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A popular downtown club that hosts live music and DJs every night, has a very decent drink and bar menu and good atmosphere. The website is great for directions (!) and listings. A top venue that hosts live music nearly every night.
It’s worth saying that, despite the name of the club, the music on offer is not all jazz!
www.cairojazzclub.com/
197, 26th July St.Agouza
+202 3345 9939
Google map: bit.ly/urs2Qj
What to tell the taxi?
197, 26th July St. Sphinx square
* Alip is our Been there local for Cairo. Her page is here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/cairo-local-alice-allsop.jsp and you can follow her tips directly here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/alip
The church of Saint Samaan is beautiful and any visit to it will be a moving one. The huge cave that holds the church has been carved out of the Moqattam hills that overlook Cairo on the eastern edge of the city.
Moqattam is home to a large Coptic Christian community who collect the city’s rubbish and sort it by hand for recycling. There are various charity projects running in the area to help this marginalised community make a fair living. The Association for the Protection of the Environment (APE) is one of them, and they can organise visits into the area to see the church and their workshops where they produce recycled paper and cloth goods.
www.garbagedreams.com/
www.ape.org.eg/
cavechurch.com/home/index.asp
* Alip is our Been there local for Cairo. Her page is here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/cairo-local-alice-allsop.jsp and you can follow her tips directly here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/alip
Egypt may not be known for its beer, but if you visit Egypt you may want to try a local Stella (not Artois) during the course of your stay. If you want to drink it where the locals drink, then you’ll need to find a ‘baladi’ bar (‘baladi’ roughly translating as ‘local’ in Egyptian). Some of these bars are real ‘spit and sawdust’ places, but they’ll all offer you a beer and a glimpse into drinking beyond your hotel bar. The Stella Baladi Map will help you find your way around.
www.stella1ofus.com/category/stella-nightlife/baladi-cairo-bar-map/
* Alip is our Been there local for Cairo. Her page is here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/cairo-local-alice-allsop.jsp and you can follow her tips directly here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/alip
There are so many restaurants in Cairo with international influences that you could easily visit for a week and not sample any traditional Egyptian food, but you’d really be missing out.
If you are out and about exploring in Cairo and want a quick, cheap and filling meal then Egyptian fast food is the way to go.
Cheap, simple dishes that are popular are ‘koshary’ (with its layers of rice, macaroni, pasta and lentils this is a carb-overload, but very filling and served with a little tomato sauce and with lemon and spicey sauce on the side) and ‘shawerma’ (marinated kebab meat served in a wrap or roll). You should also try falafel (‘tameya’), stuffed vegetables (‘mashi’) and 'fuul' (fava beans) which are often served in round flat bread ('aish baladi').
Arzak and Gad are both chains of Egyptian fast food restaurants. There are branches of both all over Cairo and they serve Egyptian fast food (and 'traditional' fast food of burgers and fries if you're feeling less adventurous).
Most restaurants will have a counter where you place your order, pay and are given a receipt. Take this receipt over to the serving counter to pick up your food. Some branches will also have a second 'back' room with table service, AC and bathrooms.
www.arzakegypt.com/home.asp
Maadi Grand Mall, 12 Road 257, Maadi, Cairo, Egypt
+20 2 5195282
Google map: bit.ly/v7Qcdo
Gad restaurants: bit.ly/ttEkNY
There are so many restaurants in Cairo with international influences that you could easily visit for a week and not sample any traditional Egyptian food, but you’d really be missing out.
Starters that you should look out for include dips like babaganough (aubergine) and tahina (sesame) which will come with the round Egyptian flatbread known as ‘aish baladi’ (in many places this will arrive steaming to your table as it is probably cooked on site). You should also try falafel (‘tameya’) and stuffed vegetables (‘mashi’).
A classic main you might try is ‘molokheya’, which is a broth made with greens that is often served with a meat and rice. Many places will serve a range of grills including ‘shish tawook’ (chicken), ‘shish kebab’ (lamb) and ‘kofta’ (minced meat on a skewer).
