Cairo and Giza (Piramides)

Central Cairo:

Midan Tahrir and Talaat Harb can be regarded as the central point of the capital city of Cairo and for years has been dominated by the joy and rebellion of demonstrators. But there is also a variety of shops, hostels, travel agencies and banks.

The chaotic square and main street also house countless important buildings such as the Egypian Museum (see museums), the Arab League building, the Mogamma" and the Abdeen palace where the monarchs of Egypt used to live.

Al-Azhar & Khan Al-Khalili

East of central Cairo are the city districts that are often recalled as Islamic Cairo. The Al-Azhar mosque ('the mosque of the most glorious') is part of the university of the same name. The mosque was designed in 971 by a Fatimist general on behalf of Caliph Muezz Li-Din Allah.

Though the Fatimids lost power to Saladin and Ajubides 200 years later, their mosque and university remained essential for religious and political life in Egypt. By alternating power, the mosque follows the Sunni movement, which is still the case. Today, the sheikh of Al-Azhar is the highest religious authority in the country and the university is the venerable educational center in the Sunni-Islamic world. "Khan El-Khalili" is the largest souk (market) in the world.

The market originated at the end of the 14th century and was in the past popular with traveling commercial caravans from Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The souk owes its name to Emir Djaharks el-Khalili, a powerful Mammeluk prince, who first built the market in 1382. To the north of Khan Al-Khalili lies the Al-Hakimmoskee. The construction of this large mosque started in the year 990 but was last used as a mosque in 1452. The mosque was used, among other things, as a prison for crusaders, as a stable (under Salah ad-Din), as a storage and fortress (by Napoleon) and as a boys' school.

The two unique minarets are the only original parts of the mosque and thus also the oldest minarets in Cairo. The beautiful old house "Beit Suhaymi" is also located next to several Koran-schools (madrassas) and mosques.

The citadel

The citadel of Cairo was part of Cairo's defense system and government for about 700 years. The citadel was fortified by Saladin in the late 12th century to protect it from the Crusaders.

Thereafter, care was taken for a water supply system, mosques, buildings for, among other things, right to speak (a court) and a harem. The fort was adapted and improved through the years and many rulers. In WWII it was used by the English as a barrack - then it was taken back by the Egyptians again.

The current skyline is formed by the mosque of Mohammed Ali. There is also a military museum.

The northern cemetery:

In the 14th century, homeless people began to move into the dilapidated tombs of the northern cemetery, which was still situated outside the city at the time.

The big neighborhood, located in the far east of Cairo, is now sometimes jokingly called the city of death because people live here together with the deceased people. It is a city in a city with many small shops, windy streets and parts where nothing has been built (yet).

The main building of the district is the mosque Qaitbey.

Old or Coptic Cairo:

Located in the oldest part of present-day Cairo lies Old Cairo with the Coptic (Christian) part of the city. There would already be a small settlement here on the Nile not later than in the 6th century BC. Four centuries later, the fort (later called Babylon in Egypt) was built here by the Romans.

Before Egypt became Islamic this was already the Christian stronghold in the country and there would have been no less than 20 churches here in the heyday. You can see some old Roman towers here, but also the Coptic museum and an old Nilometer is here. The Hanging Church is located just south of the Coptic Museum and has 13 magnificent columns representing Jesus and his 12 apostles.

On the edge of the Kopten-area are the old Coptic church al-Moe'allaka and the Greek Orthodox monastery St. George. A Koptenchurch from the 7th century, Abu Sarga, is located in the center. Probably the most important building in this district is the Ben Ezra synagogue which is the oldest in the country. Legend has it that in this exact same place a temple stood where Prophet Jeremiah gathered the Jews after the flight of Nebuchadnezzar that destroyed the temple of Jerusalem. There is also a source here that would guarantee the place where the Pharaoh's daughter found Moses in the straw basket and where Mary would wash Jesus.

Giza:

Giza is a suburb of the Egyptian city of Cairo and lies on the western bank of the Nile. It is the third city in the country. Giza is best known for its famous sphinx and pyramids (Cheops, Chefren and Mycerinus) on the Giza Plateau just to the west of the city. The Pyramid of Cheops or the Great Pyramid (of Giza) is the only one of the seven classical wonders of the world that has survived to this day.

The pyramid is now still about 138 metres high. According to a tradition that was written down by the Greek Herodotus, the construction took 20 years. The pyramid would be the instrument by which the soul of the dead king could ascend to heaven to go to the sun god Ra (or Re). The pyramid of Cheops is part of a complex of three large and six small pyramids. The great pyramids are attributed to the kings Cheops (or Choefoe), Chefren (or Khafra) and Mycerinus (or Menkaure). It is estimated that these were built between the years ca. 2551 and 2472 BC. Thanks to their very stable construction, they have been well preserved.

The outer layer of white Toera limestone has largely disappeared over the course of time because the stones were used in the Middle Ages for other buildings. One suspects that the client for this impressive building was Pharaoh Cheops who between 2589 and 2566 BC. reigned. Not far from the three pyramids is the largest sphinx in the world. There is still much unclear about this stone animal.

It was only with the arrival of Ismael, grandson of Mohammed Ali, in the mid-19th century that the development of the city gained momentum. Where today the modern district of Cairo lies, was then only a swampy area that was flooded by the Nile annually. In order to upgrade the image of his city, Ismael invited international architects to design a new-European style Cairo in addition to the old Islamic city.

In the same period, the Suez Canal was also dug and opened up for shipping, which immediately put the city in the spotlight worldwide. From then on, both tourism and business life in Cairo experienced a strong growth and flowering period. Ismael, however, had lost sight of reality in his vision of the city, causing the city to suffer immense indebtedness. The British put an end to the Utopia. They took control of the city in 1882 until all debts were repaid. This occupation eventually lasted until 1952, when a major revolution abruptly ended it.