Berlitz: Cairo Pocket Guide

• Publisher: Berlitz Travel
• ISBN:
  9781780047447
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Travel

Berlitz Pocket Guide Cairo combines informative text with vivid colour photography to uncover one of the world's largest cities. It covers everything you need to know about Cairo's attractions, from the Egyptian Museum's world-class collections and the Muhammed Ali Mosque in the Citadel to the Khan Al-Khalili bazaar and, of course, the Giza Pyramids on the city's doorstep. Handy maps on the cover flaps help you navigate, and the book uses colour-coding to differentiate between sections.

To inspire you, the book offers a rundown of the Top 10 Attractions in the city, followed by an itinerary for a Perfect Day in Cairo. The What To Do chapter is a snapshot of ways to spend your time, from shopping at the bustling Khan Al-Khalili bazaar to sailing serenely down the Nile.

The book provides all the essential background information, including a brief history of Cairo and an Eating Out chapter covering Egyptian cuisine. There are carefully chosen listings of the best hotels and restaurants, and an A-Z of all the practical information you'll need.

Where To Go

Getting Around

The first thing to realise about the city is that traffic is heavy and unforgiving. Just crossing main roads can be a major undertaking for the pedestrian. But taxis are easily had and inexpensive, and the limited metro system is simple to navigate. The centre of the old city, with narrow lanes, is fun to explore, and perhaps get a little lost in, while the Nile and the Cairo Tower provide constant points of orientation.

Muhammad Ali Mosque in the Citadel

Anthon Jackson/iStockphoto

Central Cairo

The animated heart of central Cairo is Tahrir Square 1 [map] (Meadan At Tahrir, meaning ‘Liberation Square’), developed in the mid-19th century, and now served by the Sadat metro station. Through 2011 it was the focus of anti-government demonstrations that ousted President Mubarak from power. The low red building at the northern end is the Egyptian Museum 2 [map], one of the great museums of the world.

The Egyptian Museum

Sammy/Fotolia

Egyptian Museum

This is a world-class collection of wonderful artefacts from Egypt’s ancient civilisation (daily 9am–6pm; charge; no cameras). But it is also a chaotic, crowded place, where even the room numbering is confusing. There are so many objects on display that some can only be glimpsed while passing at a brisk pace between the major attractions. Poor labelling and bad lighting mean that a guide is useful to explain things, but equally it is rewarding simply to wander around and look at whatever takes your interest. Such is the draw of the best-known exhibits that while groups crowd some rooms to bursting point, others remain empty.

Mask of Tutankhamun

Mary Evans

On the ground floor, the objects are placed in roughly chronological order, going clockwise around the outer rooms and corridors. The central area is dedicated to the 18th-dynasty Amarna period, especially the remarkable remains of a painted plaster pavement, showing Nile River scenes with fish and ducks. While climbing the steps to the first floor, and the justly famous Tutankhamun treasures, look out for the wonderful display of ancient papyri on the staircase walls, still with remarkably fresh colours. Objects found in the boy king’s tomb take up two of the four sides of the upper floor and include the stunning gold death mask, the two innermost golden anthropoid coffins, jewellery, wooden shrines, chariots, beds and footwear. The thousands of items in the corridor include his magnificent golden chair and footrest, plus two life-size guardian statues.

Just behind these is the entrance to the Mummy Room (additional fee), displaying the skills of the mummification process on the bodies of some royal rulers, including Seti I and Rameses II. Nearby is Room 53 (no extra fee), which displays mummified animals considered sacred to the ancient Egyptians; it is fascinating to recognise animals such as gazelles, snakes and baboons wrapped up for eternity.

Other rooms not to be missed include The Royal Tombs of Tanis, Ancient Egyptian Jewellery, and the beautiful paintings and statues in Room 32 (downstairs).

A new museum, the Grand Egyptian Museum, is being constructed close to the Pyramids, to provide additional capacity in a modern, more secure setting. Once that is completed in 2013, artefacts will be redistributed between the two museums.

Downtown

At the opposite end of Tahrir Square is the towering Mugamma’a Building, housing government offices. Just to the east are the pleasant grounds of the downtown campus of the American University in Cairo (AUC), established in 1919 in what was an old ministerial building. Security is tight to reach the bookshop, galleries and lecture theatres, which are usually open to the public.

One block south from here along Shari‘a Al Qasr Al ‘Eani is another set of government buildings including the parliament, identified as the Shoura Council. It is usually possible to visit the Ethnographic Museum and the Geographical Society of Egypt, housed in the same building (Sat–Wed 10am–3pm; free; no cameras). That said, the security guards are not that happy about allowing this, and require visitors to leave their passport or ID card at the guardhouse. The ground floor is a dusty collection of everyday items covering hundreds of years of life in Cairo. An African room of spears and elephant tusks gives a flavour for the Geographical Society located on the first floor, centred on a beautiful wooden lecture theatre and reading rooms. The Suez Canal Room has a series of models showing the course of the canal through lakes and cuttings, with an extensive selection of old photos and prints.

Any of the streets running east from here through the Bab Al Luq’ area lead to the Abdin Palace 3 [map], a residence for Khedive Ismail built in 1872. Access to the Abdin Palace Museum (Sat–Thur 9am–3pm; charge; camera fee) is from Shari‘ Mustafa Abd Al Raziq running along the rear or eastern walls. The museum is full of ceremonial swords, guns and official gifts such as a gold­plated automatic weapon from Iraq. Other rooms contain an impressive collection of medals, silverware, an array of medieval arms and an amazing armoured breastplate with 19 fixed gun barrels pointing in all directions, apparently operated by a lever system.

Al Azbakeyyah Gardens, with a statue of Viceroy Ibrahim Pasha

Chris Bradley/Apa Publications

As the modern downtown developed to the west of the medieval city, a transition zone between the two was established, running from the Abdin Palace northwards to the new railway station at Rameses Square (Meadan Ramssis). The grand Al Azbakeyyah Gardens 4 [map] were laid out beside Atabah Square (Meadan Al’Atabah), which became the focal point of ancient and modern, east and west. A new opera house fashioned on La Scala in Milan was built, as well as lavish hotels such as the original Shepheard’s and the Continental. Grand residences, coffee shops, restaurants and sumptuous new food and department stores catered for the wealthy inhabitants.

The Tiring Building, just north of Meadan Al‘Atabah

Chris Bradley/Apa Publications

Just north of Atabah Square along Shari‘ Al Musski is the architecturally famous Sednoui Building, named after the Syrian village birthplace of the two brother owners. The equestrian statue in the centre of Al Azbakeyyah Gardens is of Viceroy Ibrahim Pasha (1789–1848). This central position was also chosen for the main fire station and post office. The Post Office Museum (Sat–Thur 9am–1pm; charge) shows the carrying of messages from pharaonic times (there are famous statues of scribes) using horses, carrier pigeons and air mail, as well as postboxes, uniforms and, of course, plenty of beautiful stamps.

Tiring Building

The Sednoui Building is not the only famous department store around Atabah. Usually seen when zooming along the Al Azhar flyover from Al Azbakeyyah Gardens, the neglected Tiring Building, just north of Meadan Al‘Atabah, was the first large department store in Cairo. Named after Austrian owner Victor Tiring and designed by architect Oscar Horowitz, it was built in 1913 for the wealthy new European area around Al Azbakeyyah ...