Showing 1-4 of 4 results
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Birqash Camel Market (Souq al-Gamaal)
A visit to Egypt's largest camel market, on the edge of the Western Desert, makes for a wild contrast to Cairo city life. The market is an easy half-day trip from Cairo but, like all of Egypt's animal markets, it's not for the faint-hearted. Hundreds of camels are swapped here daily, most having made the long haul up the 40 Days Road from Sudan.
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Fishawi's Coffeehouse
Hung with huge mirrors and packed day and night, Fishawi's Coffeehouse claims to have been open continuously for the last 200 years, except perhaps on Ramadan mornings when everyone is fasting. Entertainment comes in the form of roaming salesmen, women and children hawking wallets, pistol-shaped cigarette lighters, carved canes, sheesha -style cigarette holders, and packet after packet after packet of tissues.
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Khan al-Khalili
Jaundiced travellers often dismiss the Khan al-Khalili as a tourist trap; there's no ignoring the fact that it's a favoured stop of tour buses and has all the associated annoyances (touts and tat) that come with them. But it's worth remembering that Cairenes have plied their trades here since the founding of the Khan in the 14th century - the buying and selling didn't begin with the arrival of the first tour group.
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Sharia al-Muski
Congested and fabulous, the market street known as Sharia al-Muski begins in the khan (where it's formally called Sharia Gawhar al-Qaid) and runs parallel to Sharia al-Azhar to Midan Ataba. It's the 'real life' counterpoint to Khan al-Khalili's touristy maze, lined with carts selling cheap shoes, plastic toys, bucket-sized bras and some truly shocking lingerie.
Showing 1-4 of 4 results
