Med Cruise - Apr 06 - Day 7 - Alexandria
Thursday – 6th April - Alexandria
I was genuinely excited about coming here, especially given my previous experiences in Egypt in Cairo. After haggling on a “price” (since my parents had left in the morning for the pyramids of Giza around Cairo), we set off to see Alexandria. Old town, reminiscent of Kalba Devi in Mumbai. We went to some ancient crypt to begin with, which was very creepy actually. Then we went to the tower of Pompei, erected to commemorate his victory after crushing a rebellion. It was a nice tower with a sphinx like figure on the side. We also descended in some underground excavations, but nothing really exciting there. After that we headed to the citadel, which is where the ancient lighthouse of Alexendria used to be (one of the seven wonders of the old world, the lighthouse being destroyed by an earthquake). As Poo and I were walking around, holding hands, one of the kids came up and said “she is beautiful indeed”, kinda weird, but I felt flattered for sure. Took a few pictures and then we headed to eat Khushari. Now I need to dedicate a few lines about this dish meant for the common man. Most people on their travels to Egypt like to sit in five star hotels and eat things like braised duck in mandarin sauce. The braver among them will be adventurous and try something like shesh kebab. The bravest among them all will venture on the street and eat things eaten by the common man, like khushari. It is a medley of rice, spaghetti and macaroni, served with lentils, chic peas and baked onions, with hot and garlic sauces on the side. After eating this huge dish and also “bibete”, a thin bread type thing immersed in cream and milk, with lots of sugar we went to see the palace of the last Egyptian king (King Faroukh, who was overthrown in the Islamic revolution, a white/bloodless revolution, lead by Nasser in the 50s), the Muntaza palace. It was gorgeous, with a nice hotel in the bay of the palace (seemed like a nice place to stay in). After that we headed back to the ship. Later, I ventured out with my mom in law and was forcibly escorted by a bum on the street, who helped us shop for local fruits, such as young dates, etc.
I was genuinely excited about coming here, especially given my previous experiences in Egypt in Cairo. After haggling on a “price” (since my parents had left in the morning for the pyramids of Giza around Cairo), we set off to see Alexandria. Old town, reminiscent of Kalba Devi in Mumbai. We went to some ancient crypt to begin with, which was very creepy actually. Then we went to the tower of Pompei, erected to commemorate his victory after crushing a rebellion. It was a nice tower with a sphinx like figure on the side. We also descended in some underground excavations, but nothing really exciting there. After that we headed to the citadel, which is where the ancient lighthouse of Alexendria used to be (one of the seven wonders of the old world, the lighthouse being destroyed by an earthquake). As Poo and I were walking around, holding hands, one of the kids came up and said “she is beautiful indeed”, kinda weird, but I felt flattered for sure. Took a few pictures and then we headed to eat Khushari. Now I need to dedicate a few lines about this dish meant for the common man. Most people on their travels to Egypt like to sit in five star hotels and eat things like braised duck in mandarin sauce. The braver among them will be adventurous and try something like shesh kebab. The bravest among them all will venture on the street and eat things eaten by the common man, like khushari. It is a medley of rice, spaghetti and macaroni, served with lentils, chic peas and baked onions, with hot and garlic sauces on the side. After eating this huge dish and also “bibete”, a thin bread type thing immersed in cream and milk, with lots of sugar we went to see the palace of the last Egyptian king (King Faroukh, who was overthrown in the Islamic revolution, a white/bloodless revolution, lead by Nasser in the 50s), the Muntaza palace. It was gorgeous, with a nice hotel in the bay of the palace (seemed like a nice place to stay in). After that we headed back to the ship. Later, I ventured out with my mom in law and was forcibly escorted by a bum on the street, who helped us shop for local fruits, such as young dates, etc.
posted by Ash | 6:39 AM
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