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The Hussein Hotel
By Juergen Stryjak
It looks old, and the people, even locals sometimes, believe it
belongs to the epoch of the whole neighborhood – that of A
Thousand and One Nights. But compared to most of the other
buildings and establishments, coffeehouses, shops and workshops,
all with a history that dates back generations if not centuries,
the Hussein Hotel is rather young, very young.
It was built 35 years ago, imitating an ancient oriental or
ottoman style, and officially inaugurated in the Seventies. No
sooner had the time started for the Hussein Hotel than it was
brought to a standstill –  looking
as though it has stood there from time immemorial, in front of its
namesake, the Hussein Mosque and beside Cairo’s most famous
teahouse, the El-Fishawi, in the heart of the legendary Arabian
bazaar Khan El-Khalili.
There is no hotel better suited for enjoying the unique
atmosphere of what tourists consider to be authentic mediaeval
Islamic Cairo. She or he will love it, with its milling crowds,
the swirl of color, the exotic scents, the brightly illuminated
narrow alleys between worn out buildings. Therefore, it is
unimportant, that the area isn’t very authentic anymore.
 Although
heavily tourist oriented, the Khan El-Khalili bazaar still takes
you on a fascinating trip through the time, and the Hussein Hotel
is the perfect base for this little journey. Almost
all travel books divide Cairo’s old Islamic city center into a
Northern and a Southern part. Centrally located, the Hussein Hotel
is right in the middle between the two neighborhoods. Next to the
Hussein Hotel entrance, you will find the famous El-Fishawi, which
claims to be the oldest continuously operating café in town. A
few minutes walk from here, you will find the romantic Khan El-Khalili
Restaurant. Again five minutes, we stroll along Bain al-Qasrain,
between the two palaces, the street which gives the first book of
Naguib Mahfouz’ Cairo Trilogy its title. Qasr al-Shauq
and the Sukkariyya, the other two volumes and corresponding
alleys, are nearby. For these and other books Naguib Mahfouz got
the Nobel Prize for literature 1988, and if you want to explore
the Midaq Alley, another of his famous novels, just ask the
porter of the Hussein Hotel for its location.
The room rates of the Hussein Hotel are reasonable. They start
with LE 44 ($ 12) for a single room, with communal bath across the
floor, including breakfast, ceiling fan and noise, which comes
from outside,  from
one of the numerous little kebab-restaurants, spice vendors, music
shops and coffeehouses. The noise of the city is a main ingredient
of the enchanting atmosphere around the Hussein Hotel, and you won’t
tire of listening to the street vendors and café guests, to the
ever-changing voices and melodious tunes.
The 56 rooms are simply furnished and clean. Twenty-four of
them feature a private bath and are air-conditioned. Some have
balconies, which is a priceless treat, a place where you can relax
and watch life in the Khan unfold around you, as though you had
reserved balcony seats to a first-class theatre production of
Aladdin or another oriental drama. Relaxing and observing life
from this vantage point is indeed captivating.
Ninety percent of the guests are travelers from all over the
world, many of them returning again and again. Especially during
the Islamic holidays of Ramadan, the prophet Muhammad’s birthday
and on occasion of the Moulid of Hussein, the prophet’s
grandson, the hotel is filled with Egyptians and other Arab
pilgrims. The two restaurants and cafeterias on the rooftop offer
an overwhelming view of large parts of the neighborhood, but are,
most of the time, empty and quiet. Obviously, hotel guests prefer
to be among the crowds, strolling the alleys or sitting in the
little cafés at street level.
Hussein Hotel Manager
Hussein Hotel. Hussein Square, Khan Al-Khalili. Cairo.
Telephone: 5918089 or 5918664 or 5918479. Rates: Double with
private bathroom LE 75 ($ 20); Single with private bathroom LE 65
($ 17.50); Double without private bathroom LE 55 ($ 15); Single
without private bathroom LE 44 ($ 12). Rates are per night and
include breakfast. Add LE 15 ($ 4) per night for the use of AC
during summertime! Communal bathrooms, separated for men and
women, are located across the floor. |
