Tag Archives | Beirut

Beirut Digital Distrcit Has a New Little Free Library

By Rami on October 27, 2016 in Culture, Social

I went to Beirut Digital District yesterday and was surprised to find that a new Little Free Library popped up there!

In case you’re not familiar to this initiative, Little Free Library is a worldwide movement that promotes reading by encouraging people to take any of the available books inside that box in exchange of leaving another one. I have earlier spotted a similar library in Horsh Tabet public garden and wrote about it here.

Those who work there are definitely lucky for being to able to exchange old books with new interesting reads for free. Hoping to see more of these libraries in public places!

Hala Wardé Selected to Design Beirut Museum of Art

By Rami on October 13, 2016 in Art

Following an architectural design competition that was launched last year to build the new Beirut Museum of Modern Art, 13 designers were chosen by the jury to compete in a series of rounds and I just read on The Guardian that the Paris-based architect Hala Wardé was selected to design the new museum.

Wardé’s design comprises a 124 meters tower divided into a dozen 12 meter cubes that will house a library, several galleries, exhibition spaces, artists in residence and classes. The museum is set to open in 2020 and will be located on piece of land owned by the Saint-Joseph University opposite to National Museum in Mthaf.

The area there between Mathaf and Ras El-Nabeh is one of my favorite parts in town and the new modern art museum will definitely make it more glamorous!

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Photos are all via The Guardian

Banque Libano-Française is Getting a Cool New Headquarters in Saifi

By Rami on October 5, 2016 in Design

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Earlier this year Banque Libano-Française launched a competition to build their new headquarters in Saifi and at the end of the selection process it was announced that Norwegian-American studio Snohetta won with their “Magic Box” design.

The design looks cool and I thought it is worth sharing since the new building will be a landmark in the area. The chequerboard-pattern facades look nice, but what stand out are definitely the plant-covered terraces carved into the roof and walls of the building.

Regarding the exact location of the project, the competition page shows it will be built on a piece of land opposite to the Lebanese Emigrant statue.

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Photos via Design Boom

Steve Wozniak is Coming to Beirut

By Rami on August 25, 2016 in Events, Technology

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Yesterday I got an e-mail from the organizers of Banque du Liban Accelerate announcing that Steve Wozniak will be among the speakers in their 3rd annual international conference in November.

For those who know little about him, Steve Wozniak (or Woz) was one of the co-founders of Apple along with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne in 1976. He single-handedly developed the Apple I computer in the same year and then designed the Apple II in 1977 which became one of the first highly successful mass-produced personal computer, that’s why he’s considered a pioneer of the PC revolution in the 70s and 80s.

I know there are a dozens of YouTube videos featuring talks by Wozniak, but watching him live will definitely be an enriching experience for tech entrepreneurs.

BDL Accelerate is an innovation and startup conference that will take place at Forum de Beyrouth on November 3, 4, and 5, and attendees will be allowed admission for free. In addition to Wozniak, the organizers have so far announced 3 other speakers among which is Mike Butcher from TechCrunch.

For more information you can check BDLAccelerate.com.

We Need a Cheaper Version of Souk El Akel

By Rami on July 15, 2016 in Food, Opinions

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Even though Souk El Akel has been up for well more than a year now, I have only managed to go check it out a while ago in Beirut Downtown. And just like almost everybody else, I enjoyed the different flavors each stand was offering and loved how appetizing the food looked on display. The general ambiance also felt pretty nice with joyful people all around.

Raclette Burger in the making

Still, I was surprised with a couple of things, first being the unreasonable prices that are definitely not suitable for street food, and second the fact that no one seems to be bothered about it.

$5.6 Pizza slices

I have the utmost respect for Anthony (the founder of Souk El Akel) and everybody in his team for the effort they’re putting to let people enjoy clean and appetizing street food in a cool ambiance, but if that comes at a high cost like a $10 burger or $3.3 popsicle, then you can no longer call it street food, and for such prices I’d rather be at some restaurant enjoying a seated meal. I’m totally aware though that some items include premium ingredients like salmon and Angus beef, but then again, when I want to go have a street burger or a sandwich, it doesn’t really have to be made of premium stuff, just make me something tasty!

$8 Waffles anyone?

I don’t claim to have toured the world, but I have tried street food in several places like the US, Thailand, Turkey, Singapore, and Malaysia, and the prices were always dirt cheap for some of the best flavors I’ve tasted! So I really don’t understand how people here feel indifferent about $10 quick bites and dessert. It’s either everybody is suddenly better off, or I’m simply a cheap guy (I doubt the latter though :P).

