You can read about
street markets in |
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You can read about this
fascinating area in |
You can read about
street markets in |
|
You can read about this
fascinating area in |
Photos by Rebeca Cross
Khan Il Khalili
Is a traditional bazaar located in the middle of old Islamic Cairo near the Citadel (shown here). The bazaar was originally located next to one of the gates to the old city, built in the 10th century, that led to the important trade routes of the Eastern Desert towards Sinai, the Red Sea and beyond. The bazaar is actually named after a trading house that controled trade to this sector and set up its trading house here. |
| Because of this history, many of the buildings and walls of Khan Il Khalili date back to the founding of the city itself, including a royal palace. These two gateways attest to the grandure of the market since the early middle ages, when Egypt was at the cross roads of the world. |
| The interior of the market provides a maze of small shops that today service primarily the tourist market for local artisan products, ranging from cheap knik-knaks to expensive hand-made furniture and carpets. |
| Tourists are primarily attracted, of course, by the
beautiful and colorful design of the market, built up
over hundred of years of vibrant history. The impact of
Khan il Khalili on the local tourist industry is so
pervasive that artisan crafts are often refered to
officially as "Khan il Khalili products." Cairenes come to Khan il Khalili also, but primarily to buy gold and silver jewelry which is very popular in Egyptian society. |
| Naturally, as the market has grown over the years, vendors have spilt out onto the surrounding streets. These stalls were built by the government to handle some of the overflow. |
| But even more stalls have popped up since then,
covering much of the surrounding neighborhood despite
frequent police harassment. These stalls are set up on a neighboring street in temporary structures, and many more vendors simply sell in the street on tables or from the floor. Generally, they sell cheaper models of Khan il Khalili products, but many also sell garments, textiles and kitchenware for sale to locals. |
| Egypt has also been historically the center of the
spice trade, much of which went through Khan il Khalili
as well. A part of the bazaar is still dedicated to
spices, although this is usually overlooked by tourists. Like everything else, the spice market has also spilled out into neighboring alleys and streets, as this photo attests. |
| Food carts also serve the needs of local residents
and merchants. Here a vendor is roasting seeds, and seems
to be trying to make a sale to some workers in a street
close to the Khan. (Street Food stalls like this are studied in Street Foods: Urban Food and Employment in Developing Countries by Irene Tinker.) |
| I couldn't resist adding in this colorful shot of
three women walking in the neighborhood, even though I
have no idea whether they are customers or merchants or
just neighborhood residents (or all of the above). Egyptian women love to wear floral patterns such as these, and may be seen with a variety of different headdresses, also of different colors. |
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