From the very beginning, tourists are welcomed by the dances of the whirling dervishes, with their symbolic skirts spinning wildly as they handle, above their heads, other cloths, now adorned with colorful LEDs.
But originally, a dervish means a relaxed person, who doesn't worry about the future and leads an ascetic lifestyle, and the dance of the dervishes takes us far back in history and the history of religions.
The significance of the dervish dance, praying while spinning to the rhythm of the drums, is very profound and should spiritually enrich all those who participate in the dance.
However, nowadays, dervishes spin more for the delight of the audience, and even if the ritual no longer conveys "divine love," the dance of the dervishes remains a delight.
But it is only in the morning, when they wake up, that guests discover this unique place. It is the location with the clearest and bluest water, where the town of Marsa Matruh is located in the Almaza Bay region, on the Egyptian Mediterranean coast.
Alex Cornici
An ancient settlement, surrounded by all sorts of tourist attractions, but especially by many stories. The first thing that greets you at Marsa Matruh is obviously the sea, more beautiful than anywhere else.
But those who choose to visit this place do so not only for the sea and beach but also for its unique beauties. Here, guests from all over the world come for the tranquil atmosphere and for the services that Egyptians offer in their friendly and smiling way.
And of course, for the aromatic Arabic food, juices, and exotic fruits. And in the evening, those who wish can dance to the rhythm of drums and traditional songs from the area.
At Marsa Matruh, there are many treasures to see. And the first among them is the Siwa Oasis. Siwa Oasis represents pure, unaltered, and non-commercial Egypt, a place where few tourists reached before this destination at Almaza Bay was opened.
From here, excursions are now organized, and Marsa is the closest locality to the Siwa village, at the border with Libya. The people – almost 23,000 inhabitants – live modestly, seemingly detached from the tumult of the modern world. They earn their living thanks to the rich productions of olives and dates.
Alex Cornici
Most are Berbers and speakers of a language from the Berber language family called Siwi. It is the easternmost region in the world where the Berber language is spoken. The Berbers are an indigenous people of the Maghreb region, i.e., North Africa.
When the Vandals arrived in North Africa in 429, they called the natives barbarians, i.e., Berbers, and so the name remained.
In the Siwa Oasis, you can visit the Mountain of the Dead, an alabaster hill, one of the most important funeral sites, from the 7th century BCE. Here, wealthy members of the Greek community built their tombs carved in rock in the specific Egyptian pharaonic style and were buried according to Egyptian rituals.
The tombs preserve reliefs and inscriptions in hieroglyphs in vivid, original colors, some even with the names of the owners.
There is also Cleopatra's Bath in Siwa, a natural thermal spring where legend says the famous last Macedonian queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, used to bathe, possibly accompanied there by both Emperor Julius Caesar and General Marcus Antonius.
After the conquest of Egypt and its transformation into a Roman province, the new rulers widely exploited this natural wealth of the area. The Islamic tradition has preserved the custom for every bride before the wedding to bathe in this spring, a sign of luck, love, and prosperity for the new family.
Natalie Begu
But the most sought-after are the salt lakes where tourists are invited to bathe, from which we have received an ingredient appreciated not only in cooking, namely ammonium chloride or sal ammoniac.
The name comes from "Salt of Amun," Amun being the supreme god in Egypt, or in Latin "sal ammoniacus." In an ocean of sand in desert-yellow colors, the saline lakes appear in various colors, turquoise or reddish.
The curative properties of these waters, which are below sea level, as is the entire locality, are already recognized by specialists. They are even saltier than the Dead Sea, and this has led to the development of therapeutic tourism.
And the famous Siwa Oasis also attracts lovers of history and stories, who still hope to find the tomb of Alexander the Great, which some say might have been brought here, from Alexandria, where it was initially placed.
Without any doubt, Marsa Matruh from Almaza Bay, with its wonderful places I mentioned and many others I haven't mentioned now, is a destination you definitely should visit!
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