Alexandria | The Corniche

Alexandria is a stunning city and because of its layout, hard to encompass the its scale and sweep. It can feel like a provincial Mediterranean city at times with its fashionable boutiques and endless array of cafes. The French and Italian influence are strong here. In temperament, it is much more progressive and cosmopolitan than Cairo.

So much history has walked the shoreline here. Alexander the Great founded the city in 331 BC, the Greek architect Dinocrates receiving this project. Julius Caeser, Hadrian, Cleopatra, Napoleon; these are just some of the giants who have made their mark on this city.

The Italian architect Pietro Avoscani designed the Corniche, the promenade that runs the length of the waterfront. The seawall is build of these massive concrete blocks with rebar handles sticking out of them, most likely for the crane used in their original placement. The blocks and their handles give the feeling that the sea wall is nothing but the flotsam from some giant’s toy chest as the scale of these blocks is ginormous.

There are walkways underneath the actual shoreline road which I strongly recommend because there are not traffic lights on this thoroughfare for long stretches. And at night for some reason, most drivers choose not to turn on their headlights.