Tunisia – the most European Arab country

Tunisia is a popular tourist destination among Hungarians. It has no oil like its neighbours, yet its economy based primarily on tourism, produced 8 per cent growth last year. Progress is visible everywhere, but the average wage is still only HUF 70,000 and the contrast between rich and poor is drastic. The president, Ben Ali has set strict limitations on democracy, but he is governing wisely. You can tell which people are important from the way officials, like immigration officers at the airport treat them. At least, we have realised here that our democracy is not working as miserably as we tend to believe… The week begins on Monday and ends on Friday. Their date is 2008 and though Ramadan and the Prophet’s birthday are important holidays, all signs are bilingual and very few women wear the traditional veil. I have seen pork in the supermarket and alcohol is also available. For example in Dubai, the date is 1429, they work on Sundays and not an inch is visible from the vast majority of women. Everybody in Tunisia speaks French and an increasing number of people speak English. Both hyper markets in Tunisia are French (Carrefour and Géant). There are some peculiarities in the hyper markets. There is a security guard for every second cash register. The staff seems to be enormous, as labour is cheap. There is also a children’s corner near the entrance which is fantastic. The assortment is spectacular. A kilo of orange costs HUF 120. The lamb is beautiful and there is practically no fat on it. There is a huge duty on imported products, which means no private labels on the shelves. Carrefour also has a dozen supermarkets under the name Champion, which represent modern retail. However, 80 per cent of retail trade takes place in small, neighbourhood stores, where hygiene is doubtful. Tunisians are friendly, as they know that their income depends on the tourists.