WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN- Cairo Neighborhoods, Egypt

.....previously more Cairo wanderings........

Sorry, we couldn't resist that cliched title- it is just such an apt description of exactly what we have been doing whilst in Cairo!

Glorious Islamic architecture, Cairo

We made the most of the cool days whilst in the city, and walked to a different area almost every day. We saw much of central Cairo on foot, and for those further afield places, we used a mixture of metro, Uber and buses. The downside to the cool weather/walking combination was the painful effect on Rich's knees, so we took plenty of rest days also.

Colourful veggie cart, Islamic Cairo

Cat in old doorway, Islamic Cairo

Ibn Tulun Mosque, Islamic Cairo

Quiet moment, Ibn Tulun Mosque, Islamic Cairo

Life imitating art, Islamic Cairo

Mamluk architecture, Islamic Cairo

Minarets and domes, Islamic Cairo

Islamic Cairo was a great highlight for us, and appealed to our love of wandering narrow laneways taking in beautifully falling down ancient buildings and streets. The old city's skyscape is very distinctive- the Mamluk era buildings (13th century) with their tall thin minarets and domes characterize much of Cairo. Delicate decorative stone doorways and gateways contrasted with impressively huge monuments surrounded by walls. Some ancient buildings were no longer functioning as religious monuments and quite devoid of life, and others, such as the massive white Al Azhar mosque were filled with people of all races, praying, finding peace and simply resting. We loved the gorgeous rich interiors of some of the mosques. Hanging lanterns, courtyards, carpets and marble inlaid designs combined with red and white stripey brickwork, faded intricately painted ceilings, stucco carvings, stalactite-like muqarna vaulting and stained glass, and created a wonderful atmosphere.

Gorgeous metal door design, Islamic Cairo

Interior mosque, Islamic Cairo

Hanging lamps, Islamic Cairo

Metal and stained glass, Islamic Cairo

Mosque cat, Islamic Cairo

Exquisite mosque covered hallway, Islamic Cairo

Carvings and lamp, Islamic Cairo

Detail on exterior of minaret, Islamic Cairo

The posh Al Azhar park on the outer part of the old city was a sparkling clean respite from the noise and chaos, and the views across to Old Cairo and the Citadel were sublime.

Dusty views from Al Azhar Park, Islamic Cairo

View of Citadel from Al Azhar Park, Islamic Cairo

Pretending to be posh, Al Azhar Park, Islamic Cairo

Citadel view, Al Azhar Park, Islamic Cairo

We found the last fez making establishment in Cairo- it seems amazing there is only one, but there unfortunately mustn't be much call for the red felt hats these days.

The last fez making establishment in Cairo

Some areas of the Islamic Cairo had been somewhat tarted up, presumably to be more tasteful for tourists. We found those parts with their near perfect footpaths, street sweepers and security everywhere to be less interesting then the grimy, rubbish and pot-hole-filled narrow back streets. Many buildings were sadly disused and looked ready to collapse.

Renovated part of Islamic Cairo

Lived in streets, Islamic Cairo

Stunning entrance, Islamic Cairo

Lovely sunken doors, Islamic Cairo

Tarted up part of Islamic Cairo

Moody morning, Islamic Cairo

Tips were always expected in monuments to open the door, let us look inside, mind our shoes...it's just a part of the culture here we had to get used to. Australians are not natural tippers!

Old and new, Islamic Cairo

A peek into a mosque, Islamic Cairo

Market incorporated into historic building, Islamic Cairo

Coptic Cairo is another area that has been heavily restored, but there was still a trace of life left. It was easy here to visit monuments- quiet, no traffic, no one asked for baksheesh and everything was free to enter. The downside was there was very little interaction with anyone either. It's difficult to find accurate numbers, but it's thought that about 10% of Egyptians are Copts. Despite having being in Egypt for millennia, and before Islam arrived, they have been treated with discrimination and even violence in recent years. Every Coptic building we saw was surrounded by a heavy military presence.

Ooh, shut that door! Coptic Cairo

St George's church, Coptic Cairo

Rich interior decoration, St George's church, Coptic Cairo

Mixed patterns around a church door, Coptic Cairo

Pew inside Coptic Cairo church

Cemetery, Coptic Cairo

Rich has really let his beard go!

