Coptic / Old Cairo

I made a short visit to Coptic Cairo today, which is actually the oldest part of Cairo, dating back to the sixth century A.D. This part of Cairo is home to several important Christian sites. Coptic Christianity, which makes up about ten percent of Egypt's population, began when the Apostle Mark brought Christianity to Egypt; it bears many resemblances to Greek Orthodox.

Coptic Cairo is located a bit south of Downtown, on the eastern bank of the Nile, but further west than Islamic Cairo. I took the subway to the Mar Girgis (St. George) stop, which arrives conveniently in the middle of Coptic Cairo. After I left the subway station, there was a security checkpoint where everyone was searched and asked for ID. I suppose it only applied to Egyptians, as the police officer let me through without a search. I've come to the conclusion that Cairene police officers treat Americans with great respect.

From what I could tell, the center of the community, including the major religious sites, are within a walled compound. The compound isn't very large, so I was able to walk around the entire perimeter. I noticed the Convent of St. George, St. George's Church, Ben Ezra Synagogue (the oldest in Egypt), and the Church of St. Barbara. The Citadel in Islamic Cairo is easily visible from this area. Afterward, I entered the gates and tried to find my way around. Most of the buildings inside the walls were residential flats. I could tell Muslims lived there too because I noticed several medium-sized mosques in the vicinity.

A barren lot in Coptic Cairo. Notice the Citadel in the background.


One of the walls to the Coptic Cairo compound



I found my way to the Hanging Church, which is the middle of a cramped neighborhood. The church was constructed in the 6th century and was renovated in the medieval period. The interior is packed with religious icons and decorations, and the architecture is rather impressive. The church is actually quite small, with a capacity of perhaps one hundred people. There were a few tourists inside who were also visiting.


The exterior of the Hanging Church. When I left there were parishioners gathering for something.



Interior of the Hanging Church.



Shrouds of Mar Girgis (St. George) and Mary near the altar.



Some of the icons on display. I'm not quite sure who they represent.


Pulpit from the 11th century with 13 columns for symbolic reasons.


This was from the original 6th century section.



Afterward I decided to go to the Coptic Museum, which is also within the compound. Unlike the Egyptian Museum, this museum was actually organized and its design was quite pleasing. I wasn't permitted to bring my camera inside. On display were Roman columns and statues, Coptic textiles, liturgical clothes, Coptic icons, pottery, jewelry, and some other artifacts. A lot of the exhibits came from St. Jerome's monastery in Saqqara. My favorite exhibit was the collection of Bibles and missals from the medieval period and earlier, written in Coptic, Arabic, and Greek. I could read and understand some of the Gospels written in Arabic, but not much.

All that is left of the Roman fortress of Babylon.


Exterior of the Coptic Museum.



I may go back again to visit St. George's Church and some other things. The best part is that it's literally right off the subway station, so there is no hassle getting there.

Islamic Cairo, and a friend?

Today was one of the more interesting days thus far of my study abroad period, if not the most interesting.

I decided I wanted to visit some of the sights in Islamic Cairo today (though I'm going to stay away from Khan al-Khalili for a little bit). I didn't have a definite plan, but I wanted to head toward that way, and see what interested me there.

I took the metro to Saad Zaghoul, just south of Garden City, and just walked in the general direction toward Islamic Cairo. It brought me along Salah Salem Street, one of the major streets in Islamic Cairo. This street was very vibrant, with lots of people and lots of shops, and virtually no tourists. I soon reached a point on the street that my map didn't cover, so I didn't really know where I was. However I had a general sense of where I wanted to go, so I continued.

Eventually I came onto the outskirts of the City of the Dead. The City of the Dead is essentially a massive cemetery, except there are hundreds of thousands of people that live there. The concept itself is rather grim, but this place was fascinating. I didn't go into the heart of the city, but I walked along some of the outer streets. All of the buildings there are single-story stone structures built in the medieval times, which all look like miniature castles. Every building has a small cluster of graves in its front "yard". They're not exactly yards, but small alleyways that lead to more alleyways and entrances to the buildings. I'm not sure if there's anything to see within the city, and I didn't feel quite comfortable venturing in there by myself, as I was the only non-Arab as far I could see. I plan to go back to take another look some time.

