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issue Issue 10 st 1 2017 BUZZ A QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER ISSUED BY : CAIRO MARRIOTT HOTEL BUNNY UP IT’S EASTER TIME! ELIMINATING WORLD HUNGER GLOBAL DINNER FOR SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM WEDDING CEREMONIES FIT FOR ROYALTY TOUR N’ CURE WITH LIONEL MESSI A WORD FROM THE GENERAL MANAGER Welcome 2017! A celebration is in order! From New Year’s to Easter and a strong push in the fight against Hepatitis C, flip through beyond, excitement is in the air! This is also my first letter the pages to learn about his Tour n’ Cure campaign. as the newly appointed General Manager and I would like On the other hand, wedding season is near and we can to greet all of our readers and wish you a very fulfilling hear the bells ringing! Be sure to check out our wedding new year. article for venues overview and a surprise for newlyweds. In the tenth issue of buzz, we explore more of Zamalek’s For those of you who love the Red Sea as much as I rich history by uncovering stories about some of the do, read all about our luxury resorts for an incredible oldest buildings on the island. In Fashion, we learn about vacation. We can’t forget about all the mothers out there, the origins and evolution of the very popular jeans. And take mom out to lunch or dinner for some quality time on speaking of fashion, Cairo Fashion Nights 6th edition Mother’s day and get 50% off. was hosted at Cairo Marriott in a “Room Service” unique From all of us here at the Cairo Marriott, we wish you all a shopping experience. Another exciting experience was fantastic year and promise that we will always be at your the TEDx Cairo Women inspirational talk where Actress service. Amina Khalil shared her empowering story. Speaking of actors, for the first time the 89th Academy Awards was celebrated in style at Marriott’s Royal Suite, it was a truly Omar Tantawy fun experience! Finally, Messi’s visit to Egypt proved to be General Manager 3 CONTENT 6 Cairo Marriott’s Newly Appointed General Manager 10 Zamalek’s Iconic Landmarks and GLAMOROUS CELEBRITIES Omar Tantawy BUNNY UP 12 IT’S EASTER TIME! The Pearls of the Red Sea 14 Marriott’s Splendid Resorts © 2017, All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, 4 photocopying or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers. Designed and produced in Egypt by A.R. Group for Advertising & Publishing. 18 Mom Needs a Day Off… Messi Tour and 26 Cure event Ring the Bells Wedding 20 Cross Egypt Challenge Ceremonies Fit for Royalty Returns for Season Six 28 Room Service Cairo Fashion Nights 6th Edition 30 Eliminating World Hunger Cairo Marriott 31 Hosts Global Dinner for Sustainable Food System th 27 The 89 An Inspiring Partnership… Academy Awards Royal Screening 32 CAIRO MARRIOTT HOTEL & OMAR KHAYYAM CASINO 16 SARAY EL GEZIRA ST., PO BOX 33 ZAMALEK, CAIRO 11211, EGYPT. T: 00. 202.27.28.3000 CAIROMARRIOTTHOTEL.COM 5 ARABIC.MARRIOTT.COM HISTORY 6 It is not the beauty of a Zamalek’s Iconic building you should look Landmarks and at; its the construction of the Glamorous foundation that will stand the test Celebrities of time. David Allan Coe The Charming Tales of Zamalek The island of Zamalek is home to many historic buildings and stories. Ever since it came about to existence under the Khedive Ismail’s rule, the island became an attraction to the country’s elite and foreigners. In this article we take a look at the famed people and buildings of the “Jardins des Plantes”… The Gezirah Palace-Cairo Marriott Hotel The oldest and most renowned building in Zamalek is the palace which was built for Khedive Ismail in 1869. The inaugural party of the Suez Canal was hosted there to impress foreign heads of state and royalty, most specifically Empress Eugenie. Now the Cairo Marriott Hotel is housing the palace which has been meticulously preserved and restored. It boasts over a 1,000 rooms, making it one of the largest hotels in the Middle East. The hotel remains an attraction to worldwide visitors who get a taste of royalty and history during their stay. The 7 HISTORY Aisha Fahmy Palace The beautiful palace of Aisha Fahmy which is located on Mohamed Mazhar and overlooks the Nile, was designed by Italian architect, Antonio Lasciac in 1907 and was commissioned by Khedive Abbas Helmy. The palace covers over 2,700 square meters with 30 rooms, two large halls, a basement and a roof, all of which are richly decorated. Over the years, the palace displayed works by many remarkable international artists (including Picasso and Dali) and served as the museum for Mohamed