Cheap, simple dishes that are popular are ‘koshary’ (with its layers of rice, macaroni, pasta and lentils this is a carb-overload, but very filling and served with a little tomato sauce and with lemon and spicey sauce on the side) and ‘shawerma’ (marinated kebab meat served in a wrap or roll).
For dessert you might try ‘om ali’ which is pudding rice, bread and raisins in sweetened milk.
If you're visiting the Khan El Khalili you'll be hounded to visit one of the many cafes on the main square, but venture in and you'll find the Khan El Khalili Restaurant (and Naguib Mahfouz Cafe). This is an excellent restaurant with attentive service and good food. A real haven from the hustle and hassle outside. They accept credit cards (a rarity in Egypt), and in the cafe area musicians play traditional music.
Khan El Khalili Restaurant and Naguib Mahfouz Cafe
5 Sekket al-Badistan
+20 2590 3788
To find the restaurant, stand in the main square of the Khan El Khalili (Midan Hussein) and face the row of cafes. Take the narrow street to the right of the cafes which goes slightly downhill (not the street that goes beside the mosque). Keep going past all the stall holders who will try hard to get you to buy from them. The street will widen slightly and you will see a metal detector in front of a door on your right (this is more obvious then the restaurant sign next to it!) and then you will know you are in the right place.
Google map: bit.ly/rXvhFQ
* Alip is our Been there local for Cairo. Her page is here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/cairo-local-alice-allsop.jsp and you can follow her tips directly here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/alip
Abou El Sid serves traditional Egyptian food and all their restaurants (there are branches all over Cairo) are decked out to fit the theme. Abou El Sid serves alcohol and shisha.
www.abouelsid.com
157, 26th July Street, Zamalek
Google map: bit.ly/sVzIvC
* Alip is our Been there local for Cairo. Her homepage is here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/cairo-local-alice-allsop.jsp and you can follow her tips directly here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/alip
Pan.Optikum is a Theatre Company with a difference; you cannot just sit down and watch giant street theatre because it happens all around you. You look in one direction and the actors are coming towards you on huge platforms, then suddenly you hear a voice behind you and another actor is climbing a back-lit scaffold structure. All this happens as an amazing emotionally stirring soundtrack plays around you.
Their productions include pyrotechnics, singing, cantilevers, acrobatics, lights, silhouettes, music, video and dual language performances; a sensory experience that cannot be matched.
See them in their home country, Germany, or catch them on tour. But see them you must!
www.theater-panoptikum.de/index.php?id=1
gemeinnützige GmbH, Engesserstr.6, 79108 Freiburg, Germany
+49 761 503 944 9
Google map: bit.ly/nIaEJ0
I love to travel slowly. This book describes the adventures of a party of four (Terry and Monica Darlington and their two dogs) as they travel by narrow boat across the Channel and then through the waterways of France.
The books closes with a stanza from a most beautiful poem; Ithaka by C.V Cavafy. The poem describes how the journey and adventures on the way to Ithaka, are more important than any destination. A great motto for anyone who loves travel, and one that inspired my husband and I to choose it as a reading at our wedding.
www.narrowdog.com/
www.cavafy.com/poems/content.asp?id=74&cat=1,
You are spoilt for choice when it comes to visiting a spa in Budapest. On both sides of the river that winds its way through the city you can find yourself in hot and healing waters.
The Gellert Baths though are revered by many and their grandeur means they are the most iconic in the city. The image that stands out for me though is not the still blue waters flagged by magnificent pillars, but that of the outdoor pool and it's wave machine.
The turbines that drive this gear up every hour and their force is one unrivaled in any "no bombing, no ducking" swimming pool. A classic example of their power was seen in Micheal Palin's New Europe series when he is standing in the shallows of the pool doing a piece to camera and he is literally floored by the wave that comes his way. You barely have enough time to stand up before the next wave comes crashing in. Great fun!
