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Alexandria Travel Guide

These lines by Alexander the Great show that the love for this city will always be rooted in the hearts of those who lived in it:

“Alexandria is the hymn of age and the beloved of history, I don’t know if I’m the one living in it or if it’s living deep inside my soul.”

Founded: 331 BC
Area: 2,679 km 2
Population: 5,200,000 (2018)
Currency: Egyptian Pound
Language: Arabic
Offsite: http://www.alexandria.gov.eg

Egypt’s second largest city, Alexandria, has more Mediterranean than eastern features. The spirit and culture of the city are different from the rest of the country, although it is located only 225 km from Cairo.

A city founded in 332 BC Alexander the Great, in the Greco-Roman period of the history of Egypt, was the capital of the country and a major commercial and cultural center, the center of the spiritual life of the Hellenic world. Strabo, Euclid, other scientists and philosophers drew inspiration here for their works. Cleopatra, the last queen of the Ptolemaic dynasty, bewitched here with her beauty Caesar, and then his successor Mark Anthony.

 

The city stretches for 20 km along the Mediterranean Sea. The winding embankment starts from the East Bay and passes through the city center. In winter, the sun shines on the white sand and the yachts plow the sea, in summer, vacationers sunbathe on numerous beaches. The most famous of them are Montaza and Maamura in the eastern part of the city. Not far from them is the town of Abu Kir. He is famous for the fact that two hundred years ago in his bay there was a battle between the squadrons of Napoleon and Nelson. Abu Kir is also famous for its fish restaurants.

Alexandria’s location on the Mediterranean coast, the availability of good beaches, a favorable climate and developed infrastructure of the tourism industry make this city a wonderful seaside resort.

 

The Alexandria Library, created on the initiative of the philosopher and statesman Demetrius Falersky, totaled up to a million volumes. It burned down during the time of Caesar. Faros lighthouse, one of the seven wonders of the world, collapsed in the XIV century from a strong earthquake. From here in the 1st century AD the Christianization of Egypt began, but also the persecution of Christians under the emperor Diocletian, who in 295 ordered to destroy the city. The foundation and heyday of Cairo robbed Alexandria of its former importance. Only in the 19th century under Muhammad Ali did the city survive its second spring.

n the city you need to see the port of Alexandria, the mosque of El Maurice Abu el Abbas, the royal park of Montaza, the pillar of Alexandria, the catacombs.

The second largest city in Egypt – Alexandria has more Mediterranean than eastern features. This is a unique place for recreation and entertainment, exploring the ancient monuments of the Greco-Roman period of the history of Egypt and the magnificent Muslim temples of the Ottoman Empire. Alexandria was founded in 332 BC. e. by Alexander the Great himself, who personally applied to the then deserted lands in the Nile Delta a markup of the plan for the future city. In the Greco-Roman period, Alexandria was the capital of the country and the largest commercial and cultural center of the Hellenic world. The colossal library of Alexandria, created on the initiative of the philosopher and statesman Demetrius Falersky and burnt down during the time of Caesar, totaled up to a million volumes of ancient chronicles and manuscripts. The famous Faros (Alexandria) lighthouse, whose light was visible at a distance of 30 miles from the coast – one of the seven wonders of the world of the ancient world, was destroyed in the XIV century. strong earthquake.

In the same place where the Faros lighthouse once stood, in the XV century. Sultan Ashraf built a powerful fortress with round towers and loopholes overlooking the sea – Fort Kite Bay. On the other side of the harbor, back in the II century. BC e., built rock tombs of Anfushi with walls skillfully painted marble, alabaster and wood. The ancient catacombs of Kom al-Shawkafa (I – II centuries AD) are located on three floors (the lower two are flooded with water) – this is the largest underground burial in Egypt, the layout of which traces elements of Egyptian, Greek and Roman styles. The mural depicts scenes of Christian funerals, and the “jackdog” Anubis and the dragon “guard” the dungeons. Here you can meet different types of burial chambers, including mysterious tombs-wells in rocky corridors.

The foundation and flowering of Cairo deprived Alexandria of its former significance only in the 19th century. Under Mohammed Ali, the city experienced its second heyday. The mosque of Abu al-Abbas is the largest and most popular in Alexandria. It was erected in the XVIII century. on the site of its predecessor over the tomb of the Muslim saint Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi (1219–1287), the sheikh of the Shadkheli fraternity, founded by Abu al-Hassan al-Shadheli. Almost completely rebuilt in 1944, the mosque is considered a masterpiece of Muslim art. The ornaments of her four domes and a minaret 73 m high, the decor of the facades and the carved “minbar” (the chair from which Friday sermons are read) are masterfully executed.

The small, formerly Bedouin village of El Alamein, lying in the desert sands west of Alexandria, is famous for the fact that in 1942 the decisive battle of the African campaign took place between General Montgomery and the “desert fox” – German field marshal Rommel. The city has an extensive military museum and cemeteries, where soldiers of the warring armies are buried.