Tuesday, 18 March 2014

3rd Luxor African Film Festival

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3rd Luxor African Film Festival opens in the arms of the Pharaohs March 18, 2014 The Management of LAFF decided that the ceremony of the third edition begins early Tuesday across the Nile River with Golden Boats taking the festival’s guests from their hotels to Luxor Temple. This will be accompanied by folk music bands and flags of the participating countries flying with Helium balloons in Luxor skies.

Sayed Fouad LAFF President said that a theatre has been built inside Luxor Temple that will host the opening ceremony, with a performance by Nile Ballet of the Cairo Opera House, Music by Omar Khairat and directed by Abdel-Moneim Kamel , and with the supervision of Dr. Inas Abdel Dayem. The ceremony is TV directed by Omar Zahran .

Fouad added that after the Ballet, a tribute will be given to Egyptian star Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, American star Danny Glover, and Bissau-director Flora Gomes before the showing of The Children’s Republic, directed by Gomes and Starring Glover.

 

Monday, 17 March 2014

Mer Rouge : Plonger et découvrir les secrets d’une beauté sans pareille

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La plongée tient en Egypte une place prépondérante avec la mer Rouge qui offre ses couleurs et sa richesse en faune et flore. Aujourd'hui, la mer Rouge est devenue l'une des destinations de plongée les plus prisées au monde. Les conditions d'exploration sont idéales : température de l’eau entre 21 et 30° C, limpidité remarquable, accès direct à certains récifs depuis les plages (sans bateau !) et profondeurs accessibles aux débutants comme aux confirmés. Les plongeurs peuvent y tremper leurs palmes toute l’année. Préférez cependant la période d’avril à juin et de mi-septembre à mi-novembre pour le climat agréable et les vents assez calmes. Découverte…
En Egypte, la plongée sous-marine - limitée à 30-40 m de fond selon les règles déontologiques en vigueur - se concentre autour des stations balnéaires implantées au bord de la mer Rouge, sur la côte africaine (Hurghada, Safaga, Quseir, Marsa Alam) et sur celles du Sinaï (Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba). Débutants et confirmés évoluent facilement dans une féerie corallienne aux couleurs vives, où batifolent des milliers de poissons tropicaux.
Meilleurs endroits de plongée
Séjour plongée Dahab : A 100 km au nord de Sharm el Sheikh, entre le désert et la mer, Dahab est une ville tranquille où vous découvrirez les joies de la plongée du bord.
Séjour plongée El Gouna : A 20 km au nord d'Hurghada, El Gouna a été créée à partir d'un réseau de lagunes et canaux parmi lesquels les hôtels sont disséminés. On y trouve aussi de longues plages de sable fin, terrains de golf, restaurants et boutiques.
Séjour plongée El Nabaa : A 250 km au sud d'Hurghada et à 30 km de Marsa Alam, El Nabaa possède une immense baie et une plage de sable considérée comme l’une des plus belles de la région.
Séjour plongée Marsa Alam : A 300 km au sud d'Hurghada, Marsa Alam offre des sites de plongées de très grande renommée comme Elphinston. C’est un lieu de plongée idéal pour ceux qui cherchent le calme. L'écolodge de Marsa Shagra se trouve à 20 km au nord de Marsa Alam et se compose de tentes, huttes et chalets. L'écolodge de Wadi Lahami se situe à 120 km au sud de Marsa Alam.
Séjour plongée Qoseir : A mi chemin entre Hurghada et Marsa Alam, Quseir est un lieu idéal pour les familles de par ses belles plages.
Séjour plongée Safaga : A 60 km au sud de Hurghada, pour ceux qui veulent plonger dans des lieux plus tranquilles.
Séjour plongée Hurghada : Sûrement le lieu le plus connu par les plongeurs du monde entier mais c’est aussi un lieu très fréquenté. Une destination idéale pour les débutants.
Séjour plongée Sharm El Sheik : Situé presque à la pointe du Sinaï, Sharm-El-Sheikh est devenu un haut lieu de la plongée sous-marine. Il se trouve au cœur d'un vaste parc national sous-marin mais vous pouvez également faire une excursion au Monastère Sainte Catherine. Pour les non plongeurs, à 7 km au nord de Sharm El Sheikh se trouve Naama Bay, un lieu idéal pour associer plongée, activité et repos.
Les clubs de plongée
Tous les clubs sont affiliés à un ou plusieurs organismes internationaux. Les deux plus importants sont la CMAS, Confédération mondiale des activités subaquatiques (d'origine française), et PADI, Professional Association of Diving Instructors (d'origine américaine). Dans les régions influencées», la majorité des clubs plongent à l'américaine, tendant à une certaine standardisation : la durée et la profondeur des plongées sont très calibrées.
Un bon centre de plongée est un centre qui respecte toutes les règles de sécurité sans négliger le plaisir.
Les clubs que nous recommandons sont presque toujours francophones et viennent chercher les clients à leur hôtel. La plupart proposent des sorties en mer à la journée, comprenant deux plongées, l'équipement et le repas.
Selon la géographie, certains clubs acheminent aussi leurs plongeurs en jeep ou à dos de chameau jusqu'aux spots, généralement accessibles - en comité restreint - depuis la côte.
Enfin, des croisières plongées de 1 à 2 semaines, au nord ou au sud de la mer Rouge, sont organisées pour les seuls plongeurs confirmés... Prix de la journée plongée : autour de 60-70 Euro tout compris (certains clubs sont plus chers).
Comment choisir un centre
de plongée ?
A vous de voir si vous préférez un club genre «usine bien huilée» ou une petite structure souple. Le mieux est de traîner au retour des plongées et de demander l'avis des plongeurs. Méfiez-vous d'un club qui vous embarque sans aucune question préalable sur votre niveau de plongée, vos antécédents et votre situation médicale ; il n'est pas «sympa» mais dangereux. Regardez si le centre est apparemment bien entretenu, si le matériel de sécurité (oxygène, trousse de secours, radio, etc.) est présent, si le bateau est équipé d'une protection contre le soleil, si vous n'avez pas trop à transporter l'équipement (encore que le portage de bouteilles est là aussi une question de culture : dans l'école française, on porte davantage soi-même ses bouteilles, tandis qu'à l'américaine on vous les portera), s'il n'y a pas trop de plongeurs par palanquée (six maximum). Ensuite, jouissez d’une plongée sans pareille en mer rouge…