Where the Gellert Baths rule supreme though is in mid-August when thousands of people descend on Budapest to enjoy the Sziget Festival. This isn't a weekend affair, but a week of camping on Sziget Island in the middle of the Danube and enjoying music and entertainment on twenty stages. Festival-goers might be able to get away with not showering for a few days, but when you're camping for a week and the shower queues as they always are at festivals, the Gellert is the best way to spend your day before the bands start.
www.gellertbath.com/
H-1118 Budapest, Kelenhegyi út 4
+(36-1) 466-6166
Google map: bit.ly/e3HW1w
www.sziget.hu/festival_english
Cairo is a crazy, busy and bustling place and the bookmarket at Attaba station is a condensed version of the city in this sense. The bookmarket consists of four or five rows of shops that open up and spread their wares on tables, shelves and the floor, making the narrow passage between them even narrower. This is a great place to browse and enjoy the hustle and bustle of the city, as the store-owners are very friendly and don't mind browsing. It's a real mixture of books you'll find, with arabic texts old and new, as well as obscure books in English that make you wonder how they found themselves over here. Favourite buys include Tintin: Cigars of the Pharaoh in arabic and a dozen beautiful Egyptian 1940's film posters.
The bookmarket is in the middle of the Attaba roundabout in Downtown Cairo. It is beside the Puppet Theatre and the easiest way to find it is to get the Metro to Attaba and when you leave the station look for the exit that says "Puppet Theatre"
The tentmakers market in Cairo is famed as the last roofed souq in the city, but it is so much more than that.
Walk slowly along the street and allow your eyes to pause inside each doorway. You will see each booth is adorned with beautiful hand-sewn furnishings which range in size from huga wall hangings to cushion covers. Some show donkeys, birds or fish (or the obligatory pyramid and camel/sphinx scene), but most are geometric designs or stunning stylised calligraphy. In many of the shops you will also find men sewing these intricate designs while they wait to welcome their next customer, whether they are buying or browsing.
Less than half the shops here sell tents now, but these are easy to spot as they have miniature versions of their tents out on display on the street. They seem to come in all different shapes and sizes but all beautifully decorated with the brightly coloured and patterned "Ramadan" material that you can also buy by the meter here. Make sure that you take a left through a passage way just a few meters before the roofed area ends, as this will take you into a large courtyard where the largest tents are erected and shown.
The model tents are perfect presents for kids, especially as they come with a camel toy, but if you have space in your luggage you can really treat them with their own 1m square Bedouin tent that comes with light wooden poles. Grown ups with a lot of luggage space and a large garden might even buy the full-size version!
A significant part of the fun of visiting the tentmakers market is the walk there from Midan Hussein. It's just so refreshing to be able to leave the tourist hub-bub behind and explore "real" Egypt. As you get further from the Khan El Khalili the shops are selling less tourist souvenirs, you get less hassle from the sellers and you start to see the city and its wonderful people.
The tent maker's market is in Cairo on Al Khayamiyya, just South of Bab Zuweila and the cross roads with Ahmad Mahir Pasha.
It is about 15 minutes walk from Midan Hussein (where the Khan El Khalili tourist market is). From the tourist market cross the main road (Al Azar) using either the underpass near the main square or the footbridge a little further down. At the base of the footbridge on the south side of the Al Azhar road you will find a pedestrianised street which is covered by a high wooden roof for about 30m between two mosques. Walk down this street and through the local clothing market. Keep going and you will get to Bab Zuweila which was once the gate to the Old City. Once you pass through Bab Zuweila you will find the roofed tent makers market straight ahead.
Google map: tinyurl.com/33o3lkc
Backpackers have been going to Dahab on the Sinai for years and although the town has grown now it is still a great place to meet people and really chill out by the sea.
Diver's House is a really friendly pension that is in the southern part of the town which is far quieter than the northern end which is starting to get "touristy". You can get a double room, but many are triples or sleep four people. The acommodation is basic but you're not there to spend time in your room as you can just walk out onto their sun terrace or that of the Jasmine Restaurant (and Pension) which is opposite. Both have stunning views of the Gulf of Acqaba and the staff there will get your drinks and keep the tab going all day without hassling you to buy more or move on. The bedouine cushion seating there makes it very easy to stay all day!
