Charming Cairo

One of the world’s greatest megacities, Cairo is not just beautiful but also rich in its historic finery, writes Alpana Chowdhury

Mosque of Ibn Tulun, built by Ahmad Ibn Tulun in 876–879 CE

Cairo Opera House

Munching on a straight-out-of-the-oven Baladi bread, which is like a large phulka, I stroll through one of the oldest markets in the Arab world. Khan el-Khalili, a souk dating back to several centuries, was built to change Cairo’s palace-city persona into one of a commercial one with opportunities for commoners to build homes and shops where palaces once stood.

Brassware, alabaster artefacts, wooden boxes inlaid with mother of pearl, touristy trinkets, and many more treasures spill out onto cobble-stoned roads from tiny shops housed in stone buildings built, perhaps, during the 14th century. Cheery young salesmen call out to you, “Indian? Shah Rukh Khan…” or “Amitabh Bachchan”. It’s their way of welcoming Indian tourists and they sportingly indulge your audacious bargaining. One of them labels me ‘a good businesswoman’ as he wraps up dramatic, brass finger-rings with Arabic lettering for me.

After a morning of delightful shopping, we stop for coffee and Egyptian snacks at Naguib Mahfouz Café, named after the country’s Nobel Laureate writer who spent many a leisurely hour here. Mahfouz grew up in the vicinity and captured the patriarchal, social milieu of the early part of the 20th century, in many of his stories, in telling detail, coffee shops et al.

His was a world where women spent the better part of their lives within their homes, catering to the whims and fancies of their husbands. Stepping outdoors, even to a mosque, unescorted by the latter, was taboo, and, as in Palace Walk, could entail severe punishments. Thankfully, hundred years later, Egyptian girls are a far cry from the cloistered women of Mahfouz’ novels. Though they wear hijabs, very attractively tied, they are dressed in trendy clothes like teens elsewhere in the world; and seem to share a comfortable camaraderie with the opposite gender, going by what I saw on the streets. Laughing, chit-chatting at street corners, sipping tea at charming roadside cafés, they are comfortable in their own skin. Quite in keeping with the country’s early roots when beautiful, independent women like Cleopatra and Hatshepsut ruled and expanded the boundaries of their empire.

At the new National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation, where mummies of erstwhile rulers have been relocated, you see those of several women rulers. Situated in front of the restored Ain el-Sira Lake, the museum is a handsome complex, combining the best of traditional design and contemporary architecture, showcasing Egypt’s magnificent past. Apart from the mummies, that give you goosebumps, and brilliantly-painted sarcophaguses, a special section tracing the history of Egyptian textiles is particularly interesting.

Egypt’s magnificent past is to be seen everywhere in Cairo. The famed pyramids of Giza are, of course, a marvel in themselves. Built to house the bodies of pharaohs to help them on, in a suitable afterlife, with the largest one built in the 26th century BC, they have stood silently, stoically, through millennia of a chequered history.

Sitting at a restaurant, Pyramid Lounge, nibbling on falafel (crisp sesame-coated cutlets made out of fava beans) and delicious feteer (like flaky, layered, ghee-soaked pastry) dipped in molasses, and gazing at these towering structures, that have stood their ground while rulers have come and gone, you are struck by their solitary splendour. Blocks of limestone perched one on top of the other in perfect symmetry, surrounded by miles of desert land, there is nothing to alleviate the starkness, except an occasional camel. Awesome!

Architectural masterpieces dot the Cairo skyline even in the more crowded city areas. Though many of the current, residential buildings could do with a coat of paint, the intricately-designed, sand-coloured domes and minarets of mosques, standing above the latter, tell stories of bygone, artistic eras. As do old churches with stories of their own — proud sentinels of Egyptian culture.

Amongst recently-built structures, the 1988-inaugurated Opera House, is a stunning edifice, with latticed walls and a grand staircase. We spend two musical hours here, listening to the Cairo Symphony Orchestra perform Egypt in Music II. Conducted by renowned music conductor Nader Abbassi, it comprised three sections that brought chapters of Egyptian history alive through the magic of flutes, cellos, harps, drums, trumpets and powerful, passionate vocals.

The magic of the night continues as we dine on a boat by the Nile. Nairu restaurant has an Indian chef who serves us a complimentary dish of brinjal fries.

Watching other boats sail by, lit with fairy lights, and tucking into Pan-Asian food, I am totally mesmerised by Cairo. It is a city that knows how to live life fully. Whether it is the animated chatter I hear all around me as I walk down the roads of Zamalek, situated on the island of Gezira on the Nile, where I stay, or the picnickers breaking the Ramadan fast in the parks beside the Nile, or young families shopping at smart, upmarket malls, a vibrant ambience permeates the city.

And last, but certainly not least, what I enjoy thoroughly is flipping through second-hand books at pavement stalls…from Che Guevara to Anne Frank, they have eclectic collections.

Picking up a book from here and browsing through it, with a large cup of freshly-brewed coffee at one of the numerous cafés, is the ultimate pleasure for me after being home-bound for two years, in Covid-infected Mumbai!