Our afternoon in Heliopolis started out with a disappointment, as the last old tram of Cairo that used to run here had recently been discontinued. We took the Metro instead, appreciating the efficiency and function of the train, if not the beauty. An embarrassing incident occurred when Rich decided the massive Notre Dame Basilica church surrounded by police and army with a huge tank out the front would make a good photo subject. An angry policeman yelled at us and took away the camera. Another policeman inspected it and made Rich delete the offending photo. Rich used his usual charm to diffuse the situation and the mood quickly changed and soon everyone was friends- laughing and shaking hands. We poked our heads inside to briefly watch an interesting service taking place in French with African Catholic priests.

Not sure what to expect, we arranged for our hostel to book us an Uber to visit the Virgin Mary and St Simon Cathedral. St Simon lived in the 10th century, and is famous for having performed the miracle of moving Moqattam Mountain, the district where the cathedral complex has now been built. The slum surrounding the complex is home to the fascinating zabbaleen people, a Coptic clan who are responsible for collecting and dealing with Cairo's rubbish. The entire community was moved here in the 1960's, and walking through there to get to the cathedral was sobering. Families sat in big dark rooms sorting through the rubbish, other alcoves housed large machines for shredding plastic and other recyclables. It was a busy place, full of industry, but we couldn't help feeling depressed for the residents.
The actual cave cathedrals were lovely, light filled and with a soothing atmosphere. Seemingly bizarre quotes from the Bible, (apparently related to St Simon's life) were portrayed with carved scenes around the cathedral. Unfortunately, the tackier parts of the complex with huge simplistic carvings in the rock were overrun by obnoxious, noisy wealthy school children, who somewhat spoiled the mood.

Curious kid, back street, Moqattam, Cairo

Loaded up with rubbish, Moqattam, Cairo

Street scene, Moqattam, Cairo

Streets of Moqattam, Cairo

The Cave Cathedral of St Simon, Moqattam, Cairo

Fair enough

The quotes related to St Simon's life, apparently

St Simon church, Moqattam, Cairo

Other walks included the Nile-side neighbourhoods of Zamelek and Gezira, where we popped into the historic Marriott for a sticky beak (previously the palace of the afore mentioned Khedive Ismail). We also took the colourful little ferry across the Nile to Giza and walked back via the scruffy riverside Corniche and Garden City, and saw the glamorous, wealthy crowds boarding dinner cruisers along the river.
One walk early on in our stay saw us stumbling across a massive second hand clothing market. This proved quite handy, as we were both feeling the cold weather, and were able to purchase some extra layers for a couple of pounds.

Interesting picture made up of Arabic words

Resting in style at the Marriot Cairo

On the little ferry across the Nile

Fruit market, Cairo

Boats on the Nile, Cairo

Funky Pharaonic chick, Cairo

A cold shadow, Cairo

Massive gum tree, Cairo

All that walking created quite an appetite, and luckily, some of our favourite foods in the world were commonly available in Cairo. We basically lived on ta'amiya/felafel (deep fried chick pea patties), ful (bean dip), salad, flat breads, tahina (sesame dip), shwarma chicken and beef, shish tawook chicken (grilled chicken skewers), fried eggplant, kofta (minced lamb in a sausage shape), lentil soup and baba ghanoush (eggplant dip). We did try several new dishes too, including fiteer (Egyptian pizza) and hawawshi (sort of delicious burger in fried bread). This kind of food is cheap and varied in Cairo, and most of the time we paid about EGP40-60/UK£2-3 for a takeaway feast, or EGP100/UK£5 for a restaurant feast. We didn't pursue any alcohol whilst in Cairo- we just didn't feel like it. Instead, refreshing orange juice was available at many little juice stalls for about EGP5/UK£0.25. Strawberries, huge and sweet were Rich's fruit obsession during our stay, and we tried fresh dates for the first time (not to our taste!). The most amazing cake shop in the world was dangerously close to our hostel, and it must be said we visited it most days!

A yummy selection of dishes, Cairo

Fiteer, Egyptian pizza, Cairo

Kofta, shish tawook and other meaty delights! Cairo

Early morning bread shop, Cairo

Local oranges, Cairo

Friendly shwarma shop, Cairo

And, in case you're wondering, yes, there are pyramids on the next blog post!!