The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Hello Cairo!

It’s the end of the month which means
pay-day – kerr-ching! And what better way to celebrate than to blow it all on
the streets of Cairo. As always, there’s no shortage of things to do this
weekend in the city that never sleeps.

Thursday evening marks the start of the much anticipated D-CAF (Downtown
Contemporary Arts Festival). Three events will launch the two week festival,
starting with the opening of Townhouse Gallery hosting ‘I’m Not There’; a
so-called exhibition of absent artwork. Later in the evening, Townhouse will
also host ‘The Axis of the Universe Runs Through You’; a flash animation lecture
from Korean-American web art group Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries. Falaki Theatre on the AUC campus will
host ‘Sight is the Sense that Dying People Tend to Lose
First’; a performance monologue.

Elsewhere, a mix of acoustic-indie-rock is
the order of the night at Cairo Jazz Club with Shady Ahmed and Egoz, while
Cairo favourites Salalem perform at El Sawy Culturewheel.  That’s not the last of Salalem, though
because they will be whisked from the stage straight to After Eight for more
live music.

More music comes in the form of DJ Samba at
Yasso and Definition Minimal at Melouk; a night of chilled minimalist music
courtesy of DJ Aly Goede and DJ Hassan Abou Alam. For music with a little more
cultural clout, Cairo Opera House will oblige with the 5^th Finnish-Egyptian
Musical Bridge – a rather unlikely musical collaboration. Alternatively,
Sudanese singer Settouna and her 14-man band will perform at Makan.

Tonight will also be the last chance to see
‘Samaa..Hos’ at Jesuit Cultural Centre. The play addresses the everyday struggles
of people with disabilities in Egypt.

D-CAF continues on Friday with the first in the series of street dance performances.
Participants from all over the world will gather outside the Egyptian Stock
Market building in Downtown Cairo. The Radio Theatre will host the first
musical performance of the festival with musician Hassan Khan and punk band The
Ex.

Al Azhar Park hosts more live music, as the
Zaman Festival brings together Masar Egbari, Dina El Wadidi and Ana Masry.
Meanwhile, DJ Misty and DJ Hafez bring their unique brand of techno-house to
Cairo Jazz Club while DJ Feedo is back at Purple in Zamalek for a night of the
best r&b. House-heads will also be pleased to her that DJ Fabric is at
Melouk.

In a cute and adorable change of pace, the
Swiss Club is hosting an Egyptian Society of Animal Friends fundraiser that
hopes to shelter street cats and dogs. Live music and an auction provide the
entertainment.

Last day of the weekend, last day of the
month; Saturday sees D-CAF move up a
gear, with no less than five separate events invading the city. The Venoisse
hotel will host interactive performances GurGuru and OK OK, while ‘Bussy’ – a performance
monologue – will be held as part of the ‘Don’t Tell Your Story’ series at
Townhouse Gallery. Another unique performance is on show in the form of Quizoola!
at the Goethe Institute, while a big line-up of live music takes centre stage
at the Radio Theatre, including Egypt’s own NeoByrd.

Away
from the festival, Cairo Opera House welcomes marimba player Nesma Abdel Aziz
to its stage, while Taxi Band bring jazz and Latin vibes to Cairo Jazz Club.

In Cairo’s galleries, Thursday will be the
last chance to see ‘Tank Girl’ at Gallery Misr, ‘East…West’ at Al Masar and ‘Sweeping
from the Shop’ at Picasso Gallery. In their place has come new exhibitions this
week, the first of which is group exhibition ‘Surrealism – Present Day Cairo’
at The Gallery, Le Souk. In addition, Ahmed Abd Al Karem presents his colourful
new exhibition ‘Hoopoe’s Heart’ at Picasso Art Gallery in Zamalek as well as
Cairo-based visual artist Nermine Hammam’s new exhibition ‘Anachrony’ at Safar
Khan Gallery.

Have fun Cairo!