The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

These
days, too many people in Egypt are calling themselves professional
photographers because they own a DSLR camera or know how to use Photoshop. Meanwhile, the art of classic photography seems to have died.  About 100 years BP (Before Photoshop),
photography was still a serious art form that required talent.

Back in the day Lehnert and Landrock were Austrian and German travel writers and
exceptionally talented photographers who travelled throughout North Africa in
the early 20th century. Their early photography focused on the Bedouins,
especially topless Bedouin women, while their later work focused more on Cairo
scenery. After travelling for years, Lehnert & Landrock eventually ended up
in Cairo where they opened up a shop. The shop originally opened in 1924
before relocating in 1936, to Sherif Street.

The shop
is relatively big and has a wide range of products. It’s famous for its stock
of German and French books. Most of the books available focus on Egypt’s
history. Apart from that there also hobby books on sewing and baking. There is
a huge children’s department with nursery rhymes in several languages.
Most of the books are priced at around 30LE.

If you’re looking for a road map of
the Middle East, you can get it here for 35LE. There are also lots of
magazines from all around the world, but most are old editions. The
literature department isn’t that varied, but best sellers such as Harry Potter
and classics like Shakespeare are available. There is also a study department
with dictionaries and GMAT study books.

Apart
from the books, there is a section that displays calendars. Some are very artsy such as
the Egyptian Leaders line, which include Sadat, King Farouk, Abdel Nasser and
Naguib themes (25LE).

The best
part about Lehnert & Landrock is the gallery in the back, showing all the photos
that the duo took on their trips. The small sizes start at 3LE and the A3-sized
prints start at 210LE and can go up to 400LE. Unframed prints are lower priced at 110LE and above. Lehnert &
Landrock’s photos are amazing and give great insight into the earlier years of
the Arab world; and Cairo in specific.

This reviewer fell in love with the gift
wrapping paper. A gift wrapped in Lehnert & Landrock’s famous pictures (15LE)
will look very nice underneath your Christmas tree. There are also nice wrapping
paper designs with Arabic calligraphy and hieroglyphs starting at 8LE. The shop
is also a perfect place to pick up unique, cheap gift cards. Prices start at
1LE and can go up to 5LE for a handmade calligraphy post card.

Lehnert
& Landrock is a Cairo landmark that is absolutely worth a visit. History
lovers and photography enthusiasts will find this shop a little piece of heaven.