In the leafy Garden City neighbourhood on the banks of the Nile, Nelly El Sharkawy, a photographer, architect, and ballet dancer who is also the creative director of the concept store and art gallery Cairopolitan, shows me around the brand’s studio and shop. Shelves are filled with souvenirs that feature motifs from Egypt’s more recent history, designed by the prop maker Ahmed Hefnawy, a former advertising executive who is also El Sharkawy’s husband: Magnets come in the form of retro corned-beef cans, and hand-tufted rugs are shaped like cassettes. Every item is made by traditional artisans, tasked with adapting their skills to Hefnawy’s pop art designs. There’s an inclusive playfulness to the products and their inside jokes. It’s a reminder of the brilliant sense of humour Cairenes have, and all the times people have made me laugh this week—from the shop owner in the Khan el-Khalili bazaar telling my friend to look down because she’d dropped his heart on the floor when she didn’t want to purchase anything, to the Uber driver searching the radio for ’80s power ballads for us to sing along to.
Back on the Mazeej Balad rooftop, smart waiters are setting tables for dinner as I contemplate which cocktail to order. As I listen to the honking horns in the streets below, surrounded by the crumbling balconies of neighbouring apartments with their humming air-conditioning units, the occasional piece of laundry flapping in the breeze, I reflect on how much Cairo is a city of dichotomies. The chaos and the calm. The sacred and the profane. The historical and the modern. The very serious and the incredibly funny. But the more I visit this intoxicating place, the more I realise that these are not polarities, but intrinsic parts of what makes Cairo whole.
Where to stay
Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza
There are few better places in the city to take in the constant pulse of the Nile than from the newly renovated rooms on the 25th to 27th floors of the striking Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza. Sitting on the banks of the river amid the Belle Époque and Art Deco mansions of Cairo’s leafy, laid-back Garden City district, the 20-plus-year-old hotel remains one of the city’s best. Doubles from Rs21,880.
Mazeej Balad
Its five stylish suites may be inspired by imaginary people with names like Abanoub the Explorer, but this hotel’s comfort and warm welcome are real. Its rooftop is home to downtown’s hottest new restaurant, frequented by Cairenes coming to dine on molokheya, cherry kofta, and umm ali crème brûlée. Doubles from Rs24,945.
Immobilia
Four renovated apartments in the iconic Immobilia building are filled with locally sourced art and antiques; outdoor terraces offer a relaxed perch high above the city streets. This isn’t a hotel, per se, but breakfast is served daily in each apartment, guests have complimentary access to a car and driver, dinners and massages can be ordered, and butler Ali makes sure everything runs smoothly. From Rs30,550; Website.
The St. Regis Cairo
Located on the Nile north of Tahrir Square, this hotel will astonish you with the quietness of its rooms. The soothing mood extends to the reflecting water features and brass lanterns in the lobby, and the spa has treatments like the Cleopatra Golden Package, which begins with a honey-and-milk bath. Doubles from $27,570.
The Nile Ritz-Carlton, Cairo
Set on the banks of the Nile, this hotel, with its modernist silhouette, dates back to 1959, but the rooms are comfy and contemporary, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the river and downtown. Its Bab El Sharq restaurant is a good spot for meze, and the palm-flanked pool offers respite when the temperatures soar. Doubles from Rs26,600.
Where to eat
Abou Tarek
This spot is hard to miss, given that it’s housed in a concrete block with its name emblazoned in lights all over the façade. Cairenes flock here for koshary, a much-loved Egyptian carb load made with lentils, rice, chickpeas, and pasta, topped with a tangy tomato sauce and crispy fried onions; Website.
Zööba
With its signature blue wood doors and sidewalk seating, this Zamalek outpost is a sceney favorite for Egyptian street food like ful bean stew, pan-seared beef-liver sandwiches, and ta’ameya, an Egyptian falafel made with fava beans and drizzled with tahini; Website.
Dara’s Ice Cream
Located on a busy corner in Zamalek (look for the cone-shaped door handles), Dara’s is a great place to cool off with house-made ice cream. Pair a scoop of honeycomb or coffee fudge—or a seasonal special like mango and cherry sherbet—with coffee by Giza-based roasters Brown Nose for the perfect afternoon pick-me-up; Website.
Where to shop
Abdelzahers
This workshop, in a centuries-old stone building behind Al-Azhar Mosque, has been binding books by hand for nearly 90 years. Natural-leather journals and photo albums come in bright shades like sunshine yellow and can be monogrammed in gold leaf while you wait; Website.
Analogue
Located inside Tamara Haus, this shop offers a collection of design pieces rooted in artisanal traditions, like figurines inspired by ancient goddesses, as well as alabaster plates and metalware; Website.
Anut
This Zamalek store is light-filled and packed with table linens, bedding, and accessories hand-embroidered with palm trees, pyramids, and hieroglyphics. There are also plates and bowls made by potters in the city of Fayoum; Website.
Cairopolitan
Spotlighting retro motifs inspired by everyday life, this shop’s quirky souvenirs are a celebration of place. Pouches in the form of flatbread and smoked fish, candles shaped like artichokes, and old Egyptian stamps make for easy-to-pack gifts; Website.
Lehnert & Landrock
Having started as a photography studio in the 1920s, this bookstore has two branches, one downtown, the other in Zamalek, which for decades have been supplying photography books featuring historical images of Egypt, as well as old prints and vintage postcards; Facebook.
Madu
On leafy Zamalek island, this store is filled with homewares—from small bags decorated with designs like scarabs and camels to naturally dyed totes and supersoft Egyptian cotton bedding; Instagram.
Stephenson & Co. Chemists
This local treasure has been doling out prescriptions, cosmetics, and advice since 1899. Its handsome wood shelves are stacked high with modern medicines as well as handmade tinctures concocted from natural ingredients such as calendula and coconut oil; Instagram.
First published CNT US
English