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Cairo

Cairo

State

Cairo

Country

Egypt

Continent

Africa and Asia

Size

3,085 KM2

Population

9,908,788

Spending Budget

$283 - $612

Famous For

  • The Egyptian Museum of Antiquities
  • The Sphinx
  • The Pyramids of Giza

Best Time to Visit

  • January
  • March
  • April

History

The area around present-day Cairo, especially Memphis, which was the old capital of Egypt, had long been a focal point of Ancient Egypt due to its strategic location just upstream from the Nile Delta. However, the origins of the modern city are generally traced back to a series of settlements in the first millennium. Around the turn of the 4th century, as Memphis was continuing to decline in importance, the Romans established a fortress town along the east bank of the Nile. This fortress, known as Babylon, was the nucleus of the Roman and then the Byzantine city and is the oldest structure in the city today. It is also situated at the nucleus of the Coptic Orthodox community, which separated from the Roman and Byzantine churches in the late 4th century. Many of Cairo's oldest Coptic churches, including the Hanging Church, are located along the fortress walls in a section of the city known as Coptic Cairo. Following the Muslim conquest in AD 640, the conqueror Amr ibn As settled to the north of the Babylon in an area that became known as al-Fustat. Originally a tented camp (Fustat signifies "City of Tents") Fustat became a permanent settlement and the first capital of Islamic Egypt. In 750, following the overthrow of the Umayyad caliphate by the Abbasids, the new rulers created their own settlement to the northeast of Fustat which became their capital. This was known as al-Askar (the city of sections, or cantonments) as it was laid out like a military camp.

Present Day

Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt. The Cairo metropolitan area, with a population of 21.3 million, is the largest metropolitan area in the Arab world, the second largest in Africa, and the sixth largest in the world. Cairo is associated with ancient Egypt, as the famous Giza pyramid complex and the ancient city of Memphis are located in its geographical area. Located near the Nile Delta, Cairo was founded in 969 AD during the Fatimid dynasty, but the land composing the present-day city was the site of Ancient National Capitals whose remnants remain visible in parts of Old Cairo. Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life, and is titled "the city of a thousand minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture. Cairo is considered a World City with a "Beta +" classification according to GaWC. Today, the Egyptian capital has the oldest and largest film and music industries in the Arab world, as well as the world's second-oldest institution of higher learning, Al-Azhar University. Many international media, businesses, and organizations have regional headquarters in the city; the Arab League has had its headquarters in Cairo for most of its existence. With a population of over 9 million spread over 453 km², Cairo is by far the largest city in Egypt. An additional 9.5 million inhabitants live in close proximity to the city. Cairo, like many other megacities, suffers from high levels of pollution and traffic. The Cairo Metro is one of the only two metro systems in Africa (the other being in Algiers, Algeria), and ranks amongst the fifteen busiest in the world, with over 1 billion annual passenger rides. The economy of Cairo was ranked first in the Middle East in 2005, and 43rd globally on Foreign Policy's 2010 Global Cities Index.

Future

According to a previous statement of the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), a plan has been set in place to develop four areas in the Cairo and Giza governorates, with an estimated value of EGP 260 mn. Allocating a sufficient budget for the improvement is very noticeable. The project aims to improve these areas, in multiple aspects such as the renovation of the infrastructure and enriching the livelihood of the residents by establishing new schools and green yards, for example. Not to mention, the work in downtown Cairo aims to preserve the European- design of the buildings and return to be “Paris of the East” as once intended by Khedive Ismail back in 1863. Chairman of the Real Estate Development Tarek Shoukry says, “The intention is to turn some districts such as downtown Cairo into a touristic area to raise the investments, which will definitely reflect on the income of the country in the end.” Back in April 2019, the government had set a plan to assign the renewal of 150 historic dilapidated buildings to the private sector, according to a previous statement of former Minister of Public Enterprise Sector Hesham Tawfik. The decision came as a part of a government program to save the classic buildings throughout Egypt. Regarding revenue, upgrading the Capital has many aspects as it isn’t only limited to renewing buildings or preserving the heritage of old Cairo, but it also means getting a decent income. Chairman of the Real Estate Development Chamber agrees and tells Invest-Gate, “The government sets a plan to develop some areas in Cairo such as Heliopolis, Maspero, Magra El-Oyoun, with an aim to ease the traffic in these districts whilst establishing new ones. Besides, the renewal of the outdated areas will earn the country a good return.”
Must Visit Places ------------

