A City A Day

Benghazi   / b ɛ n ˈ ɡ ɑː z i / [note 1]  is the  second largest city  in  Libya , the capital of the  Cyrenaica  region (or ex-Province), and the former provisional capital of the  National Transitional Council . [11]  The wider metropolitan area (which includes the southern towns of Gimeenis and  Suluq ) is also a  district  of Libya. The port city is located on the  Mediterranean Sea . During the Kingdom era of Libya's history, Benghazi enjoyed a sort of joint-capital status (alongside  Tripoli ), possibly because the  King  used to reside in the nearby city of  Bayda  and the  Senussis  (royal family) in general were associated with Cyrenaica rather than  Tripolitania . Benghazi continues to hold institutions and organizations normally associated with a national capital city. This creates a constant atmosphere of rivalry and sensitivities between Benghazi and Tripoli and b...

Tripoli  is the  capital city  and the largest city of  Libya . As of 2011, the Tripoli metropolitan area (district area) had a population of 2.2 million people. The city is located in the northwestern part of Libya on the edge of the  desert , on a point of rocky land projecting into the Mediterranean and forming a bay. Tripoli includes the  Port of Tripoli  and the country's largest commercial and manufacturing centre. It is also the site of the University of Tripoli . The vast  Bab al-Azizia   barracks , which includes the former family plantation of  Muammar Gaddafi , is also located in the city.  Colonel  Gaddafi largely ruled the country from his residence in this barracks. Tripoli was founded in the 7th century BC by the  Phoenicians , who named it  Oea . [2]  Due to the city's long history, there are many sites of archaeological significance in Tripoli. "Tripoli" may also refer to the  sh...

Mansoura was established in 1219 by  Saladin 's nephew, Abu-Bakr Malik ibn  al-Adil I  (their father also known as Saphadin) of the  Ayyubid  dynasty. After the Egyptians defeated the  Crusaders  during the  Seventh Crusade , it was named  Mansoura  (aka. "The Victorious"). Main article:  Seventh Crusade In the  Seventh Crusade , the  Capetians  were defeated and put to flight; between fifteen to thirty thousand of their men fell on the battlefield.  Louis IX of France  was captured in the main  Battle of Mansoura , and confined in the house of Ibrahim ben Lokman, secretary of the sultan, and under the guard of the eunuch Sobih. The king's brother was imprisoned in the same house. The sultan provided for their sustenance. The house of Ibrahim ben Lokman is now the only museum in Mansoura. It is open to the public and houses articles that used to belong to the French monarch, including his pe...

Luxor  ( pron.:   / ˈ l ʌ k . s ɔr /  or  / ˈ l ʊ k . s ɔr / ; [3]   Arabic :  الأقصر ‎  al-Uqṣur  ;  Egyptian Arabic :  Loʔṣor    IPA:  [ˈloʔsˤoɾ] ;  Saidi Arabic : Logṣor    [ˈloɡsˤor] ) is a city in Upper (southern)  Egypt  and the capital of  Luxor Governorate . The population numbers 487,896 (2010 estimate), [2]  with an area of approximately 416 square kilometres (161 sq mi). [1]  As the site of the Ancient Egyptian  city of  Thebes , [4]  Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open air museum", as the ruins of the  temple  complexes at  Karnak  and  Luxor  stand within the modern city. Immediately opposite, across the  River Nile , lie the monuments, temples and tombs on the West Bank  Necropolis , which include the  Valley of the Kings  and  Valley of the Queens . Thousand...

Giza  (sometimes spelt  Gizah  ;  Coptic :  ⲅⲓⲍⲁ   Giza  ;  Egyptian Arabic :  الجيزة   el-Gīza  ), is the third largest city in  Egypt . It is located on the west bank of the  Nile , some 20 km (12.43 mi) southwest of central  Cairo . Along with  Shubra El-Kheima ,  Cairo  and  Helwan , the four cities form the Province of  Greater Cairo  metropolis. The city of Giza is the capital of the  Giza Governorate , and is located near the northeast border of this governorate in coordinates. It is located right on the banks of the  River Nile . The city's population was 2,681,863 in the 2006 national census, while the governorate had 6,272,571 at the same census. Its large population made it  the world's second largest suburb  in 2006, tied with  Incheon , South Korea and  Quezon City , Philippines, second only to  Yokohama , Japan. Giza is most famous as th...

Alexandria  ( اسكندريه ,  pronounced  [eskendeˈrejjæ]  in  Egyptian Arabic ) [ see other names ]  is the second largest city in  Egypt , with a population of 4.1 million, extending about 32 km (20 mi) along the coast of the  Mediterranean Sea  in the north central part of the country. It is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. Alexandria is Egypt's largest seaport, serving approximately 80% of Egypt's imports and exports. It is an important industrial center because of its  natural gas  and  oil pipelines  from  Suez . Alexandria is also an important tourist resort.

Cairo  ( pron.:   / ˈ k aɪ r oʊ /   kye -roh  );  Arabic :  القاهرة ‎; is the capital of  Egypt  and the largest city in the  Arab world  and  Africa . Its  metropolitan area  is the  16th largest in the world . Located near the  Nile Delta , [1] [2]  it was founded in 969 AD. Nicknamed "the city of a thousand  minarets " for its preponderance of  Islamic architecture , Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life. Cairo was founded by the  Fatimid dynasty  in the 10th century AD, but the land composing the present-day city was the site of national capitals whose remnants remain visible in parts of Old Cairo . Cairo is also associated with  Ancient Egypt  as it is close to the ancient cities of  Memphis ,  Giza  and  Fustat which are near the  Great Sphinx  and the  pyramids of Giza .