We’d avoid buying your lady clothes – truth is, she’s likely to request the receipt and you’ll never see it again. But don’t worry, women are easy to shop for – we promise – just wrap something that’s pretty and that looks expensive, she’ll be putty in your hands. Accessories are always a safe bet;
Hebz Boutique,
Accessorize,
Mounaya and
Altay offer a range of fashionable jewellery and bags. If you’re really looking to shell out on sparkly things this Christmas,
Tiffany & Co. in the First Mall certainly wont fail to dazzle even the fussiest of women.
Of course, the ritual of beautification can be a long but gratifying one, and with shops all over the place, the staff at Faces or Mazaya can point you in the right direction of the best selling make-up and perfumes. French skincare brand, L’Occatine En Provence and the Body Shop stock lots of delicious-smelling soap sets and fruity body moisturisers, perfect for pampering. Just a word of warning, don’t under ANY circumstances buy a woman something to cook or clean with – unless you want to start a war.
Now, for men. Unless you’re lucky enough to find a man who’ll follow you around and carry your bags, most men go to extreme lengths to avoid shopping trips, even when it comes to buying for themselves. Seeing as it’s Christmas, it would be nice to take their pain away and do some clothes shopping for them.
A new designer outfit from
Ego or
Burberry is likely to score more than just a few points but might not be too cost friendly. However, for cheaper but sophisticated basics, try
Massimo Dutti or
Bas. For the more fashion conscious, high street labels such as
Jack & Jones and
Pull & Bear are a safe bet. Of course, you could always go for authentic Egyptian cotton clothing from
Mobacco, funky designs at
Zafir or find a nice new galabeya at
Khan Mahfouz.
If you were hoping to avoid clothes altogether, boys do love their toys, so head to iShop, Virgin Megastores or Compu Me to find some cool gadgets and electronics. Otherwise, sign them up to that gym they’ve been meaning to join for the last six months. Gold’s Gym have outlets all over Cairo and the Platinum gym doesn’t allow for excuses as it’s open 24hours a day.