Recently, after Sudan divided into two countries, Algeria took over the trophy as the biggest country of Africa. Its capital is one of the nicest metropoles of the northern Africa. It is predominantly a blue and white city (a true Mediterranean place), with beautiful tall palms along the streets. Algiers has great views, given to the city’s position on the hills! I thinks architects have done a great job here! Algiers looks European, but its heart is wild, man! The population is soooo diverse: a mixture of ethnicities, features, eye colour, hair texture … Behaviour wise, Algerian, man!

Algiers has fought a million of battles … Many have had a glimpse at it, but the French wanted it really bad.

Is it Paris?… or maybe Nice?

     

      

UNESCO must have had a better look at the Algiers Post Office. I think, it is one of the most beautiful post office buildings in the world!

     

Emir Abdelkhader Square with the famous Milk Bar Cafe is a charming little place not far from the post office.

      

The Museum of Modern Arts of Algiers (MaMa) is worth visiting. The wooden elevators  are quite impressive. At the museum they host different expositions.

      

The Great Mosque of Algiers or “Djama’a al-Kebir” is located very close to Algiers Harbour and the Casbah.

Mint tea and cous cous cookies

     

Once I happened to be in Algiers on the 5th of July, when they were celebrating the Independence Day. It was amazing: there was traditional music, dancing and artillery shows all over Algiers.

Chevaliers very marching along the central streets – festive mood was on fire!

      

They were shooting REAL gun powder. It was quite of a show!

      

      

All about these guys was very moving. Looking back at Algeria’s past guerrilla war, you can feel that patriotic spirit dominating among the fighters. When a country is under continuous unrest, war becomes part of its culture.

          

You can spot traditional Amazigh ornaments on their cloths.

Ketchaoua Mosque is right at the foot of the Casbah. The mosque belongs to the UNESCO heritage sites. It is a mixture of Moorish and Byzantine architecture.

The Casbah is a quarter of Algiers where a lot of battles have been fought. At the moment it is in a critical state due to neglect, overpopulation, crime and the age of the buildings. The Casbah has a life of its own, one of those dangerous quarters which remain a mystery for outsiders.

      

The Algerian Mediterranean coastline is spectacular. The Cornish promenade is veeeery long. From here you can see the hills of the city and the Notre-Dame d’Afrique Cathedral.

I’d like to know more about this country, especially about Ghardaia and Algeria’s south…However, just like Yemen, it has been in turmoil and it doesn’t get any better …