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Kim Hye-kyung, wife of President Lee Jae-myung, and Intissar el-Sisi, wife of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, walk to the reception room at the presidential palace in Cairo on November 20. / Source: Yonhap News

Kim Hye-kyung, the wife of President Lee Jae-myung, engaged in a full schedule of cultural diplomacy on November 20 during her official visit to Egypt, sharing a luncheon and touring major heritage sites with Egypt’s first lady, Intissar el-Sisi.

According to Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Jeon Eun-soo, the two first ladies held a separate reception and luncheon at the Cairo presidential palace while the bilateral summit between the two leaders took place.

Kim introduced a variety of Korean dishes and expressed her wish to personally prepare K-halal food for Intissar in the future. Halal food refers to ingredients and preparation methods that follow Islamic guidelines.

Intissar first introduced Egyptian traditional dishes at the luncheon, to which Kim responded that global interest in Korean culture continues to grow, noting that “K-food is also receiving significant attention worldwide.”

In the afternoon, Kim spent more than an hour touring the recently opened Grand Egyptian Museum, guided personally by Intissar. Kim said she was deeply impressed by Egypt’s vast cultural heritage and its meticulous preservation efforts, adding that she hopes to pursue cooperation projects with Korea’s National Museum of Korea.

She conveyed her wish to welcome Intissar to Korea in the future, saying she would extend an official invitation to the National Museum of Korea as a gesture of appreciation.

Kim also presented the Egyptian first lady with ‘MUSE’ museum souvenirs themed on the Netflix animation K-Pop Demon Hunters, including a bag featuring the Irwolobongdo motif and a gat-shaped brooch

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Intissar responded warmly, saying Kim had “brightened the occasion” and that her visit held special meaning for the Egyptian people.

Following the museum visit, Kim toured the Pyramids and Sphinx and viewed works by artist Park Jong-gyu, who was invited to the Pyramid International Art Exhibition.