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These two villages have no connection with the pyramids, but tour groups often pay one or both of them a visit. KERDASSA , roughly due west of Imbaba (but accessible by minibus from Midan Giza), is where most of the scarves, galabiyyas and shirts in Cairo are made, plus carpets, which are sold by the metre. Although no longer a place for bargains, it's still frequented by collectors of ethnic textiles, particularly Bedouin robes and veils (the best-quality ones retail for hundreds of dollars). In times past, Kerdassa was also the starting point of the camel trail across the Western Desert to Libya. Folks on Salah's tours are inevitably taken to HARRANIYYA , the site of the famous Wissa Wassef Art Centre (daily 10am-5pm; tel 385-0403). Founded fifty years ago by Ramses Wissa Wassef, an architect who wanted to preserve village crafts and alleviate rural unemployment, the centre teaches children to design and weave carpets, and has branched out into batik work and pottery. Superintended by his widow and the original generation of students, pupils produce beautiful tapestries, which now sell for thousands of dollars and are imitated throughout Egypt. You can see them at work between 10am and 5pm (except at lunchtime and on Fridays), and admire a superb collection in the museum designed by Hassan Fathy, a masterpiece of mud-brick architecture. To reach the Art Centre under your own steam, catch a taxi or minibus 4km south along the Saqqara road (Maryotteya Canal, west bank) from Pyramids Road, and follow the signs to Salma (or Salome) campsite, next door.
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