Planned seaside resort

There is something distinctly Soviet about the seaside resorts being thrown up near Algiers. The buildings are so big, boxy and stark for one thing. The 50,000 Chinese workers imported to throw up new developments as fast and cheaply as possible may have something to do with this. The layouts are so determinedly calculated, it's almost mathematical...so many cheaper units, a few super deluxe villas.. Massive palm tree nurseries are growing on the roadsides leading from the capital to the beaches -- undoubtedly the future lush tropical plantings for future exotic Mediterranean resorts.

At the beach near the Safir Mazafran Hotel we found this odd public art. The plan calling for a giant boiling mass of dolphins, eels and rays atop an asparagus stalk appears not to have worked out in the execution.

It is always interesting when human plans are put into operation. Take those Chinese workers, for example. It seems that while they are indeed speedy and willing to work for low wages, they have had another unintended impact on the Algerian economy. They are marrying Algerian women and taking over the retail trade in the city. Their shops line the streets of some neighborhoods.