Anytime you are driving back from Beirut on the Dora Highway, you’ll probably notice by the time you get to Sukleen a large writing on the wall saying “Chou fi wara el 7ayt?”.
Well if you ever wondered who wrote this, it’s a blogger who still believes in reviving old train stations in Lebanon, and mainly the Mar Mikhael station which happens to be located behind that wall.
The initiative of this blog is to draw back the attention onto a forgotten space, at the heart of Beirut – capital city of Lebanon – enclosed between four walls: a train station frozen in time, where only green kept living.
Mar Mikhael station is a potential breathing space for a Beirut that keeps on densifying.
Its tracks are still there behind the wall and extend through the city; it’s time to take a look again and remember…
If you want to know more about Mar Mikhael station, you can check [Here]
The link has nothing. It’s a blog with just 2 posts with the last one from March 2010. Why would u link to it?
I think they should convert that station to a metro station. Lebanon could really use an underground metro.
Will cost millions but it’s worth it, and will bring them lots of revenue if it was well conducted.
Just a thought! no?
Mark,
There are many pictures and maps in the Historical Maps, Mapping Memories and Green Urban Void.
I think it was a one-time initiative to tell people about that station.
I once walked into the station around midnight with a friend and we just walked around it.. the sleepy guard didn’t even care. It’s an amazing space, and should either be rebuilt (and revive Lebanon’s railways!!) or it should be converted into a park/leisure area
Knowing Beirut however, don’t be surprised if the land is sold to property developers to build a mall or high-rise buildings
my friend Sarah is a train lover. a true true train lover. she has made a plan for what could become of Mar Mikhael’s station, check this:
http://www.archileb.com/article.php?id=296
also, funny coincidence: we just posted a piece by her on Mashallah News, telling the story of Lebanon’s railways and the old station in Tripoli:
http://mashallahnews.com/?p=5730