Characters of Egypt Festival

Tombs and temples attest to Egypt’s storied past, but the dozens of tribes still traversing its sands are living monuments to the country’s cultural heritage – yet few know much about them.

There are an estimated 300,000 tribesmen inhabiting Egypt, with some of them living in the same way their ancestors did thousands of years ago.

At the end of October, the second annual Characters of Egypt Festival will host some 160 tribesmen from around the country for a weekend that showcases their various cultures in a desert national park near Marsa Allam. The event is organized by the Wadi Environmental Science Centre (WESC) and the Egyptian Desert Pioneers Society (EDPS).

The weekend festival includes exhibits on traditional handcrafts, costumes and herbal medicines, as well as on the music and dance of the tribes. The event is an opportunity for both foreigners and Egyptians to learn about groups of people that are often overlooked but are a part of Egypt’s past and present.

Characters of Egypt will be held from October 29-31 in Wadi el-Gemal National Park. More information is available at http://www.charactersofegypt.com.

Almasry Alyoum

Bedouin Valley Ecolodge

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2. Festival of British Archaeology 2009
3. Ancient Egyptian Epagomenal Festival
4. Five-day festival spotlights international films on eve of 60th anniversary of Egypt's Universal Declaration of Human Rights
5. Cairo international Film Festival kicks off

Tags: Africa, Characters of Egypt, characters of egypt festival, Cultural heritage, Culture, Dance

This entry was posted on Monday, October 5th, 2009 at 5:40 am and is filed under Culture, Tourism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.