� Dearest honey bunnies, rejoice! Earlier this month, the American University in Cairo (AUC) President David Arnold announced a scholarship fund for public school students. Established in honour of Mrs Suzanne Mubarak, an alumna of AUC, the Suzanne Mubarak Public Scholarship will be given to the most talented female students from state schools across the country. "We could not think of a better way to honour Mrs Mubarak for her continuos efforts towards the development of Egypt and the region, and to thank her for her commitment to AUC," Arnold declaimed at the annual alumni party, "than by establishing this important scholarship in her distinguished name". Now now, for those of you who might be worried by too much feminism, rest content. The first lady's scholarship was closely followed by a symposium under the auspices of President Hosni Mubarak. And what a delightful occasion, dears, "Oman: Future Vision for a Modern State" was. Organised by the Foreign Press Association (FPA) in Cairo, headed over by Volkard Windfuhr, and held at the prestigious Citystars InterContinental, the evening started with a composition of my very capable friend Amaar El-Shereai. Together with his Egyptian counterpart Anas El-Fiqi, Omani Minister of Information Hamed Bin Mohamed Bin Mohsen Al-Rashdi opened a thrilling photo exhibition on Oman. Before speakers like the president's political adviser Osama El-Baz, head of the National Democratic Party (NDP) Alieddin Helal, former ambassador to Japan and director of the National Council for Motherhood and Childhood Mushira Khattab, director of the German Institute for Oriental Studies in Hamburg Sergey Pelkhanov and head of Al-Jazeera bureau in Egypt Hussein Abdel-Ghani launched into their spell-binding talks. A mini documentary, Building Oman's Image in the Western Mind brought the evening to an aptly captivating close. � More celebration a la US, lovelies, as American Ambassador Francis J Ricciardone named Bruce Lohof the Fulbright director in Egypt at a heart-warming reception last Sunday. The presence of Minister of Education Amr Salama made the evening even more delightful. Lohof has taught at the Heidelberg College and the University of Miami, and directed the American Studies Research Centre in Hyderabad, India. � Almost more captivating was the Scottish Country Dance Group St Andrews dinner-and-dance party at the Nile Hilton's Alf Leila Ballroom, where the Laverock Ceilih band and piper Neil Hewitt treated us to a broad range of traditional Scottish music. � Last week, dears, the chief of the Diplomats' Wives Association Nagwa El-Fiqi organised a charity party at El-Sawy Culture Centre's River Hall. Among the participants were representatives from Libya, Qatar, Emirates and Indonesia, accompanied by folklore bands and dances to match. Such fun, my sugar bits, and all for the Egyptian Red Crescent -- to establish the Ain Shams University Maternity Hospital. Present, among others, were Bahia Youssef and Awatef Serageddin, head of Garden City Lions Club. � My good friend Philippe Coste, the French ambassador to Egypt, hosted a dinner party in honour of the 1997 Physics Nobel Prize laureate Claude Cohen Tannoudji. Held at the garden of the French Embassy overlooking the Nile, in Giza, the event featured a French band and was attended by, among others, Minister of Finance Youssef Boutros-Ghali, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Moufid Shehab, former foreign minister Ahmed Maher and former ambassador to France Samir Safwat. Also present were President of the French University in Egypt Tahani Omar, veteran actor Gamil Rateb, Arab Writers Union members Mohamed Salmawy and Amin Abdel - Nour, Arab Publishers Union head Ibrahim El-Muallem, French Consul for Commerce Adrien Phares, and former secretary-general of the Cairo International Model United Nations Fouad Yunes as well as their wives -- beautiful friends, all. Still more American busyness, dears, for my very favourite movie star Morgan Freeman showed up as an honouree of the 29th Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF). His presence graced, among other occasions, a party that CIFF President Cherif El-Shoubashy held for him, with Cairo Governor Abdel-Azim Wazir, screen diva Lubna Abdel-Aziz, pop star Khaled Selim and my wonderful actor friends Hanan Tork, Libliba, Laila Elwi, Manal Salama and Dalia El-Beheiri. French Cultural Consul Denis Louche must have felt jealous, beauties, for he too honoured Freeman, at his own house, another deeply engaging occasion on which more actor friends -- Gamil Rateb, Mahmoud Hemeida, Mahmoud Abdel-Aziz, Bassem Samra, Khaled El-Nabawi -- as well as my gorgeously provocative friend, the world renowned filmmaker Youssri Nasrallah, were also present.
