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Al-Ahram Weekly 13 - 19 January 2000 Issue No. 464 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 13 - 19 January 2000 Issue No. 464
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Pack of Cards
By Madame Sosostris
Our own famous Al-Ahram photographer, Antoune Albert, has been at it again, collecting yet another first prize, this time for his breathtaking photo of "Cairo today and tomorrow", which he entered in the competition of the same name, organised by the Armed Forces in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture. The prize was presented to our dear colleague during a ceremony attended by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak.
Darlings, of course you know that nowadays, if you have a sudden urge to go to Assiut, you will still be able to catch your favourite movie at the Renaissance Complex of cinemas, courtesy of businessman Naguib Sawires. That is just what happened to our very own colleague, journalist Hani Mustafa, who was invited to attend the inauguration of the complex last weekend. Hani boarded the special plane that was conveying the guests to Assiut Airport, and was quite impressed by the number of actors, journalists, cinema critics and important personalities with whom he was sharing the flight.
Although Hani did not like to admit it, he was a little worried by the small size of the plane and, when they were airborne, discovered that he had good reason to be. What a bumpy ride that was! Still, he was comforted by the presence of stars like Nour El-Sherif, Mahmoud Hemeida, Athar El-Hakim, Caroline Khalil, a bald Khaled El-Nabawi (who has just finished starring in Omar 2000) and Ibrahim Nasr (Zakiya Zakariya of Al-Camera Al-Khafiya or Candid Camera fame), composer Mohamed Nouh, critics Ahmed Saleh for Al-Akhbar and Atef Abaza for the daily Al-Ahram. Despite Hani's fears, the plane made it easily to the airport, where a special bus was waiting to take the group to Madinet Assiut. There they were welcomed by Mahmoud Abdel-Aziz, Leila Oloui and Naguib himself.
After attending the opening of the four cinemas, each featuring an Egyptian blockbuster, Hani opted for a viewing of Gannet Al-Shayatin and became so engrossed in the action that he missed the return flight. At least, this is what he is telling all and sundry but I personally believe that he was rather reassured to settle into his train compartment -- at least this mode of transport was securely earthbound.
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Do you know, dears, that I almost missed Christian Dior Couture chairman Sidney Toledano, who was spending a few days at Le Meridien Heliopolis with his family? Thank goodness for my dear friend the charming Nihal Zamzam, Meridien's Marketing Communication Manager, who invited me to spend a few minutes with him and Brigitte Lefebvre, Middle East Area Representative of Christian Dior Couture. I know, dears, that you are expecting me to whisper in your little ears some of Dior's well-guarded secrets, but for the time being mum is the word. However, if you are lucky enough to see me on the street wearing a splendid Escorial shawl (Pashmina is so passé, you know), then you may consider this vision a preview of things to come.
