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Cairo, Egypt

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Cairo
Kaśka Glanc

It is the capital city of Egypt and Africa?s largest town. It is located on the Nile, south from its delta, about 160 km from the Mediterranean Sea. It is very noisy, busy, crowded, cosmopolitan. It is a total mix of the West and the East. It has a population of about 15.5 million people. The name of the city in Arabic language is Al-Qahirah, which means The Victorious. You can see there hundreds of minarets, because Islam is a predominant religion. But there are also Coptic Christians, the Jewish, black Africans and Europeans. The town has two city centres. The old Cairo is a district walled off from the rest of the city. There is an enclave of old houses clustered in windy streets, with colourful bazaars and over 500 mosques. The newer part of Cairo is situated on north-west from the Old Town. There are wide avenues, modern buildings, hotels, ministries etc.


History:
Cairo was built at first from the ruins of the city of Memphis, which used to be a capital city of the Ancient Egypt. The first settlement on the site of present Cairo was a Roman fortress (Babylon Fort). But around the fort a mall village of Coptic Christians grew rapidly in 642 Arab raiders dominated the fort.. And it gradually became a permanent stronghold for Arab forces. When Shiite Fatimid Dynasty occupied Egypt in 972 they changed into Al-Qahirah. The Al-Azhar mosque and a university were built also in 972.Cai became a centre of learning. The university is still a very important study place in the whole Islam world. The city was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1517, but the Mameluks returned to influence as nominal vassals to the Ottoman Sultan.
Napoleon took Egypt in 1798 but the French occupation lasted only three years. In the middle of the 19th century two important things happened: a railway to Alexandria was completed and in 1863 the Suez Canal was opened. The changes were vital and opened Cairo to western influences. Cairo?s population grew rapidly. In the 20th century a lot of peasants came to the city searching for work in the factories.
Nowadays Cairo has the biggest population of all African town and is the tenth biggest city in the world. It is also a great tourist centre. Millions of people come here every year to see what the city has to offer.


What to see and visit:
1. Ancient Egypt Monuments:
a. The Pyramids of Giza ? situated about 10 km from the downtown.
b. The Solar Boats of Khufu
c. The Sphinx ? one of the most famous landmarks.
d. The Egyptian Museum ? a great Tutankhamen collection is worth seeing.
2. Christian Coptic Monuments:
a. The Hanging Church
b. The Church of Abu-Sergah
c. The Church of Abu Mina
d. The Church of the Virgin
e. The Virgin?s Tree- a tree where Mary rested with Jesus.
f. The Coptic Museum.
3. Islamic Monuments:
a. Al Azhar Mosque
b. Mosque of Sultan Hassan.
c. The Blue Mosque
d. The Alabaster Mosque of Mohammed Ali.
e. Fortress of Saladin
f. The Museum of Islamic Art.
4. Other Attractions:
a. Operas House
b. Cairo Tower ? you can admire a beautiful view on the city.
c. The Pharaonic Village
d. The Citadel ? The Military Museum.


Safety
Crime, especially brutal incidents are very exceptional in Egypt. The emergency phone number is 122. The tourist police head office is situated at 5 Adli St, Tel: (+202)390.60.27.


Useful information
Remember that weekend in Egypt are on Fridays, not Sundays.
The weather is mild in winter and very hot in summer.
Time zone: GMT+2 hours

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