At the start of every new year, the city comes alive again with a rich array of events and projects. Once known worldwide as “the Paris of the Middle East,” the capital of Lebanon has all it takes to earn back the title – even despite the enduring signs of the civil war that lasted from 1975 well into the ‘90s.
But Beirut and its inhabitants are energetically looking forward. To be sure, the center of town is undergoing a major facelift both in adherence to the traditional style and under the direction of architects of the caliber of Zaha Hadid, Rafael Moneo and Richard Rogers. Meanwhile, a number of artists are working on rethinking urban spaces. The shift is toward the outskirts of town, location for instance of the new Beirut Art Centre (www.beirutartcenter.org) with its exciting program of exhibitions, film and video screenings, conferences,

concerts and other performances. No less amazing is Ashkal Alwan’s Lebanese Association for the Plastic Arts. Set up recently in an old abandoned factory, it has a wonderful exhibition space and is in the process of creating a library and an art school (www.ashkalalwan.org). As for art galleries to hit, there’s the Sfeir-Sem (www.sfeir-semler.com). In 1970 the owner left the country for Germany – where he opened an art gallery in Hamburg – but about five years ago he returned to Beirut to represent contemporary Middle Eastern artists, such as the prominent Marwan Rechmaoui and Walid Raad.

FOR SHOPAHOLICS ONLY
The place to go for world-class local scene shopping is the Bokja store, internationally famous for its collections of armchairs and sofas featuring upholstery fabrics hand-embroidered by

Lebanese women (including inmates). It’s located at the  Saifi Village-Quartier des Arts, a hub for art galleries, antique shops and fashion boutiques and as such a great example of how the city is experiencing a prompt rebirth. One firm believer in Beirut’s future is British businessman Gordon Campbell Gray. He opened the Hotel Gray (www.campbellgrayhotels.com) which, along with the Four Seasons, represents the crowning element in the category throughout the region. No Middle Eastern town would be complete without a souk or two. Here however the old market area got destroyed during the civil war and after decades of debate Beirut chose to build – with the help of major architects – an elegant shopping mall on the original site. On the Rue Weygand and the Rue Allenby, it houses fine boutiques as well as trendy coffee shops.

LEBANON CLUBBING
The people of Beirut love letting it all hang out, dancing the night away at the Sky Bar Club with fabulous terrace overlooking the sea. They show up here in their Ferraris and their SUVs after dining at the Tawlet (Arabic word for table), restaurant which specializes in various regional dishes (www.tawlet.com). Now the hot nightclub is the B 018. Designed by Bernard Khoury, it’s located in a large underground bunker with roof that opens up so clubbers can gaze at the stars (www.b018.com).