IF THERE is one destination most suited to solo travelling and backpacking, it is Tunisia. Small and compact, it is easy to get around in this 10-million-strong nation in North Africa, wedged between Algeria and Libya.
Public transport is abundant and inexpensive. You can take the train, bus or louage (shared taxi) to reach even the more remote areas.
Accommodation is plentiful, and there is a wide range to suit all pockets. Guesthouses charge as little as $15 a night.
If you pay a little more, there are atmospheric auberges (inns) offering airy rooms with rooftop views of the medinas (old Arabic walled towns).
In Tunis, the capital, I could not resist staying at Hotel Majestic (now being restored to its former glory), a 19th-century grand hotel, which offered old-world charm at only $45 a night.
Best of all, dining is affordable. Tunisia produces quality wines and has a good choice of seafood.
Little wonder then that European tourists flock to the coastal resorts of Hammamet, Sousse, Monastir and Djerba island to live it up.
TROGLODYTE BUDGET CAVE HOTEL: Hotel Sidi Driss, which was featured in Star Wars.
Tunisia has something for everyone - Roman sites for history buffs and pristine beaches for the sun-seeker while film enthusiasts can traipse through still-remaining Star Wars film sets in Matmata.
The more adventurous can set off on camel treks to explore the Sahara desert.
It helps if you speak French, one of the two official languages. The other is Arabic.
If there is a downside, it's the hassle solo travellers face from locals who follow you around hoping you will appoint them as a guide.
As a country poised strategically on trading routes between Europe and Africa, it was coveted by many an ancient civilisation.
Occupation by different empires, such as the Phoenicians and the Romans, and the presence of an indigenous Berber population, have given it a rich cultural heritage.
But it was under the rule of the Arabs (from the 7th century) and the French (from 1881 till independence in 1957) that has largely shaped the country to what it is today.
The best example of this is Tunis, easily reached from Europe by air.
It comes across as a modern Arabic city with European chic, thanks to the wide boulevards and ornate French colonial architecture in its Ville Nouvelle (New Town).
Even the entrance to its 8th-century medina is marked with elegant buildings built in the colonial era to house European embassies.
It is only when you dive into the narrow alleys that you find yourself stepping back to the time when all of Tunis was defined by the medina.
GATEWAY TO THE SOUTH: Girls in Tozeur, an oasis town which is a gateway to the south.
As Tunis expanded beyond its walls, its medina became the city's historic quarter. It retains its mediaeval atmosphere with mosques, madrasahs (religious schools), souks (markets), hammams (baths) and funduqs or caravanserais (hotels providing accommodation for traders).
The European feel of Tunis extends to the modern clothes the women wear - headscarves are not commonly worn.
To understand its rich heritage, make a trip to Carthage, 30 minutes away by TGM train. The city was founded by the Phoenicians of Lebanon in 814 BC.
It was the birthplace of Hannibal, one of the greatest military commanders, and was the scene of the Punic Wars between him and the Romans.
When the Romans won in 146 BC, they levelled it. But in 46 BC, they returned, under Julius Caesar, to rebuild Carthage into the most important city in the empire, after Rome and Alexandria.
But when the Romans fell to the Vandals, followed by the Byzantines and then the Arabs in 698 AD, the decline of Carthage was complete, especially when the Arabs made Tunis their capital.
Today, Carthage is a wealthy suburb of white villas built around excavated Roman ruins.
But before heading out there, visit the museum of Bardo, also in the suburbs of Tunis. Housed in a former Moorish palace, what you see in the museum offers a glimpse of the glory of the Roman empire.
From Tunis, the choice of where to go is endless. Its surrounding northern region is home to more Roman sites and easily accessible from the capital.
There are the extraordinary Roman cities of Dougga, with some well-preserved cisterns, temples and baths, and Bulla Regia, with its spectacular underground villas and superb mosaics.
In contrast to the Mediterranean north, central Tunisia has a more traditional Islamic character with towns such as Kairouan that were established as power bases for various Arab dynasties.
I decided to use Sousse as a base from which I could visit these places. Though it is a popular resort on the tourist trail, it was easy to get a feel of old Tunisia by staying in the medina.
No attraction was more than 90 minutes away from there. I would leave early in the morning and return at dusk, with ample time for a meal on the attractive seafront of Sousse.
This was where the louage system of Tunisia came in handy, offering cheap fares and flexible departures.
From Sousse, one of the most important highlights is El-Jem, the breathtaking coliseum that is even more magnificent than the Coliseum in Rome.
Its remarkably well-preserved colosseum ranked as the third biggest in the Roman world when it was built around AD 230 with a seating capacity of 30,000.
