Wikimania 2015 bids/Monastir

Monastir Sciences Palace is a public non-administrative establishment with an area of 5,470 square meters.

• Facade of the Monastir Sciences Palace - October 2013
  Facade of the Monastir Sciences Palace - October 2013
• Monastir Sciences Palace
  Monastir Sciences Palace
• Amphitheatre of the Monastir Sciences Palace
  Amphitheatre of the Monastir Sciences Palace
• A videoconference room of the Monastir Sciences Palace
  A videoconference room of the Monastir Sciences Palace
• Digital crossroad room of the Monastir Sciences Palace
  Digital crossroad room of the Monastir Sciences Palace

The palace occupies an area of 5,470 square meters, consisting of:

• A conference room having a circular shape and an annex, rectangular in a shape, connected by a partially-covered gallery. The congress hall and the gallery cover an area of 2,474 m2 equipped to organize congresses and scientific as well as cultural events. This room is fully air-conditioned. It has a capacity of 850 places, three commission rooms, simultaneous translation cabinets, projection equipments, and a fully-developed sound system.
• The annex is a breakdown of two levels having an overall area of 1,600 m2. It includes:
  • A videoconference room of 150 seats
  • Six rooms for training and commissions work of 35 seats
  • Other rooms used for various purposes (A "Braille" room , a virtual university room, a digital studio, a language lab, a library and a digital crossroad)

All these spaces are equipped with wifi hot-spots.

Monastir Sciences Palace is ideally located at the very heart of the town of Monastir, on Avenue Farhat-Hached, in front of the municipality and at 100 meters from the headquarters of Monastir Governorate. The palace is next to the old city known as a "medina". Venue map: http://www.psm.rnu.tn/anglais/index.php?page=acces_carte

Welcome to Monastir where you will have your fill of blue sky and sunshine, where you will find extraordinary heritage and original traditions, where you will enjoy twinkling sea. Monastir is a tourist city on the eastern coast of Tunisia. It has many fine hotels and restaurants. It has also many faculties part of the University of Monastir.

"Modern Monastir extends beyond the old town and along the coast. It is full of hotels and tourist amenities, making it a modern seaside resort."

"Coloured boats on a beach of very fine sand, and then the sea, its colour growing gradually darker, from the almost white azure at the water's edge to dark blue towards the horizon. The image of relaxing, holidays and carefree existence is just one the many that Monastir has in store for the tourist."

In 2004, the population of the municipality is 71,546 inhabitants.

• Monastir - Al Qurayyah beach
  Monastir - Al Qurayyah beach
• Beach in Monastir
  Beach in Monastir
• Sea view at Monastir
  Sea view at Monastir

Monastir enjoys a dry Mediterranean climate with hot summers, extremely mild winters, lots of sunshine and low rainfall year round. The city sits in the northeast of Tunisia, on its central coast. It is much hotter than the Mediterranean resorts on the European coast, but much milder than inland areas of Tunisia, forty percent of which is part of the Sahara. Summer, from June till September, is absolutely sweltering. If you spend too long outside, you’ll find yourself melted to the spot or wilting in the shade. While humidity is low, the soaring heat can still be hard to handle. The average high temperature of 29°C in June skips past the 30°C mark in the middle of the month and climbs up to 33°C in July and August.

Tunisians are willing to learn foreign languages. Tourists usually don't find problems communicating with Tunisians.

Arabic is the native language. French is spoken fluently by almost every Tunisians and is often used in many fields (press, radios and all road signs). English is the third spoken language in Tunisia and it's well spoken, especially in touristic areas.

Appreciated by connoisseurs, Tunisian cuisine owes its variety to the richness of its soil and the contributions of different traditions: Jewish, Turkish, Italian... A sunny cuisine where lamb mixes with sea bream and grouper, where almonds blend with peppers and rosebuds, and where olive oil is combined with carefully selected spices. The celebrated couscous can be cooked in countless different ways: with fish, dried meat, meatballs, stuffed squid... A crispy hors-d'oeuvre and delicious almond patisseries are made from filo pastry, bequeathed by Turks. The meal is accompanied with the traditional mint tea accompanied by sweets. Restaurants are classed as "touristic restaurants" with a rating of 1 to 3 forks. Here are the list of the most known restaurants in Monastir:

• La Réserve
• Pirate
• Elhamra

Monastir's star attraction is its preserved ribat complex, considered as the country's finest example of Islamic military architecture. Its seemingly chaotic design with labyrinthine passageways and staircases is a legacy of the ribat's many periods of construction and renovation. The consequence is an evocative structure devoid of any uniformity. The original ribat occupied only the central courtyard and museum area and was built in AD 796. The current shape was established by the Aghlabids at the end of the 9th century and completed during the 11th century. There are panoramic views of the town and the coast line from the ramparts.

