After Rome and Constantinople, Alexandria was considered the third-most important

seat of Christianity in the world. The Pope of Alexandria was second only to the
bishop of Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire until 430. The Church of Alexandria
had jurisdiction over most of the continent of Africa. After the Council of
Chalcedon in AD 451, the Church of Alexandria was split between the Miaphysites and
the Melkites. The Miaphysites went on to constitute what is known today as the
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. The Melkites went on to constitute what is
known today as the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria. In the 19th century,
Catholic and Protestant missionaries converted some of the adherents of the
Orthodox churches to their respective faiths.

Today, the Patriarchal seat of the Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church is Saint Mark
Cathedral in Ramleh. The most important Coptic Orthodox churches in Alexandria
include Pope Cyril I Church in Cleopatra, Saint Georges Church in Sporting, Saint
Mark & Pope Peter I Church in Sidi Bishr, Saint Mary Church in Assafra, Saint Mary
Church in Gianaclis, Saint Mina Church in Fleming, Saint Mina Church in Mandara and
Saint Takla Haymanot's Church in Ibrahimeya.

The most important Eastern Orthodox churches in Alexandria are Agioi Anárgyroi
Church, Church of the Annunciation, Saint Anthony Church, Archangels Gabriel &
Michael Church, Taxiarchon Church, Saint Catherine Church, Cathedral of the
Dormition in Mansheya, Church of the Dormition, Prophet Elijah Church, Saint George
Church, Saint Joseph Church in Fleming, Saint Joseph of Arimathea Church, Saint
Mark & Saint Nektarios Chapel in Ramleh, Saint Nicholas Church, Saint Paraskevi
Church, Saint Sava Cathedral in Ramleh, Saint Theodore Chapel and the Russian
church of Saint Alexander Nevsky in Alexandria, which serves the Russian speaking
community in the city.

The Apostolic Vicariate of Alexandria in Egypt-Heliopolis-Port Said has

jurisdiction over all Latin Church Catholics in Egypt. Member churches include
Saint Catherine Church in Mansheya and Church of the Jesuits in Cleopatra. The city
is also the nominal see of the Melkite Greek Catholic titular Patriarchate of
Alexandria (generally vested in its leading Patriarch of Antioch) and the actual
cathedral see of its Patriarchal territory of Egypt, Sudan and South Sudan, which
uses the Byzantine Rite, and the nominal see of the Armenian Catholic Eparchy of
Alexandria (for all Egypt and Sudan, whose actual cathedral is in Cairo), a
suffragan of the Armenian Catholic Patriarch of Cilicia, using the Armenian Rite.

The Saint Mark Church in Shatby, founded as part of Collège Saint Marc, is multi-
denominational and holds liturgies according to Latin Catholic, Coptic Catholic and
Coptic Orthodox rites.

In antiquity, Alexandria was a major center of the cosmopolitan religious movement

called Gnosticism (today mainly remembered as a Christian heresy).

Judaism

Jewish girls during Bat Mitzva in Alexandria

See also: History of the Jews in Egypt
Alexandria's once-flourishing Jewish community declined rapidly following the 1948
Arab–Israeli War, after which negative reactions towards Zionism among Egyptians
led to Jewish residents in the city, and elsewhere in Egypt, being perceived as
Zionist collaborators. Most Jewish residents of Egypt fled to the newly established
Israel, France, Brazil and other countries in the 1950s and 1960s. The community
once numbered 50,000 but is now estimated at below 50.[48] The most important
synagogue in Alexandria is the Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue.

Education
Colleges and universities
Collège Saint Marc
Alexandria has a number of higher education institutions. Alexandria University is
a public university that follows the Egyptian system of higher education. Many of
its faculties are internationally renowned, most notably its Faculty of Medicine &
Faculty of Engineering. In addition, the Egypt-Japan University of Science and
Technology in New Borg El Arab city is a research university set up in
collaboration between the Japanese and Egyptian governments in 2010. The Arab
Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport is a semi-private educational
institution that offers courses for high school, undergraduate level, and
postgraduate students. It is considered the most reputable university in Egypt
after the AUC American University in Cairo because of its worldwide recognition
from board of engineers at UK & ABET in US. Université Senghor is a private French
university that focuses on the teaching of humanities, politics and international
relations, which mainly recruits students from the African continent. Other
institutions of higher education in Alexandria include Alexandria Institute of
Technology (AIT) and Pharos University in Alexandria.

