Distance driven so far : 895 miles
Current location : Hotel Le Kasbah, Kairouan
Well, dear readers what an interesting 24 hours.
The ferry was reasonably comfortable although the boarding procedure was long and chaotic. Our papers were not checked again and we entered the vessel along with dozens of heavily modified land cruisers, G wagons and assorted other 4x4s.
The biggest issue with the ferry was smoking, which was prevalent throughout the ship and difficult to escape from other than in your cabins. These were small but clean and comfortable.
The boat left 40 minutes late but after an hour sailing and just as we thought we were on our way and safe we were informed that the vessel was turning around and returning to Marseilles because of a medical emergency. Someone had slipped and broken their foot.
Fortunately we only steamed some of the way back as an ambulance boat came out a retrieved the casualty. This still caused a 3 hour delay to the crossing.
Peter collected all of the documentation including our passports and (photocopied) log book to hand in to the customs.
Peter was summoned later due to some inconsistencies found!
After 2 hours of skillfull negotiation he managed to get our copy accepted and we were okay for the trip. We all breathed a sigh of relief. We were not the only problem with Robert and Phillipa's Pajero causing issues due to a chassis number being too short. The customs insisted that it must be a motorcycle! This wasn't made any easier by the fact that they had accidently ordered a welsh version of the log book.
The overnight crossing was smooth and we slept well. The meals were a bit hit and miss. although they were of good quality it was difficult to find something without cous-cous, pastry, bread or thickening alll thing Belinda can't eat. Breakfast was particularly difficult being bread and croissants. She mainly survived on salad and fruit. She is definatly hoping to come home a few pounds lighter :)
Getting off the boat was carnage, 16 lanes of traffic all going into one. Uninterested customs officials, money to change, insurance to arrange and dozens of locals causing chaos with small cars loaded with fridge freezers, baths, and (literally) the kitchen sink by pushing in. It took 2 hours to travel 200 yds. Still it's all part of the adventure and got sorted in the end and we we were on our way.
Due to the late arrival of the ferry we have had to change the plans a bit and we have missed out the visit to the roman ruins. However we may be able to fit them in later but none of the group are too bothered.
The journey to Kairouan was interesting with dogs, cats, chickens, donkeys, small children and all sorts of other wildlife throwing itself in our path. We haven't managed to match 'live cows on a roofrack' but we did see a donkey standing in the back of a pickup! (photos will follow).
The first thing we did upon leaving the port was top up with fuel 100 litres was 80 dirhams which is less than £40. Big smiles all around.
The car performed well although the auto gearbox has been getting exceptionally hot. This is something we will be keeping a close eye on.
Tonight we are at the 5 star 'La Kasbah' Hotel which has been built into a mediival fort and is fantatsic (once again photos will follow later).
Belinda ooh'd and aah'd her way from the stunning recection, past the pool to our room. She had the ornate bath running in 30 seconds flat and stated that she was staying here while I go play in the sand.
The meal tonight was a fantastic buffet so Belinda was able to choose plenty.
Before the meal I helped Nick change the wheels around on his 110 because of a wheel wobble. Unfortunately the bottle jack slipped leaving his car in a dodgy position. At this point Richard's (my other brother) Jackall came into play for the first time in anger and saved the day by supporting the car whilst we relocated the bottle jack. It wasn't exactly life and death but it tested us for half an hour. We were both dripping wet when we finished.
The temperature once we landed was 30 degrees and it hasn't dropped much even though it's now dark.
Tomorrow we are having a tour of the Medina and then we will be heading to Kebili for our first night camping in Tunisia.
Internet access from now on will be very sporadic so it may be some days before a full update
I shall continue to use the spot tracker and send and OK message when we stop for the day.
I only hope your enjoying following this as much as we are doing it (although I seriously doubt it).
TTFN
