Sunday, September 2, 2012

THE AL-ALEMEIN WAR MUSEUM , Museum in egypt

THE AL-ALEMEIN WAR MUSEUM , museum in egypt  ,,
 The Al-Alemein War Museum is located 105 kilometers west of Alexandria and about five kilometers west of the Marina resort. It is placed within the military areas of El Alumni. The museum was opened in the year 1956 during the presidency of Gamal Abdel Nasser as a memorial of the The Battle of Al-Alamein between the British and the Germans in 1942 and the battles that took place in South Africa during the Second World War. The Al-Alemein War Museum was renewed and reopened in 1992 during the presidency of Mubarak. The museum is one of the best place to visit in order to achieve an understanding of Story of World War II in Egypt.
Description THE AL-ALEMEIN WAR MUSEUM , Museum in egypt 

The Al-Alemein Museum is a complete illustration of the story of World War II in North Africa, containing records of all the events. Even before entering the Museum proper, in the garden are huge army tanks and various larger weapons. A visitor can view this heavy equipment from World War II, go inside a tank or an army car, or even jump up and sit atop a tank. The garden has about fifteen large pieces used by different forces in the Battle of Al-Alemein.
 
Inside the museum there are five halls. Each of them is dedicated to one of the four countries involved in the war, which include Great Britain, Italy, Germany, and Egypt. The museum also has a mixed hall that contains items from the war generally.
 The Egyptian Hall in THE AL-ALEMEIN WAR MUSEUM , Museum in egypt 
 The Egyptian hall shows how Egypt helped the allies during the war. There are statues of Egyptian soldiers who helped the British troops in the war. A large statue of king Farouk is on display as he was the ruler of Egypt at the time. He was always criticized for his lavish life as he expended a lot of money on his personal pleasure without considering the people of Egypt and their sufferings during the war. The left wall of the hall is covered with a large portrait that shows a part of the Al-Alemein battle and how the Germans were defeated. The other walls are covered with photographed and painted pictures illustrating the help of the Egyptians to the Allies in the War.
 
The British Hall

The hall mainly concentrates on the British troops and how they were able to defeat the Italians and then the Germans in North Africa. Uniforms of the British army during World War II are on display with different statues of soldiers doing different activities in the war time. The British role and their strategy during the war are on displayed in the form of stories and maps shown on the wall. The weapons the British used are displayed in this hall as well. However, calling this the British Hall is a bit misleading, as their efforts were much aided by those of the Australians. Hence, it is more of a commonwealth hall.

The Italian Hall

The Italian Hall contains, just like the other halls, some statues of Italian soldiers wearing their uniform and participating in the war. Some pictures are displayed on the walls to show how the Italians suffered from the defeat in North Africa.

The German Hall

The German Hall displays the role of the German army in the battle of El Alamin and in the other battles of North Africa during World War ll. Many different German weapons are displayed in this hall as well. Pictures of Rommel and Hitler are shown on the walls beside notes that show why the Germans lost the battle.at Al Alemein.

The Mixed Hall


The most interesting hall of the museum in the Museum is the Mixed Hall, because it shows items from all the sides involved in the war. Small models in the middle of the hall demonstrate the important battles between the British and the Italian in the beginning, and the British and the German afterwards. The hall has one part that tells the history of each country and why they were involved in the war. Real photographed pictures of the battle are shown on the walls with information and statistics about each participant.

This museum is a must see for any weapons or history fan. It tells the story of one of the most important battles during World War ll, and it was built in the exact place where the battle took place.
 Video THE AL-ALEMEIN WAR MUSEUM 

 
 These are some of the vehicles dating back to El Alamein battle of WW2 displayed at the museum on the north coast west of Alexandria

AHMED SHAWKI MUSEUM , cairo , egypt , museusms in egypt

AHMED SHAWKI MUSEUM , cairo , egypt , museusms in egypt .......
 museum is now envisaged as a centre of comprehersive and extensive cultural dissemination that aims at cultivating man's feelings and stimulating creativity in all fields. A museum can, therefore, be a melting pot, providing a tasteful and pleasant cultural mix, that reflects the unity and integrity of arts. Poet - Laureate Ahmed Shawki's Museum, originally named by the poet " Karmat Ibn Hani'e ( Ibn Hani'e's vineyard), was the first of a series of museums to be yet renovated.
Ahmed shawki :
Shawki named his house after Ibn Hani Al Abbasi, commonly known as Abu Nuwwas, a famous Abbasite poet ( 756-814 AD). Shawki was highly infatuated with this great poet, whose real talent and rich achievements had not been duly evaluated and rather unjustly criticized. He was commonly, but not fairly, portrayed as a wanton and frivolous legendary figure. By naming his house after Ibn Hani, Shawki had in mind to commemorate, redress and do justice to this great early poet.
Shawki's New Karma :
        
After his return home from exile, he no longer felt like living in El Matariya, although his house had remained intact, even unaffected throughout the period of exile. Shawki believed that his house had remained safe and intact on account of a signboard hanging on the entrance bearing the phrase " There is no god but Allah and Mohammed is the Messenger of Allah. "

For this reason, when he left his old house in El Matariya, he ensured that the signboard was relocated to the entrance of his new house in Giza.

In selecting Giza as a location for his new Karma, Shawki had good reasons. In his survey of other suburbs of Cairo, he found out that Zamalek was too low-lying. Heliopolis was quiet, healthy and well-served by means of transport but too far. Qasr El Doobara was too
congested. As to Giza, there were many important considerations to justify selection. First, Giza overlooks the River Nile, which Shawki adored and loved to live nearby. During his residence in EL Matariya, Shawki aquired a dahabiya (a long light-draft houseboat) on the Nile so as to be able to enjoy the view of the river.Shawki often cited a line of poetry by a Fatimide poet, recommending residence nearby the Nile: Albeit living in Egypt but not by the side.
Description ahmed shawki house :

In the house garden, there was a large number of domestic animals such as deer, turtles, peakcocks and parrots. There was also a basin, where a crocodile was kept. The reptile was brought, at the request of Shawki's son, by an officer friend of the poet working in Sudan.

In view of Shawki's close friendship with the Khedive , the latter often referred needy persons asking for help to Shawki. He welcomed them and spent much of his time and money meeting their needs.

The house was also honoured with the visit of the Khedive and his Austrian wife on the occasion of the wedding of Ahmed Shawki's daughter.

With the outbreak of World War I, Britain proclaimed Egypt a British protectorate. Khedive Abbas, who was in a visit to Turkey was dethroned and banned from entry into Egypt. He was then replaced by Sultan Hussein Kamel as Khedive of Egypt.

As a result of this reshuffle, Shawki was exiled abroad. He chose to take Spain as a place of exile. Throughout the years of the war, he lived with his family in Barcelon, suffering from the pains of estrangement and expatriation from home. In the poems composed during this
period, he gave immortal expression of his patriotic feeling and nostalgia for his home country. His poetry, mainly the Andalusian nostalgic poems, expressing the bitterness of exile and passionate love of and yearning for his home country still survive as rare and immortal masterpieces of poetry.

Early in 1920, Shawki came back home from exile and was warmly and passionately welcomed by masses of the people in Alexandria and then in Cairo. He was strongly impressed by that welcome.