"One of the monuments that is symbol of the town, the spectacular ribat, facing the sea and strongly fortified, with battlements, turrets and a central tower from the top of which you can enjoy a wide, enchanting view of the sea, the medina, the mosques and the mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba. Because of its great beauty, the Monastir ribat has been chosen as the set for many film productions, including Franco Zeffirelli's Jesus of Nazareth. Its construction goes back to 796, which is why it's considered to be the oldest Arab fortification in Tunisia."

• A slot in the tower of Monastir Ribat
  A slot in the tower of Monastir Ribat
• Monastir Ribat on 14 May 2013
  Monastir Ribat on 14 May 2013
• Monastir Ribat
  Monastir Ribat

Monastir's medina was largely demolished after independence in an ill-considered rush to modernise the town and keeping with its status as the birthplace of the president. Thankfully, the ribat survived, as did the Great Mosque. Built in the 9th century, it's a severe Aghlabid creation, apart from the graceful horseshoe arches at the northern end. Roman columns supporting these arches and thoe of the prayer hall (closed to non-Muslims) were salvaged from the ruins of ancient Ruspina. The walls in the western part of the medina remain largely intact and are the dotted with some interesting old gates, the finest one is Bab el-Gharbi, at the centre of the western wall. It was built by the Hafsids during the 15th century. Bab Tunis, at the northwestern corner, was built in 1780 while the main southern gate, Bab Briqcha, was built by the Ottomans at the end of the 17th century.

The Costumes Museum is around the corner from the tourist office and worth a quick look.

The visitors to Monastir should not leave without visiting the mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba and his family. The mausoleum could be reached via a paved walkway, the gold and green cupolas are very attractive for new comers. The marble courtyard, green-tiled arches and elegant eastern doors are superb.

The mausoleum houses tombs of the family and a small display of items that belonged to the first president of Tunisia. The admission is free of charge and it is open Mondays to Saturdays. If the main gate is occasionally closed, visitors can walk around the fence to the next small gate on the northern side.

"Monastir's other, spectacular symbol is the Mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba, statesman and father of Tunisian independence, who was born in this town on 3 August 1902 and has been buried here since April 2000. The great monument is laid out as a central building covered with a large gilt dome, containing Bourguiba's tomb, surrounded by three other green domes, where the president's father, mother and first wife are buried. At the sides, there are 25-meter high minarets topped with gilt spires and the whole structure is covered in precious marble."

The marina and its modern installations offer to the admiring looks its enormous yachts, floating and slender luxury hotels. Small modern bearing settled below the ledge, northeast from the city center, differs not at all from a Mediterranean resort: cafés, restaurants, ice-cream makers, bar serving cocktails, shops, etc. The site also includes a hammam on the west. Of the pier, we can see the Pigeons island and guess the marine caves of El Khalif.

• Monastir Marina
  Monastir Marina
• Monastir Marina
  Monastir Marina
• Boat at Monastir Marina
  Boat at Monastir Marina

• Costumes Museum: Shows old clothes worn by Tunisians: for men the jebba a full tunic, the burnous made of camel hears and the chichi (a red felt cap), for women the draped red garment, the melia and the white silk sefseri.
• Museum of Islamic Art: It contains a collection of early Arab coins, pottery, old maps and photos of Monastir.

Monastir's university attracts thousands of students from all over the country. In Monastir, there are 4 public dormitories that could be used for hosting Wikimania guests in addition to dozens of private cheap dormitories.

Public dormitories
Dormitory name	Address and contact	Type	Capacity	Info
El Bassatin	El Bassatine, 5000 Monastir, Phone number: +216 73 46 19 89	Boys and girls	5 single rooms, 364 double rooms, 29 triple rooms	Catering service, medical service, sports facilities, cultural area : reading room, living room, Internet and wifi, open space, and reception room Wikimapia
Imem Elmezri	Kairouan Street, 5000 Monastir, Phone number: +216 73 500 251 / 73 500 252	Girls	30 double rooms	Panoramio
3-Août	Ibn Sina Street, 5000 Monastir, Phone number:+216 73 461 971 / 464 245	Girls	Wikimapia
Skanes	Skanes, 5000 Monastir, Phone number: +216 73 461 971 / 464 245	Girls

• Youth club
• CREFOC

The infrastructure of hotels is of a remarkable quality and continues to get even better. Classed hotels (from one to five stars) are beyond reproach for hygiene and facilities. Covered swimming pools, sporting facilities, mini-clubs for children and spa centres are very common. Costs of hotels in Monastir varies from 20 $ to 120 $ for a night.