If you do manage to prise yourself from this laid back cafe the diving instructors and guides with Diver's House are well qualified and friendly. You can though just rent a mask, snorkle and some fins cheaply from any of the stalls along the road and snorkle on the coral reef which runs directly infront of the cafe.
www.divershouse.com/home.html
Mashraba Street - Dahab - South Sinai
+20 69 3640885
Google map: tinyurl.com/2wbo993
www.jasminepension.com/
Mashraba St.- Dahab - South Sinai- Egypt
+20 69 3640 852
From Sharm El Sheik or Cairo there is an East Delta Bus Service that runs regularly during the day and overnight (Cairo to Dahab is 50LE per person).
The best way I have found to enjoy UK Festivals in recent years has been as part of the Workers Beer Company. Charities and Trade Unions that support WBC are asked to provide volunteers to work the bar at various festivals around the UK. You donate your time for free and WBC pays your wages to the charity that you are volunteering for. In return, you get a separate camping area, vouchers for two meals a day (in your camping area) and vouchers for two drinks once you have finished your shift. A win-win situation if you ask me!
You don't get to see every band that plays, but the banter behind the bar is always good fun and you get to see more bands than you would working in your local. See if a charity you support is part of WBC and get invovled!
You'll be lucky if you ever get into a taxi in Cairo that has a working meter. The meters were calibrated years ago when petrol was much cheaper, and so now everyone has to guess the price of a journey.
A good rule of thumb is about 1LE for each minute of your journey. We've been living here for four months now and haven't been shouted at by irate taxi drivers since using this rough rule.
This is "real" Alexandria and a real treat too. Unlike the Khan in Cairo, tourists don't get hassled to buy stuff here. As it is not touristy you'd better bring a phrase book if you are looking for something specific, otherwise just enjoy wandering around the streets.
The Eastern end starts with clothes and material (some lovely scarves here), then there are a few streets with spices (far, far cheaper than Cairo!) and then the fresh fish, fruit and vegetables take over.
Best buys are loofas, dried Hibiscus, dates and Halva.
It's relatively easy to find your way home as well; as turning off the main street will take you to the Corniche and a taxi will never be too far away.
Walk inland from the Unknown Soldier memorial on the Corniche (Midan Orabi) until you hit the main crossroads (Midan el-Tahrir). Go right here and you'll gradually walk deeper and deeper into the market. It runs parallel to the Corniche between here and El-Anfushi area, just a few blocks in from the bay.
These are two really great historic sites that are wonderful to visit. Because they are so close to each other, you really don't need to book onto a tour and can visit by yourself.
At Pompey's Piller make sure you walk to the far corner of the site, as otherwise you will miss Cleopatra's Library which is an underground shrine dug almost underneath the Pillar itself.
At the Catacombs it is tempting to just stick to the duckboards, but you are allowed to wander off these and explore on your own - do it! The main attraction here though is the brilliant stonework that mix ancient Egyptian iconography with Roman images.
The sites are in a poor neighbourhood. Everyone is very friendly, but if this is your first time exploring on your own, the poverty might be a shock.
The best way to get to Pompey's Pillar is to just get a taxi off the street. Not all taxi drivers will recognise "Pompey's Pillar" so you will also need to ask for the area it is in, Carmus (pronounced Karr-Mooze). You can walk to the Catacombs from Pompey's Pillar - just take the road on your left from the entrance and it is about a 10 minute walk.
The Thames Path is a national trail walking route along the length of the Thames - from the source to the mouth - which of course means it runs right through the heart of London. It's a great route, and gives you a flavour of the variety that there is in London, just by going a few miles along it. You could be in Kew then Putney or by the Houses of Parliament then the Tate Modern. If you are a bit more adventurous you will find yourself up close and personal with Canary Wharf and then the amazing Thames Barrier.
www.nationaltrail.co.uk/ThamesPath/index.asp?PageId=1 or www.theaccesscompany.com/londonwalks/#
Send your feedback or queries to been.there@guardian.co.uk
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