Tunis: Sidi Bou Said and the Gulf at Golden Hour

Tunis sits at the western end of the Gulf of Tunis, a broad Mediterranean bay opening northeast. The medina of Tunis, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1979 and the largest intact historic Arab city centre in the Arab world, has its 700 mosques and covered souks receiving warm morning light from the east. Sidi Bou Said, a blue-and-white hilltop village 23 kilometres northeast on the Gulf coast at 130 metres, faces northeast across the Gulf toward Cap Bon: from the upper streets and the Café des Nattes terrace, the cobalt Mediterranean and the dawn horizon are the frame. Carthage, the archaeological site on the peninsula 17 kilometres northeast, occupies a coastal position between the Gulf of Tunis and the Lake of Tunis; sunrise from the Byrsa Hill (61 m) looks east across the bay. At 36.8°N, golden hour lasts about 35 minutes. April through June and September through November give the clearest Mediterranean light.