Reeminiscence

Where to Go in Cairo ~ An Italian Restaurant & Café on the last day of Eid 2022 Don Apolo Italian restaurant in Cairo

Is pizza anyone else's favourite food? I noticed that I am a bit too obsessed with it lately. But not any type! I accidentally got hooked on Italian pizza. On the last day of Eid, we got dressed up to try this Italian restaurant in Maadi called Don Paolo.

My sister found out about it online and I didn't hesitate to go! We drove to Maadi and arrived by sunset, which I realise is the best time to visit; the place has a coastal vibe. I don't know how to describe it exactly, but I felt like I was in El Sahel for some reason. Maybe it's the sunset effect and how the tables are placed outside under the awning? The restaurant is small but very put together from the inside (the kitchen). We could see the kitchen and the chef as he was cooking, which I thought was pretty cool (especially because they have this wood-fired oven). The outside, however, needed some retouching; the tables looked a bit run-down and the chairs made grating sounds when moved. For a place like this, I expected better tables. We then got the menu, which was one short, glazed paper with everything in Italian. Luckily, Italian is pretty close to English and French, so I didn't need too much help with translation hahah. We ordered the seafood and the pepperoni pizzas. We also ordered water, which came with disposable plastic cups, not really what I was expecting.

I don't remember the order taking long, so two medium-sized pizzas came shortly after. They looked and smelled absolutely amazing, and I already thought we had made a great choice. The dough was out-of-this-world soft! I am not a big fan of seafood in general, but the seafood pizza was pretty good. I just didn't like how the shrimp was unseasoned and tasted a bit bland. The pepperoni pizza, however, was perfect!! I also don't like pepperoni that much, but they didn't have a variety of meat pizzas. I generally prefer chicken pizza, but the pepperoni one didn't disappoint at all! As the sun set, the awning was drawn back and the lights were turned on, creating a calm atmosphere.

A stray cat and a dog did make a brief visit (along with some pesky flies), but this comes with dining outside in the streets of Cairo, not much can be done here, except for a small fence, maybe? Someone from the restaurant shooed the dog that was barking loudly, so it was all good in the end.

If you plan on going, I highly recommend it! Especially if you're going for the pizza! We learned that the ingredients are all high-quality ingredients that actually come from Italy. All Italian recipes, and the chef has been to Italy before (not Italian though). Overall, it was a great experience.

Healthy and Tasty

We then headed to Dokki and walked a bit to find "Healthy and Tasty." If you're on a diet or have specific dietary preferences, this is a great place to stop by. There's a variety of food that usually contains excessive sugar and additives, but without all of that.

There are many keto and some vegan options too! They have some really good vegan chocolate spread. You should totally try it regardless of whether you're vegan or not. Only thing is, their stuff is a bit on the pricier side compared to the stuff in the regular supermarkets. We ended up picking a low-sugar, wheat-free vanilla cake mix and a box of gluten-free pasta. I tried it tonight and I think it's good to know that you're having some healthy-ish pasta, and it doesn't taste that different from regular wheat pasta. However, the texture is a bit strange and mushy, maybe because it's gluten-free. It also says on the package "ready in minutes," so maybe I should've turned the stove off literally in a few minutes to avoid it getting too soft.

Cilantro Café

Nearby, there were a couple of coffee shops. We stopped by Cilantro after looking around for La Poire café, another great place with some good décor I like to visit. I'm glad we did because the Dokki branch looks really cozy with some warm tones and chill music playing really low in the background. I usually go for some dessert without a drink, but I found a caffeine-free, vanilla-flavoured option!

I got vanilla frappe (without coffee) and my sister got an iced latte. We also shared the last lemon tart. I get really particular and take a slightly longer time to pick something, but when I do, it ends up being great! The vanilla frappe tasted exactly like a vanilla smoothie, it lasted a lot longer than expected being the smallest size, though. Are their sizes bigger than Starbucks'? Maybe I should test this out hahah.

