I'm back in town after one week of living the sun-holiday cliché in Tunisia. No regrets, though. The weather was brochure-like, the beach was wonderful, and the setting sufficiently exotic to make one really feel like being away. And did I mention the mediterranean waters? Growing up next to the chilly atlantic ocean, it was the first time I could actually go swimming to the sea without freezing. And yes, there was that azure colour as well!

On the nLeyten side of things, it was interesting being in an islamic country — also for the first time. I was glad to see that tunisians seem to take a fairly relaxed attitude towards religion. As an example, though one could see the occasional woman dressed in full "ninja" suit, most were not, and some quite on the contrary. I wonder how much tourism can help in emancipating women. The local men showed an obvious interest in the european tourists, and the sheer volume of visitors (tourism is fundamental to Tunisian economy) means that the effect must be widespread. Interesting topic for a study: "social change via scantily clad female tourists".

Also positive are the ubiquitous satellite dishes. The tunisian city skyline is dominated by them, and one cannot help but to hope that the locals are tuned to TV stations from all over the world. Information is the first step towards secularisation. And political change, of course — their "great leader" has been in power since 1987, having won the last "election" with over 94% of the vote (in 1999 het got 99.66% — Saddam Hussein would have been proud). Indeed, the regime is feeling the pressure: TV, the Internet (which by the way is censured in Tunisia), and hopefully even tourism are all making a dent in the regime's grip on power.

P.S. By the way, dear "great leader" Zine El Abidine Ben Ali: on the surreal chance that you might be reading this, consider getting a new marketing guy. Your ubiquitous photos in the tunisian city landscape make you look like Kim Jong-il. Are you sure you want that?