Commonwealth Cemetery
This is a somber, moving monument to the thousands of Allied troops who lost their lives in Al Alamein. As you walk down to the cemetery from the parking lot, the first thing you'll find is the Alamein Memorial. On its walls are panels that commemorate the 8,500 soldiers and 3,000 airmen who died in the Middle East and whose graves are unknown. Passing through the memorial, you come to the cemetery. Rows of white stones set in the sand mark the bodies buried here, and to the southeast there's a large memorial to more than 600 soldiers whose bodies were cremated. There are 7,240 graves in the cemetery, of which 815 are not identified.
The cemetery is well maintained, and its simplicity, as well as the desert setting -- the wind whistling through the stones is about the only sound here -- underscore both the drama and the tragedy of the battles that were fought here. There are no stairs, but wheelchair access would require some assistance.
The site is not visible from the main road and lies in a depression 130km (81 miles) west of Alexandria. If you're driving, turn left at the intersection 81km (50 miles) from the beginning of the coastal highway (at the Cairo-Alexander road) onto the old coast road. The turnoff is supposed to be marked by a sign, but at the time of writing there was nothing there. There is a second intersection about 1km (2/3 mile) later where a World War II tank is set in the median. You can also turn left here and loop back. If you take the first left, the cemetery will be on your left after a few hundred meters.
This is a somber, moving monument to the thousands of Allied troops who lost their lives in Al Alamein. As you walk down to the cemetery from the parking lot, the first thing you'll find is the Alamein Memorial. On its walls are panels that commemorate the 8,500 soldiers and 3,000 airmen who died in the Middle East and whose graves are unknown. Passing through the memorial, you come to the cemetery. Rows of white stones set in the sand mark the bodies buried here, and to the southeast there's a large memorial to more than 600 soldiers whose bodies were cremated. There are 7,240 graves in the cemetery, of which 815 are not identified.
The cemetery is well maintained, and its simplicity, as well as the desert setting -- the wind whistling through the stones is about the only sound here -- underscore both the drama and the tragedy of the battles that were fought here. There are no stairs, but wheelchair access would require some assistance.
The site is not visible from the main road and lies in a depression 130km (81 miles) west of Alexandria. If you're driving, turn left at the intersection 81km (50 miles) from the beginning of the coastal highway (at the Cairo-Alexander road) onto the old coast road. The turnoff is supposed to be marked by a sign, but at the time of writing there was nothing there. There is a second intersection about 1km (2/3 mile) later where a World War II tank is set in the median. You can also turn left here and loop back. If you take the first left, the cemetery will be on your left after a few hundred meters.
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