Beauty and the book Last week Time magazine included the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) on its list of the most beautiful libraries in the world. Alexandria's original library was destroyed by fire over 1,600 years ago, and the present structure has sought to revive the original spirit. Inaugurated in 2002, the massive disc-shaped building has a huge reading room that tilts towards the sea, while the façade is covered in letters and characters from more than 100 different languages. The building also contains a planetarium, four museums, academic research centres and a multimedia presentation on Egypt's heritage. Moroccan Ambassador Mohamed Saad Al-Alami and his wife gave a prestigious reception celebrating the 15th anniversary of King Mohamed VI's coronation at the ambassador's residence in Zamalek. Present were Giza Governor Ali Abdel-Rahman, Head of the National Council for Women Mervat Al-Tellawi, former foreign minister Mohamed Al-Arabi, former prime minister Essam Sharaf, actors Ahmed Bedeir, Khaled Al-Nabawi, Sameh Al-Sereiti, Moroccan singer Laila Ghufran, Kuwaiti Ambassador Salem Al-Zamanan and his wife, Iraqi Ambassador Diaa Al-Dabbas, Palestinian Ambassador Barakat Al-Farra, US Chargé d'Affaires Marc Sievers, Swiss Ambassador Markus Leitner, Indian Ambassador Navdeep Suri, Romanian Ambassador Cornel Alecse, French Ambassador Nicolas Galey and Cameroonian Ambassador Mohamadou Labarang. Over 200 guests attended the farewell party held for Michael Harms, the Director of the DAAD Cairo Office and the German Science Centre (DWZ), who after four years of successful work in Egypt will return to the DAAD headquarters in Bonn, Germany, Nesmahar Sayed reports. Among the guests were representatives of DAAD and DWZ partners and friends. Dorothea Rüland, Secretary General of the DAAD, organised the party in honour of achievements of the outgoing director Harms and to welcome the incoming director of the DAAD Cairo Office, Roman Luckscheiter who will take over in September 2014. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is the German national agency for the support of international academic cooperation. Among the guests were the newly named German Ambassador to Egypt Hansjörg Haber, the Egyptian Minister of Higher Education Al-Sayed Ahmed Abdel-Khalek and the Egyptian Minister of Scientific Research Sherif Hammad. Also present were the Minister of Urban Development Laila Iskandar, the Minister of Antiquities and Heritage Mamdouh Al-Damati and the Fayyoum Governor Hazem Attyatallah. On the occasion of the Korean Culture Week, Ambassador of South Korea Yung-So Kim will deliver a lecture at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Conference Centre today. The programme that will start 11am, includes the opening of a Korean photography exhibition, a presentation on the Korean culture in the Egyptian eyes and a fashion show displaying the Egyptian and Korean traditional costumes. In a giant celebration at El-Sawy Culturewheel, the Hamdan Bin Mohamed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum International Photography Award (HIPA) handed out digital cameras to special-needs photographers sponsored by the Arab Photographers Union. According to Secretary General of HIPA Ali Bin Thalith, “HIPA adopts the vision of discovering hidden talents in every society to offer them support and opportunity for a new path in their lives through the art of photography.” Photography as a hobby for people with special needs can help them reunite with the society in a positive way, he added. Major General Yu Haiba, Army, Navy and Air Force Attaché of the Chinese Embassy in Cairo gave a reception to celebrate the 87th anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army of China. Present were the Chinese Ambassador Song Aiguo and his wife Mrs Wang, Major General and Deputy Minister of Defence Fouad Abdel-Halim, Minister of Tourism consultant for Asian Affairs Nasser Abdel-Aal, Ambassador of South Korea Yung-So Kim, Brigadiers Ihab Rageh and Walid Farrag and all diplomats from the Chinese Embassy. Haiba gave a speech on the Chinese army: its history, involvement in the world peace missions and military exchanges. “This is the first time for me to host our Army Day reception in Cairo, Egypt, and we are glad to see the situation here is becoming more stable and peaceful. The political road map is being conducted smoothly,” he said, speaking on behalf of Aiguo. Actors Yasmine Abdel-Aziz, Hisham Maged and Ahmed Fahmi headed to a movie theatre during Eid Al-Fitr to monitor the audience interaction with their new films, Gawaza Miri (Official Marriage) starring Abdel-Aziz, and Al-Harb Al-Alamiya Al-Talta (World War III) starring Maged and Fahmi. After the success of both films, the producer Ahmed Al-Sobki held a celebration at his office in Dokki in the presence of the stars Abdel-Aziz, Fahmi, Maged and Shiko. The premiere World War III had been held at the Mall of Arabia in 6 October City in the presence of the cast and director Ahmed Al-Guindi. Also present at the premiere were actors Mohamed Ramadan and Karim Abdel-Aziz, Lebanese singer Dominic, actress Olfat Omar and actor Akram Hosni and singer Mohamed Kilani. The first University Theatre Seasons Festival — a project organised by the Cultural Development Fund (CDF), headed by director Khaled Galal — honoured veteran actor Salah Al-Saadani whose talent first manifested on university stages while he was a student. Al-Saadani wished the project success in helping new generations to develop the art of theatre. The festival gathers theatre companies from Cairo, Ain Shams and Helwan universities. It opened with Al-Wazir Al-Aasheq (The Minister in Love), written by poet Farouk Guweida and directed by Ashraf Salem. The jury is headed by Hani Mutawei and includes artist Hussein Al-Ezabi, actress Ilham Shahine, fashion designer Naima Agami and poet Mohamed Bahgat. Goodwill Ambassador of the Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD) Carole Samaha launched a campaign in Cairo for developing unplanned areas in Egypt. The launch took the form of a conference held under the auspices of the GNRD and MAAT Foundation for Peace, which targets the Manshiyet Nasser district in Helwan. Samaha expressed her enthusiasm for voluntary work in Egypt. She stated that one of the most significant problems in Egypt is unplanned slum areas and that it should top the list of political priorities. The conference was followed by a visit to children and grown-ups with special needs and patients in the area.
