we took the metro to Coptic Cairo in the morning. from what i've been able to piece together, "Coptic" is what you call egyptian christians. coptic cairo is a walled, fortress-like area that contains a museum, several churches and a synagogue (Ben Ezra Synagogue)! the story is that the christians needed money so they sold an old church to the jews. this is funny to me.
after walking the street
s that mary, joseph and baby jesus walked, we went to islamic cairo. the Al-Azhar Mosque is beautiful and peaceful, as all houses of worship are, but this place is also a learning center that attracts islam scholars from all over. in addition to locals, i saw many southeast asians there.the mosque is across the street from the labrynth of streets and vendors known as Khan Al-Khalili, which is a huge bazaar. i normally LOVE bazaars and flea markets because you can find really cool and wacky stuff or, in asia, great knock-offs for cheap prices. so it's significant that i really hated this place. this is nothing but a huge tourist trap. most of the stuff for sale is total crap.
there are a number of ahwas (cafes) in Khan Al-Khalili where you can smoke sheesha and drink tea and other tasty beverages (i really like limoon - fresh lemonad
e - and karkadai - a hibiscus drink). the most famous one is El Fishawy, which i thought would have become a cheesey touristy spot by now but is suprisingly cool. somehow, despite the busloads of tourists that come here, the locals also hang here, too. once the mid-day sun has passed and the breeze is blowing, it is such a great spot to relax. i think my favorite thing about egypt, other than the big sites, is the ahwa culture. men (some women, but mostly men) gather for hours in awhas to chat, drink, smoke, read, etc. no one ever rushes you to leave. i like places where people go to doing nothing but chill for as long as they want.
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