Nevine El-Aref reports on Mrs Suzanne Mubarak's visit to Luxor, during which she inaugurated a branch of the Mubarak Public Library and opened a Nubian Cultural Centre Luxor is often described as the world's greatest open air museum. The site of Egypt's ancient capital Thebes, the town boasts incomparable temples and a splendid necropolis. Sadly, though, over the centuries Luxor's monuments have suffered encroachment. Houses were built on top of ancient tombs on the West Bank and the open court fronting the Luxor Temple was turned into a bustling souq. Since 2005, however, as part of President Hosni Mubarak's programme to develop Upper Egypt and improve services for Egyptians as well as develop and promote tourist projects which will in turn provide job opportunities, Luxor has been the site of a major development scheme. New houses and shops have been built to replace buildings demolished because they encroached on ancient monuments. Excavations have been undertaken to reveal the full route of the Avenue of Sphinxes, once the royal path between Luxor and Karnak temples. After two years of work, Luxor, which has twice won prizes for its comprehensive development plan from the International Competition of Islamic Capitals and Cities, is looking more alluring than ever. Everything has been changed: buildings along the Corniche have been repainted in earth colours and the city's streets and squares have been subject to extensive refurbishment, including the planting of large numbers of trees and flowers. "I am very impressed with what I saw along my route from the airport to here," said Mrs Suzanne Mubarak, addressing invitees at this week's inauguration of the Luxor branch of the Mubarak Public Library. "I have seldom seen such beautiful streets in Egypt. I would like every street in every town in Egypt to be lined with trees and flowers like this." Mrs Mubarak was accompanied by Minister of International Cooperation Fayza Abul-Naga, Minister of Information Anas El-Fiqi and a host of senior government officials as she toured development projects in Luxor. Her itinerary included cultural, historical, archaeological and tourist sites as well as service facilities for Luxor's residents. First stop of the official visit was Luxor airport. Guided by Minister of Aviation Ahmed Shafiq, Mrs Mubarak was shown the renovated halls of the airport, the cafeteria and shopping mall. She headed next to the Mubarak Public Library where she was welcomed by Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni and Secretary- General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) Zahi Hawass. The façade of the three-storey library is designed like a temple, replete with Pharaonic columns. The basement of the building houses the Mubarak Historical Centre, inaugurated last January by President Hosni Mubarak. The centre is the fruit of collaboration between the Luxor Supreme City Council and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. It showcases Egypt's cultural and natural heritage from ancient times to the Coptic and Islamic eras and is a smaller version of the Centre for the Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULTNAT) in Cairo's Smart Village. The centre in Luxor illustrates Egypt's history through the screening of two- hour-long "Culturamas" and hosts exhibitions, handicrafts and activities using state-of-the-art technology on a 180- degree interactive screen. Records of Egypt's architectural, natural, archaeological and folkloric heritage are also on show. "New technology has made it possible to see Egypt as it was thousands of years ago in a way that was unimaginable until recently," Eglal Bahgat, deputy director of CULTNAT, told Al-Ahram Weekly. The centre, he added, which also contains a micro-gallery and showroom with booths dedicated to different aspects of cultural heritage, "allows all Egypt's cultural heritage to be known, not just the era of the Pharaohs". The first floor of the library houses 10,000 books in English and Arabic on ancient Egyptian history, providing visitors with information about ancient religion, art, writing, language, medicine, mummification and architecture. Books on Egypt's Graeco-Roman, Coptic and Islamic periods are also available. Space has also been allocated to an exhibition of archive photographs of Luxor's monuments as they appeared in the past century and a half. There are, in addition, detailed maps of archaeological sites and a 50-inch screen that displays electronic maps. The library also includes an Internet and video-conference room, while next to the Egyptology section is a reading hall for adults that includes more than 5,000 books in English and Arabic and 200 video cassettes. The second floor is devoted to children, providing books suitable for those aged between six and 14. It is furnished with screening facilities and an activities room and also includes a green corner, where children can learn about the environment, and a language laboratory. On the third floor is a cafeteria. In her inauguration speech, Mrs Mubarak described the library as a new cultural edifice built by modern Egyptians and dedicated to science, knowledge and enlightenment. "Today the Mubarak Public Library's Luxor branch joins the network of national libraries started on the Nile bank in Giza in 1995 when the mother library was opened. These libraries provide a unique service to those who seek culture and knowledge whatever their age. They are based on the belief that a library is a living reality that must interact with society... the Mubarak Public Libraries are a concrete lighthouse of knowledge on the Nile banks." Mrs Mubarak added that the success of the Mubarak Public Library in Giza had acted as a spur to go on and make public libraries an important part of every Egyptians' life: "I launched an ambitious initiative in 2000 to establish modern public libraries in the regions that will support the new generation with the knowledge it needs to move towards a better future and open up opportunities to cope with the technological revolution that we are witnessing." Following her library visit, Mrs Mubarak viewed a section of the Avenue of Sphinxes, the 2,700 metre causeway linking Luxor and Karnak temples which was once lined with 1,200 sphinxes. Samir Farag, head of the Luxor Supreme City Council, told Al-Ahram Weekly that since work on restoring the avenue began two years ago 60 limestone sphinxes had been unearthed, as well as a unique quartzite religious stelae of Bakenkhunsu, high priest of Amun-Re. He added that reviving the avenue will crown Luxor's reputation as a great international open air museum. Farag updated Mrs Mubarak about recent developments at the Luxor Temple, where shanty houses, bazaars and rubbish dumps have been cleared and a small public garden opened. The unregulated building around the temple had been described by Culture Minister Farouk Hosni as a time bomb waiting to explode. Now, Hosni said, the clearances had opened views of a small Coptic church and the Al-Haggag Mosque, providing a new aspect of the temple. "Train passengers will now be able to admire the colossi of Luxor Temple as they step out of the station," Hosni told the Weekly. The station itself has been the site of a LE20 million refurbishment. In May last year work costing LE50 million began at Karnak Temple. Eventually all encroachment will be removed from the temple forecourt, making room for excavations that hope to uncover the ancient harbour and canal that once connected it to the Nile. According to ancient maps a canal, built on the same axis of Hatshepsut's Deir Al-Bahari Temple, allowed access across the Nile to the West Bank. According to Hawass, the trees which now grow in front of Karnak temples will be preserved, and a row of acacia and ficus trees planted to separate the temples from the road. Shops next to the temple walls will be moved to what was previously the Luxor stadium on the Nile Corniche. The vacated area will then be transformed into an underground commercial zone and carpark. A visitor centre is also planned, to be built in the colonial style seen in the house of the archaeologist George Legrain. It will provide exhibits illustrating the work of early French archaeologists who worked at Karnak, including Auguste Mariette, Gaston Maspero and Legrain. Mrs Mubarak also visited Luxor's newly refurbished train station, a major transport hub in a city that receives more than two million tourists a year. She also inaugurated the new Nubian Cultural Centre, established to preserve Nubian traditions and crafts. Run in collaboration with the Ministry of International Cooperation, which directed LE15 towards the centre's budget, it displays Nubian handicrafts, metalwork and textiles and provides training to craftspeople. The visit concluded with an inspection tour of new facilities at Al-Gurna hospital on Luxor's West Bank. "I am very proud of what has been achieved in Luxor. It is an excellent example of President Mubarak's programme to develop the governorates of Upper Egypt and improve services for Egyptians, as well the development of tourist projects which will provide jobs and generate wealth locally. I congratulate Luxor's inhabitants on the progress they have made and hope soon to see even more development in this great city," said Mrs Mubarak.
