5/5 Ali Abdelradi Experience A. 3 years ago on Google • 160 reviews
Modern
Heliopolis
was
built
in
the
first
decade
of
the
1900's
and
since
then
it
has
expanded
and
is
no
longer
a
unit
on
its
own.
He
connected
it
to
Cairo
with
a
tramline
(still
existing),
and
encouraged
people
to
live
there
or
come
for
the
day
for
shopping
or
going
to
Luna
Park
the
funfair
(no
longer
in
existance).
The
architects
combined
oriental
style
with
european,
hence
the
oriental
buildings
with
covered
archways
in
all
the
shopping
districts.
You
can
search
on
the
net
for
more
detailed
information
about
modern
Heliopolis.
Many
of
the
original
buildings
remain,
and
due
to
the
100
year
celebration
in
2005,
much
renovation
was
undertaken.
The
main
area
of
interest
is
Korba,
a
lovely
shopping
district,
surrounded
by
old
villas
and
apartment
buildings
which
are
very
interesting
to
see.
This
extends
to
Roxy
(shopping
district),
and
Medan
Ismailia.
Another
interesting
area
is
the
market
area
"Medan
El
Gammah"
(Square
of
the
Mosque).
You
can
buy
just
about
anything
there
and
it
is
very
alive
and
not
touristic
at
all
-
a
great
market
area
used
by
everyone.
Close
to
Korba
is
the
Basilica
(Church)
which
was
also
build
by
the
Baron
and
modelled
on
Istanbul's
Hagia
Sofia.
The
Baron
died
in
1929
and
is
buried
there.
The
private
home
of
the
Baron
was
the
"Baron
Place".
It
is
on
Orouba
Street
(also
known
as
Salah
Salem
-
route
to
the
airport).
It
is
in
the
style
of
a
Hindu
Temple,
and
craftsmen
were
brought
from
Cambodia.
The
family
of
the
Baron
left
Egypt
after
the
revolution
in
1952
and
it
was
later
sold.
Due
to
legal
problems
and
inappropriate
plans
for
the
place
(stopped
by
the
government),
it
layed
empty
and
in
ruin
for
perhaps
45
years
or
more.
But
in
2005,
it
was
bought
back
by
the
government
(in
exchange
for
desert
land)
and
the
gardens
have
been
renovated
and
at
last
people
were
allowed
to
enter
the
palace
and
enjoy
the
gardens
as
well.
As
of
June
2007,
the
Palace
and
gardens
are
no
longer
open
to
the
public,
but
you
can
get
a
good
look
at
it,
especially
from
behind.
Looks
like
for
the
time
being
the
grounds
will
just
be
just
for
special
events,
ie.
concerts
and
TV
programmes,
which
is
a
shame....
So
to
enjoy
the
best
of
Heliopolis,
a
visit
to
Korba
itself
is
in
order.
There
are
some
very
nice
shops,
coffee
shops
etc.
To
get
there
you
could
take
a
taxi
asking
for
Korba
-
Heliopolis
(Heliopolis
in
arabic
is
Masr
Gedidah)
which
means
new
Egypt.
Or
you
could
take
the
Metro
(Underground)
to
Sariya
El
Kobba
station
and
get
a
taxi
from
there
(costs
about
3.00
LE).
There
is
also
a
park
full
of
coffee
shops
and
restaurants
(up
market),
lake
and
amusements
for
children.
It
is
called
Merryland
and
is
only
a
short
ride
from
Korba,
just
after
Roxy,
a
good
place
to
go.
It
was
once
the
racecourse
of
Heliopolis
and
had
the
fun
fair
too,
but
at
least
is
is
still
a
big
open
space
with
nice
trees.
attached
to
it
is
another
park
(the
left
side),
which
is
much
more
simple
-
has
lots
of
nice
old
trees,
but
this
park
can
get
very
busy
on
Public
Holidays,
as
it
is
a
cheap
place
for
people
to
go.
Heliopolis
is
the
greenest
part
of
Cairo.
This
is
due
to
the
original
planning
of
Baron
to
have
a
garden
type
city,
but
also
because
Hosni
Mubarak
lives
here
and
the
Parliamentary
palace
is
also
here
(at
the
end
of
Baghdad
Street
Korba,)
but
it
is
hard
to
see
it
due
to
the
high
security
walls.
It
was
originaly
the
Palace
Hotel,
and
even
served
as
a
military
hospital
in
the
first
World
War.
Views
of
Baron
Palace
-
Heliopolis
(back
and
side)
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