Cairo as a city is only about 1000 years old, a mere baby in Egyptian terms, although certain districts date back from pharaonic times. The urban area is roughly divided into four segments, all fascinating in their own ways. Strictly speaking, on the West bank of the Nile is a separate city, Giza, of pyramid fame. The Northeast, with the airport, is the business and university district. Old Town Cairo is East of the river, with the museum and road to the pyramids. The cemeteries of the foreboding City of the Dead are in the Southwest, where the tombs have become home for 5 million citizens of an uncanny subculture.
Dubai-based Emaar Properties has invested 4 billion US dollars through a subsidiary in an iconic series of seven luxury villages, known as Cairo Heights, with breathtaking facilities. The increasing purchasing power of the rising middle classes is particularly interesting for turnover in second-hand properties in Cairo.