Cairo Jazz Festival wows audience

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Al-Azhar Park was filled with music lovers on Friday night who were treated to an eclectic evening of great music. French saxophone player Sylvain Beuf and piano trio Daerr-Bica-Stick performed beautiful Jazz that more than made up for the long walks between the two stages.

As the evening progressed and the temperature dropped, audiences forgot about the chill when UK act Soweto Kinch, featuring Arabian Knights and Arab League All Stars, took to the stage. Their electric performance and amazing energy resulted in an enthusiastic audience participation which inspired a freestyle rap.

Properly warmed up anticipation was high for the closing concert by Moroccan singer Oum and her unbelievable smooth voice did not disappoint and made for a wonderful finale to an evening of great music.

The venues in Al-Azhar Park, surrounded by the sights and sounds of Cairo and against the backdrop of the Citadel, provided a spectacular setting for the concerts. On Friday the music during one of the performances was punctuated by fireworks set off at a nearby wedding, creating a true festival atmosphere that has been missing from Cairo for quite some time.

Al-Azhar Park was filled with music lovers on Friday night who were treated to an eclectic evening of great music. French saxophone player Sylvain Beuf and piano trio Daerr-Bica-Stick performed beautiful Jazz that more than made up for the long walks between the two stages.
As the evening progressed and the temperature dropped, audiences forgot about the chill when UK act Soweto Kinch, featuring Arabian Knights and Arab League All Stars, took to the stage. Their electric performance and amazing energy resulted in an enthusiastic audience participation which inspired a freestyle rap.
Properly warmed up anticipation was high for the closing concert by Moroccan singer Oum and her unbelievable smooth voice did not disappoint and made for a wonderful finale to an evening of great music.
The venues in Al-Azhar Park, surrounded by the sights and sounds of Cairo and against the backdrop of the Citadel, provided a spectacular setting for the concerts. On Friday the music during one of the performances was punctuated by fireworks set off at a nearby wedding, creating a true festival atmosphere that has been missing from Cairo for quite some time.
The festival ends tonight with a concert by Omar Khariat starting at 8pm.
- See more at: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/03/16/cairo-jazz-festival-wows-audience/#sthash.MctKf4ra.dpuf

