Tuesday, October 13th.
The Mediterranean coast west of Algiers reveals layers of North African history. At Tipaza, Phoenician merchants first established trading posts over 2,000 years ago. What began as a commercial outpost evolved under Roman rule into one of Christianity's most important North African centres. Walking among ruins that cascade toward the sea, we show how early Christians adapted Roman architectural forms to serve their revolutionary faith. After lunch we continued to Cherchell, ancient Caesarea. This former capital of Mauretanian and Numidian kingdoms reveals how local rulers adopted Roman imperial symbols while maintaining African cultural traditions. The archaeological museum's treasures, mosaics, sculptures, and architectural fragments, illustrate the sophisticated fusion of the cultures that flourished on this coast. Our final stop presented a puzzle: the pyramid-like Tomb of the Christians, its pre-Roman origins challenge assumptions about North African civilization. Built for unknown Numidian royalty, this monument reminds us that sophisticated kingdoms flourished here long before Roman legions arrived. It makes for a fitting final contemplation, three thousand years of human ambition compressed into a single afternoon on the Algerian coast. We returned to Algiers for our last evening together. We had dinner at an upscale restaurant the Islam recommended. Earlier in the day we had place our dinner orders in order to speed up the meal. However, we were seated in the restaurant for a half hour before the waiter asked if he should start cooking yet… so much for an early night before our very early flight. We were here as an end of tour goodbye party. This tour is really three separate tours, Algeria, Tunisia and Malta. We have four people leaving after the Algerian leg: Mary-Anne, Gary and Gene and Deb and one person joining tomorrow for the Tunisia leg. We had a great dinner, some fun, sad goodbyes and then back to the hotel for a few hours of sleep.
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