Alexandria

On day 2, we travelled to Egypt's second largest city up north. In ancient times, Alexandria was one of the most famous cities in the world. It was founded by Alexander the Great, from the Roman Empires. Today, Alexandria looks like it belongs to Europe, instead of the African continent, with its Mediterranean flair.

This is Montazah Palace, built in 1892 and set in an extensive garden facing the coast. The palace is huge, with Moorish influence in its architecture. This palace is still being used today and hence we were not able to go any closer.

Alexandria is a very blue city, with the Mediterranean sea surrounding the beautiful city. The roads along the coast is fringed with hotels, bars, restaurants and other attractions. Many rich, local Egyptians flock to Alexandria during their summer holidays.

We made a stop at Fort Qaitbey, a fort built by Sultan Qaitbey in 1480. The famous Pharos Lighthouse ( one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) was situated right beside the fort, but was destroyed by earthquake.

This inspiring building is Abu al-abbas al-Mursi mosque, right in the heart of Alexandria. Women had to enter from the back door and are only allowed access to a small area while men had full view of the praying hall.

The interior of the small space we could squeeze in is adorned with expensive chandelier and very detailed patterns on its high ceilings. Right after our short visit, we headed on to lunch :)