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 Egypt
(Egyptian, Arabic: مصر), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a
country in North Africa that includes the Sinai Peninsula, a land
bridge to Asia. Covering an area of about 1,001,450 square
kilometers (386,560 square miles), Egypt borders Libya to the west,
Sudan to the south, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east. The
northern coast borders the Mediterranean Sea and the eastern coast
borders the Red Sea.
Egypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa. The vast
majority of its estimated 78 million people (2007) live near the
banks of the Nile River (about 40,000 km˛ or 15,450 sq miles) where
the only arable agricultural land is found. Large areas of land form
part of the Sahara Desert and are sparsely inhabited. Around half of
Egypt's residents live in urban areas, with the majority spread
across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria
and other major cities in the Nile Delta.
Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world's
most famous monuments, including the Pyramids and the Great Sphinx;
the southern city of Luxor contains a particularly large number of
ancient artifacts such as the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the
Kings. Today, Egypt is widely regarded as an important political and
cultural centre of the Middle East. |
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The Egyptian Nile Valley was home to one of the
oldest cultures in the world, spanning three thousand years of continuous
history. When Egypt fell under a series of foreign occupations after 343 BC,
each left an indelible mark on the country's cultural landscape. Egyptian
identity evolved in the span of this long period of occupation to accommodate in
principal two new religions, Christianity and Islam, and a new language, Arabic
and its spoken descendant, Egyptian Arabic. The degree with which these factors
are estimated today by different groups in Egypt in articulating a sense of
collective identity can vary greatly, and therefore continue to be a source of
frequent debate. Egypt is divided into 26
governorates (singular muhafazah) and 1 self-governing city. This designation
replaces that of "province" (muderiyah). Egyptian governorates are the top tier
of the five-tier jurisdiction hierarchy. A governorate is administered by a
governor (muhafez) appointed by the president of Egypt. Most governorates have a
population density of more than one-thousand per km˛, while the 3 largest have a
population density of less than two per km˛.
Governorates are either fully "urban" or else they are an admixture of "urban"
and "rural". The official distinction between "urban" and "rural" is reflected
in the lower tiers: i.e., fully urban governorates have no regions (markazes),
as the markaz is, natively, a conglomeration of villages. Moreover, governorates
may be comprised of just one city, as in the case of Cairo or Alexandria. Hence,
these one-city governorates are only divided into districts (i.e. urban
neighborhoods). Cairo consists of 23 districts; Alexandria consists of 6.
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The Dubai Expat Diaries
Latest Posts
from: The Dubai Expat Diaries: The Dubai Expat Diaries is an online expatriate journal for expats moving to, living and working in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates
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Atlantis Burning - The great fire of 2008, Palm Jumeirah
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Some photos sent to us by a reader of the fire today. Dubai was abuzz with the news of a fire breaking out at the famed Atlantis Hotel, which is set to open this month. Sure enough, the smoke was visible from afar from very early in the morning and radio announcers frantic. A couple [...]
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Tiger Woods at The Westin Dubai Hotel
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Some exclusive photos of TIger Wood’s visit to The Westin Dubai Hotel today to launch his new project with Tatweer… The Tiger Woods Dubai, a member of Tatweer, is a private residential community and resort that will include the world’s first golf course designed by Tiger Woods - Al Ruwaya.
More photos can be found here
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Things to consider when moving to Dubai for a job
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Some great tips from a Director of Human Resources for people considering moving to Dubai to take up a job. The video is from the hotel industry but the information is quite valid for most industries and countries here in the Middle East…watch the short of the long version below.
Long version:
Short version:
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A video to inspire - the power of people in 42 countries with Matt
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Watch Matt do this thing - he spent 14 months, visited 42 countries and involved thousands of people around the globe (including Bahrain!) in this effort. Truly inspirational and worth sharing with the world…have a fantastic day!
Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.
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Dubai Property Prices expected to plunge by 2010
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Experts from Investment Bank Morgan Stanley claim that research indicates the new flood of apartments to hit Dubai may cause prices to plunge by upto 10% by as early as 2010.
The National also included this in it’s news report:
Dubai property prices have soared 79 per cent since January last year, fuelled by a growing population [...]
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