"...An explosion has ripped through a major shopping bazaar in an area of Cairo popular with tourists, killing at least two and injuring at least 18 people..."
This is a picture of Al-Azhar Mosque, where they report the explosion had happenned. I took it 2 weeks ago, when we were wandering in this area. We felt perfectly safe there!
On the right hand side there were few shops and café with the tables in front of them, right on the street. And further there was a small street leading away from the touristy area into the depth of real life of real Cairo.
We’ve ventured there almost unwillingly. Our taxi brough us to the famous bazaar Khan-El-Khalili and stopped by the Al-Azhar Mosque. As we were not on a guided tour, we had very vague idea where to find the bazaar as there were no visible signs of it…so, we saw that narrow street leading off the main road, we noticed shops along each side of it, people walking the street, goods displayed outside… so we’ve decided that if we move this way, eventually we will find the treasures we were after…As we walked along the street it became clear that we’ve lost our way. No more European tourists, no more shops with goods, but rather shops with food: spices, herbs, meat…the place looked like a Khan-El-Khalili, but "low-profile", for the locals.
We’ve been thinking on turning back and trying another direction, when a man approached us and spoke to us in English…He said that he will show us the way to the bazaar and intrigued, we followed him through the labyrinth of the meandering side-streets…He seemed friendly and talked with us a lot…and we have noticed only later, that we were the only European faces there…and although people didn’t look aggressive, they were not paying attention to us either…It was a funny adventure…as you can guess, our escort didn’t exactly had in mind to lead us to the souvenir shops, but instead we ended up in his own private factory, where he and his apprentice manufactured...chess boxes…LOL…of course, we didn’t buy his chess box! But in return he "suddenly" lost all his interest in us and we were compelled to find our way out all by ourselves. That took a while but after few wrong turns and walking the same passageway few times, we finally were out of the trap. Well, at least we’ve seen that part of Cairo that no tourist guide would show! LOL…
But I was going to write about Khan-El-Khalili. The most famous part of Cairo. The oriental bazaar, where one can find all the treasures of Aladdin, anything, everything…
Khan-El-Khalili is squeezed between narrow streets of Islamic part of the city. Some passageways are so narrow that two cannot get through together. The riches, real and faked, the barkers, the smell of exotic spices, shimmering fabrics…the shining brass, the golden knick-knackery, alabaster and basalt …you name it… and all of this in a context of endless curved passageways, where every door opened and every window – a showcase.
The area packed closely with the tourists, as Khan-El-Khalili is a must-see on any guided tour (I think, mostly because of the commissions that the tour guide will get if he’ll deliver the buyer to the seller’s shop)
And in the middle of it – a hidden island of heaven – a small old café with the best mint tea I’ve ever tasted! And where I’ve tried to smoke shisha as an experiment ;-)
Shisha is a complex smoking device, that involves tobacco soaked in molasses and often flavoured with apple, strawberry or other fruit essence. The smoke is filtered through water and into the flexible, hose-like pipe through which it is inhaled. I must admit, I’ve only tried a few quick inhaling. Our shisha tasted like apple and I can not say that I didn’t like it! Although not enough to buy the "touristy" version of it that were in plenty in bazaar, but the experiment was well worth it. I know now that I do like smoking shisha indeed, not as a habit, but as a rather interesting spending of time :-)
The main "amusement" in Khan-El-Khalili – haggling. The main rule: you hear the price, you offer one third of the asking price, you buy for at least half-asking price. It is fun for both, the seller and the buyer. And each will end up proudly considering he’s got the best deal. Do not believe the miserable expression on the face of the seller that just sold you something for what seems to you really bargain price! They will never sell anything if there wouldn’t be any profit in the sale! It is the part of the game, everybody playing there and if you accepted the rules, you’ll enjoy it too.
Unfortunately for the sellers we did not have any intentions on buying anything in Egypt. To be honest, I couldn’t find anything that I’d really like to have. All of the tourists area’s shops sell the same souvenirs made on the same factories. And the selection is quite limited to what considered popular and "authentic", like lines of Nefertiti’s heads or Tuthankhamon’s busts, or few "famous" ancient gods, in alabaster or basalt, or their imitation. Despite of abundance of shiny, sparkly, colourful things, it was not my intention to clutter up my very moderate house with strange figurines of the stranger’s gods and papyruses made from banana’s skin…(that was the rumour, how they make it really cheap)
So, having walked throughout the bazaar, we ended up almost empty-handed (I don’t count few things that I bought for souvenirs for my parents) But quite amused with the experience.
I don’t know why everybody keep saying "bring lots of extra bags to Egypt –you will need them for taking back your gifts"...we for sure didn’t need any extras...Next time I’m in Egypt – I would like to visit the real shop, mall or something...place where Egyptians do their shopping…
But certainly I will recommend Khan-El-Khalili as one of the very exotic place to visit in Cairo. There is nothing like a taste of an medieval oriental bazaar, even if with the strong touristy flavour.