Cairo Nightlife

Cairo is even livelier at night than it is during the day, and the Cairenes have always known how to enjoy themselves. As the sun goes down, the people come out. Shopping, socialising and drinking coffee all need to take place before the serious business of eating, drinking, dancing and music begins. The fun goes on for as long as you can stand the pace and even though most places wind down around 0300 or 0400, you will still find some that are open 24 hours. Wednesdays and Thursdays are the days for the big nights out.

Although Egypt is a Muslim country and many Cairenes will enjoy themselves all night long by only drinking soft drinks, alcohol is not difficult to come by for those who want it. Some Muslims are more devout than others, but if you are with Egyptian friends or contacts and they decline your offer of a drink, you must be sensitive to their religious beliefs.

There is plenty of nightlife in Cairo. Most basic are the baladi bars, often called 'cafeterias' to disguise the fact that they are selling alcohol. They are perfectly safe, although a little rough and women on their own might feel uncomfortable in what is essentially a male domain. If you want to seek some out, try the Sharia Alfy area around the Midan Orabi.

To find out what's on, get the Egyptian Gazette (Egyptian Mail on Saturdays), the English-language edition of Al-Ahram Weekly (http://weekly.ahram.org.eg), or the monthly magazine Egypt Today (www.egypttoday.com) (but double-check as monthlies are not completely up to date).