Khan El Khalili (Egypt)

Khan El Khalili is a huge souk . Imagine dozens and dozens of booths as far as the eye can see, open from early morning until sunset, and in the middle of it all a constant energetic going and coming! A sort of "Aladdin's cave", which mixes souvenirs for tourists (plastic pyramids, small cloth camels...), everyday items (soap, blankets...) and rare gems: I had the pleasure of seeing beautiful, old Arab books and very beautiful precious stones with fascinating glints!

Some of Khan El Khalili's quarters deserve to be lingered at: I recommend the gigantic silver and goldsmiths' quarters, that of the copper craftsmen, a bit more modest, and finally the spice merchants quarter for the exotic scent and rainbow colours of the stalls.

If you wish to see traditional Cairo cafés, I advise the Fishawi café for its bustling atmosphere day and night, its beautiful mirrors, not to mention the pedlars that are omnipresent in the room. Most of all, do not leave Khan El Khalili without having paced up and down the tiny steps of Midaq passage, which gets its name from the famous novel by Naguib Mahfouz, The Passage of Miracles .