Welcome to Algeria Vol.1 - ALGIERS | Exploring the Kasbah & attending a wedding!

It's 3 am. We're in a highway-side hotel. We're going to go to the airport now. We're exhausted. We've made it! Join us as we explore a capital city of emerging cultures, bustling streets, chaotic traffic, winding alleyways and vibrant markets. The first order of business was to figure out how to travel within the country. With next to no information available online, we landed not knowing if our loose itinerary for the rest of the trip was even possible. But a quick trip to the main bus station confirmed that local buses are frequent and provide an easy and affordable route to get on. It was super easy, cheap. They're so nice here. Everyone's really helpful. Yeah, so this is the main station of Algiers, so from here all the buses go everywhere. People are talking to us while we're doing this, so I'm a bit distracted. But yeah, everyone's really nice. And now we're going to go to the center. Let's figure this out. We don't tend to visit popular touristic sites when exploring a city, opting instead for merging into the street life it offers. In Algiers, we focused our limited time in looking for artisanal shops, markets and, of course, yummy food to try. Did you just order the pizza? It was actually quite okay. The hardest thing here is finding vegan food because they put meat in absolutely everything. And they don't understand the concept. They were fully on board. And the pizzas look good, so let's see how it comes. We got our drink, local stuff. This is like a lemony sweet gas water. I don't know what to say. This I still don't know what it is. This is like a coca-cola with artificial banana flavoring. It's pretty good. Pizza was amazing. It was so good. The pizza and the drinks only cost us 250 dinar, which is like a bit more than a euro. The old city, also known as the Casbah, is the heart of the capital, made up of a maze of winding narrow streets, crumbling buildings and hidden courtyards. There's so much to see. There are buildings everywhere. It is recommended to come with a guide, mostly to not get lost and to learn about the area. But then once you've come, you feel safe. It's really interesting. It's nice to walk around. It's not big either. You cannot really get lost and the people are super friendly. Our main reason for visiting Algeria was attending the wedding celebrations of our dear friends Cree and Agi. Part of this was participating in the henna ceremony, a pre-wedding ritual that symbolizes the bride's transition to womanhood and is meant to bless the upcoming marriage. Overlooking the sparkling Mediterranean Sea and surrounded by family, friends and lots of delicious food, we witnessed as the bride's and groom's hands were decorated using henna paint. Day two in Algeria. We had a really nice time yesterday evening, mostly with wedding celebrations and we didn't record much. No, we had a great dinner. Yeah, we're new to this. It's a bit awkward still. And also we wanted to respect the privacy of the people. Kind of hard to film without filming everyone. Today we're going on a tour of the Casbah in the morning, which we're very excited about and we'll for sure show you. And then this evening is the main wedding celebrations. Can't wait. Let's do this. Yeah. The Casbah of Algiers is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that dates back to the 10th century. In the past, it served as the political and administrative center of Algiers and was the residence of the ruling powers. The district is characterized by narrow winding streets and alleys, whitewashed buildings and traditional Moorish architecture. It is home to numerous historic buildings and landmarks, many of which are currently undergoing restoration. Exploring these monuments with a local guide allowed us to learn more about the history and culture of the Casbah. Once it was fully surrounded by defensive walls, but its confines were mostly destroyed by the French occupiers when they colonized Algeria, along with one-third of the Casbah. Today, this has resulted in the tranquil alleys merging directly with the lively European style blocks and boulevards that surround it. Algiers is a hectic metropolis whose cityscape bears witness to its tumultuous past. Nestled along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, the city boasts a menage of different architectural styles, ranging from expansive French-built boulevards to stark socialist era monuments and an enduring Islamic core overlooking newer developments. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of Algiers, visitors are treated to a unique blend of history, culture and care. We tried to be good explorers, but it's so hot and we're so tired. I can't believe it's this hot so late into October, like really. I don't know how many degrees it is during the day. I'll check now and I'll put it on the screen, but it's really warm. So yeah, we walked around for a little bit, tried to have like a couple of drinks to recover energy and then we just gave up and have come back to lay down for a bit. Perhaps maybe we take a good nap now and then we'll have energy this afternoon to leave the house again. Trial two of getting out into the world. We're actually quite knackered, but we took a nap and now we're out again and the temperature is much better. Of course, it's less oppressive, the heat. It's the end of October and it's still like 30-35 degrees outside. It's quite warm. Right now, good. So let's see what we see. Just bought dates and then we got some to try, so let's see if they're good. We've been told they're the best, so they're so good. Very sweet. Very nice. Although the Algerian government has launched some fragmented restoration projects aimed at preserving the district's architectural heritage and improving the living conditions of its residents, the maintenance and rehabilitation of the Kasbah remains a huge challenge. High costs and limited funding have led many buildings to be left in disrepair. It also doesn't help that most of the local knowledge and craftsmanship of traditional building techniques has been lost. The difficult conditions endured by some of its residents accompanied by the crumbling remains littering many of the streets can make parts of the Kasbah a confronting sight to behold. It is raw, compelling and at the same time ordinary. We hope that this fascinating part of the city will soon be given the attention and care it deserves, as it is bursting with potential. We're gonna be very sad to leave. There's so much more we wish we would have seen, but hopefully we get to come back in the future. Inshallah. And then it was time to get ready for the wedding celebrations. An Algerian wedding is a festive occasion that typically lasts for several days and involves a variety of rituals. Our friends opted to host a grand feast with traditional Algerian food and live music. Christina, the bride, changed into several traditional dresses throughout the evening, each one symbolizing and representing different sides of her new Algerian family, all whilst we danced the night away. It was wonderful. We made it through the wedding. After a long day of exploring, we're quite tired, but yeah, we're having a really good time. Heavily underdressed. Heavily underdressed. I'm embarrassed. I feel the embarrassment inside. It's the way it is. We didn't have more space. No, we're backpacking to the country, so it's kind of difficult to bring a wedding outfit. Although other people seem to have managed. Yeah, like we didn't. I'm walking on sneakers. I'm walking on flip-flops. Wait, wait, we can show the outfit. Wait, do the outfit check. Yeah, no jewelry, nothing, no makeup, and then Warner. I just look like a hobo. No, you look good. It's not wedding appropriate. It's not appropriate for a wedding, that's for sure. But we're having fun. Yeah, once again. So it's 3 30 a.m. We're finally back at the hotel. It was really fun. I mean, we were not the last ones there. We decided to come back earlier because we were tired after a very long day, but it was really fun. The live music was fantastic. There was such a variety of people and just enjoying themselves together. And Kri, my friend, who was so gorgeous with all her outfits. I can't wait to go over the clips and see what we captured. But yeah, it was really good. Now it's time to go to bed.