©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd Alexandria & the Mediterranean Coast Why Go? Alexandria .................... 318 Egypt’s northern coastline runs for 500km along dazzling Around Alexandria .......343 Mediterranean shores. Think of it as an Egyptian Riviera, Aboukir .........................343 drawing swarms of summertime revellers who come to cool Rosetta (Ar-Rashid) .....343 off in the sea air and splash in the water. Along its western stretches, the translucent shades of turquoise and lapis are Mediterranean Coast ...345 so pure, so vibrant, you’ll hardly believe your eyes. El Alamein .....................345 The once-great port city of Alexandria is the region’s Sidi Abdel Rahman .......347 hub, with ancient sights, terrifi c seafood restaurants, and a Marsa Matruh ...............348 distinctly diff erent urban pulse than that of Cairo. Further Sallum ..........................352 west, historic battlefi elds are reminders of the intense desert campaigns of WWII’s North African front. During peak sea- son, beach resort towns are as much a cultural experience as anything else, as you join throngs of vacationing families on the seashore. At other times, there’s a good chance you’ll Best Places to Eat have the irresistibly gorgeous waters all to yourself. » Picnic at Agiba Beach (p 349 ) » Zephyrion (p 343 ) » Farag (p 334 ) When to Go » Mohammed Ahmed (p 334 ) Alexandria °C/°F Te m p Rainfall inches/mm Best Places to 50/122 2.4/60 2.0/50 Stay 40/104 1.6/40 » 30/86 Windsor Palace Hotel 1.2/30 (p 331 ) 20/68 0.8/20 » Sofitel Cecil Alexandria 10/50 0.4/10 (p 331 ) 0/32 0 » Almaza Bay (p 350 ) J FDNOSAJJMAM Jun–mid-Sep Apr–May & Nov–Mar Chilly Best beach sea- mid-Sep–Oct for a beach break, son; Alexandria Beaches are vir- great for hotel and the coast are tually empty, but discounts. packed with Egyp- it’s warm enough tians on holiday. to enjoy them. 318 ALEXANDRIA In the 19th century a cosmopolitan ren- aissance had Alexandria fl irting with Euro- % 03 / POP 4.1 MILLION pean-style decadence, but it was cut short The city of Alexandria (Al-Iskendariyya) is in the 1950s by Nasser’s nationalism. Today, the stuff that legends are made of: it was Alexandria feels ready to forge a new iden- founded by none other than Alexander the tity. The daring new library of Alexandria is Great; sassy queen Cleopatra made this the probably the most innovative modern build- seat of her throne; the entrance to its har- ing in the country; it may soon be surpassed bour was marked by the towering Pharos if a cutting-edge underwater museum is lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the built nearby in the bay, as planned, to show- Ancient World; and its Great Library was re- case Alexandria’s submerged archaeological nowned as the ultimate archive of ancient treasures right where they lay. Meanwhile, knowledge. Alas, fate dealt the city a spate the city is swooping in on the role of Egypt’s of cruel blows: today no sign remains of the culture vulture, as legions of young artists great Alexander; the city of Cleopatra’s day and writers are fi nding their voices here. has been mostly swallowed up by the ocean; Maybe this is why Alexandria feels like one the Pharos lighthouse collapsed long ago; of the most liberal cities in Egypt, where it’s ALEXANDRIA & THE MEDITERRANEAN COAST and the literary treasures of the Great Li- common to see women without headscarves brary were torched. To add insult to injury, and you may even spot Egyptian couples Egypt’s consequent Muslim rulers moved walking hand-in-hand. the capital to nearby Cairo, ignobly thrust- Alexandria, the famed metropolis of the ing the once infl uential metropolis into near ages, is not always easy to fi nd in the city obscurity for centuries. that bears its name today. And for all its Bardiyah e# 0100kmMEDITERRANEAN 4#\ Gulf of 050miles SEA Amsaad Sallum #\ #\ Sidi +##\Sallum Barani Marsa Rosetta &1 Matruh #5#\ ##]7 Aboukir #4#\ 4 ^# Nile #\ Alexandria #3 River Sidi Abdel ## Ras al- &1 Arab's 1 2 ^# Rahman Gulf Hikma #\ #– Damanhur # ä# Burg al-Arab Libyan El Alamein46#\ &1 Airport Plateau #– Abu El Alamein Mina 11 &19 Airport & ALEXANDRIA ALEXANDRIA 44444 Wadi Natrun ‚ Qattara Depression To Cairo (75km) 444444444444444 ‚ Qara #ø Lake 4#ø Oasis4444444444 &10 Qarun Siwa Western Oasis (Libyan) #ø Desert 444#] Siwa4444444 Alexandria & the Mediterranean Coast Highlights 1 Tour the modern grandeur at a period cafe with its restored Ottoman incarnation of an ancient (p 337 ) architecture wonder at the Bibliotheca 4 Stuff your gullet with 6 Remember the desert Alexandrina (p 327 ) fresh seafood along the battles of WWII’s North 2 Stroll the streets and shore at Aboukir (p 343 ) Africa campaign at El souqs (markets) of soulful 5 Wander the dusty, Alamein (p 345 ) Anfushi at night (p 325 ) donkey-fi lled streets of 7 Splash in the stunning 3 Taste the last drops of Rosetta (Ar-Rashid; p 343 ) aqua waters at the beaches Alexandria’s 19th-century near Marsa Matruh (p 348 ).