The sparkly gown I wore at El Khan El Khalilli Market Egypt

Hi everyone. We all love a market every place we visit, so for this feature from my recent trip to Egypt with Rami’s Tours, I thought I’d share with you one of my favourite outfits worn in Egypt during this tour to the famous El Khalilli Market.

I felt like a queen in this sparkly evening dress by Nina Covaci, so elegant and well suited for dinner in the city. We shot these photos on the way out of El Khan El Khalilli Market with quite an audience I must say, but we managed to pull it off safely, thanks to photographer Marin Babanov and both Rebekah and Rami on hand to assist. Most people here are not aware of what bloggers are so seeing this lady posing in a sparkly gown at 6 in the afternoon is far from a normal sight for local sellers but they were very kind and nice to us. Thank you Egypt once again for your hospitality!

What to find at Khan Al-Khalili bazaar?

No trip to Cairo would be complete without a visit to Khan Al-Khalili. The bazaar is loud, crowded, colorful, and exciting—full of all kinds of goods and shiny baubles. You can find the typical tourist trinkets here, but don’t let them distract you from the genuinely fine shopping to be found here.

Located in the heart of Islamic Cairo, this busy and colorful open-air market is filled with unique and exotic items from spices and perfumes to jewelry and souvenirs, clothing, traditional jewelry, and gemstones. The items are of high quality which is part of the reason that this market has survived for so long.

While strolling the market, you may find your eyes becoming lost between the unique mix of merchandise displayed in shops and allies. There is a variety of goods — from sparkling silverware, gold artifacts and antiques, to stained glass lamps, incense, handmade accessories, and ancient Pharaoh souvenirs. Also, the soft touch of the handmade carpets will take your breath away. There are also districts for gold-selling, copper-made things, and spice-selling.

The spot is home to many old cafés and you won’t know which of them to try first. Our favorite is definitely El-Fishawi cafe, one of the oldest in Cairo (established in 1797) and one of Naguib Mahfouz’s favorite cafés. Rami always makes sure you experience this place when visiting the market. It’s a must. Be prepared to have one hundred people trying to sell you things in those 15 minutes but it’s part of the experience haha! When there is something I like, I always tell Rami and he does all the bargaining in their language which sounds like Maltese swear words but we always get the best deals, so anything works for me!