Alexandria has always been a famous Egyptian city. For 1,000 years it was the capital of Egypt. Today, Alexandria “ or Alex “ as many people call it” is the biggest port in Egypt. It is also one of the biggest holiday cities on the Mediterranean Sea. Thousands of people spend their summer holidays there.
Less than 250,000 people lived in Alexandria in 1882. Now there are nearly 6 million or more, This means that the population has increased more than 25 times in Just over a century!
The city is 25 kilometers long” from Montaza to the Eastern Harbour”
The port
More than 3,000 ships arrive at Alexandria port each year. About 70% of Egypt's trade goes through here.
Alexandria is about 225 kilometers from Cairo, and you can reach it in four different ways:
By air, about 45 minutes
By train, about 2.30 hours
On the agricultural road, about 3 hours
On the desert road, about 3 hours
Alexandria through the ages
It's the city and major seaport in northern Egypt, in the Nile River delta, on a ridge that separates Lake Mareotis from the Mediterranean Sea. The city was founded in 332 BC by Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia, who planned it as one of the finest ports of the ancient world. A mole (breakwater made of large stones or masonry) nearly 1.6 km (1 mi) in length called the Heptastadium (“seven furlongs”) was built on the island of Pharos, enclosing a spacious harbor. A famous lighthouse, considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World, was also built on Pharos. Another smaller harbor was open to the west. A canal joined Lake Mareotis to the Canopic branch of the Nile.