Soon I saw the Citadel from where I was walking. It is really hard to miss - a fortified plateau with a massive mosque and some other small mosques. I made my way over toward the Citadel, though I wasn't exactly sure where to enter. At that point, a man came over and asked me if I needed help finding anything. His name was Sherif. I told him I wanted to see some of the museums, and he told me they were closed until three o'clock and that he would show me a mosque that I could visit instead. He spoke pretty good English, and I wasn't really committed to any plans, so I agreed.

I followed him down the streets to the mosque. These are nothing like the streets in the rest of Cairo. They are extremely narrow, hilly, rocky, and ancient. As we walked down these streets, kids were chasing after one another, men were drinking coffee in chairs, shopkeepers were building and selling things, but most people were just sitting around. The streets were no more than 10 feet wide, and occasionally a motorcycle or car would try to pass through. These are not streets suitable for cars; even an ATV would find a challenge here. It should also be noted that not only were there no foreigners anywhere to be seen, but almost everyone I saw was wearing traditional tunics and higaabs. We kept taking lefts and rights through the labyrinth of streets, and Sherif pointed out where we were along the way, but I could not have retraced my steps if I tried. Had I not been accompanied by an Egyptian, I would not have step foot onto one of these streets.

Eventually, we arrived at the mosque, though I don't remember its name. The mosque itself was at the edge of the labyrinth rather than inside, so I saw some major streets at the entrance. It wasn't a huge mosque, but it was rather impressive in size. This was the first time I'd been to a mosque. After we removed our shoes, Sherif brought me inside and introduced me to the Imam and the Muezzin (the announcer of the call to prayer), who were both happy to meet me. I had to pay a fee to visit, which they told me goes towards orphans. Sherif gave me a tour of the mosque and then let me go up on the roof and the minaret (the tower to announce the call to prayer) to take pictures. The steps to the minaret are very narrow and steep, and my fear of heights did kick in. I did see two other tourists on the roof.

After I came down from the minaret, Sherif asked some of the old women who were gathered in a group inside the mosque if they would give me some food. They happily provided. We ate some sort of mixture of bread, cheese, tomatoes, and some other vegetables. It wasn't particularly good, but I suppose it's as authentic as one can get. I thanked them, and then we left the mosque.

Me in front of the minbar (pulpit) in the mosque. I think one of those men behind me was the muezzin.

Interior of the mosque.

Views of the Citadel and Islamic Cairo from the roof of the mosque

The minaret

The finial

Next we went to a coffee shop that was near the mosque, but still within the labyrinth of streets. One would be hard-pressed to call this a coffee shop. This was someone's kitchen, with two chairs for patrons to order drinks. The owner and his wife were very friendly and interested to know about me. I've discovered speaking even a little bit of Arabic as an American tends to delight Egyptians. I have to admit, I was pretty overwhelmed, drinking coffee in the middle of a maze of medieval streets with people who have probably see an American as often as they see rain – almost never.

Sherif suggested that we next go to the mountain on Mokattam. I didn't have any objection. We took a short taxi ride to Mokattam, which is a mountain somewhere between Islamic Cairo and Nasr City. We had coffee at a place called the Virginia Club, a somewhat Americanized club. The view was terrific. I could see the Great Pyramids of Giza and the pyramids of Saqqara, along with all of Cairo.

View from Mokattam, with the Pyramids of Giza directly ahead

View from Mokattam of a portion of the City of the Dead in the foreground

Pictures from along the road that descends from Mokattam

View of the Citadel from Mokattam, with the Mosque of Mohammed Ali visible

Before this point I hadn't completed trusted Sherif, thinking that he was interested in a tip for his tour. However this wasn't the case. We talked for awhile (Sherif in English and me in Arabic, the whole time) and he explained to me all about his life, his views on life, and about various Egyptian customs. He explained that he had a wife and a child just born three days ago, and that he was a social studies teacher at one of the schools in Islamic Cairo. He told me that in addition to being a teacher he also works a number of other jobs, including at a coffee shop, as a tour guide in the summer, and at a roofing company.

