The Sphinx and I With the Pyramids and the Sphinx for a background, the Australian pop star Kylie Minogue dazzled over 3,600 Egyptians at a breathtaking concert captured here by photographer Abdel-Hamid Eid. With her band, Minogue rocked the stage in two elegant dresses, performing a number of her best loved songs. The Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Zahi Hawass accompanied world renowned singer Kylie Minogue on a long tour of the Giza plateau before her concert. Hawass gave Minogue his book on King Tutankhamun after telling her about the history of excavations and revealing the secrets of the Pyramids. Since Mahatma Gandhi passed through the port town to tremendous excitement in 1931, Port Said has held a special fascination for India. This year, in collaboration with the governorate and the university, the Indian Embassy organised an India Week there to celebrate Gandhi's birthday (2 October). The week-long festival included a talk on Gandhi and India- Egypt relations at Port Said University, a photo exhibition on Gandhi, an India book fair and Indian tea Testing session, a lecture on and screenings of Indian films with Arabic subtitles. While in Port Said, the Indian Ambassador to Egypt R Swaminathan, who inaugurated the event together with Governor Mustafa Abdel-Latif, met with members of the Port Said Chamber of Commerce to discuss possibilities for enhancing bilateral trade as well. Anderson Arnold The Board of Trustees of the American University in Cairo (AUC) has announced the selection of Lisa Anderson as the university's next president, to replace David D Arnold as of December. Anderson has served as the university's provost since 2008. Prior to joining AUC as chief academic officer, she served as a James T. Shotwell professor of international relations and as the dean of the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. Richard A Bartlett, chairperson of the university's Board of Trustees, noted that Anderson is uniquely suited for the position. "Anderson is a renowned scholar recognised internationally for her research and scholarship on politics in the Middle East and North Africa," he said. "In addition, she is a highly skilled administrator and leader who has made significant contributions to the university since being appointed provost, including the creation of the university's first PhD programme, the establishment of three new schools and building the size and quality of the faculty." Anderson holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and an MA in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. In 1981 she earned her PhD in political science from Columbia University, where she also received a certificate from the Middle East Institute. She was awarded an honorary doctorate of law from Monmouth University in 2002. "Cairo, the Crossroad of Faith" is the latest solo exhibition by Al-Ahram's gifted photographer Sherif Sonbol, inaugurated last week at the main lobby of the Cairo Opera House by Al-Ahram Chairman of the Board Abdel-Moneim Said and his wife Amal Toqan, the director of the Opera Abdel-Moneim Kamel and director of the Opera art galleries Fayza Abdel-Moneim. Present were numerous press and media figures including Al-Ahram Weekly 's Editor-in-Chief Assem El-Kersh, Nisf Al-Donia 's Editor-in-Chief Afkar El-Kharadli and the cartoonist George Bahgory. The four-day exhibition, organised in collaboration with Al-Ahram's new electronic portal, showcased 100 photographs of the most significant sites in Old Cairo. Among the attendees were first under-secretary of foreign cultural relations at the Ministry of Culture Hossam Nassar, who will organise the same exhibition to be held in Finland. The Champollion Cairo Club (CCC), presided over by Nahed Tadros, hosted a seminar entitled "Towards a Real Educational Development" at Le Pacha Nile Boat. Among the keynote speakers was Minister of Education Ahmed Zaki Badr who discussed the ministry's teacher-training strategies and the latest educational techniques as well as how to raise teachers' incomes. Present were the President of the International Union of Muslim-Christian-Jewish Dialogue and Peace Education Ali El-Samman, Governor of the Rotary Zone 2450 Assem Abdel-Razek and Samih Sabour and society ladies Inas Hassanein, Hanan Mounib and Sonia Dabous. A spectacular celebration was held at Sofitel Gezira Hotel on the occasion of the ancient festival of the Nile, with the operetta Arous Al-Nil (The Nile Bride) performed by the folk dance troupe to celebrities and dignitaries such as the Minister of Social Solidarity Ali Meselhi, Egypt's Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa, the head of Al-Mehwar Satellite Channel Hassan Rateb, the head of the Egyptian and Arab Special Olympics Ismail Othman, actress Soheir El-Morshedi and her daughter actress Hanan Mutawei. photo: Ayman Barayez At the Ebdaa Gallery in Zamalek, the first art exhibition by the poet Ahmed El-Shahawi, deputy editor-in-chief of Nisf Al-Donia magazine, opened in the presence of Editor-in- Chief Afkar El-Kharadli together with the publisher Mohamed Rashad, the Emirati poetess Maysoun Saqr, media figures Gamal El-Sha'er, Zeinab Abdel-Razak and Al-Ahram Weekly 's very own Nevine El-Aref. (see Listings p.6) � The Catholic Centre, with Father Boutros Daniel at the helm, welcomed veteran comedian Hassan Hosni in a seminar to discuss his acting career. Father Boutros gave Hosni the centre's shield and honorary certificate. photos: Abdel-Hamid Eid The Catholic Centre, with Father Boutros Daniel at the helm, welcomed veteran comedian Hassan Hosni in a seminar to discuss his acting career. Father Boutros gave Hosni the centre's shield and honorary certificate. The Egyptian pop star Tamer Hosni was warmly received by a flock of fans holding posters and signs at Cairo Airport on his return from receiving the African Music Award. At the Copthorne Tara Hotel in Kensington, London, the American University in Cairo President David D Arnold and his wife Sherry Arnold held a reception and dinner to honour Nadhmi Auchi and his wife Ibtisam Auchi for establishing the Nadhmi Auchi Young Arab Leaders Fellowship Programme at the American University in Cairo. In addition to the businessmen and diplomats present, the 10 students representing the first class of Auchi fellows at AUC attended the event. The Second Arab University Games was hosted by the American University in Cairo (AUC), from 17 to 23 October, in the sports complex at the New Cairo Campus. The campus has been selected to host men's and women's basketball, track and field sports, judo, swimming and Tae Kwon Do events. Participating Arab countries included the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Syria, Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Bahrain, and Sudan. The second Arab University Games are held under the auspices of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and organised by the Egyptian Federation for University Sports and the Arab Federation for University Sports. photo: Nasr Attia The British University in Egypt (BUE) celebrated the graduation of the class of 2010. In the course of the evening the head of the board of trustees Farid Khamis announced that the BUE will be granting African students full scholarships in the context of reinforcing cooperation between Egypt and Nile Basin countries. Present were the British Ambassador to Egypt Dominic Asquith, the President of the BUE Ahmed Hamza, the NDP Secretary- General Safwat El-Sherif, the Minister of Energy and Electricity Hassan Younis, and the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Hani Hilal, who handed out the graduation awards.
