 ALGERIAal Djazair - Democratic and Popular Algerian Republic Algiers - capital city
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- Algeria is a country of northwestern Africa bordering on the Mediterranean sea. It gained its independence from France in 1962. The earliest inhabitants of Algeria were Berbers. Berber dynasties continued through the introduction of Islam until the Ottomans gained control in the 16th century. France annexed Algeria in 1830 and ruled it until Algerian nationalists won independence. (Encarta Encyclopedia)
- Algiers, the capital city, was founded in the 10th century by the Romans and remains one of the most exotic destinations on the planet. Algeria is the second largest country in Africa. Its main population centers are located along the Mediterranean Sea coastline.(Worldatlas.com)
Algeria
Once a popular holiday destination on a par with neighbouring Morocco, Algeria's tourist industry all but disappeared when bitter civil war broke out in 1992. After a decade of conflict the situation improved slightly, and some access to the southern Sahara region has been possible in the last couple of years. However, independent travel without a vehicle is almost nonexistent, and after the tourist abductions of 2003 self-drive travellers need to be very aware of the risks involved.
This dearth of visitors is a great shame, as Algeria is one of the most fascinating countries in North Africa. In the dramatic Unesco-listed Tassili N'Ajjer and Hoggar regions, near the town of Tamanrasset, tribal culture is very much alive, and the day-to-day hassle common to many Arab countries is conspicuously absent. Algiers contains a livid mix of tradition and modernism, its colonial past maintaining a presence. Timimoun embodies the storybook oasis town of the Sahara, and the welcoming town of In Salah is split in two by a creeping sand dune. (Lonelyplanet.com)
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