Here is an extra source that I will use tomorrow in El JEM. If you have you email on a telephone you wil find it easier to follow.



Mishnah.
 
One should not sell them bears, lions or anything which may injure the public.
 
One should not join them in building a basilica, a scaffold, a stadium, or a platform.
 
But one may join them in building pedestals for altars and also private baths.
 
When however he reaches the cupola in which the idol is placed he must not build.
 
 
 

It is permitted to go to stadiums, because by shouting one may save the victim. One is also permitted to go to a camp for the purpose of maintaining order in the country, providing he does not conspire with the Romans, but for the purpose of conspiring it is forbidden.
 
It has been taught: One should not go to stadiums because they are ‘the seat of the scornful’, but R. Nathan permits it for two reasons: first, because by shouting one may save the victim, secondly, because one might be able to give evidence of death for the wife of a victim and so enable her to remarry.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Our Rabbis taught: Those who visit stadiums or a camp and witness there the performance of sorcerers and enchanters, or of bukion and mukion, lulion and mulion, blurin or salgurin — lo, this is ‘the seat of the scornful,’ and against those who visit them Scripture says, Happy is the man that hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked . . . nor sat in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the law of the Lord. From here you can infer that those things cause one to neglect the Torah.
 

 
 

Dear Friends,

I hope you all had a good day and are enjoying the trip.

The new thing tht I learned today was how 'Arabic Numerals' got thier shapes.

I promised to send out the text of the 7th century poem about Kehiya - the Jewish Berber Warrior Princess who took on the Muslim invaders.

The poem reads:


O! Sons of Yeshurun!
Do not forget your persecutors
The Chaldeans, Caesar, Hadrian and Kahiya—
That accursed woman, more cruel than all the others together.
She gave our virgins to her warriors,
She washed her feet in the blood of our children.
God created her to make us atone for our sins,
But God hates those who make his people suffer.
Give me back my children
So that they can mourn me.
I left them
In the hands of Kahiya.



Tomorrow we are setting off at 8:30 in the morning after breakfast. The study session will be in the amphitheatre of El Jem. We have a lot of tavelling tomorrow, and in additoin to El Jem we will be visiting Gabes and finishing th day in Matmata.

If you have not bought your éxtit tax' sticker yer, you can do so at the lobby of the hotel. This can save time at the airport on Sunday.

Chaim

Here's another quick note for today.

Thank you to Susan Marx for forwarding the following article about restaurant in La Goulette that we will be visiting on Monday night. The link to the article is:

http://www.dw.de/preserving-a-kosher-taste-of-tunisias-past/a-17251495

Chaim

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Dear Friends,

I have had received questions from participants about the dress code for various parts of our trip to Tunisia. This is useful information that I am sharing with everyone. I will send a further post later in the week with some last minute details of the programme.

I am looking forward to seeing you all next week.

If you have any questions before the trip please send them in – and if appropriate I will share my answers with the whole group.


Chaim
 

Would it be appropriate to wear sleeveless cotton dresses in Tunis?  Or do upper arms need to be covered.   Also, I am assuming Bermuda shorts would be okay to wear.

In my experience the people in Tunisia are relaxed about tourists, and in any tourist area you can wear what you are used to.

However, in the streets of Tunis and Kairouan, and certainly in the Medina areas, it is best to have long trousers, skirts etc. and not be sleeveless (or a shawl) in order not to offend and bring attention to ourselves.

Just wondering if have to wear a skirt for Shabbat on Djerba or whether can get away with trousers – any thoughts?  

The community in Djerba is a very traditional community and a skirt/dress would be appropriate. If we want to community to receive us on Shabbat, we will need to respect their norms in terms of travel, photography, dress etc. More on this next week when we are in Djerba!

 
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Dear Friends,

Here is a further update for our trip to Tunisia.

I called the Chief Rabbi of Tunisia, Rabbi Chaim Bitan (Who is located in Djerba), to wish him a Good New Year. This was also an opportunity to confirm that everything is in order for our trip – and he assured me that everything was OK. I asked him about the political situation in Tunisia, and particularly, the position of the Jews. Once again, he assured me that everything is OK – and that they are looking forward to hosting us. I keep in regular touch with contacts in both Djerba and Tunis.

The extra programme during the day on Monday for those who are arriving on the Sunday flight from London is taking shape. We will start the morning with a stroll down Habib Bourghiba Avenue, to see daily life in Tunis, and to visit the starting point of the Jasmine Revolution which sparked the Arab Spring. We will go on to visit the Grand Synagogue of Tunis and in the afternoon will visit Sidi Bou Said, a picturesque village to the North of Tunis.

On Monday night I am arranging transport to a Kosher restaurant in La Goulette, a suburb of Tunis. This meal isn’t included in the tour package, but anyone who wishes to join is welcome to join. Please send me an email back to info@jewishjourneysltd.com if you wish to join so I can make the advance booking.

I am leaving the highlights of Tunis to Tuesday, when the whole group is together. On Tuesday we will visit Carthage, and back to Tunis to visit the Bardo Museum, the national Museum of Tunisia.

Finally, I need to inform you that the government in Tunisia has introduced a new ‘Exit Tax’ to be paid at the airport by all those leaving the country. This will cost 30 TUN – which is about £11.00. It needs to be paid at the airport when departing the country (or at some hotels in advance). In any case, we will receive further information once we are there on the trip.

I wish you all a Shana Tova and G’mar Hatima Tova – a wonderful new year full of travel to exciting places.

Rabbi Chaim Weiner

How safe is it to travel to Tunisia?

I feel quite at ease with the idea of travelling to Tunisia. Tunisia has had the best experience of the Arab spring - there is a new constitution that was agreed jointly by the secular and the religious groups and we are mainly outside of the big cities where everything has been calm. 

As a matter of course, I monitor the situation constantly and if there was any risk I would reassess the trip. I always follow the guidance of the British Foreign office in deciding where and when to bring groups.

How much walking is there on this trip? How strenuous will it be?

The trip to Tunisia will be more like Portugal than Ethiopia. There will be some walking - but not long treks. 

There is some walking around the archaeological sites in Carthage (some uneven ground), walking around around the village of Sidi Bu Said, and some walking in the Medina of Kairouan. The hotel in Djerba is about 1 mile from the Hara Kabira which is the Jewish neighbourhood. This is the only place one can stay for a Shabbat with the community. We will walk this back and forth on Friday night and Shabbat day. The walk is along paved sidewalks and roads (the roads of the Hara are closed off on Shabbat).

Most other sites are on and off the bus - with some walking around the site.