Day trip to Alexandria

This year, there was nothing fancy going on on New Year's Eve; we actually went out for dinner at Spectra (i think it is my favorite restaurant here) + it is very close to our house. After dinner we went to Kathy's flat, played a few rounds of Dutch Blitz and had a cup of .... at midnight. I was in bed at 1 o'clock. But it was alright, as we had to wake up early in the morning to catch a train to Alexandria.
The train ride was only 2 hours; i slept for 1 hour while everyone else was reading.

We didnt quite have a plan of what we're going to do there; luckily, I had the lonely planet guide with me. When we got there it was all a bit muddy, as it rained the day before. We started walking; direction - nowhere. We stopped at one food stand for breakfast - foul and tameya. Don't know how good that was for breakfast (another update on Egyptian food some other time). We have all agreed that we want to see the Mediteranean Sea, so that was our first stop. After the impossible mission of crossing a 4 lane motorway, trying to find a bathroom, sneaking through the crowded narrow streets of the souk we got there. The sea is absolutely beautiful!!!!! I loved it!!

At one point it started raining - we were totally unprepaired for it! It never rains in Egypt! Well, it did this time! Rachel and Leah had an umbrella in their bag - lucky them! It was funny how we've been all complaining that it never rains and we want some rain, but then we all ran to shelter. We took taxis to go to the Library. The Royal Library in Alexandria was once the largest library in the world. It was founded at the beginning of the 3rd century BC, during the reign of Ptolemy II of Egypt. We didnt go inside - just had a warm drink in a cafeteria, just to warm up. The waitresses were hitting on Dave and we kept laughing about it. They were very pretty - i still think Dave should've gotten their numbers.

That was when we decided to make a plan and agree on what we want to see. So, our first major attraction was Fort Qaitbay - it is a fortress built upon/from the ruins of the Lighthouse of Alexandria.

We had koshari for lunch and went to see the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa (one of the seven wonders of the middle ages). It consists of a series of Alexandrian tombs, statues and archaeological objects of the Pharaonic funeral cult with Greek and early Roman influences. It was rediscovered in 1900 when a donkey accidentally fell into the access shaft. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take our cameras inside.Pompey Pillar - by the time we got there, there were closing, so we saw it from the gate. It is an approximately 25m red Aswan granite column with a circumference of 9m, which was constructed in honor of the Emperor Diocletain. Originally from the temple of the Serapis, it was once a magnificent structure rivaling the Soma and the Caesareum. The Pillar is the tallest ancient monument in Alexandria. it was all worth visiting! I enjoyed it very much - i think i could actually live there!