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Cairo is big: just how big you'll see on the drive in from the airport, which sometimes takes so long you'll think you're driving to Aswan. And what you see on the way into town, amazingly, is only half of it—Cairo's west-bank sister city, Giza, stretches to the Pyramids, miles from Downtown. But if you are the sort of person wh
Cairo is big: just how big you'll see on the drive in from the airport, which sometimes takes so long you'll think you're driving to Aswan. And what you see on the way into town, amazingly, is only half of it—Cairo's west-bank sister city, Giza, stretches to the Pyramid
Cairo is big: just how big you'll see on the drive in from the airport, which sometimes takes so long you'll think you'r
Cairo is big: just how big you'll see on the drive in from the airport, which sometimes takes so long you'll think you're driving to Aswan. And what you see on the way into town, amazingly, is only half of it—Cairo's west-bank sister city, Giza, stretches to the Pyramids, miles from Downtown. But if you are the sort of person who instinctively navigates by compass points, exploring Cairo will be a breeze because the Nile works like a giant north–south needle running through the center of the city. If not, you might find the city bewildering at first.
Taxi drivers generally know only major streets and landmarks, and often pedestrians are unsure of the name of the street they stand on—when they do know, it's as often by the old names as the postindependence ones—but they'll gladly steer you in the wrong direction in an effort to be helpful. Just go with the flow and try to think of every wrong turn as a chance for discovery.
Thankfully, too, you don't have to conquer all of Cairo to get the most out of it. Much of the city was built in the 1960s, and the new areas hold relatively little historical or cultural interest. The older districts, with the exception of Giza's pyramids, are all on the east bank and easily accessible by taxi or Metro. These districts become relatively straightforward targets for a day's exploration on foot.
Old Cairo, on the east bank a couple miles south of most of current-day Cairo, was the city's first district. Just north of it is Fustat, the site of the 7th-century Arab settlement. East of that is the Citadel. North of the Citadel is the medieval walled district of al-Qahira that gave the city its name. It is better known as Islamic Cairo. West of that is the colonial district. Known as Downtown, it is one of several—including Ma'adi, Garden City, Heliopolis, and Zamalek—laid out by Europeans in the 19th and 20th centuries. (The west-bank districts of Mohandiseen and Doqqi, by comparison, have only sprouted up since the revolution in 1952.) The most interesting sights are in the older districts; the newer ones have the highest concentrations of hotels, restaurants, and shops.
Built between 1900 and 1929 by Prince Mohammed Ali, King Farouk’s uncle, the interiors of this palace are influenced by Ottoman, Moorish, Persian, and European Art Nouveau and Rococo styles, all of which mark also important periods in modern Egyptian architecture. Highlights include the mosque; the sabil (fountain); the clocktower; the Throne and Gold Halls; the tile-adorned Blue Salon; and the hunting and taxidermy museum, which showcases a range of creatures, from insects to mammals. The palace is also renowned for its stunning gardens and distinctive collection of plants.
At the southern end of Rodah Island, al-Miqyas (The Nilometer) was used from pharaonic times until the completion of the Aswan Dam in the late 1950s to measure the height of flood waters using carved measuring marks. Needless to say, this was something that the populace followed with great interest—and, if the waters were abundant, with great celebration.
Built in 861 on the site of an earlier Nilometer, the present structure is considered the oldest extant Islamic building, though the conical dome is a 1895 restoration. Inside, Qur’an verses that speak of water, vegetation, and prosperity are carved onto the walls. Nearby is a small museum for Umm Kulthum (a famous Egyptian singer-songwriter and actress) that showcases some of her personal effects, including her iconic wardrobes.
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