The Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo with the support of the European Commission and the Embassy of Belgium is organising a reception on Friday to celebrate the publication of Helioplis: Rebirth of the City of the Sun by Agnieszka Dobrowolska and Jarostaw Dobrowolska. The event was organised at the Chantilly restaurant in Helioplis. Published by the American University in Cairo Press, the book introduces the reader to the history and development of Heliopolis through its architecture and inhabitants past and present. The book includes colour and archival black-and-white photographs as well as original architectural design drawings published for the first time. photo: Sherif Mahmoud Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish won the prize of the International Forum for Arabic Poetry, held recently in Cairo. The iconic figure was handed the prize by Culture Minister Farouk Hosni on Monday, in a celebration held at the Small Hall on the premises of Cairo Opera House. Among the attendees were Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Culture Gaber Asfour and several poets and intellectuals. "I have received this award on behalf of all Arab poets from whom I learnt a lot," Darwish declared. "And I realise the political significance of an award presented from Egypt to Palestine." Tarek Hegy launched his new book, Meditations in the Egyptian Mind at the luxurious Four Seasons Hotel last week. Present were, among others, the Editor-In-Chief of Ketab Al-Yom Nawal Mustafa, head of Dar Al-Shorouq Publishing House Ibrahim El-Moallim, prominent writer and Al-Ahram columnist Salah Montasser, former minister of development Yehia El-Gamal, and Editor-in-Chief of Al-Ahram's Nesf Al-Donia magazine Afkar El-Kharadli. photos: Ayman Barayez At a special ceremony in the Semiramis Hotel's Cleopatra Hall, Edinburgh University honoured a new group of Masters and Doctoral degrees holders: Minister of Finance Youssef Boutros Ghali, British Ambassador to Cairo Sir Derek Plumbly, President of the American University in Cairo David Arnold and Professor Mary Betts at Heriot Watt University. The Contemporary Image Collective, in collaboration with the Netherlands Embassy in Cairo, will organise the World Press Photo exhibit at El-Sawy Culture Wheel next week. Chosen from the work of 4,448 photographers from 122 countries, these are some of the most beautiful and most important photographs taken last year, with historical as well as aesthetic import. Al-Ahram Weekly 's very own Pierre Loza tied the knot with Mary Ishaq in the Church of Abu Seifien (Saint of the Two Swords). The loveliest couple in town patiently underwent the impressive rites of a Coptic wedding. With the rigours of the church wedding over, the bride and groom dashed to the waiting stretch white limousine. Oh my God, what a beautiful sight that was. And the groom's sweet mum, Louisa, was the most captivating cutie in her cherry evening gown. Her husband Rushdi Loza looked splendid in his pin-stripped suit. As for the bridegroom, he was brimming with pride and joy in his tuxedo. And the bride, in her shimmering snow-white dress, bore a close resemblance to the ancient Egyptian goddess Hathor. To his horror, Foreign Desk Editor Gamal Nkrumah saw his image splashed on the huge screen along with the bride and groom at various stages of their lives -- from toddlers to teens. The bride's mother Eva, resplendent in a regal purple gown, and her father Ishaq looked on in obvious satisfaction. At the elegantly decorated ballroom in the Shephard Hotel, the little bride's maids, in their glittering white ballet dresses, softly hovered around Pierre and Mary during their first dance before taking over the dancefloor to swing to the most romantic of songs chosen by none other than the lovely bride. The stunningly beautiful dancer Fatima graced the occasion with her presence. Her shimmies were the talk of the evening, men and even women could not take their eyes off her. A cousin of the groom, Miriam, could not restrain herself and joined in. She flung her shoes and danced the night away... In collaboration with the Cairo Opera House, the Japan Foundation Cairo Office will today present an Egyptian-Japanese joint chamber music concert at the Cairo Opera House's Small Hall. It includes works by Saint-Saens, Francis Poulenc, Bach, Scott Joplin, and Mona Ghoneim, in addition to works by Japanese composers such as Hiroaki Kuwahara, Takamasa Sakai and Michio Miagi. The concert will feature Tamami Watanabe, Sayako Aoki, Yasser El-Serafi and Mona Wassif. Mona Nazif, wife of Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif, accompanied a delegation of Congress on a visit to Egypt Language School for Children with Special Needs, where they surveyed the activities of children and met them and their teachers. Ismail Osman and Magda Moussa, the heads of Special Olympics Egypt, were there to receive them.
