Cairo
The Egyptian Centre for Culture & Art runs this intimate space dedicated to folk music. Don’t miss the traditional women’s zar, a sort of musical trance and healing ritual on Wednesday nights (doors open at 8.30pm). Tuesday evening has various performances of folk music, often an Egyptian-Sudanese jam session (doors open at 7.30pm).
To find the space, walk north on Sharia Mansour from Saad Zaghloul metro. Advance booking is a good idea due to limited space.
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The last remaining wonder of the ancient world; for nearly 4000 years, the extraordinary shape, impeccable geometry and sheer bulk of the Giza Pyramids…
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One of the world’s most important collections of ancient artefacts, the Egyptian Museum takes pride of place in Downtown Cairo, on the north side of Midan…
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Covering a 7km stretch of the Western Desert, Saqqara, the huge cemetery of ancient Memphis, was an active burial ground for more than 3500 years and is…
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This museum, on the edge of Islamic Cairo, holds one of the world’s finest collections of Islamic art and is Egypt's (and one of the entire Middle East's)…
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Founded in AD 970 as the centrepiece of the newly created Fatimid city, Al Azhar is one of Cairo’s earlier mosques, and its sheikh is considered the…
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Sharia Al Muizz, as it’s usually called, named after the Fatimid caliph who conquered Cairo in AD 969, was Cairo's grand thoroughfare, once chock-a-block…
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This museum, founded in 1908, houses Coptic art from the earliest days of Christianity in Egypt right through to early Islam. It is a beautiful place, as…
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The Mastaba of Ti was discovered by Auguste Mariette in 1865. This grand and detailed private tomb is not only Old Kingdom art at its best but also one of…
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Omar Makram Mosque is the place where anybody who's anybody has a funeral.
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Midan Tahrir (Liberation Sq) gained world renown in early 2011, when millions of Egyptians converged here to oust then-president Hosni Mubarak. On a…
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This building (a good landmark in the vast Midan Tahrir area) hosts occasional gatherings of leaders from around the Middle East.
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Downtown’s two main streets, Sharia Talaat Harb and Sharia Qasr El Nil, intersect at the roundabout of Midan Talaat Harb, where cars whizz around a statue…
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Groppi’s high point was more than 50 years ago when it was one of the most celebrated patisseries this side of the Mediterranean. It has unfortunately…
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One of the first independent galleries, Mashrabia is bit cramped but represents the bigger names in painting, video and sculpture.
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Unless you're into armaments (or over-the-top golden objects gifted to various Egyptian presidents), Abdeen Palace can easily be missed. Today the once…
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Off Sharia Mahmoud Bassiouni, as much a clubhouse as an exhibition space, frequented by Cairo’s art-world new and old guard.