Suburbs, Cairo

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The left or west bank of the Nile, across from downtown Cairo, is officially a different city called Giza (yes, home to the Giza Pyramids located further inland). As urban expansion spread westwards in the 18th and 19th centuries, with the construction of bridges across the nile, a new residential area named el-Dokki developed on the Giza side of the Nile. El-Dokki quickly became an affluent neighbourhood abundant with palaces, mansions and gardens, much like Zamalek in the Gezira. As the city's population exploded in the 70s-90s, most of these palaces and gardens were destroyed one after another to make room for tall unattractive residential buildings, thus increasing congestion and changing the face of the district. Only a small fraction of these palaces remain today, often preserved by the numerous embassies that occupy them. El-Dokki and Giza are now an inseparable part of the city of Cairo, despite officially belonging to a different governorate, and are home to the Cairo-Giza Zoo, the Orman Botanical Garden, and the Cairo University.

What a beauty in the middle of the city. Huge green area so much needed to provide some fresh air in heavily poluted city.
The park is mixture of styles with high influence of the islamic gardening.
The several restaurants and cafes can be found. I would suggest you the oriental style Alain Le Notre Patisserie with a great views towards Citadel.
I can only regret I didn't have more time to spend here and I promissed myself that will visit the park again if I ever return to Cairo.

If you stroll in the suburbs between the Citadel and the Khan el Khalili you will see a part of Cairo that hardly any tourist will see. It is as if time stood still there. There you will see how the poorest of the Caireens live. You will see the ruins of the houses that collapsed during the last great earthquake in Cairo. Houses that are never restored.
But still the general hospitality of the Egyptian people can be felt there; they will greet you, you might even be invited into their house.

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We wanted to take a hike from the Citadel through Islamic Cairo to the Khan el Khalili. There should have been another exit from the Citadel on the foot of the hill right in front of the 2 Mosque's: Al Rifay and Sultan Hassan. But the exit was closed to the public, so we were forced to go down and around the Citadel to reach the 2 mosque's and the shortest way was through the City of the Dead.
A policeman adviced us not to go there, but there was another man who said it was safe. He sold candy so we called him the Candyman. He stayed with us and we never felt unsafe.
It is staggering to see how people live and work literal on graves.

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An island in the middle of the Nile, Zamalek is a modern, westernised part of the city - mainly becuase it only became an island proper following the damming of the Nile at Aswan. Here, at the northern tip, you'll find 19th century European buildings, boulevards, many European hotels etc. Crossing the western side of the island across to the residential Aguza affords great views of a different side of Cairo, including houseboats lining the banks of the Nile.

You will see a very strange dome-like shape. There are occasionally performances given here, especially of Egyptian music and traditional folk dancing troupes at the Balloon Theatre..

State Theatre - Lyric, Folk and Circus
The Balloon Theatre,
Sharia El Nil - Agouza,
Cairo, Egypt

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The Moqattam Hills is where the Ancient Egyptians quarried the limestone from which the pyramids were built. It is obvious that vast amounts of stone has been removed.
Nowadays a new suburb has been developed at Moqattam and it is popular at night, but we have no photos, only those taken by day from Al Azhar.

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Near the Citadel and the new Al Azhar Park there are great views of the Muqqatam Hills where the limestone that was used for building the Pyramids was quarried. Now a new suburb is growing up there. But between the Citadel and Muqqatam lies one of the poorer areas of Cairo where people live in the graveyards of their ancestors.
I am fascinated by the 'pepper pot' shaped domes that dot the landscape here. I don't know how safe it is to wander around this area, but now that Al Azhar Park exists, there are some great photo opportunities of the area.