I'm in a hotel in Cairo at the moment, not one of the places downtown by the Nile, but out in Heliopolis. I get sent to this particular place from time to time on business. It's a quite nice place (the Concorde El Salam, to be more precise), but I am always fascinated by the phenomenon of hotels that turn their back on the neighborhood. I always want to go and see the neighborhood anyway, so I took some pictures this evening, and here is what you see once you leave the swimming pool and the 5-star luxury: http://tinyurl.com/ylnx6u7

Kerouac-thanks for your amazing pictures. I loved them!!! I am trying to plan a last minute trip to Cairo and the "usual" during the Christmas holidays as I just lost my mom and don't want to be in the states for the holidays. Your pictures have given me the push to go forward on trying to get this vacation together.
A few questions if you don't mind?
Is Cairo as dirty as everyone says? We have been to Delhi and it sure looks cleaner.
What section of Cairo would you stay in if you were only going to be there for a couple days-family of four(two grown children with) with not alot of money?
Do you always feel safe? Any areas we should stay away from?
Do you think it is possible to plan and book your own Egypt trip if you are a seasoned traveler or would you use a tour?
Thanks for your information-looks alot warmer and drier than Chicago at the moment!

Cairo is relatively clean now in the downtown area, near the Nile. Of course, I wouldn't go comparing it to Beverly Hills or something like that.

The actual place you stay does not matter all that much, because it is still necessary to take a taxi just about everywhere. Nevertheless, I had to spend 3 weeks at the Ramses Hilton once and I really enjoyed the view of the Nile at night -- there are plenty of the big hotels set along the river.

Frankly though, the one and only time I had to pay for the hotel myself, I was going to visit friends in Alexandria and stayed in one of the older hotels in the downtown area, and I confess that I really felt that I was in Cairo instead of being "protected from Cairo" which is the case of all the big international chains.

It depends on your spirit of adventure!

Here's a bit more of the Heliopolis residential neighborhoods:

http://tinyurl.com/yf9tqyj

Kerouau-since you appear to work for the airlines? Do you think that you can do Egypt and Jordan without daily guided tours on your own?

Good evening, Not to change the subject but it sounds like you know the neighborhoods. My wife and I are staying at the Hotel Windsor and wondered if you could tell me what neighborhod that is in and how far it is from Cairo's major museums? dap1206

Thanks for the pics... thats what I hope to see too.. the "real Egypt" and not just ancient monuments etc. I looked at the various people in the pictures and wondred what they are doing, what is their life like, what are they thinking right now.... Thank you for posting.