Sip Tunisian mint tea and relax in the enchanting city of Mahdia

By Patrizia Schlosser Aug 23, 2011, 8:50 GMT

Mahdia, Tunisia - Until this year's Jasmine Revolution, Tunisia was a byword for sun, sea and all-inclusive holidays. But since the ouster of President Ben Ali most of the tourists have been staying away. For lovers of quiet holiday places, this is a perfect reason for packing your bags and heading for the North African country.

After all, the visitors are helping to promote democracy, as Ernst Burgbacher, the German government's tourist envoy, is keen to point out. Tunisia without the crowds is certainly more enjoyable, especially in the coastal town of Mahdia, where you can sip mint tea by the ocean and ponder the past of this fascinating strip of coastline.

The oriental mint tea goes down hot, bitter and with a very sweet aftertaste as the eyes rove across the deep-blue sea and a strong breeze ruffles the hair.

The Sidi Selim cafe occupies a commanding position in the cliffs which tower above Mahdia. Waiters dressed in elegant black-and-white uniform move deftly among the tables, balancing trays among tables occupied by elderly Tunisian ladies dressed up to the nines. All are taking in the impressive sea views.

Mahdia was once seen as a launching pad for the takeover of the entire Islamic world. At least that was the plan hatched by Ubayd Allah, the first Fatimid caliph who established the city in 916 and made it the first capital. He went on to conquer Egypt and Cairo became the new first city.

The former Fatimid stronghold retained the name of Mahdia, which derives from al Mahdi, as Ubayd Alah called himself. It means Messiah of the Muslims. The holy name did not prevent pirates based in these parts from staging numerous raids or from terrorizing the many ships plying the Mediterranean Sea.

Raiders came and went, as did the Ottomans, and eventually a French crusader army laid siege to the city but failed to take it. The settlement was eventually sacked by the Spanish. Today it has been taken over by tourists, even if their number has dwindled so much in recent months that visitors have the place more or less to themselves.

To the right of the Cafe Sidi Selim, the way leads along the peninsula which also symbolizes the turbulent history of the city.

A small path leads past the ruins of once proud Fatamidi and Ottoman palaces to the eastern end of peninsula which has an extensive Muslim cemetery.

It is laid out in such a way that almost every grave has a sea view. The white gleam of the weather-beaten tombstones in the sunlight has an unearthly quality to it. In the springtime the burial plots here are carpeted with vibrant, yellow flowers.

Cap Afrique marks the end of the peninsula, an area dominated by a lighthouse and the towering remains of tumbledown Fatimid stone fortifications. They stand like an arched gateway to the sea. Beyond them the glittering mass of the ocean stretches up to the horizon.