Siwa It is located in the middle of nowhere, in the desert about 850 kilometers from Cairo and very close to the border with Libya. It is one of the most isolated areas of Egypt and, despite being little frequented by mass tourism, it is one of the most beautiful places in the country. In an enclave worth seeing, it is surrounded by a palm grove on the desert dunes and on a salt lake. Its streets are still traveled by wooden carts and donkeys.
To visit it, one of the best options is rent a bike and enter the sandy paths of the palm grove to reach the famous Siwa Oracle, which is located on a peak of rocks that are visibly eroded. From the top, a spectacular image of the palm groves joining the lake shore and the dunes falling to the limits of the osasis. In any palm tree you can take one of the many bunches of dates that hang and that are so typical in the country.
Once you have seen the Oracle you can go to the thermal bath that I used to frequent Cleopatra to relax and bathe in crystal clear waters with large bubbles that spring from the bottom. Another place worth visiting is the temple of ammon ra and the old medieval fortress in Siwa, which dates back to the 13th century and was built with earth bricks, plaster and salt.
In Siwa's history is found Alexander the Great, who after founding Alexandria headed to the Oracle of Siwa to reaffirm his belief that he was a descendant of the god Amun Ra, something that his mother had told him, and that when he got there the Oracle recognized him as a divine being and that is why He is haunted by Pharaoh of Egypt before leaving to conquer Persia.
Siwa A Paradise in the western desert #thisisegypt (April 2024)
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