Nile

Nile is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. The longest river in Africa, it has historically been considered the longest river in the world, though this has been contested by research suggesting that the Amazon River is slightly longer, the Nile is amongst the smallest in the world by measure of cubic metres flowing annually. About 6,650 km (4,130 mi) long, its drainage basin covers eleven countries: Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, South Sudan, Republic of the Sudan, and Egypt. In particular, the Nile is the primary water source of Egypt and Sudan. The Nile has two major tributaries – the White Nile and the Blue Nile. The White Nile is considered to be the headwaters and primary stream of the Nile itself. The Blue Nile, however, is the source of most of the water, containing 80% of the water and silt. The White Nile is longer and rises in the Great Lakes region of central Africa, with the most distant source still undetermined but located in either Rwanda or Burundi. It flows north through Tanzania, Lake Victoria, Uganda and South Sudan. The Blue Nile begins at Lake Tana in Ethiopia and flows into Sudan from the southeast. The two rivers meet just north of the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. The northern section of the river flows north almost entirely through the Sudanese desert to Egypt, where Cairo is located on its large delta and the river flows into the Mediterranean Sea at Alexandria. Egyptian civilization and Sudanese kingdoms have depended on the river since ancient times. Most of the population and cities of Egypt lie along those parts of the Nile valley north of Aswan. Nearly all the cultural and historical sites of Ancient Egypt developed and are found along river banks.

Ibn Tulun Mosque

The Mosque of Ibn Tulun is located in Cairo, Egypt. It is one of the oldest mosques in Egypt as well as the whole of Africa surviving in its full original form, and is the largest mosque in Cairo in terms of land area. Since Ibn Tulun Mosque has much open space, it boasts both sunlight and shadows. It is built around an open square courtyard which allows natural light to travel through. Ibn Tulun Mosque features ancient architecture styles of Egypt, its decorations being created from carved stucco and wood. This mosque is a popular tourist attraction. The mosque was commissioned by the Tulunid dynasty ruler Ahmad ibn Tulun, the Abbasid governor of Egypt from 868–884 whose rule was characterized by de facto independence. It was designed by the prominent Egyptian architect, Saiid Ibn Kateb Al-Farghany (Arabic: سعيد بن كاتب الفرغاني‎), who was a Christian Orthodox, the same engineer who designed the Nilometer. The historian al-Maqrizi lists the mosque's construction start date as 876 AD, and the mosque's original inscription slab identifies the date of completion as AH 265 (878/879). The mosque was constructed on a small hill called Gebel Yashkur, "The Hill of Thanksgiving." One local legend says that it is here that Noah's Ark came to rest after the Deluge, rather than at Mount Ararat. The mosque has been used for several purposes. One such purpose is it was used as a shelter for pilgrims from North Africa to the Hijaz in the 12th century. The grand congregational mosque was intended to be the focal point of Ibn Tulun's capital, al-Qata'i, which served as the center of administration for the Tulunid dynasty. Originally the mosque backed onto Ibn Tulun's palace, and a door next to the minbar allowed him direct entry to the mosque. Al-Qata'i was razed in the early 10th century AD, and the mosque is the only surviving structure.

Muizz Street

Al-Muizz li-Din Allah al-Fatimi Street or al-Muizz street for short, is a major north-to-south street in the walled city of historic Cairo, Egypt. It is one of Cairo's oldest streets as it dates back to the foundation of the city (not counting the earlier Fustat) by the Fatimid dynasty in the 10th century, under their fourth caliph, Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (after whom the street is named). Historically, it was the most important artery of the city and was often referred to as the Qasaba (or Qasabah). It constituted the main axis of the city's economic zones where its souqs (markets) were concentrated. The street's prestige also attracted the construction of many monumental religious and charitable buildings commissioned by Egypt's rulers and elites, making it a dense repository of historic Islamic architecture in Cairo. This is especially evident in the Bayn al-Qasrayn area, which is lined with some of the most important monuments of Islamic Cairo. Al-Muizz street runs from the city gate of Bab al-Futuh in the north to the gate of Bab Zuweila in the south, both entrances in the stone walls built by the vizier Badr al-Jamali in the 11th century. This makes it one of the longest streets in the walled city, at approximately one kilometer long. Although the name al-Muizz street generally applies only to the street within the historic walled city, in practice the road begun by al-Muizz street continues (under various names) further south for a few kilometers, passing through the Qasaba of Radwan Bey (al-Khayamiya street), and finally ending at the great Qarafa necropolis (the Southern Cemetery or City of the Dead).

