The thing about spas is that they’re shrouded in myth. They are, supposedly, welcoming tranquil atmospheres where one can find peace from the harrowing bustle of day-to-day stress while the body gets cleansed and relaxed. Right. The reality about spas is that steam rooms are suffocating, scrubs are irritating, and stripping is humiliating. This is …

Fresh air and a long day at the beach work wonders on the appetite. So is it time to hit the sushi bar? In the past five years, sushi has become part of contemporary Egyptian culture. In Cairo, the Japanese delicate cuisine has been rapidly taking over upper-class neighborhoods, and is now hitting the seaside …

Do you have little enthusiasm for life? Have you become more cynical of late? Has your productivity gone down recently? These are just a few of the warning symptoms which signal that you may be suffering from ‘burnout.’ The term is freely bandied about in conversation, but what does it actually mean in reality for …

Our volatile region often manages to overshadow all other concerns, but while we’re dodging bullets and ducking bombs, something else threatens us all. The precarious global environmental situation is no secret. Yet the apathy surrounding this issue is beyond the pale. It is not the concern of the average citizen who is busy trying to …

“He’s become a millionaire! screamed Hani to Waleed. I looked up from my coffee space out to find a group of young men in the far corner having what seemed to be an argument, so I ordered my first coffee and moved closer to the scene of action. “La? Waleed said pushing the table back …

Ever whacked your thumb with a hammer, or wrenched your back after lifting a heavy box, and blamed the full moon? It s a popular notion, but there s no cosmic connection, Austrian government researchers said Tuesday. Robert Seeberger, a physicist and astronomer at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, said a team of experts analyzed …

After exhaustively compiling a list of the 237 reasons why people have sex, researchers found that young men and women get intimate for mostly the same motivations. It s more about lust in the body than a love connection in the heart. College-aged men and women agree on their top reasons for having sex – …

Just a few years ago, it was somewhat of a surprise when a NASCAR driver said he used video games to get ready for real-life races. Nowadays, virtual racing is a standard element of the training regimen of professional drivers, particularly the young guns who probably learned to drive on a Nintendo long before they …

I’ve decided to take a long walk down to the coffee shop. You might wander why I have abandoned my car in favor of the hazardous city pavements. Well, according to a recent report, researchers have discovered that exercise and moderate caffeine consumption together could help ward off sun-induced skin cancer, but cautioned against ditching …

In ancient times, chariot-racing was a favorite spectator sport along the Via Appia Antica, the old Appian Way. Today, watching joggers and bikers might be the 21st century equivalent for visitors sampling history along this venerable road. You might even want to do your people-watching as the Romans do it – from the vantage point …

On the coast this summer, the newest accessory seems to be sun block. From SPF 15 to 100, no one hits the beach without it. The oily shimmering skins that once dominated the Egyptian seaside are almost nonexistent. So what triggered all these people to ditch their fancy sun tanning oils and replace them with …

As the temperature rises, so does our drink consumption. Guzzling gallons of water can be tiresome, and most of us chose fizzy soft drinks as a staple thirst quencher. A soda a day may keep the thirst at bay, but there may be health risks. Drinking more than one soda a day – even if …

When you arrive at your destination after a long flight, sometimes the first thing you can think of is sleeping off your jet lag. Feeling a tad on the tired side is not necessarily the greatest way to begin a vacation. No exploring of the city or town or sampling of the local cuisine. Save …

Behind the pomp, the lack of potency in Cairo’s cocktails Newness supplants only flashiness in determining Cairo’s most popular nightspots. Too bad too many of them can’t serve a decent mixed drink. If going out changes by the whims of new openings – El Mojito at the Nile Hilton seems a current favorite, at least …

Steve Jobs, the father of the iPod, was crowned on Tuesday as the undisputed king of the online music revolution by US music magazine Blender, topping a list of the 25 most influential people in web music. The magazine s Powergeek 25 list was compiled to show the behind-scenes-players reshaping the way people listen to, …

Associated Press I m starting to think there s a backlash against traveling families. First there was the nursing mother who was told to get off the plane. Then there was the mother who was stopped because her toddler had a sippy cup full of water as they went through security. (Yeah, yeah, I know …

Watercress, gargir, as we call it in Arabic, has always been known for its aphrodisiac powers. The famous Egyptian saying “if women knew the benefits of gargir, they would grow it under their beds, is not unfounded. But an Egyptian writer protested, arguing regrettably that despite the fact that we have been eating the sour …

Hair and fashion form the ultimate friendship. Just like diamonds are a girl s best friend, hair is no less than a perfect compliment to the fashion world, standing as a vital element to anyone’s image. From Monroe’s platinum locks in the 50s, to Twiggy’s crop in the 60’s, and Farah Fawcett’s flicks in the …

For some, Maadi was a good place to be this week. Manmade water pools flooding Maadi streets offered some Egyptian citizens free car washes while Egyptian cats and dogs could be seen drinking and dancing in the water. For others, it was a complete disaster. I belonged to the disaster part of the equation, and …

Reuters Good, old-fashioned diet and exercise might keep you young by reducing the action of insulin in the brain, researchers reported on Thursday. They created mutant mice that over-ate, got fat and even had symptoms of diabetes, and yet lived 18 percent longer than normal lab mice. The secret: they lacked a certain key gene …

The health benefits of sea water have long been known. Apart from the pleasure of swimming, a dip in the ocean has the power to relieve a multitude of ailments, from psoriasis, eczema and skin allergies, to reducing muscular tension, and boosting the immune system. If you can bring yourself to immerse your body in …

In a country where football is the number one sport and there are over 50 million Ahly fans, it was only normal that someone would eventually capitalize on this important, yet overlooked, market for sporting merchandise. Huddled in one of Zamalek’s busiest streets, the red and white sign reads “Ahlawy 100% fan store, luring football …

Is life “on the record ? Seriously, should someone going out on a date clarify whether the evening’s events are on “background ? In conversations with our neighbors, should we specify that we are operating under “Chatham House rules, in which our comments may be used but not attributed to us by name? These are …

Waking up with a headache, heart burn and a general feeling of fatigue I decided there is nothing better than ‘a good cup of coffee talk’ to get me started, and so I made my way to my favorite coffee spot earlier than usual. But with only a few faces around, there wasn’t much hope …

Women in Cairo began to enter ahwas in Cairo long ago. Smoking sheesha, sipping Turkish coffee, and playing backgammon, this creeping social change has encountered surprisingly little resistance. Men have simply moved over, and the owners have not refused to pocket the additional profit. Unsurprisingly, women come for the exact same reasons as men. I …

Associated Press It was a perfect Paris moment: The rain cleared, the sky filled with blue, and I was flying across town on a bicycle, past the Louvre, along the River Seine, through a public garden and up a cobblestone market street. As a tourist in Paris, it s easy to spend at least an …

It seems every other day a new restaurant or bar opens up in Cairo. Some bring something new and exciting to the city; others simply try to make a quick buck off the growing appetite for foreign cuisine and trendy nightspots. New rooftop locations, however, are always a welcome addition. ‘El-Mojito,’ on the roof of …

Though the Mojito originated in South America, the renaissance is sweeping across North America and Europe. Barmen call the Mojito cocktail technique ‘muddling’ – crushing sugar, ice, fruit and herbs, such as mint, to release their tangy, refreshing flavours. BACARDI MOJITO COCKTAILS 1. Muddle 12 fresh mint leaves and ½ lime. 2. Cover with two …