We got up late, happy in the fact that there had been no gunshots, but I lost a lot of sleep to an irritating mosquito. This day was dedicated to the Islamic sector. We had been there on our first day (when we visited the Citadel) but back then we had little idea about how to get around and missed most of the sights. Lauren still had a yearning to see the inside of a mosque and have someone explain how they work.
The walk there was about 2km. Previously we had walked this back through the hectic evening weekend market. It took much less time this time before we were in the general vicinity. 
As we turned in to the market area, we saw a mosque which turned out to be the Madrassa of Sultan Barsbey. The man at the door assured us that he was an official and wanted no money. He made a German guy wait while he showed us the tomb where the Sultan had buried his wife and son. Then another man arrived who would take us up the minarette. He was the one (apparently) who needed the money - 10LE each!. Our 'guide' told us that he could arrange for us all to go up but that we must be careful not to tell the other guide or anyone else. 
So we all clambered up to the top of the minarette and enjoyed the stunning views across Cairo. It was a beautifully clear day, so we got the maximum benefit from the experience. When we got down, he showed us the ivory inlaid minibar (not not that type of minibar!) or pulpit and the area where people wash. Of course he took us out into the arabic spice area and would not doubt have taken us to his uncle's shop if we hadn't chose not to go any further.
We decided to cross the steet to the Islamic area. We avoided the first mosque as there were too many people trying to charge to get and to take us on tours. We entered the old area through the gate of Bab Zuweila. 
This brought into a far quieter covered area with more interesting shops. Here people were making shoes, stringing beads and generally doing things 'not for tourists'. As we continued we came to the tent making area. All along we got the feeling that this was a more genuine area where tourists were just a passing interest and not a target. We went into one of the shops and bought Fiona a scarf for 20LE (actually turned out to be not that cheap but bargaining isn't her strong point and the people in this area did not seem keen to bargain anyway).
The next stop was the Mosque of Salih Talai. A man tried to get us to let him show us around which we refused. He got all grumpy about South Africans. Clearly we are not as easy to rip off as most. Fiona and I sat outside while Lauren and Guy got tickets to see the interior. The mosque was originally built on an upper level with shops below but over the years, the rubbish had piled up so it is now on street level.We enjoyed watching the world go by and the short break from walking and avoiding bargaining.
The children re-appeared and we returned along the same route. We took the opportunity to try the street side sweet potatoes ( 1/2 for 1LE) and then had lunch of a 'sandwich' which was actually a flat bread + salad+falafal+pickled vegies. The falafal was squeezed into the bottom of the bread and the salad added (3LE). 
We finished this off with an ice cream for 1LE. We decided that if we saw ice cream vendors from now on, we would definitely buy ice creams at that price. As it turned out the opportunity never arose again! 
Lauren had seen some shoes being made and wanted to buy a pair. The size of her feet was a great surprise to the vendor, but he had some that fitted. Guy was keen to buy a miniature tent for the camel that he had bought a couple of days before. I aw a shop off the main road where they were for sale. No bargaining here - the price is the price. To further show how genuine it all was, next to the tent shop was an embroidery factory with a large machine.
We came back to the start of the street and went in to the Al Gourie Complex which was a teaching area. There was a large courtyard or wikala where there were some students and a huge mosque where people were praying. The mosque dates back to 1505.
We then returned across a pedestrian bridge (which became something of a landmark) to re-visit the spice market (next to the first mosque that we had visited). Here there was an amazing display of all sorts of different spices. This, too seemed to be off the main tourist route even though it was close to the tourist area. We then made our way back to the main square to have our last walk through the main market. Shop after shop, we headed back in the general direction of our hotel. After about half an hour, we felt that we had had enough and reverted to the slightly less crowded main road which, while it had the added danger of traffic was easier to negotiate.
After an hour or so f relaxation, we went out for a relatively un-inspiring meal and returned for cards and drinks.
