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TUNISIA If any travel Agency
and tour should receive the "above and beyond the call
of duty" award, it should go to TunisUSA (155
E. Lancaster Ave., Wayne, PA 19087; phone 800/474-5500 or
484/754-0086; fax 484/754-0088; email info@tunisUSA.com or
visit www.tunisUSA.com) and the October '01 tour of Tunisia
called "From Phoenicians to Berbers."
Due to the 9/11 disaster, air travelers, and especially those
flying off to an Arab country, were greatly apprehensive for
their safety. Jerry Sorkin, President of TunisUSA, kept us
all upto date on the current conditions and eased any of our
concerns. In the end, he, himself, came to Tunisa to be on hand
to greet those arriving for the tour.
And his Tunisian counterparts could not have welcomed us
more warmly, including having us for dinner in their own home
on the first night. In fact, it seemed that everyone with
whom we came into contact in that wonderful country expressed
their delight in seeing us there and their sincere regret
for the terrible tragedy in New York City. One after another
asked me to tell my friends that such action could never be
approved by any part of the Islam faith and that they had
only warm regards for America.
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With these very personal words of support, the entire tour
was an educational and interesting adventure. We stayed at
the very best of hotels and ate in the finest restaurants,
all 5-star. Our comfort continued as we toured in a comfortable
mini-bus, driven by a most capable and friendly driver.
Anyone with an interest in history will find this tour a
daily agenda of wonders, including the Roman mosaics in the
Bardo Museum in Tunis, the underground houses of the Sahara
peoples, the site of Carthage, etc.
All of these were made all the more valuable by the excellent
guide who was with us for the entire tour. Mourad was always
eager to handle any of our requests, proud to show off his
country and well informed regarding the sites we were seeing.
It never appearedthat he ever got tired of being our "host"
24 hours a day! Truly, at the conclusion of the tour, we felt
that we were leaving behind a good friend.
The cost of our 11-night tour, Oct. 12-23, was $2,595, land
only, from Tunis. This was a wonderful visit to a wonderful
country.
-CURTIS KELLER, Plainfield, NJ
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