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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 12 - 18 October 2000 Issue No. 503 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 12 - 18 October 2000 Issue No. 503
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Elections Palestine International Economy Opinion Culture Books Interview Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Cairo crossroads
Why should the route of the Holy Family hog all the glory? After all, other historic sites have housed some illustrious settlers. Rehab Saad investigates
Any project that sets out to renovate Cairo's sagging historic quarters is to be championed, even if dollar signs are the motivation. So when the Ministry of Tourism turned its eyes to Cairo's aging Islamic quarter in the hopes of promoting sites visited by relatives and descendants of the Prophet Mohamed, I got interested.
Riding the wave of a well-received project upgrading Old Cairo, the Ministry of Tourism is setting its sights on the areas in Islamic Cairo. Cairo was more than a haven for the Holy Family, who sought shelter in Egypt from the persecution of the Romans some two thousand years ago. Centuries later, another religious family crossed paths with the route of the Holy Family and both legacies leave behind landmarks and monuments holy to Muslim and Christian pilgrims.
At the beginning of the seventh century, wives, relatives and descendants of the Prophet Mohamed (known as Aal Al-Bayt) came from different countries to settle in Egypt, and particularly in Cairo. Tourism officials are now thinking that sites related to Aal Al-Bait could present a new attraction for religious tourism as well as travellers in general.
The heavily promoted route of the Holy Family through Egypt, revived earlier this year, brought much-needed attention to important sites in Old Cairo, such as the so-called Hanging Church. The project was financed by the Ministry of Tourism and the National Association of the Revival of Egyptian Heritage, an independent organisation comprised of businessmen, intellectuals and academics dedicated to the preservation of Egyptian heritage. Cairo's historic sites seem to be perpetual works-in-progress, with regenerative efforts always in the works, but the project in Old Cairo was notable for its efforts to not only upgrade churches and historic houses, but also the quality of life in and around them; buildings and shops were renovated, street tiles were replaced, trees were planted.
Islamic Cairo is famous for its numerous historic mosques, but a new project by the Ministry of Tourism could draw religious tourists to sites like Sayida Zeinab as places visited by Aal Al-Bayt (relations of the Prophet Mohamed)
photo: Khaled El-FiqiThis concept will now be applied to those sites visited by Aal Al-Bayt in Cairo, and once again the ministry will collaborate with the National Association of the Revival of Egyptian Heritage. Islamic architects, engineers and antiquities professors will all combine their efforts to upgrade the areas in which the sites are found.
"We have taken major steps to develop Old Cairo," declared Minister of Tourism Mamdouh El-Beltagui at a recent press conference. "It was a treasure trove covered by a heap of rubble. Now we are launching our product of the road of Aal Al-Bayt."
According to tourism officials, the project aims at integrating development of the area with the renovation of historical sites, including the building of public yards, special places for pedestrians and areas for different activities, crafts and exhibitions. Project Coordinator Naela Tolan explained that in terms of social development, the project aims to raise awareness among inhabitants of the area both of the cultural significance of the quarter and how residents can can take part in developing the area. Programmes are planned to create new jobs and train workers and Tolan has emphasised that including Egyptians in the framework of the plan is considered the primary factor in the success of the project.
"The friendliness and warmth of Egyptian citizens was the reason Aal Al-Bayt came to Egypt rather than any other country. It has always been a land of refuge and security," said Tolan.
Historical studies show that Aal Al-Bayt visited the areas of Al-Hussein and Al-Azhar -- where renovations by the Ministry of Culture are already under way -- and spots throughout Islamic Cairo: Sayeda Zeinab, Sayeda Nafissa, Sayeda Aisha and Sayeda Ruqqayya, as well as Sayidi Zein El-Abidin and the Mosque of Sayidi Hassan Al-Anwar. The Ministry of Tourism project will be confined to the last two areas.
So what will the tangible results of the project be? For one, tourists will be able to visit areas previously so obscure that travel agencies didn't bother to put them on an itinerary. Tour operators have suggested that walking tours could take in the renovated sites along Salah Salem Street, going, for example, from the Mosque of Sayeda Aisha, passing by the Sayyidi Hassan Al-Anwar and Sabil Umm Abbas (an old public water dispenser), and terminate in the area of Sayeda Zeinab, an area full of mosques and traditional activities. Alternatively, a bus tour could start in Sayeda Zeinab, take in the Mameluke era mosques and eventually head for the Citadel and the mosques of Sultan Hassan and Rifa'i. Tolan added that the project could be enriched by renovating the Mosque of Ibn Tulun (although it is not one of the mosques of Aal Al-Bayt) and the Gayer Anderson museum.
Tolan emphasised the desire to make the areas more accessible to visitors, including cafeterias and souvenir shops. Like other tourist projects, there needs to be real interaction between tourists and the sites they visit. "We don't want them to just come and take a photograph of the place," explained Tolan. "We want them to go back to their countries to relate an emotional experience. We want it to be an authentic experience. We want to give the product a human dimension."
Drawing on this aspect, Tolan noted that families and their descendants have been living in the same areas for the last 700 years. "They have a lot to relate. They also have their own traditions. We could make use of such astonishing facts to attract interest," she said. In fact, studies are being carried out tracing the genealogies of the residents and efforts are being made to revive different mulids and crafts -- even dishes that were cooked on special occasions and feasts. "This is another way to capture the spirit and taste of the past," said Mona Zakariya, an engineer of the project.
Preliminary studies for the project will be completed within a month and it is expected to be carried out in several phases.
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