nmazca.com : cairo, egypt, oct-nov 2005 [please view the sinai desert photos, also]

last updated: 19 dec 2006 email
The interior of the 14th century Madrasa-Khanqah of Sultan al-Zahir Barquq in Old Cairo. [999 pixel version] Inscriptions along the side of a minaret atop the Madrasa-Khanqah of Sultan al-Zahir Barquq [1111 pixel version] My favorite mosque in the city... because it looks like a space station. A water bearer and Isis, the first two sculptures one sees upon entering the Mahmoud Mokhtar Museum in Zamalek, just down the street from the Cairo Sheraton and the Russian embassy. We went in on a whim and were quite impressed by Mokhtar's work (and that was after having been a nose-width away from Van Gogh, Gauguin and Rodin's work at the Khalil Museum 20 minutes earlier). One gentleman gave us (the only two people in the joint) a grateful tour. He seemed delighted when I recognized the sphinx statue on my visa stamp as Mokhtar's creation. It registered because I'd wondered what that stamp image was for weeks. A sort of macabre carnival sculpture -- and a bust of Saad Zaghloul -- in front of the Mokhtar Museum A nighttime photo of the market that is adjacent to the Dar El Salaam transit station. Interior of the Opera House metro station (just before I got the waving finger from a Transit Police officer). Not the first time I got negative attention from Egyptian security. The Khamsa (Hamsa, Humsa) Hand, or the Hand of Fatima: a set of decals to protect against the evil eye that was placed outside of a pet store in Ma'adi. A young girl on a bus after an abbreviated school day. The Sun emerged from behind clouds -- clouds! -- during the midafternoon prayers. Egypt's main satellite tracking station... ...which was down the street and around the corner from our building. This photo and the preceding one were pretty much taken because of the passing, dense clouds -- the satellite dishes provided a little visual contrast. Cars and construction en route to Heliopolis. Greyscale rendition of the Giza Plateau Pyramids in the late afternoon Sunset in the desert near Giza A decent shot of the 3 October 2005 annular eclipse with a Nikon F, a Thousand Oaks Optical Type 2+ solar filter, and a 200mm lens [the camera and lens donated by Cinnamon]. For much better photo coverage of the eclipse, follow this link. "I went to teach in Qatar and all I got was this..." No, that wouldn't be fair. If nothing else, the white shirt provided a good backdrop for this projection. A simple projection Within a matter of seconds, these guys went from being engaged in observing the eclipse... ...to forming two expertly posed lines for Abby, who was laughing at how quickly they reacted to the camera. A Monkey and a Rat at Giza Khufu Pyramid from the southwest Khufu Pyramid from the southwest (with wee little people to establish scale) Khafre Pyramid from the northeast Climbing the pyramids is haram... ...for a very good reason: it'd be a treacherous climb and perhaps an even worse descent. Foundation blocks of Khufu Pyramid. What's up with the one with bricks? A close-up of some other pyramid blocks This is the view from inside the Pizza Hut across the street, near a tourist drop-off point and the seating area for the Pyramids Sound and Light Show (offered three times daily in English, Spanish and French). <<< fotos on foot 22 over 7 >> nmazca >>		The Khanqah and Mausoleum of Sultan Faraj Ibn Barquq in the City of the Dead, which is situated to the east of the Autostrad, Khan el-Khalili market, and Al-Azhar Park. The city's name is derived from the fact that tens (hundreds?) of thousands people live and work amidst centuries-old cemeteries and tombs. We ended up here after asking a taxi driver to take us to the Sultan al-Zahir Barquq mosque featured to the right (which was about a kilometer to the west). After we arrived here (knowing we were in the wrong part of the city), the driver waved down a gentleman by the entrance, who then waved down a passing policeman, who was them joined by another passerby -- all of them looking at our map of Islamic Cairo and Abby and I laughing at the curbside drama that had unfolded (as it will happen when Egyptians want to help you, which they are thankfully so willing to do). We eventually chose to have the driver drop us off between the Al-Azhar and El Hussein mosques, from where we then walked. Monkey by Al-Azhar Mosque Exposed trunk and roots of an old, old tree in the Mokhtar Museum courtyard A minaret and the