CAIRO — The ancient village of Shali stands as a formidable fortress in the middle of the Siwa oasis in Egypt's Western Desert. Built in the 13th century to protect the inhabitants of this remote strategic location 340 miles west of Cairo, Shali today is on the verge of rebirth as a destination for ecological tourism.
After seven centuries of habitation, a three-day wave of heavy rain in 1926 severely damaged the buildings of the village, which had been constructed from a mix of salt, rock and clay called “kershef.” As a result, most residents were forced to relocate outside the village. Over the decades, the village began to be referred to as the “City of Ghosts,” due to only a few of its buildings being used, as remains the case today.
Shali's ruins are one of the main draws in Siwa, attracting tourists as well as archaeologists. In mid-October, the Egyptian government announced a plan to preserve what remains of Shali and to restore some of its buildings.
Emad Farid, an architect at Environment Quality International (EQI), the company overseeing implementation of the plan, explained to Al-Monitor that the project consists of rehabilitating the streets and the main wall around the village and restoring three houses to showcase different types of buildings. A study of Shali’s remnants involving input from residents will also be conducted.
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