Tourism minister expects 3m Russian tourists by end of 2014

all rights preserved to www.egyptraveluxe.co.uk
Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou expects the number of Russian tourists visiting Egypt to reach 3 million by the end of 2014, he said during a tourism conference held in Moscow on Monday.
Around 2.4 million Russian tourists visited Egypt in 2013 and spent 23.7m tourist nights, taking the lead in the list of nationalities visiting Egypt.
On Sunday, a number of private Egyptian airlines, including Almasria Universal and Nesma, announced their intentions to launch new routes to and from Europe in order to boost the flow of tourists to the country.
Last week, Zaazou signed an agreement with a number of Indian travel companies to encourage a target of 1 million tourists to Egypt by the end of 2017. EgyptAir, in cooperation with the Egyptian-Indian Friendship Association, would facilitate the flights from New Delhi and Mumbai to Cairo starting in May, a ministerial statement noted.
On Monday, the Egyptian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Jordan Khaled Tharwat participated in a press conference, held at the Egyptian General Authority for Tourism in Oman, to discuss approaches to activate ecotourism between the two countries.
During the conference, Jordanian tourism companies agreed to visit Egypt with the aim of promoting joint tourism between the two companies.
On the same day, the Egyptian ambassador to Jordan held an exhibition for Egyptian handicrafts at his house, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment. The exhibition comes within the framework of the Egyptian embassy’s efforts to support Egypt’s economy and promote the country’s products.
The exhibition aims to open a new market for the Egyptian products, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. The event was attended by a number of “prestigious personalities in Jordan along with members of the diplomatic corps”.
On 15 March, the Ambassador also inaugurated the annual exhibition for Egyptian products in Jordon at the Four Seasons Hotel. A large group of textile, wood, silver and carpet producers and designers participated in the two-day event.
In December, then Minister of Foreign trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced plans to establish a Handicrafts Export Council in order to increase exports and strengthen competitiveness in the international market.
“Handicrafts are considered one of [the economy’s] ‘vital industry sectors,” said Abdel Nour. “The sector’s major importance comes as it is a heavily labour-intensive and a major employer, it also does not require large funds to operate.”
- See more at: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/03/17/tourism-minister-expects-3m-russian-tourists-end-2014/#sthash.Zz0Q3z4N.dpuf
The minister of tourism Hisham Zaazou’ (PHOTO / AFP)

During the conference, Jordanian tourism companies agreed to visit Egypt with the aim of promoting joint tourism between the two companies.
On the same day, the Egyptian ambassador to Jordan held an exhibition for Egyptian handicrafts at his house, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment. The exhibition comes within the framework of the Egyptian embassy’s efforts to support Egypt’s economy and promote the country’s products.
The exhibition aims to open a new market for the Egyptian products, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. The event was attended by a number of “prestigious personalities in Jordan along with members of the diplomatic corps”.
On 15 March, the Ambassador also inaugurated the annual exhibition for Egyptian products in Jordon at the Four Seasons Hotel. A large group of textile, wood, silver and carpet producers and designers participated in the two-day event.
In December, then Minister of Foreign trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced plans to establish a Handicrafts Export Council in order to increase exports and strengthen competitiveness in the international market.
“Handicrafts are considered one of [the economy’s] ‘vital industry sectors,” said Abdel Nour. “The sector’s major importance comes as it is a heavily labor-intensive and a major employer, it also does not require large funds to operate.”

Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou expects the number of Russian tourists visiting Egypt to reach 3 million by the end of 2014, he said during a tourism conference held in Moscow on Monday.
Around 2.4 million Russian tourists visited Egypt in 2013 and spent 23.7m tourist nights, taking the lead in the list of nationalities visiting Egypt.
On Sunday, a number of private Egyptian airlines, including Almasria Universal and Nesma, announced their intentions to launch new routes to and from Europe in order to boost the flow of tourists to the country.
Last week, Zaazou signed an agreement with a number of Indian travel companies to encourage a target of 1 million tourists to Egypt by the end of 2017. EgyptAir, in cooperation with the Egyptian-Indian Friendship Association, would facilitate the flights from New Delhi and Mumbai to Cairo starting in May, a ministerial statement noted.
On Monday, the Egyptian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Jordan Khaled Tharwat participated in a press conference, held at the Egyptian General Authority for Tourism in Oman, to discuss approaches to activate ecotourism between the two countries.
During the conference, Jordanian tourism companies agreed to visit Egypt with the aim of promoting joint tourism between the two companies.
On the same day, the Egyptian ambassador to Jordan held an exhibition for Egyptian handicrafts at his house, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment. The exhibition comes within the framework of the Egyptian embassy’s efforts to support Egypt’s economy and promote the country’s products.
The exhibition aims to open a new market for the Egyptian products, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. The event was attended by a number of “prestigious personalities in Jordan along with members of the diplomatic corps”.
On 15 March, the Ambassador also inaugurated the annual exhibition for Egyptian products in Jordon at the Four Seasons Hotel. A large group of textile, wood, silver and carpet producers and designers participated in the two-day event.
In December, then Minister of Foreign trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced plans to establish a Handicrafts Export Council in order to increase exports and strengthen competitiveness in the international market.
“Handicrafts are considered one of [the economy’s] ‘vital industry sectors,” said Abdel Nour. “The sector’s major importance comes as it is a heavily labour-intensive and a major employer, it also does not require large funds to operate.”
- See more at: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/03/17/tourism-minister-expects-3m-russian-tourists-end-2014/#sthash.Zz0Q3z4N.dpuf
Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou expects the number of Russian tourists visiting Egypt to reach 3 million by the end of 2014, he said during a tourism conference held in Moscow on Monday.
Around 2.4 million Russian tourists visited Egypt in 2013 and spent 23.7m tourist nights, taking the lead in the list of nationalities visiting Egypt.
On Sunday, a number of private Egyptian airlines, including Almasria Universal and Nesma, announced their intentions to launch new routes to and from Europe in order to boost the flow of tourists to the country.
Last week, Zaazou signed an agreement with a number of Indian travel companies to encourage a target of 1 million tourists to Egypt by the end of 2017. EgyptAir, in cooperation with the Egyptian-Indian Friendship Association, would facilitate the flights from New Delhi and Mumbai to Cairo starting in May, a ministerial statement noted.
On Monday, the Egyptian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Jordan Khaled Tharwat participated in a press conference, held at the Egyptian General Authority for Tourism in Oman, to discuss approaches to activate ecotourism between the two countries.
During the conference, Jordanian tourism companies agreed to visit Egypt with the aim of promoting joint tourism between the two companies.
On the same day, the Egyptian ambassador to Jordan held an exhibition for Egyptian handicrafts at his house, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment. The exhibition comes within the framework of the Egyptian embassy’s efforts to support Egypt’s economy and promote the country’s products.
The exhibition aims to open a new market for the Egyptian products, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. The event was attended by a number of “prestigious personalities in Jordan along with members of the diplomatic corps”.
On 15 March, the Ambassador also inaugurated the annual exhibition for Egyptian products in Jordon at the Four Seasons Hotel. A large group of textile, wood, silver and carpet producers and designers participated in the two-day event.
In December, then Minister of Foreign trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced plans to establish a Handicrafts Export Council in order to increase exports and strengthen competitiveness in the international market.
“Handicrafts are considered one of [the economy’s] ‘vital industry sectors,” said Abdel Nour. “The sector’s major importance comes as it is a heavily labour-intensive and a major employer, it also does not require large funds to operate.”
- See more at: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/03/17/tourism-minister-expects-3m-russian-tourists-end-2014/#sthash.Zz0Q3z4N.dpuf
Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou expects the number of Russian tourists visiting Egypt to reach 3 million by the end of 2014, he said during a tourism conference held in Moscow on Monday.
Around 2.4 million Russian tourists visited Egypt in 2013 and spent 23.7m tourist nights, taking the lead in the list of nationalities visiting Egypt.
On Sunday, a number of private Egyptian airlines, including Almasria Universal and Nesma, announced their intentions to launch new routes to and from Europe in order to boost the flow of tourists to the country.
Last week, Zaazou signed an agreement with a number of Indian travel companies to encourage a target of 1 million tourists to Egypt by the end of 2017. EgyptAir, in cooperation with the Egyptian-Indian Friendship Association, would facilitate the flights from New Delhi and Mumbai to Cairo starting in May, a ministerial statement noted.
On Monday, the Egyptian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Jordan Khaled Tharwat participated in a press conference, held at the Egyptian General Authority for Tourism in Oman, to discuss approaches to activate ecotourism between the two countries.
During the conference, Jordanian tourism companies agreed to visit Egypt with the aim of promoting joint tourism between the two companies.
On the same day, the Egyptian ambassador to Jordan held an exhibition for Egyptian handicrafts at his house, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Industry and Investment. The exhibition comes within the framework of the Egyptian embassy’s efforts to support Egypt’s economy and promote the country’s products.
The exhibition aims to open a new market for the Egyptian products, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in an official statement. The event was attended by a number of “prestigious personalities in Jordan along with members of the diplomatic corps”.
On 15 March, the Ambassador also inaugurated the annual exhibition for Egyptian products in Jordon at the Four Seasons Hotel. A large group of textile, wood, silver and carpet producers and designers participated in the two-day event.
In December, then Minister of Foreign trade and Industry Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour announced plans to establish a Handicrafts Export Council in order to increase exports and strengthen competitiveness in the international market.
“Handicrafts are considered one of [the economy’s] ‘vital industry sectors,” said Abdel Nour. “The sector’s major importance comes as it is a heavily labour-intensive and a major employer, it also does not require large funds to operate.”
- See more at: http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/03/17/tourism-minister-expects-3m-russian-tourists-end-2014/#sthash.Zz0Q3z4N.dpuf

