OLD BUILDINGS ARE ...

Amazing, Beautifull, Constructed, Dreams, Ephemeral, ....... Valiant, Wonderfull, Xtraordinary, Y Zen destroy them?

1900bp stands for 1900 Buildings Preservation


This blog was set up as a device to launch a campaign against the often conscious and deliberate destruction of some amazing old buildings that are part of our common human heritage.

11.17.2007

On the Minia front


This clipping from Al Ahram claims that in protest to the destruction started on Hada Shaarawi's house in Minia, Samir Gharib a high responsible at the ministry of Culture sent a message to Minia Governor asking him to take steps to stop this destruction.

More has to be done on the national media level, however the point of the cause and of the blog is not to say to people how they should do their work, I am sure that most journalists and most "intellectuals" all do their best for the common cause, within the concept of "permissibility".

We on the other hand, are just a group of people who are doing this out of our deep sense of loss at some landmarks built many a decade ago and our resolution to fight this destructive trend as long at is does not put our livelihood or lives in danger, we are not calling for a revolution. Actually many of our friends on Facebook are "Royalists".

My point is that when we discuss the courses open to us we have to keep in mind that the proposals should be feasible by us either as a group or individually... Actually we still don't know to what extent can we count on our Facebook friends, and how much more than a few mouse clicks are they willing to do for the cause.

Now, about Hoda Shaarawi's house, the government and the ministry of Culture are weighing in. And the medias are pitching in, but the point about us being here and doing something is just a bit more of whistle blowing.

If we really want to have any impact we have to find and publicize those violations and destructions that the government and the public does not know about.
We also have to call our friends who think the same into the cause, or invite them to check this blog if they are not on Facebook.

In any case the more we are and the more our chances to make a difference will be bigger....

As we do not have a picture of the house in Minia , we posted a picture taken in Hoda Shaarawi Street Down town Cairo.

11.14.2007

No comment


Around the diplomatic club (Club Mohamed Ali) At the corner of Talaat Harb and Bostan streets stands he diplomatic club... these pictures were taken in the blocs behind the club Mohamed Ali.

11.13.2007

Golden Hotel?


This little shop at the entrance of the building defies valiantly the claim of the hotel and the laws of logic. This is Talaat Harb, or Soliman Pasha Street, downtown Cairo, in what used to be one of the most "fashionable" neighborhoods in Cairo. How this ever happened or been allowed to happen is one of those strange events. I wonder when the nameless shop owner is going to notice the other side of the door and start making use of it too. I know for a fact that he is looking for a bigger space and I think he tried with every "responsible" for a building in his neighborhood to take "permission" to build a little "vetrina"(display) in the entrance of the building ... for now he is still searching, but for how long will he still search until he finds and he does, and one more old building having to bear the mark and pay the price. I believe that perseverance is the key word in an illogical world ...
May we all persevere in more positive and constructive ways