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Bazaar of the Tentmakers
By Daniel Lanier
One of the arteries of the old Islamic city center of Cairo is
the Muizz Li-Din Allah Street. The broad alley goes from Bab Al-Fotouh,
the  Gate of the Victories, north to the Al-Azhar Street, up to the
Bab Zuweyla, south of the Al-Azhar. Between these two gates every
single furlong seems to be dedicated to one or another craft:
brass- and copper working, goldsmiths, waterpipe craftsmen in the
north as well as carpet and spice producers in the south.
Therefore, the Muizz Li-Din Allah Street changes its name
unofficially rather often and is usually known to locals as Souq
Al-Nahhasin (Coppersmith Bazaar) or Souq Al-Attarin (Spices
Bazaar) or Souq Al-Sagha (Goldsmith and Jeweler Bazaar).
 Behind Bab Zuweyla, this main alley continues its way as Souq
Al-Khiamiyya – Bazaar of the Tentmakers. It is the traditional
place for producing and selling tent fabrics, fine and colorful
appliqué work as well as printed materials. Here, the little lane
is roofed at a distance of 150 meters and conveys an atmosphere of
an old medieval market lane.
Only a short time ago the scaffoldings were removed. Following
the 1992 earthquake, the Souq Al-Khiamiyya underwent a major
reconstruction. None of the buildings were destroyed during that
earthquake, but the weakened buildings urgently needed to be
reinforced and strengthened. The construction workers left the
area, and the tentmakers as well as other traders now welcome the
customers, locals and tourists, in newly renovated shops. Many of
the goods are manufactured in nearby workshops, but almost all of
the shops have somebody sitting there sewing and embroidering in
front of the visitors.
The products are a mix between traditional artwork, daily life
durables and tourist-oriented kitsch. Especially beautiful are the
calligraphic and  arabesque fabric ornaments, rich of color,
available as pillowcases and as wall hangings. I have witnessed
friends from Europe buying bundles of pillowcases, after half an
hour of thorough selection, since you won’t find one design
twice in the whole bazaar. Last winter, for our household, my wife
and I purchased a wall hanging that we immediately fell in love
with. Pillowcases go for around LE 20 (US-$ 5) and small, simple
hangings start at around LE 50 ($ 13), a larger and more refined
piece of fabric art might cost LE 250 ($ 63).
 To satisfy a more straight-minded tourist taste, the tentmakers
offer pharaonic motifs as well as birds, peasants, trees,
red-glowing sunsets and other pictorial scenes. Another hit,
although probably not necessarily for tourists, are the printed
fabrics with red or blue ornaments, which are used everywhere in
Cairo’s streets as festival tents or building site screens. We
bought some yards of this brightly colored fabric to cover the
European-style sofa and chairs in our furnished flat – and it
looks fantastic. For not even LE 100 ($ 25) we were able to change
our living room into an Arabic salon, although this is only
something that we can enjoy, as our Egyptian friends are frowning
a little about our unusual taste in
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