Schools

Lycée Français d'Alexandrie

Alexandria has a long history of foreign educational institutions. The first
foreign schools date to the early 19th century, when French missionaries began
establishing French charitable schools to educate the Egyptians. Today, the most
important French schools in Alexandria run by Catholic missionaries include Collège
de la Mère de Dieu, Collège Notre Dame de Sion, Collège Saint Marc, Ecoles des
Soeurs Franciscaines (four different schools), École Girard, École Saint Gabriel,
École Saint-Vincent de Paul, École Saint Joseph, École Sainte Catherine, and
Institution Sainte Jeanne-Antide. As a reaction to the establishment of French
religious institutions, a secular (laic) mission established Lycée el-Horreya,
which initially followed a French system of education, but is currently a public
school run by the Egyptian government. The only school in Alexandria that
completely follows the French educational system is Lycée Français d'Alexandrie
(École Champollion). It is usually frequented by the children of French expatriates
and diplomats in Alexandria. The Italian school is the Istituto "Don Bosco".

English schools in Alexandria are becoming the most popular. English-language

schools in the city include: Riada American School, Riada Language School,
Alexandria Language School, Future Language School, Future International Schools
(Future IGCSE, Future American School and Future German school), Alexandria
American School, British School of Alexandria, Egyptian American School, Pioneers
Language School, Princesses Girls' School, Sidi Gaber Language School, Taymour
English School, Sacred Heart Girls' School, Schutz American School, Victoria
College, El Manar Language School for Girls (previously called Scottish School for
Girls), Kawmeya Language School, El Nasr Boys' School (previously called British
Boys' School), and El Nasr Girls' College. There are only two German schools in
Alexandria which are Deutsche Schule der Borromärinnen (DSB of Saint Charles
Borromé) and Neue Deutsche Schule Alexandria, which is run by Frau Sally Hammam.

The Montessori educational system was first introduced in Alexandria in 2009 at

Alexandria Montessori.

The most notable public schools in Alexandria include El Abbassia High School and
Gamal Abdel Nasser High School.

Women
[icon]
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2019)
Circa the 1890s, twice the percentage of women in Alexandria knew how to read
compared to the same percentage in Cairo. As a result, specialist women's
publications like al-Fatāh by Hind Nawal, the country's first women's' journal,
appeared.[49]

Transport
Airports

Borg El Arab International Airport

The city's principal airport is currently Borg El Arab Airport, which is located
about 25 km (16 mi) away from the city center.

From late 2011, El Nouzha Airport (Alexandria International Airport) was to be

closed to commercial operations for two years as it underwent expansion, with all
airlines operating out of Borg El Arab Airport from then onwards, where a brand new
terminal was completed there in February 2010.[50] In 2017, the government
announced that Alexandria International Airport will shut down permanently for
operational reasons.

Port
Main article: Alexandria Port

Alexandria port
Alexandria has four ports; namely the Western Port, which is the main port of the
country that handles about 60% of the country's exports and imports, Dekhela Port
west of the Western Port, the Eastern Port which is a yachting harbor, and Abu Qir
Port at the northern east of the governorate. It is a commercial port for general
cargo and phosphates.

Highways
International Coastal Road (Mersa Matruh – Alexandria – Port Said)
Cairo–Alexandria Desert Road (Alexandria – Cairo – 220 km (137 mi), 6–8 lanes)
Cairo-Alexandria Agriculture Road (Alexandria – Cairo)
Mehwar El Ta'meer – (Alexandria – Borg El Arab)
Rail

Misr Railway Station

Alexandria's intracity commuter rail system extends from Misr Station (Alexandria's
primary intercity railway station) to Abu Qir, parallel to the tram line. The
commuter line's locomotives operate on diesel, as opposed to the overhead-electric
tram.

Alexandria plays host to two intercity railway stations: the aforementioned Misr
Station (in the older Manshia district in the western part of the city) and Sidi
Gaber railway station (in the district of Sidi Gaber in the center of the eastern
expansion in which most Alexandrines reside), both of which also serve the commuter
rail line. Intercity passenger service is operated by Egyptian National Railways.

