I
love the Tunis market. It's a place of colour and warmth: The cheese
seller who greets me as a friend now, the spice vendor who walked past,
recognized me and gave me a solemn nod, the man quietly reading the
Koran at his vegetable stand, another cheese seller (the one with the kind eyes) who
gave me a sample even though he saw I had already bought from someone
else, the bread guy who was joking with us and snatched the bread from
me, then grinned, the vegetable seller who called my friend and me
"daughter" the other day, and the man who gave us presents (straw fans)
worth much more than the couple dollars we spent on eggs and raisins.
Each time I go there I am reminded of how lovely the people of Tunisia
are, how vibrant and joyful and generous.
For friends overseas,
these are the people you should think of when you think of the Arab
world, not the outspoken, violent few who manage to make international
news.
