1-Al Assouek A very ancient area, built in 773 BC (Yazid Ibn Hatem El Mehallibi), and largely covered. It contains different artisans’s guilds such as the Souk Essakajine (saddles), the Souk el Blaghijia (shoes and slippers), the Souk Lemaajel (cisterns), the Souk el Attarine (perfume), and the Souk Erbaa (carpets). These areas house fewer and fewer craftsmen.

The days when merchants started the day by a reading of the Koran and lived in enviable harmony and solidarity with one another are gone. When a customer bought an article in the morning, for example, once the item had been purchased and paid for, the craftsman would quite naturally refer him to a neighboring merchant who had not yet made the first sale of the day, “mastaftahchi.”

This goodwill towards others has now nearly disappeared from local custom, and belongs to the “good old days.”
Today most of the older shops are shut down or used as storage places for the merchants who operate out of 7 November Street. As time goes by, traditional craftsmanship is being replaced by small, more modern occupations that pay more, such as pastry shops, photographers, electricians, TV repair places, etc.

2-Ejjraba "Bathat jeraba," a small square at the center of numerous alleyways (Khadraouine, Gandoura, Moulay Taieb), reserved for weavers specialized in traditional sheeps’ wool blankets such as « Abana, » « Tajlila, » « Touzri, » and « Haik. »

Wool merchants (Saied GAHTAR), an artisanal dye-shop for thread used in carpets (now closed), belonging to now deceased-Hassine ALLANI, who emigrated to Sousse and opened the tourist hotel named Hotel Okba, all used to be in this street. Together with them were also “Kassa” makers (Ben AYED, BOUHOULA), weavers of Burnouses (Touhami JAOUADI), and of Jebba (Touhami FATNASSI).

3-Essouk is today’s 7 November Street which counts spice sellers next to Bab Tounes.

Some famous spice shops (Jerbi Bou Babine, Tijani Dhib, Lehmaier), two pharmacies, that belonging to Slaheddine KECHRID (now tranferred to Tunis), and that belonging to MBAREK, the current pharmacy known as Taoufik DHIB are to be found here. In addition, there are butcher shops (Elsiss, Romani), barbers “Hajamine,” (Khemaies CHALGHOUM), one hairdresser for women (MEHREZIA), and jewelers such as KHADRAOUI.

Makers of copper kettles and pots « Nhaysai, » sellers of shoes (Ben ALAYA, MAJOUL), pastry makers (GHAMISSOU, MAAMAR, BOUDRAWECH, SEGNI), a clock maker (Amor CHARGUIA) are also residents of the street.

Fritter salesmen « Ftayer” (AZOUZI), one hardware shop (KAABOURA), a bookstore (Salem FEJJI), one lone ready-to-wear clothing shop (Chedly KEMICHA), a carpet shop (Chedly FOURAT), managed by recently-deceased Ahmed Balti are residents.

A fruit and vegetable seller, itinerant sellers of natural soaps (« savon de Marseilles) such as Sadok DHIB, BOUDEN, are here as well.

Last but not least we find Salih, an itinerant seller of sweets, largely patronized by school children. His stand is always in the same area (Bab Jelladine), and has been for forty years at least! “Rabbi hatih essaha wi tawel fi omrou” (May God give him health and prolong his life”).

Since the evolution of tourism, most of these craftsmen and their shops have been replaced by sellers of trinkets aimed at tourists. Some older houses have been renovated and transformed into carpet shops.

4-Errahba houses blacksmiths, “hadadine” (Lazreg TAAMALLAH), pottery sellers (KABLOUTI), and itinerant sellers of fruit, vegetables, olive oil (El AMRI, Abdelelazziz JEBENIANI), craftsmen of alfa “Halfaouine,” (Othman BAHRI, Hj Salem REBAI, HADDAD). Tailors are found in the Souk Kmal, they are specialized in sewing what is locally known as “Blouza Tounsi,” a shirt-like garment worn by school children as well as professionals. They also make shirts and trousers, “Seroual golf.” We also find food sellers who specialize in a kind of sandwich known as “keftaji” (Ali JALEGH, Ameur GUIBESS) and “Lablabi” (Youssef Ben DHAYA-Ameur GEBSI).

There are « foundouk » (Fondok El YOUSSEFI) which are places where country people can spend the night with their animals, and Oukala, homes housing several poor families at once. There is the Garage Ben KENANI Hassen, Said and Abderrazek (now the commercial center GAROUI).

The café GUIRAT (BOUZEZZA), the cafe of dogs (Kalhouet LEKLAB) where hunters together with their « Slougui » (local fast-running dogs with very thin long bodies and long legs, also called the Maghreb greyhound) can meet (Sadok RAMAH Cafe GUIRAT (BOUZEZZA), are also here.

There’s also a « dellal, » a so-called « crying vendor » because he advertises his wares through shouts, who gets a cut of any sale fixed by the Amine, Mohamed GUEBSI, great specialist in « talkane sarf Karoui. »
In the old days, in the Rahba, there were lots of small jobs that now have disappeared, such as the incens seller, « bkhour, » who moved from shop to shop and perfumed them with his incense so as to ward off curses and misfortune.

The « guerbaji, » itinerant water seller who carried water in a « guerba » (a goatskin bag made waterproof by rubbing with « kotrane, » an extract from the juniper which gives off a delicious aroma) would sing out “Ya otchane,” or “Hark, all you who are thirsty!”

The seller of « legmi » (sap from the palm tree which can be drunk in its natural form as a rehydrating drink, but also after fermentation in the form of palmwine.

5-El marr (passage) a small side street next to the bab tounes which was very lively on holidays and at night during Ramadan. Here would mostly be found women come to buy children’s clothing for Aid al Fitr, or to purchase the trousseau of a young bride « jehaz Laroussa, » at the shops of ALLANI Tahar, BEchir, Mustapha, Hedi, Mohsen, Abderrahmane, and Hamadi (his son, Fethi), Habib SAFAR (his son, Kamel), Abdelhamid CHEMLI, NEGRA Mahmoud and Mohamed, Ameur HAMAMA, Abdelkader AYACHI, Mahfoudh ZAIDI, Ali Ben ROMDHANE, Hj Ali MELLASSI, Chedly TAOUIS. After having received money from selling carpets by crying “Rbaaa” (“Carpet Souk”), through the intermediary of the “dallal” (AKROUT). (sic)

The women would also by pieces of cloth sold by the « dhaa » (50 cm), in order to make « fouta » and « Blouza, » because in those days there were no shops selling ready-made clothes for females.

"El marr foukani" is reserved for wool and sewing materials (Baiek BACCAR, Taieb BEN AMIRA)