This cavernous shop facing the front gate of the Ibn Tulun Mosque is the place to go for the best of Egypt's village and oasis crafts, including many objects unavailable in the Khan elkhalili . Look for handcarved wooden platters from Luxor, handblown glass from Islamic Cairo, embroidered textiles from Siwa Oasis, ceramics from Fayoum Oasis, and gold-plated peasant jewelry. The French-managed shop carries useful maps of Islamic Cairo, 19th-century travel memoirs, and other interesting publications. Open Mondays through Saturdays 10 am to 5 pm.

Around the corner from the Al-Azhar Mosque, across the busy Al-Azhar Street from Midan El-Hussein, Al-Khatoun is an artists' cooperative occupying a restored Ottoman dye house. Look for cotton textiles printed with Islamic calligraphy; antique Egyptian movie posters; jeweler Suzanne El-Masri's enameled silver earrings and necklace ensembles; and tasteful housewares of painted wood, hammered metal, Egyptian alabaster, and papier-mâché. During Ramadan, the gallery hosts musical evenings. Open daily 11 am to 9 pm.

Expats and locals head for this Zamalek bookstore for the latest English best sellers, translations of Middle Eastern novels, plus works on politics, art, and food. The in-house coffee shop serves a mean cappuccino and carrot cake, as well as mint tea and bread stuffed with cheese and zatar, Lebanese thyme. This is the place to pick up guidebooks and coffee-table tomes on Islamic or Pharaonic art. The media section stocks CDs and DVDs from across the Arab world.