Stolen Egyptian artefacts recovered from the US

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Egypt is to receive back eight ancient Egyptian artifacts that were stolen and smuggled to New York and seized by Homeland Security officials .

Today, upon his arrival from the United States, Minister of Antiquities Mohamed Ibrahim announced that US authorities agreed to return eight ancient Egyptian artefacts stolen and illegally smuggled out of the country.
The objects are to arrive next month.
The pieces include the upper part of a painted anthropoid wooden sarcophagus from the Third Intermediate period depicting a face of a woman wearing a wig decorated with coloured flowers.
Two linen mummy wrappings covered with plaster and bearing paintings showing winged amulets pushing the sun disc are also among the artifacts.

Hieroglyphic text showing the name and titles of the deceased are also found on the plaster cover.
The third piece is a cartonage painted mummy mask from the Third Intermediate period while the fourth and fifth items are Middle Kingdom wooden boats.
The other three items are limestone statues from the Third Intermediate period and the Late Ancient Egyptian period.
Ibrahim told Ahram Online that the artefacts were seized by US Homeland Security officials at Customs in New York City after the person travelling with the pieces was not able to prove legal possession.
He added that because the artifacts belong to different ancient Egyptian periods, they would have been stolen in the aftermath of the 2011 revolution, when a lack of security overwhelmed the country leaving its heritage vulnerable to theft.

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Un enfant égyptien, plus jeune plongeur du monde

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 L’équipe de plongée de l’Université Américaine au Caire (AUC) a tenu une cérémonie, vendredi soir, au siège de l’AUC à Tahrir, pour célébrer le certificat international de plongée que l’enfant Ahmad Alaa vient de recevoir. Le petit de dix ans a achevé les entraînements nécessaires pour devenir plongeur. Il est dorénavant titulaire d’un certificat international de plongée.
Ahmad Alaa est le plus jeune plongeur du monde (dix ans étant l’âge minimum pour recevoir un tel certificat). Ayant obtenu ce certificat constitue une réalisation égyptienne et arabe sans précédent.
Par Ingi Amr