Tabarka

Tabarka is a coastal town located in north-western Tunisia, at about 36°57′16″N 8°45′29″E, close to the border with Algeria. It has been famous for its coral fishing, the Coral Festival of underwater photography and the annual jazz festival. Tabarka's history is a colorful mosaic ofPhoenician, Roman, Arabic and Turkish civilizations. The town is dominated by an offshore rock on which is built a Genoesecastle. Nationalist leader Habib Bourguiba, later to become president of post-independence Tunisia, was exiled here by theFrench colonial authorities in 1952. Itis also considered one of the most rainy towns in Tunisia.

Although older sources placed Thabraca within the Roman province of Numidia, recent ones agree in placing it in the Roman province of Africa, known also as Africa Proconsularis. It was a Roman colony. It was connected by a road withSimitthu, to which it served as a port for the exportation of its famous marbles.

At Thabraca the rebellious Roman official Gildo, the brother of Firmus, committed suicide. Under the Vandal king Gaiseric it had a monastery for men and one for women.

Facing it, at a distance of about 365 yards, is the small island of Tabarka, where the Genoese family of the Lomellini, who had purchased the grant of the coral fishing from the Ottoman Turks, maintained a garrison from 1540 to 1742. Here may still be seen the ruins of a stronghold, a church and some Genoese buildings. At Tabarka the ruins consist of a pit once used as a church and some fragments of walls which belonged to Christian buildings. There were also two Ottoman Turkish fortresses, one of which has been repaired.

In 1741 it was surrendered to the (nominally Ottoman, de facto autonomous) Bey of Tunis. Part of the population was moved to the Sardinian island of San Pietro and the town of Calasetta on the adjacent Island of Sant'Antioco, whose population still speaks a variant of Genoese dialect originating from Tabarka. Others were moved to the Spanish island of New Tabarca.

Under French colonial rule it was annexed to the civil district of Souk el-Arba, now in the Tunisian governorate of Jendouba, and a rather important fishing centre.

Kelibia

Kelibia (Kélibia) , often referred to as Calibia by European writers, is a coastal town on the Cap Bon peninsula, Nabeul Governorate in the far northeastern part of Tunisia. Its sand beaches are considered some of the finest of the Mediterranean sea.

The main landmark of Kelibia is the recently restored Kelibia Fort overlooking the harbor. Kelibia is a fishing port and is home to Tunisia's National Fishing School. The town has a population of 43,209 (2004 census).

The 'Muscat de Kélibia', a fruity regional white wine is widely recognized as one of the bests of the country.

Kelibia is home of the Tunisian volley-ball with Club Olympique de Kélibia active since 1959 and winner of 2 national championships in 1977 and 2003; also 8 Cup titles: 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1989, 2004 and 2011.

Nabeul

Nabeul  is a coastal town in northeastern Tunisia, on the south coast near to the Cap Bon peninsula. It is located at around 36°27′N 10°44′E and is the capital of the Nabeul Governorate. The city has a population of 56,387 (2004 census).

Nabeul was founded in the 5th century BC by the Greeks of Cyrene, serving as a trade port. Its name is an Arabised form of theGreek Neapolis 'new city' (an etymology it shares with Naples, Neapoli, and Nablus).

It is a popular tourist destination and the main centre of the Tunisian pottery industry.

Hammamet

Hammamet  is a town in Tunisia. Due to its beaches it is a popular destination for swimming and water sports. It was the first tourist destination in Tunisia. It is located in the south east of the northern peninsula of Cap Bon in the Governorate of Nabeul, on the northern edge of the Gulf of Hammamet.

The reported number of inhabitants varies from 20,000 to 70,000 and the population quadruples due to tourists in the summer.

It is particularly known for jasmine, and this is how the tourist resort of Yasmine Hammamet got its name. All over Hammamet, souvenirs made of jasmine can be found.

Around Hammamet, all kinds of immigrant towns/suburbs are being built as immigrants from the southern part of the country come to find work. As a popular destination for tourists, it brings a lot of money to Tunisia.

The 2005 World Scout Conference was held in Hammamet.

In the 1st century, there was a settlement here known as Pupput. It was a town (now in the suburbs of Hammamet) that became a Roman colony in the 2nd century. In the 13th century, walls around town were built and medina of Hammamet was built in the 15th century. Then it came under Spanish and Turkish rule.

In 1601 it was the object of a successful Spanish attack. At that time the Spanish name for the place was "La Mahometa".Alonso de Contreras participated and tells the story in his autobiography. Three hundred men took seven hundred prisoners, mostly women and children because most of the men in the town had fled.