Trams
Main article: Trams in Alexandria

An Alexandria tram
An extensive tramway network was built in 1860 and is the oldest in Africa. The
network begins at the El Raml district in the west and ends in the Victoria
district in the east. Most of the vehicles are blue in color. Some smaller yellow-
colored vehicles have further routes beyond the two main endpoints. The tram routes
have one of four numbers: 1, 2, 5, and 6. All four start at El Raml, but only two
(1 and 2) reach Victoria. There are two converging and diverging points. The first
starts at Bolkly (Isis) and ends at San Stefano. The other begins at Sporting and
ends at Mostafa Kamel. Route 5 starts at San Stefano and takes the inner route to
Bolkly. Route 6 starts at Sidi Gaber El Sheikh in the outer route between Sporting
and Mustafa Kamel. Route 1 takes the inner route between San Stefano and Bolkly and
the outer route between Sporting and Mustafa Kamel. Route 2 takes the route
opposite to Route 1 in both these areas. The tram fares are 50 piastres (0.50
pounds), and 100 piastres (1.00 pounds) for the middle car. Some trams (that date
back the 30s) charge a pound. The tram is considered the cheapest method of public
transport. A café operates in the second floor of the first car of tram 1 (a women-
only car) which costs 5 L.E per person, also offering a WiFi service. A luxury
light blue tram car operates from San Stefano to Ras El Tin, with free WiFi and
movies and songs played inside for 5 L.E per ticket.

Stations:

Baccos – Victoria (Number 1)

Al Seyouf
Sidi Beshr
El Saraya
Laurent Louran
Tharwat
San Stefano
Gianaklis
Schutz
Safar
Abou Shabana (Baccos)
Al Karnak (Fleming)
Al Wezara (The Ministry)
Isis Bolkly Bulkley
Roushdy
Mohammed Mahfouz
Mustafa Kamil
Sidi Gaber Al-Sheikh
Cleopatra Hammamat (Cleopatra Baths)
Cleopatra El Soghra
El Reyada El Kobra (Sporting El Kobra)
El Reyada El Soghra (Sporting Al Soghra)
Al Ibrahimiyya
El Moaskar (Camp Caesar)
Al Gamaa (The University)
Al Shatby
El Shobban El Moslemin
El Shahid Moustafa Ziean
Hassan Rasim (Azarita)
Gamea' Ibrahim (Mosque of Ibrahim)
Mahattet Al Ramleh (Ramlh Station)
Route 2 serves:

El Nasr – Victoria (Number 2)

Al Seyouf
Sidi Beshr
El Saraya
Louran
Tharwat
San Stefano
Kasr El Safa (Zizini Al Safa Palace)
Al Fonoun Al Gamella (The Fine Arts)
Ramsis (Glym or Gleem)
El Bostan (Saba Pasha)
Al Hedaya (The Guidance)
Isis Bolkly
Roushdy
Mohammed Mahfouz
Mustafa Kamil
Sidi Gaber El Mahata (Railway station)
Cleopatra (Zananere)
El Reyada El Kobra (Sporting El Kobra)
El Reyada El Soghra (Sporting Al Soghra)
Al Ibrahimiyya
El Moaskar (Camp Chezar)
Al Gamaa (The University)
Al Shatby
El Shobban El Moslemin
El Shahid Moustafa Ziean
Hassan Rasim (Azarita)
Gamea' Ibrahim (Mosque of Ibrahim)
Mahattet Al Ramlh (Ramlh Station)
Metro
Construction of the Alexandria Metro is due to begin in 2020 at a cost of $1.05
billion.[51]

Taxis and minibuses

See also: Taxicabs by country § Egypt
Taxis in Alexandria sport a yellow-and-black livery and are widely available. While
Egyptian law requires all cabs to carry meters, these generally do not work and
fares must be negotiated with the driver on either departure or arrival.

File:Everyday routine.webm
Share taxis in Alexandria
The minibus share taxi system, or mashrū' operates along well-known traffic
arteries. The routes can be identified by both their endpoints and the route
between them:

Corniche routes:
El Mandara – Bahari
El Mandara – El Mansheya
Asafra – Bahari
Asafra – El Mansheya
El Sa'aa – El Mansheya
Abu Qir routes:
El Mandara – El Mahata (lit. "the Station", i.e. Misr Railway Station)
Abu Qir – El Mahata
Victoria – El Mahata
El Mandara – Victoria
Interior routes:
Cabo – Bahari
El Mansheya – El Awayid
El Mansheya – El Maw'af El Gedid (the New Bus Station)
Hadara – El Mahata
The route is generally written in Arabic on the side of the vehicle, although some
drivers change their route without changing the paint. Some drivers also drive only
a segment of a route rather than the whole path; such drivers generally stop at a
point known as a major hub of the transportation system (for example, Victoria) to
allow riders to transfer to another car or to another mode of transport.

Fare is generally L.E. 3.00 to travel the whole route. Shorter trips may have a
lower fare, depending on the driver and the length of the trip.