The Mediterranean Cruise Directory Egypt is “Misr” in Arabic. It occupies the northeastern corner of Africa, and is connected to Asia by the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt is bordered by Libya on the west, Sudan on the south, Israel on the east, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. Egypt has a surface area of 386,662 square miles, approximately the same size as Texas. The population of Egypt is about 75 million. Cairo, Egypt's capital city, has a population of more than 17 million. This great metropolis is the meeting place of Africa, the Arab world, Europe and Asia. Cairo is the most important city in the country and is the political, cultural, and economic center. The oldest part of Cairo lies in the vicinity of the Khan El Khalili Bazaar and Al Azhar Mosque. The modern part of Cairo was built by a descendant of Mohamed Ali, in the 19th century.  Today a sprawling city, with its ever expanding suburbs, surrounds this historic core.  The most famous mosque, the Mohamed Ali Mosque, was built in Cairo in his memory. Cairo is known as the city of a thousand minarets due to the profusion of mosques. In approximately 3000 B.C., a civilization emerged on the banks of the River Nile. It reached a stage of development and sophistication that none of its contemporaries surpassed. The ancient Egyptians' ability to organize society, keep careful records, and maintain the continuity and advancement of their civilization almost without interruption for 30 centuries set them apart from all other civilizations. A land of motion within the stillness of centuries, the silent felucca sails in contrast to the chaos and cacophony along the Nile. Among today's monuments are the world's largest textile mill, one of the highest dams, and the largest manmade lake. Yet, all the noises of construction, cries of street vendors, even the braying of donkeys, in ever-expanding Cairo are absorbed by the eternal quiet of the deserts. Egypt is a country with many secrets tied to its past. It is an explorer's land, with places to find treasures such as antiquities, gold or jewels. It is a place to see palaces and bazaars, where the real and the reproduced can be considered. It is a land where flowers bloom in the desert and in the underwater gardens. For those who can “drink the water of the Nile,” the rewards are magnificent.

PM calls for national pride in City Gate project (Times of Malta)
The government is forging ahead with the idea of moving Parliament to the old Opera House in Valletta in a project that should see the theatre and City Gate rebuilt by world-famous Italian architect Renzo Piano.

Russian ships to Venezuela in show of power (AP via Yahoo! News)
The voyage of the cruiser Peter the Great, scheduled to arrive in Venezuela next week with a squadron of other Russian warships, was meant to showcase the Kremlin's ability to project naval power abroad and reassert its claim to great power status.

Russian ships to Venezuela in show of power (The Charlotte Observer)
(By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press Writer) The voyage of the cruiser Peter the Great, scheduled to arrive in Venezuela next week with a squadron of other Russian warships, was meant to showcase the Kremlin's ability to project naval power abroad and reassert its claim to great power status. But the arrival of the 24,000-ton nuclear-powered vessel and its escorts may mark the end of an era ...

Russian ships to Venezuela in show of power (The State)
The voyage of the cruiser Peter the Great, scheduled to arrive in Venezuela next week with a squadron of other Russian warships, was meant to showcase the Kremlin's ability to project naval power abroad and reassert its claim to great power status. But the arrival of the 24,000-ton nuclear-powered vessel and its escorts may mark the end of an era of rising ambitions for the Russian navy, not its ...

Russian ships to Venezuela in show of power (Las Vegas Sun)
Fri, Nov 21, 2008 (9:51 a.m.) The voyage of the cruiser Peter the Great, scheduled to arrive in Venezuela next week with a squadron of other Russian warships, was meant to showcase the Kremlin's ability to project naval power abroad and reassert its claim to great power status.

Off Africa's coast, pirates 'out of control' (Tucson Citizen)
They come out of the darkness in the waters off the coast of East Africa, zooming up in speedboats to the sides of massive cargo ships, armed with grappling hooks, AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades.

Examine the World Merchant Shipping Market Brief (Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance)
NEW YORK----Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report related to the Transportation industry is available in its catalogue.

High Growth Forecasted for the World Travel and Leisure Market Brief (Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance)
NEW YORK----Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report related to the Tourism industry is available in its catalogue.

Together (11/17/08) (Anchorage Daily News)
NOV. 12, 1983

Libya: Country Opens Door to Tourists (AllAfrica.com)
From thousands of kilometres of pristine Mediterranean coastline, to sweeping desert sand dunes and ancient ruins that rival Greece and Italy, Libya has a lot to offer travellers looking for a rare off-the-beaten path destination but obstacles remain.