STAR QUALITY

FAIMA BAKAR USES THE FORCE AND HEADS TO TUNISIAN ISLAND DJERBA, THE FILM LOCATION OF STAR WARS

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JUST off Tunisia’s southeastern coast is an island mixing year-round Mediterranean sunshine with a melting pot of cultural delights. It's a place where whitewashed build-ings, dreamy soft sand beaches, and turquoise waters blend with colour-ful souks and Star Wars film fan-tasy... so it’s surprising Djerba has been under the radar for many trav-ellers until now.

But with the launch of easyJet holidays’ package tours to the island at the end of last year, it’s now arous-ing the interest of curious holiday-makers who want more than a fly-away-and-flop break and don't fancy the bustle of Djerba’s neighbouring holiday hotspots.

Leaving its Star Wars fame till later, I began my exploration into the delights of the island at its capi-tal, Houmt Souk, meaning “the market neighbourhood”, with a wander around its maze-like streets lined with cafes, restaurants, jewel-lers and souks.

Here you'll find Djerba's finest products such as olive oil, harissa, carpets and handmade pottery. Go out of season as I did and sellers lower prices to as little as 10 dinars (£2.50) for beautiful plates and bowls.

Soaking up the sights, sounds and spices in the sunshine can be thirsty work, so seek out former inn Fon-douk dating back 380 years, which is now an extremely Instagramma-ble restaurant and cafe. With white walls, blue doors and dotted with woven lamps, it provides good cof-fee and a cool retreat from the streets outside.