During a recent trip to my former home in Egypt, my family visited the island of Zamalek. Known for housing the famous Cairo Tower, Zamalek is also the prime spot for hiring a felucca, or sailboat. On my visit during New Year’s, I did both.
On New Year’s Eve, we took a taxi from Al Rehab to the edge of Zamalek and rented a felucca for sunset. We watched our guide, Ali, raise the sails and steer us into the Nile River. Unfortunately, there was little wind that evening and feluccas don’t have engines. It was not a problem, however: we simply tied our boat to a ‘party boat’ – a covered, ferry-like vessel with an engine, meant for large groups of people. We laughed, and the veiled Saudi women waving to us laughed, and we listened to their Arabic music.
After the ride on the Nile, we found our way to a hotel and checked in before heading out to the Nile again. For dinner, we ate on a renovated yacht called Le Pacha 1901 (story below) at an Italian restaurant. Back at the hotel, we found multiple Egyptian New Year countdown channels, one of which included yoga.
Once upon a time, a distinguished and aging Pacha from Upper Egypt had a dream. He longed to build himself a floating palace on the Nile to live out his last days. The Pacha collected treasures and masterpieces to adorn his palace and by 1887, he had prepared his designs and began to build his dream. In 1901, the Pacha passed away without having fulfilled his dream, and left his estate to two daughters. The daughters chose to live in their Cairo mansion and abandoned the unfinished boat in Upper Egypt.
http://www.lepacha.com/about/
Nearly a full century later, a traveler exploring the banks of the Nile, came upon the abandoned and partially sunken boat. This person fell in love with the majesty and luxury he could still envision through the mud and dust. And so he went to work looking for the owners of the wreck and the original designs. He acquired it, refurbished it, added two more decks and named the reborn boat: “Le Pacha 1901”. The old Pacha’s bedroom was at the prow, where “Le Tarbouche” is found today…
Because of its prime location on the island, Cairo Tower hosts spectacular views of not only Zamalek but also most of Cairo itself. I experienced this for the second time on New Year’s Day, after a croissant sandwich for breakfast. On one side are the Giza pyramids and on another, the even older pyramids of Saqqara. Zamalek also holds a huge sports club. Wouldn’t it be amazing to watch a soccer match from the top? And, of course, all the tan, sandy buildings of Cairo stretch upward as far as the eye can see. Even Mokottam, a range of hills and a section of the city in them, is visible far in the distance.
During our strolls through downtown Zamalek, we came across a library and, while we didn’t go inside, we enjoyed the elegant architecture. While making our way through a tunnel, we spied some bright graffiti.
It was nice to spend New Year’s with my brother, who had flown to Cairo for the first time. Our time in Zamalek was short, but lots of fun and, as usual, I can’t wait to visit more exciting places. Happy Year of the Pig!
Way Out Wanderer 