By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter
The Embassy of the Republic of Tunisia and the Tunisian National Handicraft Office are holding a ``Tunisian Handicraft Exhibition'' at Seoul Center for Culture and Tourism, through Nov. 20.
The event celebrates the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, and offers an opportunity to discover some examples of interesting handicraft from Tunisia, which boasts 3,000 years of civilization.
The exhibition presents various kitchen appliances, ornaments, scarves and even the Tunisian traditional costume, Jebba.
Some of the most interesting items are the colorful plates and dishes that were brought from Tunisia just for the occasion.
``These dishes were used by Tunisians when they eat couscous. They would place the food on the large dish, and the family members would take a serving on their own matching individual dishes,'' Jeong Song-hyun, the Tunisian Ambassador Mustapha Khammari's secretary, said.
Couscous is a famous dish consisting of vegetables and semolina wheat, popular in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and Egypt.
Visitors can also find various ornaments made from copper, home appliances like plates and even a chess board made from olive trees and blown glass works, a famous item in Tunisia, at the exhibition.
The Tunisian Handicraft Exhibition is free of charge and is open from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Seoul Center for Culture and Tourism is located on the fifth floor of the M Plaza in Myeongdong, Seoul. For more information, call (02) 3789-7961.