Hi everyone,
Today was my best day yet. After waking only once and then a solid 7.5 hours sleep, I felt much better.
I set off at 8am to meet my Islamic Cairo tour. My guide’s name was Marwa, and there were two other Australians on my tour called Damon and Jacinta from Albury. All three were really nice! We had a great time.
Islamic Cairo was founded in 969 AD by the Fatimid caliphs. Prior to this, many people had come to Cairo, invaded Cairo etc., but these were the people that brought Islam to Cairo. In the 15th century the Ottomans came and they too brought their influence, including the first use of weapons like cannons. Today, there are now thousands of mosques in Cairo.
Our first stop was the Citadel. It was initially built in 1176 to protect against the crusaders, and was home to Egypt’s rulers for 700 years. Throughout this time, the many different groups of people came through and had their influence, adding layers and different buildings to the complex. Mohammed Ali - who rose to power as Pasha and Khedive (ruler) after Napoleon’s French soldiers came through - added the mosque that dominates this part of the skyline. It had a definite 'Game of Thrones' look to it. His grandson eventually moved the royal residence to Abdeen Palace and after this time the citadel became a military garrison. The British were even stationed here during the Second World War.
The complex consists of many different parts including a mint, a courthouse, some museums (including the military museum), and a political prison that was used until the 70s. It was really dark on the ground level, and apparently there were two underground levels which I imagine were much darker still.
It was interesting seeing the different layers of the citadel that have been discovered, the latest in 1985 when digging for pipes.
We went to the lookout and enjoyed a lovely (albeit dusty) view of Cairo. At this spot, we saw a cannon that Marwa told us goes off twice a day during Ramadan - once to signal to stop eating, and once to signal to start again.
We went inside the ottoman style Mohammed Ali Mosque. It was built between 1930 and 1948. Outside the mosque itself in the courtyard, the paving stones were made from the original casing stones from the Great Pyramid. These cracked and became dislodged during an earthquake so we're reused. The whole outside of the mosque was alabaster. It was beautiful! But I had to take my sandals off and the floor was collllld! There was a clock in the courtyard that France exchanged with Egypt for the obelisk that is in Place de la Concorde. I love it when my trips collide - I have walked past that obelisk numerous times when in Paris!!
Once inside it was even more beautiful. There were 365 lanterns hanging from the roof, and Ali’s tomb was in the corner. There were ten domes inside the mosque, because before microphones this created an echo so everyone could hear the prayers. I really liked the colourful stained glass windows. You would have too, Mum.
We descended the citadel hill and next went to the Mosque of Sultan Hassan. It was built in the 14th century and houses a school, a university and residences, a hospital and a kitchen for its students. The entrance was a huge 37m tall, and its minaret 81m tall.
Sultan Hassan was a very young ruler, only 13 years old. As a result, he had two supervisors. When he came of age, he had them put in jail. Their supporters then made him step down and put the two supervisors back in charge. After 1-2 years, Sultan Hassan was back in charge and had them killed. He was very bitter and treated the Egyptian people poorly by taxing them a huge amount, so he was eventually kidnapped and killed.
This mosque was very dark inside and had a lovely wooden interior. The stand for the Quran was huge! Unlike the touristy Mohammed Ali Mosque, here Jacinta and I had to cover our heads.
Next door, we then went to Al Rifa’i Mosque. This was the idea of Mohammed Ali’s daughter in law, and was constructed around the tomb of Rifa’i. Also buried here were a former Iranian ruler and the last king of Egypt before the 1952 revolution.
Our final stop was the Mosque of Ibn Tulun. Built in the 9th century, this was my favourite because of its huge open square and double walls. Originally there was a market on the day of prayer (Friday) in between the two sets of walls. We had to wear some hideously uncomfortable “bags” over our shoes. They felt like flippers!! Marwa then took us to the roof where we took a picture mimicking the pattern in the fence. Dad - you will be happy because it looks like “Walk Like An Egyptian”! We climbed to the top of the minaret and just as we reached the top, the call to prayer started. It was amazing. All over the city the call went out, and cars beeped their horns like crazy.
Marwa then kindly dropped me off at the park I was meeting Ildi at. She was so cute, held my hand and made me cross the road with her. I honestly haven’t come across a rude person here. If you try and speak a little Arabic, all you get are smiles and friendly comments. People are really friendly and want you to have a good time. Marwa will be my guide again tomorrow which I'm glad about!
We spent the next 4-5 hours in the park. Ildi had packed a yummy picnic lunch so we sat in the grass and ate it, then walked around. I got suuuuuper excited when the dust cleared and you could see the Giza Pyramids in the distance - SO COOL! From the highest point in the park, you could also see the “City of the Dead” - the area where a 3km stretch of cemetery is home to up to 1 million people living in mausoleums etc. When families have to bury someone else in their mausoleum, they have to give the family living in there warning so they can make sure they aren't "home" that day.
We stopped at a cafe and enjoyed a coffee and then a fruit juice. Mine was strawberry and was so full of fruit and delicious. We also had a rice pudding type of dessert which was yummy. We watched the sun set over the pyramids and just relaxed and chatted the afternoon away. It was really nice not having somewhere to be. We giggled at a little girl who kept walking over to us and running away in fits of laughter when Ildi would turn around and smile at her. She was gorgeous.
On the way out of the park to meet Ildi’s fiancée Mohammed, quite a number of people were staring at us, probably the most since I’ve been here. Ildi said this is probably due to the fact that over the last few years not that many tourists have been coming so we are more of a curiosity to some people now. One woman even wanted a picture with us!
We then met Mohammed and headed towards the Khan Al Khalili Bazaar. I was so glad I had Ildi and Mohammed with me. They told me which way to go and directed me through the craziness. In early 2013 when Mum and I were at the Grand Bazaar in Turkey, we felt very intimidated because hardly any tourists were around so we just got followed and hassled everywhere. This was different - I wish Mohammed had been with us in Turkey! He took me to his friend’s shop, got me to pick out what I wanted and then bargained with the guy in Arabic for five minutes to get me the best price. I got six nice items for $30 Aussie. Wahoo!
The Bazaar was full of beautiful lanterns, bustling with life and in one section lots of people were sitting outside drinking coffee and smoking shisha. It reminded me of Degraves Street back home.
We then had a quick look at a beautiful furniture shop, and had dinner at a local restaurant. Mohammed and I laughed while Ildi tried to kick a stray cat out of the restaurant. The cat was very cheeky and kept running in the minute she turned her back. They had a bit of a standoff in the upstairs window (see photo).
I’m back in the room now. Tomorrow I have another day tour booked and I will be moving to my tour’s hotel as my 15 day tour meeting is tomorrow night. As usual, the mosquitoes over here have fallen in love with me so I currently look a bit funny as I’ve got two huge bites on my face! Hopefully the people on my tour are nice, and the bites have gone down tomorrow.
In today’s edition of “loud things outside Claire’s hostel room” (last night was 'Egyptian club music') there appears to be some sort of soccer game on. A commentator’s voice is blaring and every now and then people cheer very loudly!! Lucky I brought some good earplugs!
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
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