And Shawkan makes press history in Egypt for real

Earlier Monday, the UNESCO announced it awarded detained Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid aka Shawkan its UNESCO /Guillermo Cano Press Freedom prize for 2018.
“The choice of Mahmoud Abu Zeid pays tribute to his courage, resistance and commitment to freedom of expression,” said Filipino veteran journalist and head jury of the prize Maria Ressa.

Shawkan in court behind bars "AFP"

Shawkan has been detained for four years since his arrest during Rabaa sit-in while doing his job as a freelance journalist working for Demotix agency.
He was accompanied by two foreign journalists who were arrested as well by security forces. Those two foreign journalists were released and left the country leaving Shawkan behind facing hell because he does not have a foreign passport.
Shawkan has been behind bars for two years without any charges till he was charged officially with six charges in March 2016.
He is facing the death penalty for a number of charges above them the incitement to murder

This is the first time an Egyptian journalist or photojournalist wins this important award. He is third Arab to win it after May Chidiac of Lebanon "2006" and Mazen Darwich of Syria "2015"

Earlier Sunday, Egyptian foreign ministry’s official spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid issued a statement saying that the ministry expressed its regret on how the UNESCO nominated “an accused charged with murder and vandalism”.

And Mo Salah Makes football history for real

Egypt National team and Liverpool footballer Mohamed Salah aka Mo Salah has just made a true football history for real. He has just won England’s Professional Footballers’ Association “PFA” player for the year 2018.
He is the first Egyptian football player ever to win that important title.

Mo Salah with the trophy

He is also the second Arab and African football player to win that important title after Riyad Mehrez of Algeria in 2015/2017 Premier League.
Needless to say, millions of Egyptians included myself were glued and watched that boring PFA 2018 gala “with all my respect to them” only for Salah and that moment.
Salah has become the first Egyptian footballer to achieve that title again; an important and fact that can’t be ignored especially when you see his numbers with Liverpool FC.
Since joining the Reds of Liverpool, Salah scored 40 goals in 46 matches in addition to 11 assists that ended in goals.
Here are his first 30 goals with Liverpool.

How Egypt’s Media Council did not spare the Spring’s song from its censorship

For the first time since starting to blog here, I did not publish the official anthem of Spring or Sham Nassim in Egypt this year.
Busy between work and home, I tried at the same time to take some rest.
I feel sad that I did not publish my Spring Flowers Fair post on time then as I hoped so along with “الدنيا ربيع” or “The world is springy” as a tradition of Egyptian Chronicles in Spring.

Anyhow it is never too late to publish or speak about Soad Hosni’s unofficial Spring anthem because after all, it was the talk of the Egyptian society this Sham Nassim for the wrong reason.

After 43 years of appearing in Soad Hosni’s “Amira, my love”, the cheerful song about the beginning lost one of its scenes to the censorship because Egypt’s Supreme Council for Media Regulations ”SCM” saw that scene is inappropriate for audience !!!!!

Here is the song

The scene that was censored is in “2:13” minute.

The inappropriate scene !!!

I can not believe it for real.
Some are saying that SCM decided to remove that scene because there was some sort of meme with sexual innuendo.

Kodak Agfa Presents : Spring Flowers Fair 2018 “Elections , Selfies and flowers”

And I am avoiding all that useless debate about Syria currently because I am too angry of that hypocrisy in this world so I will stick to photography and spring.
It is that time of the year where Kodak Agfa studio proudly presents Egypt’s Spring Flowers Fair 2018
I went to my favorite Spring Flowers Fair 2018 to enjoy a good spring weather with a breeze of beautiful flowers’ smell. I went

A beautiful pink rose at the Spring Flowers Fair 2018

at the beginning of the Fair which was inaugurated on the 10th March.
Elections campaigning and flowery arcs at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018
I used to go on working days in the past but this year I went on Saturday during the weekend for most Egyptians in Cairo.

Initially, I did not intend to go to the fair on that day. I planned to visit Aisha Fahmy palace in Zamalek to see the Special Fabric exhibit that will end this month. There, I was told by security that I could not use my professional camera inside except after taking a permit from the ministry of culture’s department of something. I can only use my mobile phone camera.
Determinant to use my professional camera on that day, I headed to Orman botanical to spend a couple of hours at the Spring Flowers Fair 2018.

Beautiful purple daisies at the fair 

The ministry of agriculture understood that it can get extra revenue with extra fees and I can’t blame them.
The Spring Flowers Fair 2018 was fully packed that Saturday afternoon to the level that you could not park your car inside Orman botanical part because the parking area inside it was full.

Visitors visiting the fair 

Families from all social backgrounds, university students, Egyptians and foreigners were all there whether to buy nice plants and flowers or enjoy a good spring view or for the sake of selfies.

A family visiting the fair 

Beside the huge crowd, the fair echoed the March of Presidential elections.
There were banners hanged calling the people to vote in the Presidential elections.

Seen in Giza : Egypt's Renaissance statue

Seen in Giza: Egypt’s Renaissance statue stands high in the square named after it in Giza. The statue was made by sculptor Mahmoud Mokhtar in 1928.
This is the most famous statue in Modern Egypt.
The father of modern sculpture in Egypt, Mahmoud Mokhtar wanted to symbolize Egypt after its independence from the UK in 1922. The Sphinx representing the past and besides a young Egyptian peasant lifting up her veil.
The statue was originally placed at Ramsis square but it was moved later to be beside Cairo University and Giza Zoo. 

Seen in Cairo : Tahrir's Cleopatra hotel renovated

Seen in Cairo: Cleopatra Hotel in Cairo’s Tahrir square which is under current renovation according to what I have read today.
Surprisingly and contrary to what I thought, Cleopatra hotel is not closed and is actually operating.It has got a page in booking.com.
Inaugurated in 1962, it has got 82 rooms according to its profile in its mother company EGOTH.
The State-owned tourism company is leasing the hotel to an Egyptian-Saudi company called "Arkan" to operate it.