He made it very clear that he considered me a "brother" because he could tell I was a good person, and that if I ever needed anything I could ask him for it. If I ever want Egyptian food, he said, I can call him and his wife will have it ready in “less than an hour” and I can go eat at his flat. He also said if I ever need money, he would give me some.

After Mokattam, he brought me to Mohammed Ali Street, which is in Attaba, on the edge of Islamic Cairo. This street is packed with store after store of musical instruments, some imported, but many crafted on the spot. He said he has played the oud (a guitar-like instrument) since he was young, and he brought me to a place where a man was in the middle of making an oud. He explained to me how to spot the differences between a cheap oud and a good oud. We next went to a coffee shop, where I ordered sahleb. It's a great drink, like a milkshake, consisting of hot milk, rice, peanuts, and plenty of sugar.

Sherif told me he would go ask the storeowners about the prices of their “good” ouds. When he came back, he kept on telling me that I should buy one so that he could give me free lessons and we could play together. He was convinced that the prices would increase if I delayed another week. The good ones were about 1000 L.E (about $180 USD). I explained to him that I wasn't particularly interested in buying one at the moment. He seemed visibly disappointed.

We exchanged phone numbers and he said that we should go somewhere next Friday. I think he is under the impression I'm going to buy an oud next week, but I really don't have an interest in one. I was planning on going back to Alexandria next weekend, but I forgot to mention that to Sherif.

He showed me the direction to the metro and he said he was off to the hospital to visit his new daughter. I paid him back for the taxis and the drinks. It was a little more expensive than I expected, but I think he was honest. He seemed like he was genuinely interested in making a friend and not making extra money, though I try to be constantly aware of scams. Regardless, I got to see more of Cairene life today than any sort of sightseeing I had planned to do.

Nate told me the Akon concert last night was absolutely terrible. I'm glad I decided not to go.

Things at AUC

This week AUC opened their athletic facilities, which are actually very good. Construction is still ongoing, but it's good enough to use. There is a great 400m rubber track, two soccer fields, Olympic-size pool, indoor gymnasium, basketball courts, and workout rooms. Having something to use on campus means I can be a little more efficient with my time between classes. The locker rooms aren't ready yet, but when they are I should be able to keep my stuff on campus while I go run outside campus. There is so much open space immediately outside the campus, so I'm really excited to run there.

I've also discovered that the AUC library has a very good collection of books. The collection doesn't compare to that of Fordham's library, but there is a great selection of books on regional and language topics, which are of interest to me. The bottom two floors tend to be very noisy, as the Egyptian students don't seem to value "study volume." However the top two floors are very quiet and there is a great view of the desert outside New Cairo.

Since the first week of classes I've been taking the bus from Tahrir Square in Downtown, which involves leaving twenty minutes before the bus leaves to take the metro from Doqqi to Sadat. During my first week here, I waited at the bus pickup in Doqqi, but the bus didn't stop. Yesterday I took the Doqqi/Mohandeseen bus from the starting point in Mohandeseen to find out exactly where the Doqqi stop was. I got on the bus today from the stop at Cinema Tahrir in Doqqi, which is much more convenient than going to Downtown every day, as I get to save 1 L.E. metro fare and twenty minutes of travel. Cinema Tahrir is only about eight minutes walk from my apartment, across from the Russian Cultural Center.

As an aside, the Russian Cultural Center and the Russian Embassy, both located in my neighborhood, are comparatively prominent buildings in Doqqi. I haven't noticed any evidence of a Russian community within Doqqi, but I suppose the Russian influence must be somewhat significant in Cairo, if only as a remnant of Soviet aid.

I went to Mass yesterday at St. Joseph's in Downtown for Ash Wednesday, but it turned out to be a regular weekday Mass in French, for some reason. I realized I can't understand a word of French.

A lot of people are talking about what seems to be the biggest event of the weekend: hip-hop artist Akon performing tonight at the Cairo Opera house. I think tickets are 150 L.E. I'm not interested in attending.

I'm going to make sure I visit some interesting places this weekend, but I haven't yet decided which ones.