Talaat Harb Square

Talaat Harb Street is a historic street in downtown Cairo, Egypt, connecting Tahrir Square and Talaat Harb Square. Originally it was named 'Soliman Pasha Street' after Suleiman Pasha, Egypt's French-born General under Muhammad Ali. The street was renamed in 1954 after Talaat Harb, the leading Egyptian economist of the early 1900s. The street received the 'Talaat Harb Street' name during a sweeping effort by Egypt’s new president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, to rid the city of all reminders of the Muhammad Ali dynasty and British occupation era. It is the historic architecture lining Talaat Harb Street that reminds visitors of its stylistic and eventful past. Until its name change in 1954, this avenue was named 'Soliman Pasha Street' and was a center for activity and social interaction among Cairo's upper and European classes. Although a remnant of its former 'Paris on the Nile' 19th century grace, the Midan Talaat, or Talaat Square, at the street's intersection with Qasr el-Nil Street is circled with buildings having the strong elegance of French neoclassical architecture from the Soliman Pasha era, and were once the locations of some of Cairo's most popular and successful shops and services.

Azhar Park

Al-Azhar Park is a public park located in Cairo, Egypt. Among several honors, this park is listed as one of the world's sixty great public spaces by the Project for Public Spaces.[1] The park was created by the Historic Cities Support Programme of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, an entity of the Aga Khan Development Network. The park was developed at a cost in excess of USD $30 million, its funding a gift to Cairo from Aga Khan IV, a descendant of the Fatimid Caliphs of Cairo. View of Mosque of Muhammad Ali from Studio Masr Restaurant The park project, an urbanism initiative, included: the development of the park archeology involving a 12th-century Ayyubid wall historic building rehabilitation (the 14th Century Umm Sultan Shaban Mosque, the 13th century Khayrbek complex, and the Darb Shoughlan School) several quality of life improvement initiatives requiring skills training, area rehabilitation, microfinance, and support in the areas of health and education, among others.

Baron Empain Palace

The Baron Empain Palace better known as Le Palais Hindou (literally, The Hindu Palace), is a distinctive and historic Hindu temple inspired mansion in Heliopolis, a suburb northeast of central Cairo, Egypt. The palace was designed by an architect named Alexandre Marcel who was born in Belgium. The palace was decorated by Georges-Louis Claude. Inspired mostly by the Hindu temples of South India, it was built between 1907 and 1911, in reinforced concrete.

Cairo Citadel

The Citadel of Cairo or Citadel of Saladin is a medieval Islamic-era fortification in Cairo, Egypt, built by Salah ad-Din (Saladin) and further developed by subsequent Egyptian rulers. It was the seat of government in Egypt and the residence of its rulers for nearly 700 years from the 13th to the 19th centuries. Its location on a promontory of the Mokattam hills near the center of Cairo commands a strategic position overlooking the city and dominating its skyline. At the time of its construction, it was among the most impressive and ambitious military fortification projects of its time. It is now a preserved historic site, including mosques and museums. In addition to the initial Ayyubid-era construction begun by Saladin in 1176, the Citadel underwent major development during the Mamluk Sultanate that followed, culminating with the construction projects of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad in the 14th century. In the first half of the 19th century Muhammad Ali Pasha demolished many of the older buildings and built new palaces and monuments all across the site, giving it much of its present form. In the 20th century it was used as a military garrison by the British occupation and then by the Egyptian army until being opened to the public in 1983. In 1976, it was proclaimed by UNESCO as a part of the World Heritage Site Historic Cairo (Islamic Cairo) which was "the new centre of the Islamic world, reaching its golden age in the 14th century.