Ali family’s jewellery. In recent years, the Ministry of Culture turned the building into the Pioneers Aisha Fahmy Palace of Modern Egyptian Art museum; the restored areas display modern paintings and sculptures within the valuable historic interiors. Greater Library of Cairo Another palace that captures everyone’s attention; the palace belonged to Princess Samiha, daughter of Sultan Hussein Kamel who was Khedive Ismail’s grandfather. She was known for her love of art, music and literature. After her passing, her will was to use the palace for cultural purposes. It was renovated and opened three years later, in 1995. The Library is located on 15th Mohamed Mazhar st., overlooking the Nile. Library of Cairo 8 Beautiful Embassies Zamalek has so many embassies that it could almost be considered as a collective piece of the world. The Indian Embassy on Mohammed Mazhar St. was designed in art-deco style and it is one of only 14 properties with direct access to the Nile. The Armenian Embassy looks like something out of a fairy tale; the cottage like building surrounded by palm trees instantly puts you under a spell. Maison Du Canada is also a standing beauty that The Indian embassy once hosted Queen Farida. Om Kalthoum statue Om Kalthoum The most famous of them all I would say is the Om Kalthoum building where she used to live –now a hotel- and her statue which is right next to it. The hotel is almost like a museum with her pictures on the wall, her music continuously playing and displays many of her belongings for the guests. The island is rich in history and to this day still provides us with captivating stories that have retained our interest for years. Somehow it managed to keep its status as an elite neighborhood and it is our duty to keep and maintain its beautiful air of historic opulence. 9 INTERVIEW CAIRO MARRIOTT’S NEWLY APPOINTED GENERAL MANAGER OMAR TANTAWY n this interview, we introduce Cairo Marriott’s new General Manager Omar Tantawy. He has been a part of the Marriott family for ten years; his impeccable desire for service and attention to detail helped him become, the first Egyptian I General Manager for this property. Below we discuss his professional history and his future plans for the Cairo Marriott Hotel… How did it all start for you? main focus is, of course, the Cairo Marriott Hotel. I started working at Sheraton El Gezira in 1988, In your opinion, what is the one thing that as a Room Clerk. The hotel had just opened so I differentiates Marriott from other hotel was there from the very start. I count them as the chains? formation years, I spent the first ten years of my life We sell an experience. One cannot be rigid and there. It helped build my character, develop business rules must be flexible to be able to accommodate ethics and added greatly to my experience. I left ten different desires, needs and requests for everyone. years later, as the Director of Sales for the corporate All in the framework of Marriott’s International segment. standards, ethics and commitment. After that, I started working at the Royal Meridien Do you ever compare Marriott to other hotels Nile Tower which was later converted to Grand you have worked at? Hyatt. By 2003 Intercontinental City Stars was Because of my professional experience, I find myself preparing to open for business so I started working often comparing different hotel companies which with them and I worked there for 5 years until 2008 I cannot really stop myself from doing. Every time after which I joined Marriott. Since then, I have been I do this comparison, Marriott always wins. The a Resident Manager for 9 years, taking the duties system, the managers, the ethics that we all abide of the General Manager whenever he is not on by is totally different. It gives you pride, a sense of property. After the Mena House acquisition, I was commitment and motivates you to be part of the appointed as the General Manager there and it was success of Marriott. definitely a challenge because it is a legacy hotel From your perspective, as an Egyptian, what and we have to maintain and improve it up to the do you think of the current state of tourism? Marriott standards while also protecting its heritage. I think that the hard days are about to fade not just Now, as the newly appointed General Manager for for tourism but also our economy, I think that we will 10 Cairo Marriott, I still oversee the Mena House but my get out of the bottle neck hopefully by next year. The government has taken bold steps Eventually, with a lot of hard work, and drastic measures to be able to we were able to steer the wheel recover.