On 14 August 1605 there was another Spanish attack in which Contreras also participated but this time the result was disastrous for the attackers. It was carried out by six galleys, four from Malta, six from Sicily carrying Spanish and other Christian troops. The initial taking of the town was successful as the Spanish managed to climb the walls and open the gates but then there was an unexpected call to retreat - it could not be later determined where or how it originated. In the confusion the retreat was fell into disorder and the Spanish were massacred at the beach by a much smaller number of Moors. There were 1200 men gathered at the beach trying to get back to their ships but the wind had changed and conditions were difficult. The leader of the expedition, Adelantado de Castilla, lost his life as he tried to swim out to the Spanish ships and as the captain in charge of his skiff fled and ignored his calls for help. That captain was later court-martialed and, when it became clear he would be sentenced to die, his own brother poisoned him. This story and more details can be found in Contreras' autobiography.

In World War II, it became one of the headquarters Erwin Rommel.

tourism in tunisia: Djerba

tourism in tunisia: Djerba: Djerba   , also  transliterated  as  Jerba  or  Jarbah ,  is, at 514 square kilometres (198 sq mi), the largest  island  of  North Africa , ...

Djerba

Djerba , also transliterated as Jerba or Jarbah, is, at 514 square kilometres (198 sq mi), the largest island of North Africa, located in the Gulf of Gabes, off the coast of Tunisia. It had a population of 139,544 at the 2004 Census, while the latest official estimate (as at 1 July 2013) is 158,941.

Legend has it that Djerba was the island of the Lotus-Eaters where Odysseus was stranded on his voyage through theMediterranean.

The island, which was called Meninx until the third century AD, includes three principal towns. One of these, whose modern name is Būrgū, is found near Midoun in the center of the island. Another city, on the southeast coast of the island at Meninx, was a major producer of murex dye, and is cited by Pliny the Elder as second only to Tyre in this regard. A third important town was the ancient Haribus. The island was densely inhabited in the Roman and Byzantine periods, and probably imported much of the grain consumed by its inhabitants.

The island was controlled twice by the Norman Kingdom of Sicily: in *1135–1158 and in *1284–1333. During the second of these periods it was organised as a feudal lordship, with the following Lords of Jerba: 1284–1305 Roger I, 1305–1307 and 1307–1310 Roger II (twice), 1310 Charles, 1310 Francis-Roger III; there were also royal governors, whose times in power partially overlapped with those of the Lords: c. 1305–1308 Simon de Montolieu, 1308–1315 Raymond Montaner.During the Middle Ages, Djerba was occupied by members of the Kharejite (Ibadite) sect, who claimed it as their own. The Christians of Sicily and Aragon disputed this claim with the Ibadites. Remains from this period include numerous small mosques dating from as early as the twelfth century, as well as two substantial forts.

In 1503, the corsair (pirate) Aruj and his brother Hayreddin Barbarossa took control of the island and turned it into their main base in the western Mediterranean, thus bringing it under Ottoman control. Spain launched a disastrous attempt to capture it in November, 1510. In 1513, after three years in exile in Rome, the Fregosi family returned to Genoa, Ottaviano was elected Doge, and his brother Federigo Fregosi (archbishop, later cardinal), having become his chief counsellor, was placed at the head of the army, and defended the republic against internal dangers (revolts of the Adorni and the Fieschi) and external dangers, notably suppression of the Barbary piracy: Cortogoli, a corsair from Tunis, blockaded the coast with a squadron, and within a few days had captured eighteen merchantmen; being given the command of the Genoese fleet, in which Andrea Doria was serving, Federigo surprised Cortogoli before Bizerta. Soon after, he carried out an invasion and occupation of the island and returned to Genoa with great booty.

An archaeological field survey of Djerba, carried out between 1995 and 2000 under the auspices of the University of Pennsylvania, theAmerican Academy in Rome and the Tunisian Institut National du Patrimoine, revealed over 400 archaeological sites, including many Punic and Roman villas.^[4]Spanish forces returned to Djerba in 1520, and this time were successful in capturing the island. It was twice occupied by Spain, from 1521 to 1524 and from 1551 to 1560; again there were governors: 1521–1524 ..., 1560 Giovanni Andrea Doria. On May 14, 1560, theOttoman fleet, under the command of Piyale Pasha and Turgut Reis, severely defeated the Holy League of Philip II at the Battle of Djerba. From that time until 1881, Djerba belonged to the Ottoman regency of Tunis. Subsequently, it came under the French colonialprotectorate, which became the modern republic of Tunisia.

In the Ghriba synagogue bombing on April 11, 2002, a truckful of explosives was detonated close to the famous synagogue, killing 21 people (14 German tourists, 5 Tunisians and 2 Frenchmen). Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility. Although tourists ceased visiting Djerba for some time after this event, normal activity has since resumed.