fringes of palm fronds at twilight Late-day traffic in Midan Tahrir, downtown White hibiscus with red veins A hibiscus flower along Road 206 in Ma'adi The fringe of Old Cairo seen from Al-Azhar Park A mother and child in Ma'adi Another look at the jasmine plant shown below. A section of the large jasmine plant that we have staying with us, while its owner is off to take care of business in Dahab on the Sinai Peninsula. More about that location later, as we plan to venture there soon. 21st-century security along the ramparts of Salah El Din Citadel. Heading NE toward Heliopolis, with Hosni Mubarak's smiling and ever-present face watching over traffic. Happy Ramadan greetings from your friends at Chili's. The sign for the local dry cleaner. They do good work and don't seem to drench the clothes in blood. (People in Cairo seem to like this typeface, that's all) Monkey on horseback near Giza Horse-level view of our group as we rode toward the pyramids This was as close as we rode. The divergent exposures aside, not a bad view, huh? The Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) and the Pyramid of Khafre (Chephren) The Pyramid of Khafre from the east Khufu Pyramid from the north An alternate view of Khufu Another alternate view of Khufu Khufu Pyramid from the southeast Khufu Pyramid with temple entrance in view Freeform Sphinx with Khafre Pyramid Khafre Pyramid from the northeast An alternate view of Khafre		Rooftops from the top of the Old Cairo Barquq Mosque, with the minarets and domes of Salah El Din Citadel visible at the far right. [1024 pixel version] A side street in Old Cairo just before the sunset prayers El Mogamma ("the complex") Weeks before I arrived in Egypt, Abby had told me her story about going into this 1,300-office behemoth to have her visa extended. The legend of the Mogamma only became greater when I read about it in the paper just before getting on a flight to Cairo from Frankfurt. Forty days later, I had to venture inside (with my Lady Friend's guidance) when it came time to renew my visa. There is nothing to which the Mogamma can be compared in the West (or the Far East). Its isness is intense. But, as you can read in the news article, the Egyptian government is going to close the Mogamma and open new offices in separate facilities. Bye-bye, Mubarak. I saw you so much, but we never met. Late afternoon in Old Cairo Minaret above Road 9 in Ma'adi Reflection of the Sun in water B-a-n-a-n-a-s: I'd never seen them growing on a tree before. A mantis making its way across a lantana plant A cluster of lantana flowers along Road 206 in Ma'adi Waning Moon above Ma'adi A passerby and a part of the scene on our street. It's quiet -- very quiet compared to downtown. But I need to point out that it's a relative quiet because, as I write this, there's someone insistently ringing a bicycle bell, I can hear at least two different TVs from the building across the road, some young boys grappling or vying with each other for something, a home-delivery moped, and the occasional "mind me, I'm driving" honk from a passing car. Around 1 a.m., a misaharaty (musaharati) will walk down the block, strike a drum, and sing the names of children who must wake up to have sohoor, the last meal before the pre-sunrise prayers, which marks the beginning of the day's fasting. The tree outside of the window in the room from which I send these photos. The Sun rose in Cairo while I spoke to a friend who was about to go to sleep in Seattle. Waxing Moon conjunct Venus Mostly empty streets just before iftar, the evening meal that follows the sunset prayers during Ramadan. No, not the Flying Shaolin Hoodie Babies! Pharaonic high-rise near the Nile The Colonel rides a scooter in Misr The Balsamic Moon above Cairo on the morning after I arrived. See a similar photo taken last October in Doha. The obviously enormous minaret attached to the Al-Fath Mosque, which is located at Midan Ramses. This is the view from the curb in front of the Victoria Hotel, 66 Sharia al-Gomhuriyya. Another view from the city as Cairenes made their way to work and to school. The dome of the mosque that sits next to the Meramees Hotel, 32 Sharia Sabri Abu Alam, downtown near Midan Talaat Harb. (Midan means "town square," by the way.) Bottle cap galaxy Riding by the Nile The defunct(?) Nile Mall (not that there aren't several such buildings in the city)		See more here about Islamic monuments in Cairo. A little audio: Cairo call to prayer, 3:00 Cairo call to prayer, 2:28