Cairo

Egyptian Tourist Authority



The Egyptian capital stretches on both banks of the Nile Giza, on the west bank, and Cairo itself, on the eastern shore, are mixed in the same mega-cities. Insatiable, the largest city in Africa spider every day a little more than the sands of the desert and farmland. So that no one knows how many are the Cairene, if 10, 15 or 20 million.



Cairo
Cairo and surprised travelers on the Mamluks. Today, they are terrified of endless traffic jams, dust ubiquitous, continuous concert of horns, the frayed and urban masses who rush up to the walkways. Poorest neighborhoods bordering the richest, beggars, businessmen, late model Mercedes wagons swaying mix. But Cairo, unsinkable, unchanged, remains for the Egyptians the Victorious, the Mother of the world or simply Misr, Egypt's full name. For some it is decided to be lost, also the foreign traveler will discover the sweetness of their nights, lit by the neon green of the mosques, the warmth of its little popular cafes, the pleasure of wandering the streets and smiling humor Cairenes . After the first impact, also you will eventually say, as its inhabitants: "And yet, turn!"



The city center
On the eastern bank of the Nile, between Tahrir Square Ataba Ramses Station and extends the modern city, the city center today. Europeanized since the mid-nineteenth century, this neighborhood was built after the model Haussmann, the streets are wide and intersect at right angles, the buildings rococo stucco moldings represented, at the time, the height of modernity. Here you will also discover some jewels of the Belle Epoque architecture.



On the streets Talaat Harb, Qasr el-Nil Avenue and July 26, huge painted signs advertise the movies they put in theaters. On Thursday night, the Cairene rush through the streets of this luxurious shopping area. Textiles, clothing, shoes, but also cooperative stores (the famous Omar Effendi, the Samaritaine Egyptienne), excellent bakeries, fast food and fashion belly dance halls. Here tourists cross from Arab countries, farmers in Upper Egypt and Americana.Si University students left behind on major routes, discover, in amazing alleys, small restaurants and popular cafes, where men in suits and ties going to smoke his hookah, while sipping a tea sweetened agitación.En away from the heart of downtown, Tahrir Square (Liberation Square) summarizes the city itself, with its dazzling neon lights, permanent works urban congestion quite disproportionate and lacking in coherence. An oriental-style building houses the American University.



The metro, the fourth pyramid
Opened in 1987 in the presence of Jacques Chirac, then Prime Minister of France, the first Metro line (42.5 km. Long, 33 stations) gave a lot of work to the French engineers who conceived and carried out. But the result is there: more than a million passengers each day between El-Marg, the north and Helwan in the south, and a team that works perfectly. The first tranche of the second row, which links the two sides, was opened in 1996. Was extended to Giza in 2000, totaling 19 km in length and 18 stations.



The cradle of oriental dance
At the heart of Cairo at night, the dancer makes move all its glitter. What Westerners call "belly dance" is an institution here. Has your teachers who receive students worldwide, its star, luxury hotels and movie producers are disputed, and their designers, and musicians, and the avenue, that of the pyramids, where cabarets happen ... and its slums. Among the great dancers, Fifi Abdou, Lucy and Diana.



Islamic neighborhoods
Cairo, the "city of a thousand minarets", for Muslims do not have the sanctity of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem. But its streets and alleys hidden treasures of Islamic art, often damaged but shining in the eyes of you know where to look and admire. To access the Islamic monuments have to pay an entry. It is essential to dress appropriately: no shorts or sleeveless shirt. Are advised to wear a scarf for some mosques.



Bab el-Futuh to the Citadel
In neighborhoods of old Islamic Cairo find mosques, palaces, caravanserai and Koranic schools, unfortunately suffer from the infirmities of time. But of those neighborhoods, ultimately little tourist village life emerge plain Cairo: small offices, vendors and two monumental doors artesanos.Las Bab el-Futuh (door of Conquests) and Bab el-Nasr (Gate of Victories) mark the northern limit of Fatimid Cairo. Between the two, the remains of the fortifications that surrounded the town with a sense of invulnerability. Next door stands Victories el-Hakim Mosque, built at the beginning of the year one thousand. Frequented mainly by Shiite sect India, was restored with heavy concrete and marble in 1980, and has lost much of its simple beauty.



