We've gone on holiday by mistake!

algeria travel. i recently returned from a quick trip to algeria and this has been sitting in drafts for a while… i better just post this before it’s too late…

less words and more pics in this one…

algiers

insert the obligatory “i heart” pic…

good.

now that that’s over with, here is the view…

yep. pretty sweet.

next up is a pic of the milk bar – the location of one of the most famous incidents in the algerian war of independence.

if you haven’t seen gino pontecorvo’s film “the battle of algiers“, please pause your enjoyment of this wonderful algeria travel blog and watch it now. i’ll allow it just this one time.

glad to have you back – and yes, i knew you were going to love one of my favourite films ever.

you’re welcome.

commemorating the end of the algerian war is the martyrs monument which also contains an interesting museum underneath that is definitely worth checking out.

tired? ok, time for a serious kebab break…

because you will need your energy to climb up the hill to the basilique notre dame d’afrique… 

“priez pour nous et pour les musulmans” appears above the alter of the notre dame basilica in algiers. pray for us and for the muslims.

the casbah

on to the cashbah… the heart of algiers…

apologies… the clash will be in your head for the rest of the day.

the casbah (fortress) as it stands today was built by the ottomans in the 18th century on top of roman and berber settlements – a series of narrow twisting streets built up the side of a hill.

it is now a unesco world heritage site and probably as close to a real life escher painting as you can get.

djemila

heading east, about 4 hours from algiers is djemila – which uncoincidentally means beautiful in arabic and is one of the best preserved roman ruins in the world.

along with leptis magna in libya, these are historical treasures of the north african coast. and just like in libya, you will pretty much have the entire site to yourself, making for a peaceful visit.

the city was famous for its mosaics which are now displayed in the museum. i’ll let the pics speak for themselves…

constantine

a few hours east of djemila is the gorge(ous) city of constantine.

it is considered to be one of the oldest cities in the world and is famous for its river, bridges, viewpoints, and gorges running through it.

constantine is a surprise highlight for visitors. it’s hard to describe and difficult to understand how unique and unusual it is until you see it for yourself.

taghit

sunrise over the dunes of the sahara.

and then tea time… you can’t beat desert tea…

stuck in traffic… and escaped camels…

roman ruins, the casbah, the med, constantine, petroglyphs and the dunes of the sahara… it’s amazing how many varied sites algeria has to offer. and unlike 14 years ago, it is a lot easier to access and the tourist infrastructure is improving. it is honestly the perfect time to visit.

and to top off a great visit to the sahara – similar to my recent trip to afghanistan, we had chicken, slow-cooked in an underground charcoal pit. yum.

cherchell and tipaza

back along the coast is the coastal town of cherchell and tipaza – a roman site famous for it’s beautiful location along the sea.

the royal mausoleum of mauretania – a funery monument and another unesco site.

misc pics 2010

i wasn’t sure where to put these. i took them in 2010, but thought i would include them for fun.

especially with this guy chilling out.

i visited timgad in 2010, which was another brilliant roman ruin considered to be on par with djemila.

the best comparison i heard between timgad and djemila, is that djemila is more picturesque due to the surrounding landscape. but timgad is one for the history buffs since it gives you the best example of a classically laid out roman city.

we went to another roman ruin site of tiddis. as usual for most of the tourist sites in algeria, we had the entire place to ourselves.

and some ruins were just sitting alone in farmers fields… crazy.

we also stumbled across the royal tomb at madghacen. similar to the mausoleum of mauretania, but less restored.

finally, one last random algeria travel photo…