BRIEFING
Watch this space As COVID-19 rearranges our world, spaces that are normally managed by landowners and designed by landscape architects have become radically altered by the habits of their users. We asked six practitioners to watch their local spaces and report on the changes that have taken place. 1. Beirut balconies.
Nikolett Puskas
Š Nikolett Puskas
Beirut balconies On the night of 10th March, I arrived back in Beirut from Egypt on literally one of the last planes allowed into the country. I was on holiday when the ‘Corona talks’ had started, but none of us understood what was yet to come. I considered myself lucky to be back, starting home quarantine the next day. None of us thought we would be in full lockdown for over two months, with restricted movement and the airport closed until 1st July. Beirut has many balconies that had social significance before, and flat roofs, but during the quarantine times,
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these spaces were truly reinterpreted. For these were the only spaces people could use for a breath of air, doing sports, gathering with neighbours for coffee, cultivating mini-gardens, or simply for a change of scenery. Ultimately, the balcony and rooftop gained new meaning: people from facing houses connected through them, sharing some kind words or a smile, something that they might not have done in ordinary times. Lebanon took serious measures from early on, transforming daily life to contain the spread of the virus. People here are very social, so they transformed their
gatherings, connecting through their balconies and sharing social moments on their open gangways, obeying social distancing measures. All places are unique, and all have their own challenges. The hot weather struck in Beirut early on, so some people started to put small pools on their rooftops, adapting to the situation in whatever way they could. There has been tremendous social support among neighbours and friends, and with good spirit and laughs we kept each other hopeful for better days to come. This period offered a moment of deep reflection, as for many of us our
