Cairo, The Capital of Egypt
Cairo is the capital of Egypt and home for 7 million
people who live on an area of 1881 sq km. Cairo was built
during the reign of the Fatimid’s in 969 by Jawhar Al
Seqelly. Some parts of Cairo have been built on the remains
of older capitals of Egypt, mainly Al Fustat. Al Askar and
Al Qatae’. It’s also associated with Memphis, the ancient
city due to its proximity.
Cairo was nicknamed “The city of
1000 minarets” due to the large number of mosques around the
city.
Cairo is located on the east coast of the Nile river with a
populous area of only 155 sq km out of the total area of
1881 sq km. Cairo is the largest cities in Africa and one of
the largest in the world.
Cairo has many things for visitors to see and do while
being on a holiday as the city contains both historic sights
and modern tourists attractions for all tourists types to
enjoy. Cairo is a modern city with a historic touch that you
feel when you walk on the streets. When you plan your
holiday put Cairo on top of your travel destination list.
History
Romans built a fortress during the 4th century called
Babylon on the east bank of the Nile where its remains is
situated in the heart of the old Coptic area of current day
Cairo. When Muslims conquered Egypt in 641, the Arabian army
leader Amr Ibn Al A’as built a city north of Babylon and
called it Al Fustat which means “the tent” and moved the
Egyptian capital from Alexandria to the new city.
In 750 Abbasids who defeated the Umayyad established a new
capital of Egypt just north of Al Fustat and called it Al
Askar until 886 when the Tulunids moved the capital further
north to a new city which was called Al Qatae’ which was
destroyed by the Abbasids in 905 who moved the capital back
to Al Fustat.
In 969 Gawhar Al Siqilly, under instructions of the Fatimid
Caliphate Al Mu’ezz Le Din-ellah laid the foundation of a
new capital of Egypt north east of Al Fustat. The new
capital was first named Al Mansuriyah then later was called
Cairo (Al Qahira). It took 4 years for the city to be
finished during which the mosque of Al Azhar was also built
which served as a learning institute and then later became a
large university till current day.
Muhammad Ali who ruled Egypt during the 19th century
initiated a plan to modernize Egypt but the real effect was
seen during the reign of Khedive Ismail whose reforms cost
drowned the country in dept and paved the way to the
European control over Egypt which ended in the British
occupation in 1882. Egypt remained under occupation till
1956, 4 years after the 23rd July revolution.
Cairo Touristic Sights
Throughout the history Although Cairo has witnessed
thousands of years of civilization in and around the city
most of the monuments in Cairo dates back to the Roman,
Coptic and Islamic eras. Today there are many sights in
Cairo preferred by the tourists like the Egyptian museum,
Khan El Khalili, famous mosques, the Citadel and Cairo
tower. The following list contains the most loved tourists
attractions in Cairo:
The Pyramids and Sphinx
Although the pyramids and Sphinx are located in Giza
which a governorate in Egypt, it is part of the Greater
Cairo which includes Cairo, Giza and Kalyoubia governorates
according to the administration organization. The Pyramids
are a one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and the
most visited tourists destination in Egypt as they stand
witness to thousands of years of civilization.
The Nile
The longest river in the world runs west of Cairo where a
cornice was built for people to enjoy walking alongside its
bank. Tourists can ride a felucca (or felika) which is a
small ship to sail the Nile in Cairo or they can enjoy
cruising the Nile in one of the luxurious passenger ships in
a journey from Cairo to Luxor and Aswan.
The Egyptian museum
The official name of the Egyptian museum is “The Museum
of Egyptian Antiquities” which hosts more than 136,000
exhibits with thousands more stored away from tourists’
eyes.
Khan El Khalili
Well known shopping area near Al Hussein mosque with
thousands of small shops and bazaars selling imitations of
ancient Egyptian and Islamic items handmade in the workshops
in the same area. The area is mostly visited by tourists
seeking Egyptian crafts and souvenirs or just enjoying the
old city.
Mosques:
There are many old mosques in Cairo that dates back to
the Islamic conquest of Egypt in 641 and later times. Some
of the most famous mosque in Cairo are:
- Amr Ibn Al A’as mosque
- Al Azhar mosque
- Sultan Hassan mosque
- Hussein mosque
- Al Sayeda Zeinab mosque
- Al Sayeda Nafisa mosque
Cairo Tower
A 187m tower built during the period from 1956-1961
stands on Zamalek island in the Nile river shaped like a
lotus flower. The tower overlooks Cairo with a rotating
restaurant on top and observation telescopes for visitors to
see far places in Cairo.
Muhammad Ali Citadel mosque
The mosque of Muhammad Ali was built on top of the Cairo
citadel 1830-1848 is one of the featured landmarks in Cairo.
A must see monument for tourists to enjoy.
There are many more sights to see in Cairo which you should
visit when you come to Egypt like:
- The hanging church
- Cairo Coptic museum
- Museum of Islamic Art
- The Papyrus museum
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