$35 billion deal between the UAE and Egypt: a purchasing boom for Gulf states

In southern Egypt, at sunset on a late summer evening last year, an ancient hotel came back to life, once again welcoming influential people whose ambitions are aimed at changing the world. Over its century-long existence, the historic Old Cataract building in Aswan, perched on a rocky cliff on the eastern bank of the Nile River, has hosted such notable figures as Winston Churchill, Jimmy Carter, and Tsar Nicholas II. For Agatha Christie, whose former apartment can now be rented for $8000 a night, it served as inspiration for one of her most famous detective works, "Death on the Nile."

The guests were more cautious. More than a dozen high-ranking officials from the United Arab Emirates in white robes arrived for a private dinner held under fire from security at the restaurant, said four people who were there and asked to remain anonymous.