SIWA SHALI

Shali is an ancient city located in the heart of Siwa Oasis, Built from thousands of years ago by the people in Siwa in a high spot that uncovers the whole oasis to notice any coming aggressor; As in the 12th century in the era of the Roman Empire, the situation was a mess and all the Arabic tribes in the western desert were attacking each other for food and water from the wells. That made the people of Siwa build this fortress to protect them and to be able to continue living their life in peace.

The fortress is considered one of the most visited destinations in Egypt, people from all over the world travel curiously to see that place and that's because of it's brilliant architecture and to also visit Amun Temple; which held in ancient times a huge importance for both Egyptians and Greek Romans. The fortress was built from a substance that is basically a mixture of Mud and Salt, when it dries, it gives the same hardness as cement. At first, it had only one door that lies in the wall that surrounds the city,it was called (Enshal), which means the City door in Siwi ( the language of the local , they have special language that they inherited from their ancestors, they talk with each other with it and kids learn Arabic only when they go to schools), Then after one century they built another door in the wall in the South and it was called ( Athrat) which means the New door, and after another century they build a new door for women, it was called ( Kadoha). The word Shali itself means ( City) and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities took care of it in cooperation with NGOs interested in preserving the environment and heritage, with the support of the European Union, The restoration work continued for 5 years and after that it was opened again in the presence of Egyptian Ministers ,European Union countries and Senior Officials in Egypt. The restoration work included the walls that collapsed because of Erosion over the years and passages between buildings inside the castle and the buildings itself.

There's also a natural resort inside the fortress open for tourists and it is built on an environmental system, with the same design of rooms ancient Siwians used to live in.