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In brief
Lovely days
The weather has been beautiful in Cairo over the past few days, with mild temperatures and a cool breeze, especially at night. Clear skies have provided a relief from the hot wind and dust storms of late last month, and a breath of fresh air in anticipation of the rapidly approaching summertime heat.
Diplomatic flurry
In the follow-up to President Hosni Mubarak's return from the US, Cairo has seen a flurry of diplomatic activity. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat met with President Hosni Mubarak on Sunday morning to discuss some of the results of the Egyptian president's meetings with US president George W Bush. Arafat also went to the Arab League on Sunday, to support a call for another attempt to get UN support for protection of the Palestinians in the Israeli occupied territories. Click
here for links to the latest developments.
Archaeology
Zahi Hawass tries to justify new Pyramid visitation rules
Ever since the last Eid-ul-Fitr, the three day holiday following Ramadan, an increasingly surreal debate has been taking place, one that touches on questions of modernity, nationalism and history, as well as a bevy of domestic, international, touristic, economic and cultural concerns.
The debate over who can and cannot visit the Pyramids, the last remaining wonder of the ancient world, and perhaps the most famous structures ever built by man, started when a plan that had been discussed quite frequently in the press and in archaeological circles actually took effect. A second entrance to the Giza Pyramids plateau was built on the Fayoum Road, to complement the original entrance at the end of Pyramids Road by the Mena House Hotel.
During public holidays, totalling eight days a year, Egyptians would only be allowed to visit the Pyramids from the new entrance on Fayoum Road, and only foreign tourists would be allowed to use the traditional Mena House entrance.
From the Fayoum entrance, however, visitors were only allowed to go so far, to a large picnic area with a clear view -- albeit from a long distance -- of the Pyramids.
The decision surprised many of the thousands of families who descend on the Pyramids during public holidays, when it has become a tradition to spend the day in the shade of the great monuments, and perhaps enjoy a picnic as well.
But in fact, that was precisely the logic behind the decision not to allow the deluge to continue.
According to the antiquities officials who voted on the plan, Egyptian visitors were desecrating the monuments and in general creating an eyesore.
The decision, however, was not taken lightly by Al-Wafd, which began spearheading a campaign to at least embarrass those who took the decision by featuring the story on its front page. In addition to the news coverage, outspoken writer Safinaz Kazem also contributed a back page opinion piece on the matter.
When the same thing happened during eid-ul-adha, more front page coverage appeared in Al-Wafd, and a smaller opinion piece by Kazem , albeit with the same vehemence, appeared in the venerable pages of Al-Ahram.
This week, in the lead up to next Monday's Sham El-Nessim holiday, Giza plateau director Zahi Hawass provides Al-Ahram readers with what he calls a clarification on the matter. In no uncertain terms, Hawass argues, are we preventing Egyptians from visiting the Pyramids. We are merely moving the visitors to a place where they can't be seen.
Not mincing words, Hawass says that the throngs of up to 250,000 Egyptians with their pots and pans, playing soccer and posing a threat not only to the monuments but also to themselves, do not blend in with the Giza Plateau environment. He emphasizes that this was a group decision, and that it had its real roots in a lack of a legitimate understanding on the part of Egyptians of the importance of heritage. He emphasizes that the rule also only applies on eight days out of the whole year, during public holidays.
Others have argued that the decision is precisely the kind of thing that turns people off of their heritage, since the most important thing, after all, is access. In any case, this certainly looks like a debate that's just beginning.
Music
Escaping Abdel-Halim's memory
A cartoon in a recent Al-Ahram revealed just how popular legendary singer Abdel-Halim Hafez might really be. A large picture of Abdel-Halim hangs on a wall. Meanwhile, a young man identified as a "youth pop singer" is desperately trying to get at the framed picture. He's being stopped by an older man as he screams, "Let me at him, let me kill him!!". The great singer may no longer be around, but judging from the media coverage on the 24th anniversary of his death (see Mags or our own coverage) his memory is as strong as ever, sometimes making it hard for any new singer to break out of the mold, or avoid comparison with the late, great Andaleeb.
Hisham Abbas's new fans
Pop star Hisham Abbas has just recently returned from an eight-city US tour where, the singer says, he discovered he is starting to build up a new fan base. Abbass has always been popular with Arabs abroad, but now it seems, after last summer's album featuring the single Nari Narein, with heavy Indian music influences and featuring a duet with a female Indian singer, as well as a video clip filmed in India, he has also attracted a significant number of Indians abroad to his concerts. Abbass -- who may soon get his first film lead -- made the announcement as his tour passed through Dubai, attributing his decision to do Nari Narain to a life-long infatuation with Indian films.
Movies
Editing gaffe nixes Sadat's chance at Cannes
Producers of the much-anticipated film Days of Sadat, starring Ahmed Zaki as the late President, were unable to produce a clean enough copy of the new film in time for entry into this year's Cannes Film Festival. The completed film was just a few days late for inclusion amongst the 1000 films bidding for attention at Cannes, or the 20 up for competition. Instead, the film will premier internationally at the Venice Film Festival in August, and locally in 30 screens in late June. It will also show at the Radio and Television Festival in July. Director Mohamed Khan had to re-edit certain parts of the film after discovering several editing mistakes. Other delays were a result of mistakes with the French and English subtitles on the film. Zaki is unconcerned about the lost chances at Cannes, saying he made the film specifically for Egyptian audiences, and not to win international prizes, although he also says the film aims to counter Western films that criticize the late president. In fact, Zaki tells Akhbar Al-Youm, he hopes Egyptian viewers don't come into the theater with pre-conceived opinions of the controversial Sadat. Watch the film, and then decide, Zaki is urging the public.
Look out for the summer comedy send-up
Karim Abdel-Aziz, star of Leih Khalitni Ahibak, is being groomed as the new heart throb of Egyptian cinema, even though his next role, he says, will feature him more as an action hero than a romantic one. He's keeping the project a surprise, but we do know that Leih Khalitni Ahibak director Sandra Nashat will also be directing this one.
Ahmed El-Sakka's next star turn is also in the works, but nearly complete, with 2 months of filming in South Africa over and only a week of filming in Cairo left. The Mohamed Amin (Film Thaqafi ) scripted film is set to be released in July.
Meanwhile, a picture of Mohamed Heneidy at work on his new film, Gaana al-bayan al-tali, has a Wafd writer in a huffy, inspiring him to do an extended tirade on all these rapidly-being-made-summer blockbuster-wannabes. The writer warns the stars that they are quickly breaking the bond of trust with their audiences by not letting their films simmer a little longer in the brew. Even Nadia El-Guindy and Ilham Shaheen are getting into the act, doing their first film together -- a remake of Tenesse Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire
Strange global news
Mozambique's 40 sterling humanity
Politicians in Mozambique -- considered one of the poorest of African nations -- collected some 40 sterling pounds to send as aid intended for 200 residents of Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. The politicians sent the donations -- a significant amount in the Mozambique, according to the tiny item on the front page of Al-Ahram -- in response to the growing crisis in the UK vis-a-vis foot-and-mouth disease. The article quotes a British parliamentarian as saying the amount may not have been significant, but that the contribution -- because of the unique circumstances -- is certainly the most important of the many contributions the kingdom has received.
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