Living in Alexandria, Egypt

Arriving in Egypt

I spent the month of September living in Alexandria, Egypt. After leaving Sweden, I flew to Cairo. I spent the weekend in Cairo and then took a local train to Alexandria. Navigating the train station, buying a ticket and finding the train definitely taught me early on that not knowing Egyptian Arabic in Egypt was much harder than not knowing Swedish in Sweden. While in Sweden everyone knew at least a little English, in Cairo (and even more so in Alexandria) I had to depend a lot on gestures, pointing to pictures in my guide book, and asking strangers who did know English to interpret on my behalf. However, with a lot of help from strangers and a few hours on a train, I made it to Alexandria, met up with my landlady, and got settled in my apartment.

My Neighborhood 

In Alexandria I lived quite a ways outside of the city, near the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport. It was a 30-45 minute drive into Alexandria, depending on to where in the city I was going. I really liked my neighborhood. Unlike Sweden, I wasn't living with mostly international students. My neighborhood was all locals, except for me. My area consisted of a few blocks of apartment buildings between the Academy and the train tracks that led into the city. There was a great set of shops nearby--a few convenience stores, coffee shops, a pizza place, a stationary store, and a few other shops. I did my main shopping at a bigger grocery store, but I often stopped by these local places to buy liters of water, since I couldn't drink the tap. It was a nice way to get to know some of the local people, even if our conversations mostly consisted of saying hello and asking how the other was doing. Despite the language barrier, I really liked the people I met, from the cashier and his wife at the convenience store to the adorable 10-year-old girl at the stationary store who loved practicing her English.

The City

Alexandria is a beautiful city, and every time I went into the city I rode along El Corniche, the large road that runs right next to the Mediterranean. I never got over turning the corner on the road to see the harbor. While I sometimes ventured deeper into the city to visit certain places, most of the time I was within ten blocks of the Mediterranean. I also loved walking along El Corniche to get from one part of the city to another, although crossing the road required agility and excellent timing in order to not get run over.

I think my favorite thing about Alexandria is the variety of influences in its history. I loved seeing a stone with hieroglyphics sitting next to an in situ mosaic. The combination of ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and structures in one city was amazing to me. This is probably because if you asked me what my favorite ancient civilization was, I would tell you I love ancient Greece and ancient Egypt. Yes, I learned about and became slightly obsessed with both civilizations during 6th grade history. So I really enjoyed the blend of cultures. For example, in the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa I saw a carving of an Egyptian goddess with Roman clothing.

While Alexandria's ancient history is highlighted in its museums and other attractions, I also quickly fell in love with the influence from the city's more recent history. In the late 1800's and early 1900's, Alexandria was a cultural hub home to many foreign artists and writers. Left behind from this era are gorgeous Belle Epoque buildings. I had expected to see ancient ruins in Alexandria, both on the ground and underwater, but I had no idea that I would drink my coffee in these 20-foot-ceilings, 100-year-old, glamorous salons. From the blue Mediterranean, the marbled old ruins and the Belle Epoque architecture, everywhere I went in Alexandria had something special.

One interesting thing I noticed in Alexandria is that despite the rich history and fascinating sites, the city isn't a huge tourist destination. During the summer, Alexandria is filled with tourists, but they are almost all Egyptians  visiting for a beach holiday. When foreigners go to Egypt, they often do not venture up to Alexandria. Since I was there in September, there were basically no foreigners around. In fact, there weren't even many Egyptian visitors on the beach. I ran into a few people at different sites I visited, but on a day-to-day basis, I'm pretty sure I was the only non-Alexandrian around. This was quite a contrast from Sweden. 

Adjusting in Alexandria

When I first arrived, it took some time to get adjusted while living on my own in a country with a starkly different culture and language from my own. I've never been alone in a country without a Latin alphabet. I sometimes felt a bit helpless not even being able to sound out a word in Arabic. I think because there were so few foreigners around, I often felt out-of-place as a young, foreign woman wandering around on her own. It was humbling to realize that while I've traveled a lot before, I almost always was with someone else and was in a country where communication was easy. I suppose you could call it culture-shock, but no matter the name, I took some time to get comfortable living in Alexandria. However, I think the adjustment was an important part of this year, and I wouldn't trade the growing experience for anything. My time is Sweden was wonderful, but it was also very easy in a lot of ways. Living in Egypt was definitely not easy. I challenged myself, pushed my comfort zone, and because of that, I had some new and unbelievable experiences. 

~Kristine