If there is an incredible city in the world, that city is El Cairo. Magical, mysterious, it still challenges us with its ancient monuments and although it is never quite a good time to visit there is no way to remove it from our destiny.
Markets, streets, mosques, the Nile, the Pyramids, the cruise ships and the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities are waiting for us because even once in a lifetime you have to visit Egypt and its wonders. You do not like the current political situation very much and you have doubts? You are prudent, but I think that after reading my article today those doubts will turn into cravings. Behold what to visit in Cairo. And what not to forget.
Cairo, some facts to take into account
Even if we don't like cities, one cannot go through Egypt without spending a few days in the capital, as it is the best way to get to know and experience Egyptian life and its contrasts. The climate is moderate and with low humidity throughout the year, but in summer it can be suffocating. During the month of July the thermometer climbs to 36 ºC and the minimum is around 21 ºC. If you can choose when to go, it should be done in January as the temperature range is between 21 ºC and 15 ºC. During the months of March, April and June the Khamaseen winds blow from the desert and then bring rising temperatures and sand.
There are many accommodations in the city, more than 75 hotels of different categories and some with fabulous views of the Nile or the Pyramids. There are also cheaper accommodations and boutique hotels. Cairo has a public transportation system with minibuses, buses and metro. There is no shortage of taxis either. Buses are not recommended as everything is written in Arabic and it is quite chaotic. Impossible if you are a woman. The subway is easy to use and has separate carriages for men and women, but it doesn't really reach the entire city. Of course, it is cheap.
You can combine with the taxi, the best means of transport if you are a tourist. There are three types of taxis, those that do not have air conditioning or parking meters, (black and old), the white ones, newer and more modern and with a parking meter (if you are going to choose one, let them be the latter), and there are also yellow taxis but you must call and ask for them by telephone.
What to visit in Cairo
When recommending visits and walks The experience is worth a lot, so my recommendations may vary from those of other tourists, but to write them I thought about my trip, that of my sister who also walked there and my in-laws. Three different experiences at different times of the year, so I think they will be good recommendations and they all answer the question: if today you took someone who never set foot in Cairo, where would you take them?
The Citadel it would be the first place to take photos from a good height, with a good perspective. It is the medieval islamic fortification built on Mokkattam hill and cooler than the city center. Its defenses were built in the 85th century to repel Crusaders and it was for a time the heart of the government. He owes Saladino el Grande many reforms and the XNUMX meter deep spring that we can appreciate today.
Later the Ottomans built a mosque and made new constructions and to this day contains four museums: the Carriage Museum, the Egyptian Military Museum, the Egyptian Police Museum and the Al-Gawhara Palace Museum. At its feet there is a network of streets, alleys and mosques.
Speaking of museums the Egyptian Museum in Cairo It is an unavoidable destination: it has the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities with more than 120 thousand objects, although not all of them are exhibited. Another parallel museum seems to be hiding in its warehouses. The museum is located in Tahrir Square and suffered some damage and theft in the 2011 rebellion. A shame. The building has two main floors with papyri and ancient coins minted in silver, bronze and gold, statues, tablets, sarcophagi and hundreds of objects from pharaonic tombs.
This museum opens every day from 9 am to 7 pm and during Ramadam it closes at 5 pm Admission is LE 60 per adult and LE 30 per student, but you pay extra for some rooms such as the Royal Mummies Hall (LE 100) and the Centennial Gallery, LE 10. The museum is in the Wust el balad neighborhood, the center, a good place to enjoy the nightlife of the Egyptian capital.
Another good place to dine early and watch the sunset looking towards the Pyramids is the Al Azhar Park. It is a really big park and it was a gift from Agha Khan IV in the 80s. It is still under development but it is an ideal place to enjoy the sunset. On the other hand there is also Coptic Cairo, a site with Christian tombs and churches that suddenly reminds you of the existence of Christianity. Weird.
Another corner is Islamic Cairo which finished being restored recently. It is a kind of open-air Islamic museum. There is the Ibn Tulun Mosque from the XNUMXth century and the Gayer-Andernson Museum which operates in a XNUMXth century home of an Ottoman merchant.
When it comes to shopping the Khan el-Khalili Market It is one of the most fabulous markets in the world. It is covered and dates back to 1382. It was the center of the spice trade and a wonderful bazaar where today you can buy a little bit of everything, from essential oils to jeans. You can finish the walk with a tea at Fishawi's Cafeteria, one of the oldest cafes in the city.
Stroll along the Nile River in a felucca it is recommended. You can hire them on the ledge in front of the Four Seasons Hotel. Of course, in the capital of Egypt there are many other museums: the Museum of Agriculture, the Postal Museum, the Railway Museum, the Military Museum, the Qasr Al-Eini Medical Museum and many palaces. I would say in this regard that based on your interests, organize a visit to some more museums.
I visited the Villa of the Pharaohs. It is a museum on the outskirts of the center that allows you to make a time travel three thousand years ago. You travel canals aboard motorized boats and it is a kind of historic amusement park that recreates houses, palaces and temples. If you go with children it is the best way to convey the story to them. And of course I also visited the pyramids, a site that seemed pretty dirty to me.
What advice can I give you to do this, la visit in Cairo? It is convenient to go on a tour to the Pyramids of Giza. Yes, I know, you don't like it, but it's better this way. If you go on your own, you will have to discuss with the taxi that is taking you and they will want to charge you whatever they want. If you still want to go alone then you should take the metro to Giza station and from there take the minibus. It is cheaper, even.
The view of the Pyramids of Giza is the postcard of ancient and modern. What do I mean? You do a search on Google for images and you will discover thousands of fantastic postcards of the pyramids but nothing is like seeing them live. Partly because they are wonderful but partly because on the side that never appears in the photos there is a whole neighborhood: houses and houses and even a Pizza Hut right in front of the Sphinx. Can you believe it? Globalization!
I have to warn you about camel rides: the drivers are terrible, they will harass you with questions and will give you different prices depending on your country of origin. They will also tell you that it is forbidden to walk between the pyramids, all for you to hire a walk. And there are vendors of Made in China things everywhere.
I did not have bad experiences with the police and guards in the area, but there is no shortage of reports of tourists who have been deceived by these same personnel. My advice: don't trust them either, they all want money. The truth is that it is a wonderful place with some bad people, who want to get money from you and take advantage of your tourist status. A fright. All this if you go on your own. It's more or less what happened to me and my sister because my in-laws, who were on tour, had a totally different experience.
Of course, no one can leave Giza without get inside the Great Pyramid, visit the Solar Boat Museum, contemplate the Sphinx and if you can, witness the Sound and Light Show. Obviously, a complete tour in Cairo should include excursions and trips, Luxor, Abu Simbel and those kinds of destinations. On another occasion we will talk about those excursions. The important thing today is what we can do in Cairo and know that, if we are single women, we will not have such a good time.
Egypt is not a country for sightseeing aloneThey look at you a lot and that scares you. To think that they think that because you are alone you are almost a prostitute does not help much. Careful!