In Monastir, you will have a range of choices between luxury and simple hotels. A selection of them is listed below:

• Monastir Habib Bourguiba International Airport

Monastir Habib Bourguiba International Airport is among the first 20 busiest airports in Africa. The airport activity is mainly due to the movement of tourists coming to visit Monastir, Sousse and the surrounding resorts (Monastir-Skanes and Port El Kantaoui in particular). Almost all charter flights are concentrated during the tourist season. The airport is located at Skanes, 9 km from the city center. The trip by taxi costs about 5 TD (3.5 $). Getting to the airport is also possible through train between Monastir and Sousse, since the train station "Airport" is only 200 meters from airport terminal. Visit airport website for further info: http://www.habibbourguibaairport.com/en-EN/Pages/Main.aspx

• Enfidha – Hammamet International Airport

The "prime class" CIP Service offered by TAV Operation Services transforms travelling into a pleasant experience at 43 airports worldwide from Paris to Tokyo thanks to collaborations materialized internationally. Visit airport website for further info: http://www.enfidhahammametairport.com/en-EN/Pages/Main.aspx

• Tunis–Carthage International Airport

Tunis–Carthage International Airport is the prime Airport of the country, It serves more than a million passengers a year. It presents many facilities such as exchange offices that operate for 24 hours, mobile hire services, post office. The Airport contains also several restaurants which serve various Tunisian delicacies. Visit airport website for further info: http://www.aeroport-de-tunis-carthage.com/

Getting access to Monastir is easy by bus, the bus station is located on the western edge of the medina. There is a bus every 20 minutes leaving from the station located in Bab Bhar, Sousse, with lines 52A and 52B.

To reach Monastir by car, you can contact rent car agencies, these agencies are all based at Monastir's airport:

• HERITIERS AFRIC AUTOS (AVIS) (Phone: +216 73 521 031)
• FASHION RENT A CAR (Phone: +216 73 524 288/+216 21 409 320)
• DIM RENT A CAR (Phone: +216 73 524 421)

You can reach also Monastir by an other public transportation which is louage, the station being located next to the bus station. If choosing a louage at the Tunis station (Moncef Bey), you can arrive to Monastir within 3 hours.

You can reach Monastir by train from Tunis. Trains leave the capital 3 times a day, at 8:30 AM, 1:35 PM and 5:50 PM. If you are in Sousse, there is the metro from Bab Jedid station to Monastir center every half hour.

Living cost in Tunisia is not really high. As a result, you can enjoy your time here without paying too much money. The Tunisian dinar is the currency of Tunisia. Currency can be exchanged at Monastir airport, as well as at the many bank offices in the city. The following table lists recent Tunisian dinar rates:

Exchange rates as of 17 February 2014 ([1])
Currency	Equivalent of 1 TND	Inverse
Pound sterling	0.377	2.646
Canadian dollar	0.692	1.444
Euro	0.460	2.170
United Arab Emirates dirham	2.319	0.431
Swiss franc	0.562	1.776
United States dollar	0.631	1.583

Visitors to Tunisia must obtain a visa from one of the Tunisian diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa-exempted countries or are eligible for a visa delivered upon arrival.

Citizens of the following 72 countries and territories can visit Tunisia for up to 90 days (unless otherwise stated) without a visa:

Citizens of the following two countries may obtain a visa valid for up to 1 month upon arrival:

Australia

South Africa

Citizens of the following 16 countries may enter Tunisia without a visa, provided travelling on a tour organized by a travel agency and holding a hotel voucher:

Citizens of other countries require a visa to enter the Tunisian territory.

A this time, the Wikimedia community in Tunisia is not so big, so we are working to expand our activities through the help of non profit organizations like JCI ENIT and CLibre. Bidding to Wikimania would increase the number of active members and lead towards creating a Tunisian Wikimedia chapter.

The following table shows up the involved members throughout all the bidding process:

Insert your name below if you are intending to help as online team:

Ramadan in 2015 will start on Thursday 18th of June 2015, and will continue for 30 days until Friday 17th of July. Hence, we have chosen to distance the conference date from this holy month. The chosen dates are 21st of July to 26th of July. The proposed schedule for the conference is as follows:

This is the estimated budget for hosting the conference based on local experience of hosting conferences. We plan for every Tunisian dinar spent, and as stated above, we have many potential sponsors in our country. All amounts are in Tunisian dinars.

• Support letter signed by the director of the Culture Regional Delegation of Monastir
  Support letter signed by the director of the Culture Regional Delegation of Monastir
• Support letter signed by the director of the Tunisia National Tourist Office
  Support letter signed by the director of the Tunisia National Tourist Office

Meetings

References