We were up at 6:30, dressed, and went to the breakfast buffet at 7:15. It was a nice buffet. I had foul (a paste made from fava beans), cereal, grilled tomato. We went up to the room to brush our teeth. Bill got change at the bank for smaller Egyptian pounds. Then we went to a meeting room where Aki Afran, our guide for Egypt, introduced himself. We also met Michael and Judy, the two single people who were joining the tour for Egypt. Aki said that there was a change in our itinerary because of all the protests in Tahrir Square. The Egyptian Museum is right on the square, and it was deemed unsafe for us to go there right now. He said maybe when we get back from Luxor next week. After his talk, he let us go to our rooms to freshen up.
We met in the lobby at 9:30 and got on a nice mini bus with lots of room to spread out. Of course I went to the back where I could take photos from either side or out the back. On our drive to the Citadel, we went by Cairo Tower, Roman aqueducts, leather tanning racks on top of homes.
The Citadel is incredibly impressive even from a distance. The wall around the complex is huge. We entered on a stone walkway that had seaweed fossils in it. We passed Gawhara Palace that burned and is not open. The Muhammed Ali Mosque is huge and jaw-dropping. We removed our shoes and entered. Aki pointed out the clock that the French gave the Mohammed Ali in exchange for the obelisk that stands in the Place du Concorde in Paris. The clock has never worked. The outer mosque is used as an overflow and contains the ablution fountain and a deep well that Aki hollered down in to hear the echo that went on and on.
Inside the mosque was large and impressive. We stood at the front while Aki gave us a lot of information about the Mosque and Muslims. The minbar (stairway and pulpit) is a beautiful green and gold. There is a mihrab (niche) in every mosque that points the qibla (direction to Mecca), and these were quite beautiful.
After retrieving our shoes, we took a short drive to the Mosque of Sultan Hassan completed in 1359AD. It was also a beautiful and impressive mosque. There was a beautiful floor in the outer mosque, a double mosque with a beautiful mihrab, and ornate inlaid chair for the Koran and reader. The best part was when Aki asked the imman to do a call to prayers. It was so beautiful.
After we left, we drove by the quarry where the stones were cut for the great pyramids of Giza, the Cairo cemetery, and a falafel store. We ended up at the Khan El-Khalili bazaar. The Al-Hussein Mosque is right beside the bazaar, and it has 3 really neat huge umbrellas in front that are opened on Fridays to shade the worshipers outside. We walked through the bazaar, and of course, were accosted by numerous vendors. We did stop to look at some spices and tea.
Then we had lunch at the Naguib Mahfouz restaurant named for the Nobel prize-winning Egyptian author. It is a pretty restaurant, and the food was excellent. We started off with karkady, a cold tea drink made from red hibiscus leaves. This version was frothed with a pretty head of foam. I love this drink! We had the standard mezza which we have grown to love - hummus, tahine, great falafel (made with fava not chickpeas), with khobez (naan type bread). Lentil soup came next followed by a mixed meat (lamb, veal, chicken) grill with great Egyptian rice (smaller grains than long grain) with raisins and nuts. For dessert we had Om Ali, the delightful bread pudding. It was a little different than what we had in Jordan with more coconut and thicker, but it was still wonderful.
After lunch, everyone else wandered through the bazaar. Bill and I went to the entrance, found a little cafe next to the mosque, ordered Pepsi so we could sit protected (sort of) from the mob of vendors. Bill did get his shoes shined from a vendor, and all the shoe shine guys wanted to repair the sole of one of his shoes. We talked to the guys running the place which was great fun. As more vendors kept approaching us, our new friends would shoo them away.
At the corner where we were to meet Aki, two young guys selling stuff decided it was more fun to chat with us and call a third friend crazy. We laughed, hung out, until Aki came to lead us to the van. We left the bazaar at 2:15 driving by the Al Azhar mosque, more crowded streets of the bazaar including a fabric store section. Aki said that the louder cheesier fabric was bought by country folks. We drove by the statue of Muhammad Ali's son Ibriham Pasha, an old French section of town (architecturally speaking), and the Supreme Court building.
Back at the hotel, Bill napped, and I went to the Sky Pool to write in my journal and have some filtered coffee (French press). Mohammed and Ahmed were there, and we chatted a bit. Bill came up at 3:45 and Dot and Sandy joined us soon after. They ordered the filtered coffee like mine. Michael joined us. Ahmed brought us all fresh made mango juice as a treat. He is a sweetheart.
Back in the room, we got our laundry back. Bill had sent out one pair of sox, and they were returned folded in a leather box. How funny! We had dinner at 6 in the Napa Grill as our 'welcome dinner'. We started with lentil/red pepper soup with cumin, walnuts, and goat cheese. We had a choice between steak or mushroom ravioli. Bill and I got the steak which came with truffle macaroni with fontina cheese, grilled asparagus with soy caramel sauce, and fried shallots. For dessert with had cheesecake with vanilla ice cream and a blueberry compote. Once again we were stuffed.
We were in bed asleep by 10. Touring is tiring work!
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