Alexandria Egypt
Egypt 's Northern Soul
One of Alexander the Great's hobbies was founding cities and naming them after himself. In his short life he managed 17 Alexandrias, though none has fared as well as Egypt 's(the mighty Macedonian personally outlined the city walls in the 3 rd Century BC).
Sitting at the head of the fertile Nile delta it's now the countries' second city and an important port. A couple of things spring to mind when Alexandria is mentioned; The Great Library - at its peak containing more than 500,000 volumes, and the Lighthouse - one of Herodotus' Seven Wonders.
Unfortunately, time has taken its toll and nothing remains of these two, but there is still plenty left for the inquisitive visitor. The Greco-Roman Museum is stuffed with mummies sarcophagi, jewellery and pottery dating back over 2,500 years(housing over 40,000 pieces). A recent discovery unearthed the only Roman amphitheatre in Egypt, and it's still in good nick. The catacombs of Kom ash-Shuqqafa are another one-off Roman relic, with plots for over 300 corpses. In the modern day, education remains one of Alexandria 's draw cards(being a university city) while the other main tug comes from the beaches(notably Aida and Cleopatra).
A. Ashmawy's homepage concentrates on content rather than glitz, so while it's not that easy on the eye, stick with it for a comprehensive low-down on "The pearl of the Mediterranean ".
ce.eng.usf.edu
