Thursday, June 14, 2012

Port Said (1859)

Port Said, Egypt, sits in a unique place. It is at the northern end of the Suez Canal, the northeast corner of the Nile Delta, and the northeast point of the continent of Africa.

Port Said is located on the Mediterranean Sea at the northern end of the Suez Canal. It is 91 miles (146 km) north of the city of Suez. Suez lies on the Red Sea at the southern end of the Canal.

Port Said is a very young city. It was named after Muhammad Said Pasha (1822-1863) who ruled Egypt from 1854 until his death. Said was the ruler who gave permission and land to Ferdinand de Lesseps to build the Suez Canal. The city is located at the point where construction of the canal began. Construction of both city and canal began in 1859. Today over 600,000 people live in Port Said.

The city is also at the northeast corner of the Nile Delta. At the northwest corner of the Nile Delta lies the city of Alexandria. Following the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea, Alexandria is 163 miles (260 km) west of Port Said. At the southern corner of the Nile Delta lies Cairo. Cairo is 104 miles (168 km) southwest of Port Said.

The Suez Canal forms one boundary between the continents of Asia and Africa. Port Said is only a 10-minute ferry ride west of Asia.

Copyright (c) 2012 by Steven Farsaci. All rights reserved. Fair use encouraged.