KESAKSIAN SAMI ZAPTIA TENTANG TRIPOLI, LIBYA

My Tripoli Local is Better than My England Local!
03/06/2007


When I first returned to Tripoli from England in the early 90's I was very disappointed to find that bakeries were still in the 'command economy age'. “Take it or leave it”, seemed to be the motto and 'be grateful for what you get' was the attitude.

But I am now very happy to say - as do most my ex-pat friends – that Tripoli today offers one of the best bakeries in the region. Not only does Libyan bread rival that of our neighbours Malta, Tunisia and Egypt - but in my personal opinion - it’s even better than my local Tesco bakery in England! Yes Libya is better than England!

At rush hours you cannot drive past the best bakeries in Tripoli such as, the one on the main Gurji road next to the old Tripoli College, the one in Za-wiet Al Dihmany and there are two in my locality in Al Hadba Al Khadra, to name a few.

But I must point out and congratulate my local modern bakery called 'Al Forn' (The Oven) in Al Hadba Al Khadra. The variety and range of products it offers are superb. It is, thankfully, no longer just an old style bread factory, but it is a modern-day bakery offering bread, drinks as well as sweet and savory products and ready to eat snacks.

If you need a quick take away snack you can grab a cold drink with your pizzas, bureeks, tuna stuffed horns, brioches, cakes etc etc.

As for the breads, where do I start: flat bread, salt free bread, traditional tanoor bread, paninis, various French sticks, Egyptian/Syrian-type bread, wholemeal, multigrain, oat, wheat, barley breads. Bread mixed with olives, with rosemary, with tomatoes, and the list goes on and on. And all freshly made.

And – as my bakery owner keeps pointing out - unlike at my Tesco, Sainsburys or Asda bakery in England - nice bread does not cost me one pound sterling – or two dinars fifty to you and me – but usually only between 4 and 8 small loafs per a quarter Libyan dinars! Alhamdu lilah (Thank God), we should be grateful.

Equally on a progressive note - and hopefully as a sign of the improving times – I was pleasantly surprised the other month to find that paper bags had replaced plastic bags at the bakery. The owner told me that the authorities had informed them for health reasons to stop using plastic bags for hot bread.

Congratulations to the health/environmental department that is responsible for this decision. It is a good start and there is so so much more to be done in the public safety and consumer protection arena. Well done. And well done to all the bakery owners out there. We appreciate you and please keep it up.

SAMI ZAPTIA
(A graduate of the NES/Monitor Group Leadership Development Program)

(The Tripoli Post)