The lemon tart was amazing! It had a jiggly, custard-like top part, which I wasn't very fond of at the beginning but ended up liking because it tasted really good. I also liked that the tart was not too sweet and that the bottom part wasn't too hard (I don't like crunchy desserts).

I liked the place a lot, I might visit next time with my laptop to capitalize on the calm atmosphere and get some work done. Although I think it may be better to do so in the early morning for some extra peace and quiet (definitely not on an Eid day!).

Have you ever been to any of those places? Are you planning to? Let me know in a comment.

Click here to find out what I did in Zamalek/ Cairo,

and here for a virtual tour of Cairo/ Egypt.

There are always more places to visit and things to see in the busy city, Cairo. Stay updated by following this blog's Instagram here.

That's all for today's post.

Have a good one!

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Where to go in Cairo ~ Places to visit in El Zamalek, Egypt | Reem

Ever wondered why I like to go to Zamalek so much?

Apart from the fact that I spent 90% of my childhood there, it is my favourite place to go now even as a 23-year-old. This is because it's a melting pot of almost every place you'd possibly want to go to. From fancy restaurants to chill cafés and fast food shops, Zamalek has it all.

This Eid was largely spent in Zamalek with my sister. On the first day, I wore my new Eid dress (serving Eid fits, am I right?) and headed to Starbucks at White Tivoli, an enclosed area filled with restaurants and cafes. I like to spend some time in Starbucks because there's generally no rush, except when it's Eid and everyone is there and you're queuing to get your order. I generally don't recommend going out in Eid because everyone else is also going out and the chance of you not finding a place to sit is at an all time high, especially if it's the first day. I didn't mind not finding a place to sit for a while, I later did and I sat down with a slice of carrot cake, my favourite Starbucks dessert. My sister got honey cake, which I made sure to nibble on in exchange for some carrot cake (that's what sisters are for...no?).

I usually don't get a drink, which is weird, I know, but I'd rather get a dessert than a drink in general. After a while, we strutted down the streets of Zamalek to find a beautiful artwork that was recently painted over a wall facing the gas station on our way to one of the best ice-cream shops in Zamalek, Mandarine Koueider. What's not to love about this place? It offers a variety of amazing flavours, from classic chocolate to hibiscus ice cream to give you that oriental experience. My favourite is berry-yogurt ice cream, which I get almost every time! This place not only sells ice cream, but it also has a variety of delicious oriental desserts, the likes of basbousa and konafa. Maybe they should add some tables to offer a well-rounded experience.

Leaving this with my ice cream, I found a beautiful stray cat relaxing over a car outside. Needless to say, I stopped to contribute to its 10th relaxing session of the day by petting it. Not all cats allow you to pet them but this cat was surprisingly receptive!

We then walked to El Zamalek Shopping Center, which has some shops the girlie girl in me just loves. The shops offer some makeup, skincare, and hair accessories. You can also find some amazing gifts there at a good price! But be careful because you might end up buying random things that you don't actually need (I just bought a head messager thingie..?).

That day was too busy, so we couldn't find any cars to go home. We went back to Starbucks and chilled there as we waited for our captain to pick us up.

Third Eid day

This was how I spent the first day of Eid. Now, I tell you about what I did on the third day. You might be wondering where the second day went. Good question. It was a family gathering at home. The next day, I had some breakfast and packed my backpack to head to Zamalek. See, I automatically think of Zamalek when I want to have some chill time without really planning ahead. It's just because it's nearby and has almost everything you might need. I packed my laptop and woke my sister up to spend the day there. Yes, she's my Eid buddy at the moment. Because she likes Starbucks the same way as I do, we decided to stay there as I finished some work I needed to do but with a different scenery than my desk at home.

I realise that I just mentioned Starbucks above, but this time we went to a different one. The stand-alone one, not the White Tivoli branch. Yes, there are two. The one we visited had a darker, more chill vibe. It gets you in the mood to work better. It's bigger so it was less crowded. I ended up spending the afternoon there finishing some urgent work.

