Four years since the August 4, 2020 Beirut Port blast that damaged one-third of the Lebanese capital, killed 214 people, and injured over 6,500 others, a sense of normality has returned to most of the neighborhoods that were severely damaged. A 2022 survey by the American University of Beirut’s Urban Lab (BUL) found that 60 to 80% of apartments and businesses damaged in the blast have been repaired, while another survey revealed that 30 to 40% of broken glass remains. This is no small feat in the context of a dysfunctional state and amid multiple enduring social, economic, and political crises.

Life is back, though it is certainly not the same, given the traumatic experience of the blast, the loss of precious lives and livelihoods, aggravated precarity and the departure of many residents and business-owners. Today, Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael are vibrant with beautifully restored historical buildings, new restaurants and pubs, vintage thrift stores, and art galleries. Nightlife, festivals, exhibitions, and concerts regularly animate the streets. Karantina is rebuilt and its residents enjoy restored and new open public spaces and streetscapes. Visitors of those areas who are not familiar with the Beirut Port blast are unlikely to notice that the explosion occurred less than two kilometers away.