Pack of cards

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photo: Ayman Barayez Spring is around the corner and the time has come to bring our wardrobes up to speed. So when I heard that the Italian Embassy was organising two fashion shows showcasing the Spring and Summer Collection 2005 of that inspired Italian designer Raffaella Curiel I braved the last of this winter's cold and headed for the catwalk. The first show was held at the Air Forces House under the auspices of Mrs Suzanne Mubarak and was attended by Minister of Social Insurance Amina El-Guindi, Mrs Ahmed Nazif the prime minister's wife and Laila Moussa, wife of the Arab League secretary-general. This is not to mention actor and former director of Cairo International Film Festival Hussein Fahmi, actresses Youssra, Mervat Amin, Mona Zaki and her husband comedian Ahmed Helmi as well as Rotana Satellite Channel director and TV presenter Hala Sarhan. Sixty gowns were shown off to their best advantage by 12 Egyptian and Italian models and we could all indulge without a pang of guilt as the entire cachet went to the Egyptian Red Cross. The second show was held at the residence of the Italian Ambassador Antonio Badini in Garden City and graced by the music of the Italian jazz quintet Enzo Scoppa. The money raised from the charity event was donated in its entirety to the Italian hospital -- Umberto I -- in Egypt.

British Ambassador to Egypt Derek Plumbly, AUC Provost Tim Sullivan, Director of the AUC Adham Centre Abdallah Schleifer and Saudi Aramco's Nimah Nawwab all came together this week to inaugurate Australian born John Feeney 's latest photo exhibit. Showing at the AUC Sony Gallery for Photography through 21 April, Feeney 's exhibit is entitled "A Retrospective: 40 Years of Photographing Egypt". The collection brings together 56 of the photographer's colour photographs including images of late-president Gamal Abdel-Nasser 's funeral, the last Nile flood to inundate Egypt as well as the unique domes of Cairo, mosques and mausoleums of the Islamic city.

photo: Tamer Youssef What are the similarities between Egyptian movie star Nour El-Sherif and his Indian counter-part Amitabh Bachan ? We all held our breaths as the answers came in this week at the competition organised by the Egyptian-Indian Friendship Association (EIFA) in collaboration with Dar Al- Hilal for Egyptian children. During the ceremony, those who got their answers right received awards from EIFA Deputy Chairperson Nadia Gardini and El-Sherif. The event attended by film critic Mahmoud Qassim, Cairo International Film Festival Deputy Chairman Soheir Abdel- Qader as well as members of the foreign delegations participating in the festival.

Also this week, UNICEF received the 2004 honorary award of the Cairo International Film Festival for their production of the documentary The Revolution of Resistance. The film is a touching account of children who made their own cartoons dealing with child rights-related issues.

photo: Khatchig Wanis Highlighting the importance of science and research as a tool of international cooperation, the Embassy of Armenia in Cairo organised a meeting of Egyptians who graduated from various Armenian educational institutions. The event was inaugurated by Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Ezzat Salama. In his welcoming speech Armenian Ambassador Rouben Karapetian invited Salama to visit Armenia during this current year as the signing of an executive programme of cooperation between both countries is forthcoming.