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Published: September 23rd 2009
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Drawbridge
The ancient drawbridge on the second floor We are very excited to travel to Alexandria today. This was one of the reasons we chose this tour. We have read and heard so much about this legendary city that we can't wait to see it for ourselves. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, Alexandria was renowned as a beacon of culture. It gained legendary status in the ancient world as the city where Cleopatra and Mark Antony's stormy relationship began, and was home to Pharos Lighthouse, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, as well as the Royal Library of Alexandria founded in the third century BC. Since it was once the largest library in the world, it established Egypt as the center of learning in the ancient world.
Our travel time from Cairo to Alexandria took four hours through nothing but desert driving well over 100 miles per hour. We stopped half way at rest stop which had a restaurant and some small shops. They were also baking bread outside in the brick ovens. We also had a scheduled stop at one of the ancient Christain Monasteries called St. Bishop's church. One of the monks gave us a guided tour. I couldn't believe
Monastery
View looking out of monastery how big the monastery was and how it was in excellent shape to be built such a long time ago. This monastery, one of the four well known of its kind in Wadi al-Natrun, was probably founded in the sixth century, though some might date it later.
The monastery is nearly oblong in shape, and surrounded by a defensive wall. The great wall was built in the ninth century, and measures about ten meters high and two meters wide. It is one hundred and sixty-six meters on the east and west, and ninety-five meters on the north and south.
Originally there were four entrances to the monastery, one on each side of the wall. Today, there are only two, consisting of one on the north and one on the south. The main entrance is a gateway near the western end of the north wall. This gateway, which possesses an inner gatehouse and a large tower. It is the best preserved in the Wadi, as well as the most complete and elaborate of its kind of the four remaining monasteries.
The southern half of the monastery is occupied by the church and cells of the monks, as well
Monastery
View from third floor of monastery as by a modern patriarchal residence. The greater part of the gardens and the keep are in the northern half.
The most interesting building in the monastery is the tower, located at the northwest corner of the monastery. Defensive towers, or keeps have been a part of the architecture of Wadi El-Natrun's monasteries since the fifth century. This was a time when the Berbers often attacked monasteries in the area.
The keep at Saint Bishoy dates to the thirteenth century. One enters it at the second floor level by a wooden drawbridge that rests on the roof of the gatehouse. On the first floor are rooms where food was stored and prepared. One can see traces of an oven, a mill for grains, a press for grapes, as well as an olive press. There is also a well some thirty meters deep. The second floor comprises the living quarters of the monks during the periods of siege. There is also a long corridor and east of this are rooms which have cupolas supported by brick arches. These have now been transformed into a church dedicated to the Holy Virgin.
The monk also gave us insight into the
Monastery
View of the wall of the Monastery fish symbol that so many Christains are putting on their cars or wearing as jewelry. He told us Christains had been persecuted in Egypt at various times, so they came up with a way to identify other Christains without letting people know they were christains. When threatened by Romans in the first centuries after Christ, Christians used the fish mark at meeting places and tombs, and to distinguish friends from foes. According to one ancient story, when a Christian met a stranger in the road, the Christian sometimes drew one arc of the simple fish outline in the dirt. If the stranger drew the other arc, both believers knew they were in good company.
After the visit to the monastery, we headed on to Alexandria. When we arrived, we were shocked that the beaches were full. Our tour guide told us all of Egypt vacationed here. As far as we could see, the beaches were full of fully clad women wearing their hijabs. We truely felt like outsiders and now knew what it felt like to be in the minority. We must have been the only white Christain people in Alexandria. Our tour guide told us not to wear
Alexandria
Fresh sea sponges being sold on the streets. our bathing suits to the beach, and it would be best if we avoided it altogether. He explained that muslims did not like seeing foreigners while they were vacationing. Michele and I definitely wanted to see the Mediterranean Sea, so we decided to visit the beach at sunset, and we took an amazing photo.
We decided we would walk down the street to see some of the sites, but it didn't take long for us to realize just how unwelcomed we were. We had our hearts set on fresh seafood, so we thought it would be best to take a taxi instead of walking! Being the lucky people we are, we managed to hail a taxi who's a driver who could not speak a word of English! I had written down a few names of seafood places, and showed him the writing, but since he couldn't speak English he couldn't read it either. I thought that was really stupid of myself! Some how we managed to communicate fish and he was off. We had our doubts if we would ever return to the hotel. We drove forever, and then the nastiest aroma filled the air- The fish market. Remains
Alexandria
View of the beach. of the fresh catch of the day was lying over one block of the street. After smelling that, I just wasn't sure if I wanted fish after all. Samakmak restaurant was where we ended up. It was owned by a very famous bellydancer from Egypt. When we walked on the deck, we were met by a few gentlemen who looked shocked to see two women out alone. They took us to an iced box that held the fresh catch for the day. It did not look very appetizing to see those glassy eyes looking at us, so we decided to ask for shrimp. He reached down and pulled out a huge pot of shrimp. I believe they were still swimming! He asked us how many kilos we wanted. Not dealing in metrics, Michele and I struggled with that decision. I believe we ended up ordering one kilo which luckily was an adequate amount for two people. We also ordered some oysters too. When we were seated, we quickly realized we were the only women in the restaruant, and received numerous stares from the other men customers. We felt very awkward. This was a feeling we had never experienced before in
Alexandria
The streets are very crowded with all sorts of vehicles the states. I just wondered if women were not allowed to eat out. The shrimp was cooked whole with the heads and the feelers left on. I was so hungry I just ripped off the heads and pulled off the feelers. Anyway, the food was delicious, even though we felt that our every move was being noted.
By Missy
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