Oct 29 – Alexandria

This morning we left Cairo for a trip to Alexandria on the Mediterranean.  The drive wasn’t particularly eventful and wasn’t too long.  We had one break in the middle for coffee and a bathroom break. 

When we arrived at Alexandria we headed straight into sightseeing.  The first stop was some tombs.  The Tigrane temple was a small, free-standing building.  It was discovered during the construction of a modern building in 1952 and was transferred to the site of other tombs.  It probably dates from the Roman times in Egypt (approximately the 2^nd century AD).  The fresco are pretty good condition.

Also on this site were the Catacombs of Kom el Shuquafa.  They are considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages (the list wasn’t created until around the 19^th century and isn’t well known…and includes lots of stuff not dating from the Middle Ages).  The name means Mound of Shards because, when a person was interred in the tombs the mourners would have a big feast and then destroy all of the pottery objects used to serve the food and wine.  The catacombs even house a large banqueting room where the feasts were held. 

The tombs date from the beginning of the 2^nd century and contain a mix of Roman, Greek and Egyptian features.  There are three levels carved straight down into the solid rock.  

From the central shaft chambers passageways were carved off to the sides for the tombs.  These passageways were lined with many small openings for individual tombs.  

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More Catacombs of Kom el Shuqafa
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From there we traveled to Pompey’s Pillar…dates from the 3^rd century AD during the Roman period in Egypt. 

Nearby is the Temple of Serapeum also dating from the same period. 

Some sights while driving through Alexandria.  

One of the neighborhoods was the local Chop Shop district where one could get all manner for parts for cars.  Khalid said that cars are very expensive in Egypt and people will keep their car for 20 or 30 years.  And are always in need of cheap parts. 

We had lunch at a lovely waterfront restaurant...

and then headed to the hotel, the VERY nice Four Seasons Hotel) for a free afternoon.  We had great views of the beach and hotel grounds from our balcony.

We had dinner at the outdoor, beach front restaurant at the hotel that evening.