In Naguib Mahfouz's late masterpiece, 'Qashtamur,' readers are welcomed into a timeless Cairene cafe. The story revolves around a group of elderly friends whose regular meetings serve as a backdrop for reminiscing about their shared past. Through their interwoven memories, the novel paints a vivid picture of Egypt's dramatic social and political shifts from the 1920s to the 1980s. It's a poignant and melancholic meditation on memory, loss, nostalgia, and the inexorable passage of time, all witnessed from the enduring sanctuary of the Qashtamur cafe.