I was just reading another post about how awful Cairo is, and a lot of it is pretty rough, especially if you’re not a hardened traveler. And Giza is even worse. BUT I found a lot of Cairo to be very cool, wandering around the historic part was super enjoyable. Narrow winding streets, mosques , minarets, madrassas over 1,000 years old, small family restaurants, people sitting outside smoking shisha, local markets, people saying Hi without selling anything, and very low hassle in general. Lovely.
The neighborhoods I’m talking about are mostly in the area west, southwest, and south of the Al Azhar Park. The major landmarks pictured in order (starting with 5) are the mosque of Ibn Tulun, the mosque/madrassa of Sultan Hassan, Al Rifai Mosque, Saladin Citadel and then the Al Azhar Park. Also two at the end are the garbage collecting community of Manshiyat Naser.
Anyway, I for one enjoyed my time in Cairo, and while it’s difficult sometimes, it’s nowhere near as bad as this subreddit would have you believe (imo). Also white male disclaimer. But I suggest to spend at least a day to get beyond the pyramids and museum!