تأمل هنالك انى حصدت رؤوس الورى و زهور الأمل
و رويت بالدم قلب التراب اشربته الدمع حتى ثمل
سيجرفك سيل الدماء
و يأكلك العاصف المشتعل
Abu YazidAbū Yazīd Mukhallad ibn Kayrād , nicknamed Ṣāhib al-Himār "Possessor of the donkey", was a Kharijite Berber of the Banu Ifran tribe who led a rebellion against the Fatimids in Ifriqiya starting in 944...
Mukhallad ibn Kayrâd(أبو يزيد مخلد بن كيراد), from the Berber
ZenataAccording to the French historians Emile Felix Gautier and Gabriel Camps, Zenata tribes entered in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia from the east of Africa in pre-Islamic times and grouped themselves with the tribes of Maghrawa, Miknasa and Banu Ifran etc.......
tribe, nicknamed Saheb Al Himar
who led a mostly
BerberBerbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the...
revolution against the
FatimidThe Fatimid Caliphate or al-Fātimiyyūn was an Arab Shi'a dynasty that ruled over varying areas of the Maghreb, Egypt, Sicily, Malta and the Levant from 5 January 909 to 1171. The caliphate was ruled by the Fatimids, who established the Egyptian city of Cairo as their capital. The term Fatimite is...
ruler . The revolution, almost a success, was finally crushed .
Sahib Al Himar was finally caught hiding in a cave. He was ordered executed, skinned and stuffed with cotton. His mutilated body was put on display at the southern main entrance to El Mahdia , a Tunisian coastal city. Ironically, Saheb-Alhimar started his revolution by implanting his spear in the very same door few years earlier.
Trivia
Tozeur was used as a filming location for the
Star WarsStar Wars is an epic space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas. The first film in the franchise was originally released on May 25, 1977, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, spawning two immediate sequels, released at three-year intervals...
saga and
Raiders of The Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost Ark is a action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford...
(specifically Sidi Bouhel canyon outside the town and the salt-flats of nearby Nefta).
The English PatientThe English Patient is a 1996 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Michael Ondaatje. The film, directed by Anthony Minghella, won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture...
(9 Oscars) with
Ralph FiennesRalph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, known simply as Ralph Fiennes , is an English actor. He has appeared in films such as Schindler's List, The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Maid in Manhattan and the Harry Potter films...
and
Kristin Scott ThomasKristin A. Scott Thomas, OBE is a British actress who has also acquired French nationality. She gained international recognition in the 1990s for her roles in Bitter Moon; Four Weddings and a Funeral and The English Patient....
was partially filmed outside Tozeur.
In May 1984 the Italian singer
AliceAlice is an Italian singer-songwriter and pianist, active since 1971...
and
Franco BattiatoFranco Battiato is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter....
represented Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song
I treni di Tozeur ("The Trains of Tozeur"). This song was placed in several Charts and made the name of this town more famous in Europe.
External links