Central Cairo has some absolutely spectacular colonial architecture
Most women in Egypt wear head scarves. One of the things that really impressed me is how well they color-match their entire outfits.
In the more conservative parts of the country, such as at the oases, it is fairly typical that married women cover their entire bodies--everything but the eyes (non-married women only have to cover their hair). In Cairo, however, only a small fraction of the women do this--most cover their hair only, and a growing number don't even do that.
Small black and white taxis are everywhere in Cairo. The drivers are absolutely insane, and sticking any part of your body out of the window is a great way to discover the joys of amputation. The drivers take pride in decorating their taxis, and at night they glow, flash and strobe with all kinds of colored lights and reflectors.
See the real kid?
The red building on the right is the Egyptian Museum
The abundance of these fancy lingerie stores led me to suspect that--despite their conservative social values--Egyptian women may not be all that prudish after all...
This is the traditional garb for Egyptian men. While not all of them wear it, they're still predominant throughout the country
Traffic cops. One of our taxi drivers accidentally bumped into one from behind once (he hadn't noticed him). The guy turned around and looked like he was going to kill him. Big trouble. That was the only taxi driver who didn't argue the fare when we left...
The Khan-al-Kalili, Cairo's bazaar of a hundred labyrinthian alleys, thousands of sneaky vendors, and a million ways to part a fool and his money.
I think one of the reasons the alleys of the Khan are so narrow is to cut down on sunlight--this means shoppers can browse virtually all day despite what would otherwise be unbearable heat. That said, it's still considerably more lively past nightfall.
Belly dancing outfits
Spice shop. The smells wafting from these places were out of this world!
Egyptian crepes. Yum yum!
Asleep on the job
Inside the Egyptian Museum. Twenty minutes was enough for me, and I almost fell asleep on one of the chairs while waiting for Pascal.
Crossing a street in Cairo is an exercise in timing and requires balls of steel. Ever play Frogger? Just start walking across--the cars don't slow down, but both you and they need to calculate your trajectories so that you narrowly avoid each other.