We walked around the block to find "Metro" supermarket. It was nice to stop by and pick up any groceries we might need. I ended up just picking some bread and a random squeeze-bottle BBQ sauce. I do have a little obsession with BBQ sauce, to be honest. We also picked up some dark chocolate for our mum too.

It was getting dark and I was walking around with my backpack the whole time, so we decided to stop by Pizza Hut, which is close to Starbucks too. My favourite food at the moment is pizza, so I stopped to get one, but the place was full (Eid effect). I winded up ordering take-out pizza instead of having it there. Not the best ever, but it does the job haha...

That was a more subdued Eid day, but it was exactly what I needed after a family gathering the day before.

Have you ever been to Zamalek? There's so much more you can do! For instance, there's a cinema close to White Tivoli called Zamalek cinema. We walked past it, but it was too late to watch a whole film that night. Maybe next time.

Do you want to know more about what you can do in Cairo? Stay updated by following this blog's Instagram here.

Click here to have a Virtual Tour in Cairo (a casual day in my life as a Cairo girl).

That's all for today.

Have a good one!

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Primark Spring/Summer Haul | Clothes, candles, and hair ~ 2022

Hello everyone 🌷

Long time no Primark haul!

The last time I posted one was a while back so I am making it up with this one filled with a variety of random items, no makeup or skincare this time, promise

I’d like to start this one off with a silky-smooth feminine piece of clothing that I’ve been obsessed with lately. With adjustable straps, this silky black undershirt comes with a bra attached to it from the inside.

It is so seamless that I can’t put it away and I can already see myself wearing it out this summer. You can barely feel it under the clothes and it comfortably stays in place. Compared to the hassle of choosing a seamless bra and a light undershirt to wear over it, this piece covers it all. I have already worn it so this can really serve as both a brief review and a haul.

Coming right after is this little curling iron. I have been playing around with different hairstyles lately and at the moment, I enjoy a bit of a curl or a wave to spice up my hair and enhance its natural texture.

Although I can count on one hand how many times I have used heat on my hair and I’m not a fan of heat styling, I am not too opposed to occasionally curling some bits of my hair as a hassle-free way to freshen up. It just occurred to me that a good heat protectant should have been included in this haul too, so recommend one that has really been helpful and kept your hair healthy.

Lately, I have been really drawn to vanilla and vanilla-based scents. I can get pretty sensitive to strong scents but, for some reason, I really enjoy a good vanilla perfume. This foreshadowing is to help you imagine how I couldn’t help but get a couple of these vanilla-scented candles.

This candle smells so good and puts me in a calm mood; this also applies to taking off the lid and it keeping it in my room without lighting it. It is that strong!

Coming next is a selection of Spring/ Summer clothing. I am honestly not a fan of slippers, but these pairs looked too simple yet feminine. They are also affordable and light, so let’s see if they stay true to this description after a few wears.

I also got this pair of shorts and I am so glad I did! These shorts are so comfy and light. They also look sporty and cute at the same time. Anything comfy and cute is right up my alley!

For some more comfy yet adorable and cute summer loungewear, I got some trusty Primark pajamas to keep me company over the Spring/Summer season. I have not yet worn any of these but the fabric already feels really light and the design is so cute. I especially like the Disney pajamas with cat outlines spread all over.

Nothing says summertime coolness more than a tall water bottle! Can you really go wrong with a graduated frosted glass bottle with a simple design (that includes a rose-gold lid!)? The answer is simply no.

It looks like it will fit all the smoothies I am planning to make, but I probably will only keep it as a water bottle for now because it looks hard to clean (too tall to reach the very end, except with a stick), and the lid leaks when the bottle is inverted, unfortunately. It still qualifies as an everyday water bottle, so I'm keeping it for now.

As of late, I have not really been a Summer person, so I am hoping that this helps me transition smoothly and allows me to enjoy the season even a little bit more.

Which item in this list do you like the most? Have you tried any of these? Let me know in a comment below!

Have a great Spring.

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