Bab El Nasr Marvels and Mysteries

Continuing my journy with my friends around Egypt, we visited Bab El Nasr district in Cairo, where glory of the past embraces the liveliness of the present. There were numerous worth admiration and worth visiting places with different architectural styles and dating back to numerous historical periods through out the history of Egypt.
First sight to attract our attention was the gracious structure known as Cairo walls that streches for hundreds of meters along the way leading to the main portal of Bab El Nasr. It stand as a high stone walls with fascinating geometrically shaped battlements surrounding its top. Interestingly, we were haunted by the beauty of the Fatimid Minaret gracefully standing next to the main entrance of Bab El Nasr. We highly admired the portal for its architectural style that is regarded as a perfect example for the military Islamic architectural style which is accentuated by the small openings in the upper part that were dedicated for soldiers with arrows. the door or Bab El Nasr is distinguished from the neighboring Bab El Futuh by its circular facade and its striped domed interior part.
Few steps away from Bab El Nasr, on the left side of the street stands the Meraculous Mosque of El Hakem with its well preserved decorations and great history. On top of the interesting things we knew about the mosque is that it dates back to more than 1000 years in the past and its owner was El Hakem Beamr Allah Ibn El Muiz Le Din Allah El Fatemy. In spite of its great history, the mosque is in a very preserved condition since it was recently restored. From the entrance of the mosque, we found a very vast courtyard with domed arcades supporting the ceiling and a marvelous red colored ablution in the center of the marble baved court. opposite to the entrance aisle, stands the Qibla aisle where the gilded marble Mihrab and beautiful wooden Minber stands as a good example for Islamic decorative style. We spent an hour walking around inside the mosque fascinated with the marvelous decorations of the ceiling, the huge arches, beautiful two Fatimid Minarets and many other things with in the mosque.
From El Hakem, we walked around the small shops of Bab El Nasr where we met a large number of kind and clever artisans and merchants selling marvelous silver works, narghile and many other copper and wooden works.
While walking around the street, we found a graceful place with tall thin Minaret with unique Ottoman style and huge windows with ornate metal screen. Without thinking we entered the building which was Sabil Sulayman Agha El Selahdar. Of special interest in this building are the ornate Ottoman-Turkish style of decoration especially in the main Sabil room with glamorous chandelier and the finely decorated wooden ceiling. Stepping by few steps, we descended to the first floor which consists of a large hall supported with huge columns that was used in the past as a place for storing water for supplying the inhabitants of Cairo with their needs of water.
This was not the end of our journey but unfortunately it was the end of the day. Thus, i advice any ont who plans for visiting Islamic Monuments in Cairo to start from Bab El Nasr and walks till reaching Bab Zuweila in a three-day journey. There is no need for having a tourguide because these touristic places can be easily reached by a taxi and people in these regrions are very helpful and king and there is no fear from walking alone there. Happy journey and wait for the next journey

Shopping in Cairo: Where to shop and what to Buy

Egypt local markets are known for being multi-purpose markets where tourists can find whatever they are looking for in good prices and high quality. There are numerous handmade artifacts and products that tourist buy as souvenirs from Egypt. Worth mentioning of these products are alabaster statues , appliqué works from El Khayameya , wooden works with mother of pearl inlays , cotton products, and jewelry.

Firstly alabaster statues are available in many markets and bazaars in Egypt at good price because the raw material and the skillful handcrafts are quite accessible. There is a huge variety of alabaster products such as vases, statues, and pots but some of it are handmade while others are manufactured. One should pay attention to the quality of the alabaster artifact before buying to be able to determine its real value.

Although gold has a fixed price all over the world, tourists are usually interested in buying jewelry from Egypt because of the marvelous designs of the talented Egyptian artisans and the low cost of manufacture of gold in Egypt. El Sagha and El Gamee Square are so famous for enclosing a large number of gold stores displaying nice earrings, rings and chains with Pharaonic design for the tourists.

Egyptian appliqué works such as cushion covers and wall hangings are also highly admired for their beautiful Islamic and Pharaonic designs. Another handmade works that really fascinate the visitors of Egypt are the belly dancing costumes with its glimmering ornaments and attractive designs. These works are available in the shops of Khan El Khalili in a very good price.
Buying Cotton products from Egypt is one of the essential things that any visitor to Egypt do because of the softness, whiteness, high quality and good price. On top of the cotton works that many tourists purchase come: sheets, thread counts, and clothes.
Visitors of Egypt also find papyrus, copper and brass works, and handmade wood artifacts, especially those with mother of pearl inlays, very desirable also.

These works are accessible in affordable prices in many local markets throughout Egypt. Khan El Khalili is the most prominent market that most of the tourist go to directly for taking souvenirs. The reasons for its importance and great fame are: its location in the center of Fatimid Cairo where numerous mosques and other monuments stand, and the huge number of workshops of historic crafts that are rarely practiced in any other place through out Egypt. The most important thing to know about shopping in Khan El Khalili is that bargaining is necessary for buying products in good prices from that market.

El Darb El Ahmar is another local commercial center that is presenting a huge variety of goods and artifacts in very good prices. This market is not only for tourists but also for Egyptians who shop for wooden works such as mashrabeya screens and other marquetry works. It is a very good place for shopping for glass perfume bottles and copper plates and ashtrays at good prices.
In addition to these major markets, there are other markets usually visited by both Egyptians and foreigners alike including Wikalet El Balah, Suq El Jomma, and Aswan Market. These are local markets where middle class people find all the goods they need in affordable prices and good quality. These markets are open usually for six days a week and haggling is a very successful way for dealing with the merchants in these places.