Morning Rosewater, hope you are well! I agree with Gem, also don't think that the grass is greener on the other side. Everywhere can be difficult, if I'm honest. I'm not Tunisian but I class Tunisia as my second home. As long as you have money whilst living in Tunisia, you can be happy. Okay, thing's are all over the place since the revolution, but surely thing's can only get better,one day....I soon leave Tunisia and I will never look back and star a new life.
yuuuuck ''bousselsa'' is a sh*t neighbhoord with a bad reputation , thx god i don't live there but this subjecet has nothing to do with me , i am not poor (thank god) but i just want to change my life.Here is what other people think and say. .
Life, Laughter and a Red Mobylette:
A Local View of Bouselsla
Inel Tarfaon June 19, 2016
We talked to residents in Bouselsla, the well-known La Marsa neighbourhood, to get a local view of life.
Just a few minutes walk from the cafés of La Marsa and the gated residences of Gammarth, is Cité Erriadh, better known by its nickname, Bouselsa. Its main road,Rue Hedi Chaker, runs south-east from the sea, dipping into a busy market area with fruit and vegetable sellers, fishmongers, kiosks and clothes stores.
A fishmonger tends his stock in Bouselsla. Photo Credit: Inel Tarfa
During Ramadan, the market area around the bus terminal is crowded with pop-up vendors, many selling traditional street food. The well-known souk takes place each Sunday, drawing crowds from the surrounding neighbourhoods and further afield.
While the neighbourhood has grown quickly since the eighties, when SPROLS(Société de Promotion des Logements Sociaux) began to promote social housing, daily life still centres around traditional trades.
“This is an old neighborhood that provides jobs for Zaouali (a Tunisian word for people living on a low income),” says Radhouen Bsili, a fishmonger who opened his shop two months ago.
Salah Ben Ali Ben Salah Echahar, locally known as Aam Salah or Uncle Salah, is a lifelong resident. He’s 86 now. “I’ve been working since I was 18. I’ve worked and sold a lot of different things over the years.”
Aam Salah, a Bouselsla resident for 86 years. Photo Credit: Inel Tarfa
Ines (name changed), has lived in Bouselsla since she was five years old. She works as a cleaner to support her husband and four children. “We work hard here, because we have to. Nothing is given to us, so we support each other. My neighbours are like my family.”
Imed “The Smith” Hamrani has been working as a blacksmith since 1986, and opened his workshop in 1991. “This is the first popular neighborhood in the country. There were old buildings here, and then they started making modern buildings.”
Bouselsla’s Blacksmith. Photo Credit: Inel Tarfa
Houssine Chaalbi works with Hamrami, and also helps his father in their nearby bicycle and motorcycle repair shop. The shop has been in the family for a long time, and they’re deeply proud of their red Mobylette.
“This beauty is an old Mobylette,” says Chaalbi. “My dad bought it in 1981 and it was already 21 years old when he did.”
A beloved vintage Mobylette. Photo Credit: Inel Tarfa
Farhat Hamrouni was born and raised in the same neighborhood. He currently works at his brother’s plumbing shop. “Otherwise,” he says, “I try to find work at local construction sites, or any other kind of manual work.”
But Hamrouni says life has changed since the revolution.
“I can’t get financial help from the government anymore. I had to divorce my wife. We have 6 children. The cost of living is very high.”
Bouselsla has gained a reputation across the city as a no-go area. During the recent curfew, according to one local resident, ATM machines were vandalised and fires were set as road blocks. Another said that harassment of women is so prevalent she doesn’t leave her house alone after dark, except during Ramadan.
Many of the people we spoke with, however, strongly disputed the violent reputation Bouselsla carries. Hamroumi said establishments, such as pharmacies and banks, weren’t touched during the revolution.
Rosewater, what exactly do you think we do here in the UK? We also have to work hard for what we have. Yes I agree it's corrupt, but there's corruption here as well. No matter what qualifications you have sometimes it's not what you have but who you know to get a good position here in the UK, unless your lucky. Believe me it's not a bed of roses here either but people try and survive. I agree we go away for a holiday every summer without a doubt but it's not just this, most important thing in life is health. Unfortunately not everyone has this.yuuuuck ''bousselsa'' is a sh*t neighbhoord with a bad reputation , thx god i don't live there but this subjecet has nothing to do with me , i am not poor (thank god) but i just want to change my life.
Look , those people work hard just to live,eat and pay bills , they never a chance to travel the world or have a good vacation.
sorry i know the life in UK is harder than in tunisia , i am not navie so don't worry , i never thought of living in the UK lolRosewater, what exactly do you think we do here in the UK? We also have to work hard for what we have. Yes I agree it's corrupt, but there's corruption here as well. No matter what qualifications you have sometimes it's not what you have but who you know to get a good position here in the UK, unless your lucky. Believe me it's not a bed of roses here either but people try and survive. I agree we go away for a holiday every summer without a doubt but it's not just this, most important thing in life is health. Unfortunately not everyone has this.
I feel for you, I really do as your post sound like you hate the place but like I said it's not all perfect here either. People are struggling to survive and find a decent job but they would prefer to employ people here who are desperate for peanuts, next to nothing.
Where abouts do you live in Tunisia? If you don't mind me asking that is.