CAIRO

(the Capital of Egypt)  definitely is the biggest city in Africa ande the Middle_east,  is one of the world's largest urban areas ‎and offers many sites to see. It is the administrative ‎capital of Egypt .known officially as ‎al-Qāhirah and it also called "The city of a thousand minarets" .

Cairo, is an amazing city full of life and ‎movement, and it is that way almost 24 hours every ‎day, with the noisy honking of horns, children playing ‎in the streets and merchants selling their wears and ‎services. And here, the Egyptians are most at home in ‎this powerful, modern and ancient city .

Cairo, Egypt provides great culture, including art ‎galleries and music halls, such as the Cairo Opera ‎House; as well it should, being one of the largest cities ‎in the world. It also provides some of the grandest ‎accommodations and restaurants in the world, such as ‎the Four Seasons and the Cairo Marriott.‎

The citadel

The Citadel of Saladin

The Citadel, as it stands today, is a collection of ‎buildings, dating back to several eras. It contains ‎various, military, religious, secular and civil ‎constructions that have overlapped to constitute an ‎intricate archeological collection involving monuments ‎from the Ayyubid period as well as of later periods, ‎such as the Mamluk period , the Ottoman period and ‎the Muhammad Ali's period. The Citadel's buildings ‎will always be a rich field of research for archeologists ‎due to the potential discovery of walls or antiques that ‎might tell their stories in time.‎

The Location of the Citadel:‎ 

Saladin ordered the construction of his Citadel in (572 ‎H. /1176 A.D), assigning this responsibility to his ‎minister, Baha'- ud-Din Qaraqush. It was then built on ‎a part of a separate elevation of the Muqattam Hills. ‎The main purpose of its construction was of course to ‎fulfill Saladin's intention of establishing and maintaining ‎his control and power over Egypt besides protection ‎against potential dangers from the supporters of the ‎Fatimid Caliphs in Egypt especially after having ‎arrested and driven out Fatimid princes from the ‎eastern and western palaces, and replacing them by ‎his own princes. The Citadel ad a very significant ‎defensive function, namely, to protect Cairo in case it ‎is subjected to any assault.‎

The construction of this citadel was accompanied by ‎Saladin's major defensive project of having the four ‎capital cities of Egypt surrounded by a stone wall and ‎provided with strong defensive towers. He had ‎embarked on this project since (566 H. /1176. A.D), ‎when he was the minister of the Fatimid Caliph, Al-‎Adid. This process was simultaneous with the ‎commencement of the construction of the Citadel in ‎‎(572 H. /1176 A.D). Finally he had all the four capital ‎cities of Islamic Egypt, Al- Fustat, Al- Askar, Al- Qata'i ‎and Cairo, surrounded by a strong defensive wall.‎

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali  

This mosque, which is located within the walls of the ‎Citadel, is the gem of Islamic architecture in Egypt, ‎with its high dome and two elegant minarets. It has ‎also been known as the Citadel Mosque or the ‎Alabaster Mosque. The construction and decoration of ‎this mosque took quite a long time. They were initiated ‎by Muhammad Ali in (1246 H. /1830 A.D), and it was ‎added to by Khedive Abbass I and later by Ismail ‎Pasha in 1863. In (1296 H. /1879 A.D) Tawfik Pasha ‎restored the marble courtyard of the mosque. In 1935 ‎the original great dome was pulled down when some ‎fractures appeared in it, and it was rebuilt.‎

Sultan Hassan Collage

This madrasah was established by Sultan Al-Nasir ‎Hassan son of Muhammad Ibn Qalawun, who was first ‎named Qimari, but later on he chose the name ‎Hassan by which he became known. He came to ‎power in (748 H./1347A.D) but was overthrown in (752 ‎L/1351A.D). In (755 H./1354A.D) he was reinstated to ‎the throne of Egypt once more. In (762 H. /1361 A.D) ‎he had a serious conflict with prince Yalbugha, which ‎ended with his arrest together with a number of his ‎supporters in Matariyyah.‎

The location of this madrasah was previously known ‎as Suq al-Khayl (the horse market) and it had one of ‎the most wonderful palaces established by Sultan Al-‎Nasir Hassan in (738 H. /1337 A.D) for Prince ‎Yalbugha Al-Yahyawi. This palace survived until it was ‎demolished by order of Sultan Al-Nasir Hassan to be ‎replaced by his madrasah, the construction of which ‎was commenced in (757 Hegira) and was meticulously ‎followed up throughout his lifetime. Sultan Hassan is ‎quoted as having said, "This mosque cost so much ‎that at times I wished I could stop, had it not been for ‎fear lest it may be reported that the King of Egypt was ‎unable to finish something he had started". In fact, the ‎Sultan Hassan School has no equivalent in the whole ‎Islamic world.‎

Sultan Hassan Collage

visit cairo and see all the wonderful historical places,you will explore the tourist sightseeing in Egypt,especially The  Egyptian Museum , citadel ,Sultan Hassan Collage and  khan el khalili .