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Although the racecourse that once ran beside Sharia Qasr el-Nil disappeared last century, northbound traffic tries to rival bygone derbys, and the shops, though functional enough, play second fiddle to Talaat Harb's. Heading up from Tahrir you'll pass American Express and the l'Orientaliste Bookshop before coming upon a stall devoted to foreign newspapers and magazines, outside Groppi's. Two blocks beyond Midan Talaat Harb, a side street on the right allows a glimpse of the carmine and gold Art Nouveau Cosmopolitan Hotel , an elegant leftover from colonial times. Kalashnikov-toting police and Central Security troops are ubiquitous in downtown Cairo, but never threatening. An amiable bunch lounge outside the National Bank on the corner of Sharia Sherif. Harbouring bookshops, bars and health clubs, some of the backstreets here also serve as outdoor mosques . For midday prayers on Fridays, the one running into Abdel Khaliq Sarwat is carpeted with green mats where the faithful perform a succession of rekas, swaying their heads, raising their hands and prostrating themselves while reciting parts of the Koran.
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