Before the street begins Muizz mosque el-Din Allah, surrounded by magnificent Islamic monuments. In one of the first streets to the left (lane Dahab), the Beit el-Suhaymi, former home of a shaykh of al-Azhar of the seventeenth century, is an example of the splendor of the houses of notables, from the Mamluk period. Then, the street Muizz el-Din Allah will take you to the mosque el-Aqmar (1125) and the Madrasa of Sultan Barkuk (XIV century). On the right, the mausoleum of Qalaun, built between 1248 and 1293, included a mosque madrassa (school), a hospital and a grave silence which seems reassuring, even today, magnified by the stained-glass windows.



Misr el-Qadima, the Coptic quarter
Located on the eastern bank of the Nile (right bank), compared to southern tip of Roda Island, is the oldest home town of the bank, still inhabited by Copts. You can go on the subway (direction Helwan, Mari Girgis station) or riverboat (output against the television building, north of Tahrir Square). Coming down the few steps leading to Misr el-Qadima and cross walls surrounding it, those of Roman Babylon, entering another world of silence and meditation. The streets leading to the convent of San Jorge, to the churches of St. Sergius and St. Barbara, and near the Christian cemetery, the Ben Ezra Synagogue, recently restored thanks to the obstinacy of the community judía.Las churches except the Church Suspended - hardly distinguishable from the surrounding houses: the stones, the same architecture, without external religious symbols.



The cries of street vendors
May not understand but contain all the poetry and humor of the Egyptian people. Here are some examples. To praise the sweetness of the grapes, "Oh! Sleeping on the vine while I kiss the bees! ":" Cane 7 meters cane oh! "Cries the clerk exaggerating much sugar (sugar cane does not exceed 5 meters in length). "When you run out of the cauldron, will he find more?" Asks the salesman wisely ful, eager to get rid as quickly as possible the contents of your pot.



The Khan el-Khalili
Is the domain of businessmen and tourists. In its narrow streets are bought and sold jewelry, copper, marquetry boxes, imitations pharaonic, semiprecious stones, carpets, blown glass tableware and other memorabilia. The shops still regroup corporation. Stroll, bargain or lost, and also to enjoy a tea or coffee in Fichawi karkade, inescapable place jan. Not many years ago, Naguib Mahfouz himself even came to rest under one of the large mirrors in the room that the passage of time has turned yellow.



The City of the Dead
At the foot of the cliff of Moqattam square kilometers stretching from the City of the Dead, undoubtedly one of the largest cemeteries in the world. We found graves of ordinary people, simple stone catafalque, and grand mausoleums where lie the emirs and sultans, some of them since the fifteenth century. The living are housed in small houses of two or three rooms, built during the nineteenth century to mourn the dead, according to a ritual that dates back to the pharaohs. When living in Cairo has become a gamble, the poorest have rushed to these cities, which had the advantage of offering space and quiet. Finally, residents of the City of the dead live better than the overcrowded slum of Imbaba Chubra.Los or Mamluk architecture buffs will visit in the north of the necropolis (the Khalifa), the two mausoleums of Qaitbay and Barkuk.



The islands of Gezira and Roda
Green and sheltered from the bustle of the capital of Gezira island in the middle of the Nile, is home to the residential district of Zamalek, sports clubs, the new Opera and the Tower of Cairo, overlooking the city from the top of its 185 meters. Home to many embassies, chosen for its tranquility for many foreign residents, Zamalek seems to live at their own pace. The visitor tired of traffic jams and crowds of poor neighborhoods can wander leisurely shaded streets lined with large old houses encanto.En Roda Island lies the Manyal Palace, former residence of the son of Khedive Tewfiq, Mohamed Ali, today days turned into a museum (open from 9 to 16 pm Admission fee.) Situated on the edge of the Nile, protected by a wall that mimics the fortifications, the former royal residence is surrounded by a magnificent garden of lush vegetation.



The western shore
Administratively distinct from the eastern shore, when we cross the Nile, Cairo and leave enters the town of Giza-the west bank of the Nile it is also in their people and respect. Here we extend miles soulless modern buildings and wide avenues straight. There are large eucalyptus trees planted parks, small town squares, beautiful restored houses, which remind the visitor that a certain middle class built residences here in the countryside, and then only a few decades ago.