Blogs from Alexandria, Mediterranean, Egypt, Africa - page 12

my experiance as first time apartment renter has been great. I can have parties whenever I want for however long, but that isn't the first thing on my mind. I just don't like being held down to stupid dorm rules. My landlady is very nice. She is very accomidating. When my luggage didn't come until a day later she was willing to help me out with whatever I needed. Also, because she thought I wasn't coming until the day rachel was coming she didn't have our apartment ready, but she didn't have totally ready when Rachel got here anyway because a good friend of hers was in the hospital. However, she told me I didn't have to worry about my security deposit fee until she had everything in here. Our apartment is made up of 7 ... read more

Finally, Ahmed was finished his exams and we could go away (for one night only!) for a long-overdue sort-of honeymoon. We booked ourselves a great room at the Cecil Hotel in Alexandria. Yes, we have been to Alexandria before together on a number of occassions, but only for the day. of course! We arrived in Alex around lunchtime on Friday and checked into the hotel. We remembered to bring my passport and the marriage contract; this is the only way that an Egyptian can stay with a person of the opposite sex in a hotel. After getting everything photocopied and dropping of luggage, we were on our way to Montazzah Garden, the ONLY real park/garden area, I think, I all of Egypt. It's beautiful and huge and GREEN. We had a little picnic lunch here, stayed ... read more

Wow, where does one begin? Having safely arrived in Cairo, I immediately set out for Alex (2 1/2 hour train ride). This officially marks my 2nd day in Egypt & can we say "steep learning curve"? I am staying @ the Hotel Union on El-Cornish & can recommend the room for those on a budget. For only 45EGP per night (approx $13 on the lousy conversion rate I got @ the airport) I have a spacious room with 2 single beds, a desk & hand basin. The bathroom is directly accross the hallway but despite this being the higher season for tourists, I havent had any issues (having to wait for shower etc). A friend of mine who also stayed @ the Hotel Union last year said the same thing. The rooms are clean & neat ... read more

With the Nile tour completed I had arranged to spend another couple of days visiting the coastal city of Alexandria which is only a short trip from El Alamein, the scene of a major WWII battle that my grandfather had fought in. Anyway first some background on Alexandria and why its worth a look. The city was founded by its namesake Alexander the Great after he had conquered Egypt and had himself proclaimed Pharoah. Despite being Macedonian Greeks, Alexander and his successors decided that they would embrace the Egyptian culture by adopting their gods and customs and they ruled Egypt as the Ptomely dynasty of Pharoahs with Alexandria as their capital. Anyway the reason I am bothering to explain all this is that despite the Ptomely's originally being Greeks, the most famous (and last) of their ... read more

Me & my colleague Robi went to Orascom Telecom headquarter to attend a workshop on Jun’2006. After a lengthy flight via Dubai we reached Cairo International airport and went to stay at Cairo Marriott Hotel (Saray El Gezira street, Zamalek) for couple of nights during our trip to Egypt. It was an amazing place and perfect for sightseeing. The staffs were friendly and efficient. We didn’t use all of the facilities, however ate in the restaurant and I would recommend it to anyone. A little on the pricey side but it is a 5star hotel, however the food was 1st class. If I find myself in Cairo again I will stay here. First few days we were entirely busy in the workshop and sometimes went out to check out the city’s special attractions like Abou el-Sid, ... read more