Genena City Mall was a 15 minute walk from our hotel in Sharm el Sheikh so, once the heat of the day had died down, off we set. It is an impressive structure from the front with a huge red sign and plastic Egyptian monuments. At one side was a large patisserie with a fantastic range of sweets and cakes and seating outside: however, it was virtually empty.
We walked through the cool, marble centre (it’s not air conditioned as some of it is open to the elements) and found many of the shops empty: those that had opened tended to be having sales of cheap clothes. We couldn’t work out whether it was a white elephant or so new that the shops were still to open.
On the ground floor was the King Tut Museum with copied exhibits from the Egyptian Museum. As we’d seen the real things in Cairo, replicas didn’t tempt us. Bowling, a cinema and ice skating also were all closed and it was difficult to judge whether or not they had officially opened.
Straight through and out at the back, was a huge stage, pool and fountains – once again all quiet. A couple of restaurants had opened but a number of other bars and cafes had lots of seating outside but still didn’t seem to be fully functioning. We couldn’t find anywhere to get a drink.
However, the views over Naama Bay are spectacular and you can reach the rear of the shopping centre via escalators from the town which is promoting it heavily.
We were left wondering whether if we returned in a year’s time, it would be lively and fully open or whether the white elephant would have died.
http://www.genenacity.com/
