A woman looks at a candle at Gemmayze Street fair in Beirut, Lebanon, on May 29, 2022. Thousands of Lebanese and foreign visitors flocked to Beirut's famous Gemmayze Street on Sunday to attend a fair aimed at bringing back life to the city's beating heart that has been mired in a steep financial crisis for years.(Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
by Dana Halawi
BEIRUT, May 30 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Lebanese and foreign visitors flocked to Beirut's famous Gemmayze Street on Sunday to attend a fair aimed at bringing back life to the city's beating heart that has been mired in a steep financial crisis for years.
People visited around 300 booths participating at the fair to explore a wide range of products including food items, jewels, books, clothes, hats, paintings, and more.
The busy street of Gemmayze was filled with music and buzzed with energy and excitement as people were bargaining over products of interest.
Dubbed "Aa Tarik El Gemmayze 2022," which means "on the street of Gemmayze," the event also attracted families who enjoyed some exciting programs for their children.
"I am very happy about the exciting atmosphere here today as we haven't seen such an event in Gemmayze since the COVID-19 outbreak and the Beirut port explosions," Mohamad Mneimne, one of the visitors, told Xinhua as he was buying a jewelry necklace for his girlfriend.
For her part, Manal Hammoud said "this is our city Beirut and this is the atmosphere that we want."
Cynthia Warde, an organizer of the fair, told Xinhua that she used to organize the same event in closed spaces, but has decided to hold the fair this year in Gemmayze with free entrance. By doing so, she hoped the fair can attract more people and restore life to this area which was left in ruins by the port explosions.
Warde told Xinhua she has a long waiting list of people willing to take part in future similar fairs, which shows the great amount of resilience of the Lebanese despite the numerous challenges facing the country.
"This will also encourage the shop owners who have closed their businesses in this area following the blasts to reopen and bring back life to this street," Warde said.
"We will rise again, this is our message today," she added.
Warde said that the fair booths were offered to 300 exhibitors at a very small price of 400,000 Lebanese pounds (14 U.S. dollars) to give them the opportunity to showcase and market their products.
"This fair is a great marketing opportunity," Caroline Alam, who sells hand-painted porcelain items at the fair, told Xinhua, adding that she aims at attracting clients for her soon-to-be-opened atelier.
"The ambiance here is better than I expected, I am happy that people showed interest in my products," she said.
Likewise, Celine Abdelnour, a young lady who produces gold-plated jewelry, told Xinhua she took part in the fair to expand her clients.
"This fair is a great way to encourage local production," she said while expressing her pride in seeing good demand for her products.
Lebanon has been witnessing a major financial crisis, which has plunged over 74 percent of the Lebanese into poverty. The crisis was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 outbreak and the Beirut port blasts which destroyed a big part of the city. ■
People visit Gemmayze Street fair in Beirut, Lebanon, on May 29, 2022. Thousands of Lebanese and foreign visitors flocked to Beirut's famous Gemmayze Street on Sunday to attend a fair aimed at bringing back life to the city's beating heart that has been mired in a steep financial crisis for years.(Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
People visit Gemmayze Street fair in Beirut, Lebanon, on May 29, 2022. Thousands of Lebanese and foreign visitors flocked to Beirut's famous Gemmayze Street on Sunday to attend a fair aimed at bringing back life to the city's beating heart that has been mired in a steep financial crisis for years. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
A sales woman sits at an art booth at Gemmayze Street fair in Beirut, Lebanon, on May 29, 2022. Thousands of Lebanese and foreign visitors flocked to Beirut's famous Gemmayze Street on Sunday to attend a fair aimed at bringing back life to the city's beating heart that has been mired in a steep financial crisis for years. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
