Egypt

Travel: Marsa Matrouh

Egyptian Gazette (temporary story)

It is a place of heritage, sea, sands, memories of war, temples and cemeteries. Marsa Matrouh is where the romance between Anthony and Queen Cleopatra blossomed.

In World War II, the British Army's Baggush Box (a fortification of the Western Desert Force) was located to the east of Marsa Matrouh, near Maarten Baggush, while Marsa Matrouh was the terminus for a single-track railway, which passed through el-Alamein. It was also where the late famous actress and singer Laila Murad sang her famous song, "I love two things, water and fresh air...", as she sat on a rock on the beach in the 1940s romantic flick Shatt El-Gharam (Shore of Love). Marsa Matrouh lies 290km west of Alexandria and about 220km east of el-Salloum on the Libyan border. The distance from Cairo to Matrouh is 525km. It lies on a bay on the Mediterranean and is distinguished by its 7km-long beach, which - as visitors testify - is one of the most beautiful in the world. The beach is famous for its soft, white sands and calm, transparent waters, as the bay is protected from the high seas by a series of rocks forming a natural wave-breaker, with a small opening to allow light vessels in. Marsa Matrouh offers a getaway to Cairenes eager to flee the capital in the sweltering summer months. One can easily go there by the bus which leaves Giza early every morning. The journey takes around eight hours. If you're feeling wealthy, you can always fly from Cairo International Airport.Matrouh Governorate stretches 400km south into the depths of the desert. Its area is 166,563km square, while its population is just over 278,000. Its beach dates back to the days of Alexander the Great, when it was known as 'Paraetonium' and also as 'Amunia'. It is said that Alexander stopped there during his epic expedition to pay tribute and sacrifice, to the god Amun at Siwa.This meant that he became Amun's son and his rule became a historical continuation of the Pharaohs. There are also the ruins of a temple from the time of Ramses II (1200 BC) in Matrouh.

- Fire In Siwa Caused By Smugglers, But Archaeology Safe
Ahram Online A fire that destroyed over 1700 hectares of farmland in the Siwa Oasis on Tuesday was started deliberately by border smuggling gangs, a local tribal leader has claimed. The attacks were in revenge for requests by local leaders for border...

- Travel: Siwa. Date Palms And A Toy Gun
WA Today At the gateway to the Great Sand Sea, David Wroe is enchanted by a remote Berber oasis that time (almost) forgot. The long drive south from the Mediterranean coast to Siwa, Egypt's farthest-flung oasis, is bleak but beautiful - at least...

- Tourism: Egypt Air Express
AmeInfo.com Just in case it is of any interest to visitors to Egypt: EgyptAir subsidiary EgyptAir Express has begun a domestic service from Cairo to Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada using three new Embraer 170 jets, reported the Al Ahram Weekly. The new carrier...

- Travel: Siwa Oasis
http://www.gom.com.eg/gazette/tourism/detail_8_90.shtmlSiwa: the sweetest oasis by "Mohamed Salah Attia Siwa appears at first as a sweet and innocent place deep in the desert which has just opened its eyes to the modern world and still let itself be amazed....

- Power Station Controversy At Graeco-roman Tel Al-dabaa
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/825/eg4.htm"The National Democratic Party's announcement a month ago that Egypt is seeking to revive its nuclear programme and means to build a large power station neighbouring the Graeco-Roman site of Tel Al-Dabaa...

Egypt