Once you enter, you feel like you’ve left Lebanon and entered another dimension with its quiet stone paved streets.

“It’s an island in Beirut with cache, it’s special. It’s a petit Paris,” says Michele Chelala, shop owner in Saifi. “It’s one of the unique places in Beirut.”

Walk around and discover shops high-end shops carrying designer items from fashion, to furniture and industrial design all from local Lebanese designers, and some international.

Once you’ve explored the area, you can sit for an herbal tea at Balima, a trendy café with modern Asian decor, and taste some of their famous pates.

Shops like Cream, Moon carry funky new clothing and accessory designs by local designers as well as imported items from abroad. Both shops ooze neon and sparks of color and trendy trinkets.

Whether you are a foreigner or a Lebanese native, if you have a favorite place in Lebanon and want to remember it forever, memorialize it with an exquisitely designed piece of jewelry made by Randa Tabbah. Among her various collections, the maps are the most original in my opinion.

Love Saifi Village or any other area in Lebanon=? Take a map of the area and she can custom create your design. Want to remember a special spot? A diamond marks the spot. You can have a gemstone such as a small diamond placed on your piece to mark the location.

So make sure to check out Saifi Village even if it is just for a small walk through. You’ll be glad you did.

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2013-07-26

If you need to get away from the noise and traffic of Beirut, this is the perfect hiding place.

Saifi Village is a small but picturesque upscale haven sandwiched between Downtown and Achrafieh, established since 2005 as an art quarter and residential area.

Once you enter, you feel like you’ve left Lebanon and entered another dimension with its quiet stone paved streets.

“It’s an island in Beirut with cache, it’s special. It’s a petit Paris,” says Michele Chelala, shop owner in Saifi. “It’s one of the unique places in Beirut.”

Walk around and discover shops high-end shops carrying designer items from fashion, to furniture and industrial design all from local Lebanese designers, and some international.

Once you’ve explored the area, you can sit for an herbal tea at Balima, a trendy café with modern Asian decor, and taste some of their famous pates.

Shops like Cream, Moon carry funky new clothing and accessory designs by local designers as well as imported items from abroad. Both shops ooze neon and sparks of color and trendy trinkets.

Whether you are a foreigner or a Lebanese native, if you have a favorite place in Lebanon and want to remember it forever, memorialize it with an exquisitely designed piece of jewelry made by Randa Tabbah. Among her various collections, the maps are the most original in my opinion.

Love Saifi Village or any other area in Lebanon=? Take a map of the area and she can custom create your design. Want to remember a special spot? A diamond marks the spot. You can have a gemstone such as a small diamond placed on your piece to mark the location.

So make sure to check out Saifi Village even if it is just for a small walk through. You’ll be glad you did.