Four times a day, there are direct trains between Tunis and El Djem. That seemed like an interesting way to visit this WHS, so I bought a ticket for the 8.35 a.m. train, which should take about 3.5 hours. The platform was full of passengers… but no train arrived. The local travelers were not impressed and sat on the edge of the adjacent platform in the shade and waited. In the end, we left with a 1h45 delay, which increased to 2 hours later on the route. The train is quite comfortable (I went in first class for 14.75 dinars / 5 EUR), but outdated, warm, and slow.

From El Djem station it is a 10-minute walk to the amphitheater. I had read that it is so big that you can see it from the station, but I didn't see it. It only suddenly appeared in the last street. Due to all the delays, I was there exactly during the hottest part of the day, and it can get hot here. I just started by walking around the galleries, the sun doesn't penetrate there. The galleries are special in that they are three rows high and two rows thick. The stones are scratched with graffiti, many of them recent, but also from the 19th century.

From the second and third galleries, there is a good overview of the entire amphitheater. What is striking is that there are only steps with seats left on one side. There is also a large gap in the whole structure – created in the 17th century when it was blown up by the Ottomans to crush resistance from Berber rebels who had entrenched here.

The stadium in Roman times was mainly used for shows with wild animals, the so-called venationes. The beasts were held in cages below the center field before performing. This part is still well preserved, which distinguishes this amphitheater from, for example, the Colosseum in Rome. The pipes that were supposed to provide the animals with water are also still visible.

The Roman city, of course, consisted of more than just an amphitheater (although the core zone of the WHS is limited to just that one monument). Only since the 1990s have other excavations been carried out here: a smaller amphitheater, baths and a villa with mosaics have been found. The entrance to the mosaic museum and the villa, 'Villa Africa', is included in the entrance fee to the large amphitheater. It is about a 700-meter walk away, on the edge of the dusty town and not far from the louage station.

Tunisia is known for its beautiful mosaics, but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to see much of them. The large Bardo museum in Tunis is closed until at least the end of the year due to political concerns (it lies next to the Parliament, the functioning of which has been suspended since last year). So I was happy to see a few things here in El Djem. And I was positively surprised: you start in the museum, where the mosaics on display get better room after room. It is striking how often wild animals were depicted, the Romans certainly found them exotic.

At the back of the museum is a reconstruction of an excavated villa, with mosaics still in their original setting. It was a grand residence (the largest found in Roman Africa) dating back to the year 170 AD, with a ceremonial room for guests and private quarters.