Egyptian Museum and the weekend

I went to the Egyptian Museum on Saturday, which contains the largest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts in the world. It's located right in Tahrir Square, Downtown. Admission was only 30 L.E. for students.

The exterior of the museum, which was built in the late 19th century


The museum itself appears small on the outside, but the amount of material that it contains is pretty astounding. There are about 160,000 items included in the register. Most museums that I have been to display their artifacts in glass cases in white studio-type rooms, with painstaking attention to layout and labeling. This was not the case at the Egyptian Museum.

The museum itself consists of two floors with massive hallways and alcoves. Most of the artifacts are simply strewn about the hallways with sparse labeling. The few artifacts that are labeled usually retain the tags from the 19th century, typed in French (and sometimes English) via typewriter. Most of the Arabic labels were handwritten. The signs around the museum look like they have been there since the early 20th century. Only some of the artifacts are behind glass cases.

The number of artifacts in the museum was overwhelming in fact. I spent three hours there and I feel I could have spent another three just to get an idea of what was on display. The bottom floor mostly contained statues, sarcophagi, mini-pyramids, busts, friezes, reliefs, and columns. The upper floor was the more interesting one, with jewelry, small statues, coffins, thrones, chariots, parchment, mummified animals, the Tutankhamen display, and of course the royal mummy room.

The mummy room cost an additional 60 L.E. for students, but it was worth it. This and the Tutankhamen display were the only part of the museum where it seemed as if they were more serious about preservation and display. The Ramses II mummy was not in the museum when I went, but his successors were on display, along with a bunch of other kings, queens, and priests. It's pretty amazing to see these in person.

There were a lot of tour groups within the museum, including a huge number of French groups. I also saw a significant number of Germans and British.

Pictures aren't permitted in the museum, but one of the police officers let me snap a few photos, for a small bribe of course. He was delighted that I knew a little bit of Arabic, so we talked for a few minutes. I could barely understand what he was saying, so I think he was Sa'idi. Sa'idi Arabic is spoken south of Cairo, like in Luxor and Aswan, and sounds nothing like Egyptian Arabic. The Sa'idis also tend to have a darker skin color than other Egyptians. I believe a lot of the police officers and soldiers in Cairo are Sa'idi because they are conscripted to serve to Cairo. My bowab, Omar, is also Sa'idi.

The balcony of the second floor of the museum.



One of the thousands of displays. Notice the old labels.


The museum is definitely worth a second visit, to be able to inspect some of the exhibits more closely.

Statues outside the museum


The Cairo Opera House. I haven't been there yet, but it's along my walk home from the museum.


That night when I returned to Doqqi, I decided to go get a coffee a few blocks from my apartment. Before I got there, a man stopped me and started a conversation with me. I had been in this situation before. I figured he wanted me to visit his shop and make me buy something. I wanted to practice my Arabic so I played along.

Surprisingly he didn't ask me to buy anything. He said that if I ever wanted to go to Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada, or Sharm el Sheikh that he could arrange for me a place to stay at a good rate. He gave me his number and told me about a few good sights to see. We talked for about thirty minutes, half in English, half in Arabic. I probably won't actually go to him if I decide to visit those cities, but he seemed genuine enough.

I went to St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Downtown for the second time this past Sunday. It's right off the Muhammed Naguib subway stop, so it's much easier than going to Zamalek or Maadi. The church was built for the French community in the 19th century, and is quite impressive inside. It is run by Franciscan monks.

St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Bank Misr Street, Downtown




There was a bombing last night in Cairo, in the Islamic section of Cairo at Khan al-Khalili market. That's on the other side of the Nile from Doqqi and Giza, where I was at the time. I have only been to the edge of the Islamic section once before, and I felt extremely out of place as a Westerner there, as nearly everyone there was dressed in tunics and other traditional garments. However, as I understand the bazaar and the mosques are frequently packed with tourists. I was thinking about going to Islamic Cairo next weekend, but I'm reconsidering as of now.

The atmosphere in the city seems the same as the day before. It didn't seem as if the incident caused a big stir, but I don't understand every conversation that I hear.