El-Jem was only an hour from Sousse and was easily covered in half a day, so I continued south for another 45 minutes to Sfax, which has the reputation of having the most authentic medina in Tunisia.
Indeed, so wonderfully chaotic is its bazaar atmosphere that its Souk des Etoffes (fabrics market) was chosen as the backdrop of the markets of Cairo in the film The English Patient.
Every town in Tunisia has a Great Mosque within its medina but none can match that in Kairouan, the oldest Arab city in the country and a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Kairouan, the carpet capital of Tunisia, receives a lot of tourists who are hassled even more than in most places.
It was there that a self-appointed 'guide' latched himself on to me, despite my protests.
But he proved useful, especially when it came to exploring the deeper reaches of the medina, where you can buy direct from craftsmen.
An hour later, after coffee in a typical cafe where some men were smoking chichas (water pipes), I tipped him 5 dinars (S$6).
Go on a camel safari
From Sousse, it was easy to travel to the resorts of Monastir and Mahdia within a day. Monastir is also noted for the mausoleum of its first president, Habib Bourguiba.
After covering the attractions of Sousse itself - the fine Boujaffar Beach, bustling medina and its magnificent 8th-century ribat (fortress) - it was time to head south to where the real African flavour of Tunisia comes alive in its deserts and mountains - the home of the Berbers.
LIFE'S A BEACH: Cool, clear waters of Ejjean Beach in Monastir
Tozeur, a pleasant oasis town, is the gateway to the south - only six hours from Sousse but a world apart. This sparsely populated and mountainous region has public transport only between the major towns and sightseeing is better accomplished by signing up for day trips with a hotel or tour agency.
At the height of the trans-Saharan trade between the 14th and 19th centuries, Tozeur was an important market town for camel caravans to load up on dates and wool.
It still thrives on dates and its palmeraie (palm plantation) is one of the most extensive in the country.
The Berbers lived for centuries in three villages around there - Tamerza, Chebika and Mides - all dramatically perched on cliff-faces hundreds of metres above winding river beds, with springs feeding palm oases.
It was in one of these steep gorges - the Mides Canyon - that scenes from The English Patient were filmed.
From Tozeur, I headed to Douz, on the edge of the Sahara Desert, to join a four-day camel safari to observe a partial solar eclipse that was due in three days.
Many tour agencies offer such safaris. Typically, the price of around $60 a day includes camels, food and guides. It is a magical experience - contemplating on the shifting sand dunes and the emptiness of a vast sand-sea.
After Douz comes more desert - not of sand, but of desolate mountains, which form part of the Atlas range stretching into Algeria.
The Berbers learnt to adapt to their harsh conditions by living underground. They carved out circular pits with vertical walls from soft sandstone to create a courtyard that let in light and from which tunnels led into caves and rooms.
So weird and other-worldly is the landscape that it was chosen as the setting for several Star Wars episodes.
One of these is Matmata where there are still some 50 or so such troglodyte homes. There are even troglodyte budget cave hotels such as Hotel Sidi Driss, which were featured in Star Wars.
More unique Berber-built structures known as Ksour await further south in the desert oasis town of Tataouine, after which Luke Skywalker's home planet in Star Wars (Tatooine) took its name.
The ksour are fortified communal granaries built by the nomadic Berbers on hilltops to safeguard their food against Arab invasions.
The ksour look so outlandish that some of them - Ksar Joumaa and Ksar Haddada - featured in Star Wars.
Looking at the fantasy galactic setting, it was hard to believe that Tunisia's Mediterranean coastline and a more down-to-earth resort scene was just a few hours' drive away.
But that is the wonder of Tunisia.
5 things to do
1 Do try local specialities. The national dish is couscous, a semolina dish served with a spicy stew of vegetables and your choice of lamb, chicken, beef or fish.
2 Do try the local wines, which are good and inexpensive and can be bought in any supermarket or liquor store. Even in restaurants, a 375ml bottle is only around $8.
3 Do go for a hammam experience. Many of these historic baths are in the medinas. The ultimate spa must surely be Hammam Mellegue, an original bath used since Roman times and is easily visited from Le Kef in the north.
4 Do apply for a visa before you go. Although there is an honorary consulate of Tunisia here (call 6737-7544), you are likely to be asked to apply to the nearest embassy, which is in Jakarta.
5 Do learn some French before you go as English is not widely spoken.
2 don'ts
1 Don't wear skimpy clothes, especially when visiting mosques and medinas.
2 Don't brush off the Tunisians rudely if you are hassled - just smile and decline politely if they want to be your 'friend' and/or guide.
