Ice Cold in Alex

Well today being my official day off, I took a trip to visit St. Mark's Cathedral in Alexandria, on the recommendation (rather insistence) of Bishop Mouneer.

And it didn't disappoint!

Being on the coast, Alex benefits from a slight sea breeze. Slight, mind you, as it still got up to 36c by the time we had left.

But I opted to join a shared tour, as I figured it would be easier to get to the centre, where the cathedral is, and I would also get to see other things which I may not ordinarily do travelling solo.

We were delayed for over an hour on the Alex desert road, as the Police had closed it due to bad visibility. Dust or haze, I guess. So we were running behind all day!

Our first stop was the Garden. It's basically a private beach area in one of the large hotels, and was full of noisy Americans from an anchored cruise ship. Oh joy.

The neighbouring King's/Presidential palace was impressive though, with a kind of Andalucian flavour.

We then made our way to visit the largest Mosque in the city, and the location where the original lighthouse in Alex was situated up until its destruction in the 13th century.

Then, it was lunch, and as the group was visiting the Orthodox Cathedral, I made my way on foot to St. Mark's Anglican cathedral to say my daily office.

There I met Father Karim, who was very welcoming, and I had the Cathedral to myself. I then joined him and what amounted to the local 'men's shed' for coffee, in the shade of a large tree.

As I had some time to spare afterwards, while I waited for the group to catch up, I made a slight diversion to the Cab D'Or Bar and Restaurant, made famous in the movie 'Ice Cold in Alex.' 

Although the movie bar scene was shot in Shepperton Studios, the book identifies the location as the Cab D'Or, just of Mehmet Ali Square in Alex. What a time capsule! It smelled like a real pub - polish, linoleum, wood, and age. Remarkable.

I fully expected John Mills to wander in any moment!

I even had a very small drink, as it was so very hot. Ahem.

Definitely worth waiting for!

Afterwards we went to see the catacombs on the outskirts of the city. They were most impressive. 

Dating from the 2-3rd century, they were initially made for a wealthy Egyptian family, but then became public property, with many burials.

Christians even lived down there during the persecutions.

They were lost for centuries and only discovered around 1900, quite by accident, when a donkey fell through a hole in the ground.

The last stop was the impressive library, which is of course a modern successor to the original lost library.

Then it was a long return bus ride back to Cairo. 

A full, tiring, but entertaining day!