I tried these ice cream rolls in Kuala Lumpur last October for no more than $2. Now available as Frooza at the Souk for $8.

All in all, paying $30 for some appetizer, a sandwich, and a dessert is just too much in my opinion for a street food market. For all I know, the organizers and the vendors are free to set whatever price they want and people will probably keep coming because it’s a new and cool concept to Lebanon, but making room for cheaper bites certainly make Souk El Akel earn its name.

$9 Chicken and pork sandwiches

New Parking Tariffs in Beirut

By Rami on July 2, 2016 in Governmental, Law

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Due to the disproportionate tariffs set by parking owners across Beirut, governor Ziad Chebib and the municipality recently issued a new decree setting the maximum fees you should pay for private parkings around the city after dividing it into 4 regions as shown above, and the new tariffs are as follows:

First region (Blue):

from 0 to 3 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
5,000 L.L.
8 to 10 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
7,000 L.L.

Second region (Green):

from 0 to 4 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
6,000 L.L.

Third region (Yellow):

from 0 to 3 hours:
2,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
3,500 L.L.
from 8 to 10 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
5,000 L.L.

Fourth region (Red):

from 0 to 4 hours:
2,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
4,000 L.L.

As for covered parking spaces, the following tariffs apply:

First region (Blue):

from 0 to 3 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 8 to 10 hours
7,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
8,000 L.L.

Second region (Green):

from 0 to 4 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
7,000 L.L.

Third region (Yellow):

from 0 to 3 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
3,500 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
4,000 L.L.
8 to 10 hours:
4,500 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
5,500 L.L.

Fourth region (Red):

from 0 to 4 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours
4,500 L.L.

Note that the time is rounded up to the nearest hour after 10 minutes.

I’m not really sure how serious will the municipality be about obliging parking owners to abide by the set tariffs, but the chart will at least help you know whether you’re being ripped off or not!

Generator Provider in Chiyah Offers Free Electricity During Ramadan

By Rami on June 2, 2016 in Random

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While the owners of private generators are generally hated in Lebanon for forming cartels and making illogical profits sometimes from the government’s failure, you can’t but respect Ishtirak Al Nour’s gesture to provide free 5 Amperes electricity during the month of Ramadan for the people in Chiyah. He also has no problem if someone wants to subscribe for free during this month only.

Many poor families cannot afford paying for a generator subscription and will definitely appreciate being able to keep a fan turned on during the day to make Ramadan a bit easier for them.

Hat tip to you sir, whoever you are!

LC Waikiki is Finally Opening in Lebanon!

By Rami on May 31, 2016 in Fashion

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Almost all those who have traveled to Turkey are probably familiar with the famous clothing store there called LC Waikiki.

I’ve been twice to Istanbul with my wife over the last couple of years and each time we went to LC Waikiki we ended up buying more than a dozen items each, we even got enough stuff for our little boy that had him covered for a whole year. The brand delivers products that are of seriously good quality at very affordable prices.

A friend sent me these two photos from City Mall Dora yesterday showing LC Waikiki are set to open their first branch in Lebanon. And while it’s definitely a great news, I really hope they expand into other places because City Mall is my least favorite shopping destination.

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Thank you Chady

Cool 350Z Drift Video at Beirut Harbour

By Rami on May 29, 2016 in Automotive, Sports

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I just saw this video of Xavier Massaad drifting a Nissan 350Z at Beirut Harbour and thought it’s worth sharing.

I’m not really sure when was it video shot, but Xaview definitely pulled some cool moves and aside from the ones made by Abdo Feghaly we rarely get any good drifting videos here.

Horsh Beirut Now Open To The Public All Weekdays

By Rami on May 27, 2016 in Activities, Beirut

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Following the opening of Horsh Beirut to the public for once per week last year, Nahnoo announced last night on Facebook that a decision was taken for the pine park to be open to the public all weekdays as of June 6th 2016.

I’m not sure whether it was the governor of Beirut Ziad Chbib or the municipality who authorized it, but it’s definitely a much needed step to let people enjoy this beautiful green space. I just hope the municipality will allocate enough and adequate personnel to ensure the cleanliness and security of Horsh Beirut, otherwise I’m pretty sure it won’t take long until people ruin it.

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Horsh Beirut will be open from 7AM till 2PM on weekdays, and from 7AM till 7PM on weekends.

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