An elegant ceremony at the residence of the Italian Ambassador, Antonio Badini, saw the honouring of Pietro Bajocchi, a prominent member of the Egyptian-Italian community. Bajocchi received the designation of Commandatori awarded by the president of the Italian Republic. He had previously received the title of Cavalier, in 1992, and that of Officer in 1996. The reception was attended by the Minister of Social Solidarity Ali El-Meseilhi, as well as a large number of diplomats. An Egyptian national whose family emigrated to this country during the era of the Khedive Ismail, Bajocchi has carried on with his family's profession as jewellers. The awards came in recognition of his leading role in the Egyptian community. Bajocchi is a founding member of the Egyptian-Italian Businessmen's Association, and a board member of the Italian Charity Association which administers the Italian Hospital. He is also chairman of Egypt's Italian Club, as well as that of the Association of Expatriate Italian Businessmen. Another illustrious event took place at the home of the Belgian Ambassador Daniel LeRoy, who awarded Nagwa Shoeib, the present manager of Policy and Corporate Affairs in BG- Egypt and former PR head at the AUC, the Order of the Crown from his Royal Highness King Albert II. This is in recognition of her leadership role in convening the centennial celebrations of the district of Heliopolis. The citation recognised Shoeib 's achievements and her contributions to strengthening Egyptian-Belgian relations. Heliopolis was founded in 1905 by the Belgian Baron Edouard Empain. The celebrations of 2005 were held under the auspices of Mrs Suzanne Mubarak, chair of the Heliopolis. The First Plastic Arts Creativity Festival, running through 13 April, will witness the inauguration by Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni and the governor of Giza Fathi Saad, of a competition entailing the establishment of two new murals. One will be in Al-Ahram Street facing the Mena House Hotel, and the other in Al-Sudan Street parallel to the railway station, on 12 March. The aim is to encourage creative talents that will enhance the city's aesthetic aspects. (For more information on the festival's activities see Listings). The Cairo Opera House, in cooperation with the Arab Music Academy -- affiliated to the Arab League -- is celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of the launch of the first Arab Music Conference in March of 1932, in Cairo. In the period from 11 to 14 March, events of the celebration are due to take place at the Arab Music Institute and Gomhouriya Theatre, downtown. This will include an official opening, and seven sessions entitled "A Contemporary Critical Reading of the First Arab Music Conference in 1932" in addition to concerts featuring seven singers from six Arab countries: Lebanon, Syria, Tunis, Iraq, Morocco and Egypt. A recent press conference related to the event was attended by Head of the Arab Music Academy Ratiba El-Hefni, President of the Supreme Council of Culture Gaber Asfour, the Music Academy's Secretary-General Kefah Fakhouri and representative of the Arab League Mohamed El-Dali. (For concerts schedule see Listings). The traditionally-popular Indian films seem to be making a come-back. At an opening ceremony which brought together many Egyptians with Indian expatriates, the audience watched the Indian movie Eklavya (The Royal Guard) starring Amitabh Bachchan. The celebration was attended by the Indian Ambassador in Egypt A Gopinthan and Adel Adeeb, the director of the cinema production company, Good News. Omar Samra will be the first Egyptian to have ventured climbing Mount Everest. Samra who is currently pursuing his MBA in the London School of Economics, will be accompanied by a multinational team of climbers. At a recent presentation Samra talked of his passion for climbing, saying that it grew over the years, and, with it, his motivation to undertake an expedition to Everest. He said that he regards this new challenge as one more extension of his many trips undertaken in different parts of the world, and which have included Peru, the Alps and the Himalayas. Samra and his team will be guided by two climbers who have already made it to the peak of Mount Everest, as well as by a logistics support member. The team consists of four other members: two from Wales, one from England, and one from South Africa. One teammate will be, in the event of this happening, the first Welch woman to have reached the mountain's peak. The team is planning to leave London to Katmandu, Nepal on 25 March. It is estimated that it will reach the base of Mount Everest in two weeks. The actual climbing expedition is estimated to last for 10 weeks. Assiut Governorate hosted the thrilling festival of Al-Tali (silver-embroidered gowns and shawls) inaugurated by Assiut Governor Nabil El-Ezabi and head of the General Organisation of Cultural Palaces (GOCP) Ahmed Nawwar. The festival, which was held over the span of two days, included several items amongst which was a spectacular show by the girls of Assiut wearing Al-Tali gowns and heading for the arena of the governorate on camels. This was followed by two exhibitions: one of Al-Tali products, and another by the spontaneous artists from Bani Sweif, Fayoum, Minya and Assiut as well as a fascinating fashion show held at the Assiut Sporting Club. According to El-Ezabi, "We are not only celebrating the first festival of Al-Tali, but also praising the brilliance of Assiout women who succeeded in preserving this folk heritage from sinking into oblivion, over the past years." Nawwar commented that, "the people of Upper Egypt are very eager to preserve their customs and traditions, which is why the GOCP is planning to organise similar festivals in Egypt's other governorates, many of which are famous for their ancient traditional handicrafts." photo: Ayman Barayez In memory of Rafik El-Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister who was assassinated on 14 February 2005, the Egyptian-Lebanese Friendship Association (ELFA), headed by Negad Shaarawi, held a cultural evening at the Semiramis Hotel's Tiba Hall. Among the evening's keynote speakers were the People's Assembly Foreign Relations Committee Head Mustafa El - Fiqi, Lebanese MP Mohamed El-Naggar, deputy head of the ELFA Ghazi Nasser and Ambassador Hisham Youssef, who represented Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa. Attending as well was the popular Lebanese actress Madeleine Tabar and Lebanese Tourism Counsellor Faisal Fetfet.
