Many of Egypt's greats lived in that region. It was, with its cafés and songs, its discos and cabarets, its bars and nightclubs, and its gardens and orchards, a scene for Egyptian writers in successive eras. They spent their time on the green grass under the shade of trees, and on the banks of streams flowing with silver water, which looked like swords on green carpets. Or they spend the nights in literary "salons" in the palaces of princes and notables overlooking the pool, or in cafes and music shops, or in the many bathhouses spread around Al-Ruwai'i area and the Dekka Qantara if it is winter.