Jihane Rizkallah Corbani giving her online gym session. Photo DR
Ever since she was forced to temporarily close her gym in Baabdat in line with government measures to curb the coronavirus outbreak, Jihane Rizkallah Corbani has decided to work from home and maintain her regular schedule. Every day, she goes online to provide her clients with their usual workout sessions.
"I turned my living room into a studio where I put my mobile phone on a tripod, and so my classes are being transmitted online," said Corbani to L'Orient-Le Jour.
About thirty people join her online every day. "My clients are very motivated. Keeping their daily routine makes them feel good. I didn’t expect that these sessions would be as successful," she said. "But as Lebanese, we always manage and life goes on despite everything. We have an iron will”.
Many people, like Corbani, have chosen to limit their movements well before the government finally decided on Sunday March 15 to call for a "general mobilization." In fact, they responded to pressing appeals by the media, NGO's and many civil society groups. The "Khallik bel beyt" (Stay at Home) campaign had a snowball effect, and succeeded in convincing the Lebanese people to be confined to their homes, in order to limit the spread of Covid-19.
However, Lebanese women are not yet ready to abandon their beauty rituals, asking their hairdressers and beauticians for in-home services. “Lebanese women never neglect their looks. My hairdresser will come home, and I will put on a mask,” said May, a resident of Beirut. Another lady said that she now plays bridge online with her partners; her club being temporarily closed.
Radio Quartiere Beirut
Italy's artistic solidarity and videos of quarantined Italians singing from their balconies were a major source of inspiration for many Lebanese. Taking the example from a group of his friends who created an online radio in Milan in order to better face Covid-19 confinement, Majed Shehabi, a Syrian-Palestinian student in Beirut, decided a few days ago to launch a neighborhood radio station (radioquartiere.online/beirut). Since then, he has received dozens of volunteers ready to play their favorite music online. It has now more than 3,000 listeners per day and a total of 500 hours of broadcasting.
"I was chatting with my friends who are confined to their homes in Milan, and they told me about their radio, Radio Quartiere, which broadcasts online, so that people can stay connected and send live messages. I decided to set up one here, and we started broadcasting from the Mansion cultural center in Zokak el-Blatt," Majed told L’ OLJ. "Our DJs live in Lebanon or abroad, and they take turns around the clock. They are Lebanese, Yemenis, Palestinians, Tunisians, Jordanians and Syrians. The idea is to stay connected, to continue on having a social life from a distance. Our listeners interact with us and send messages to our website in real- time.”
After the enforced closure of pubs and nightclubs, Joe Sbeih, a DJ, found himself jobless and bored at home. Last Saturday, he organized a 3 hour-live evening on social networks in the hope of recreating the atmosphere of the evenings which he used to animate every weekend. "To be honest, I missed my work. I saw how the Italians coped with the situation and resorted to music, and so I decided to spend a regular Saturday evening," Joe told L’ OLJ. "A great number of people listened to my session, and shared it with their friends. It shows how much they need to have fun and some good times."
And so, home delivery services now include alcoholic cocktails. Barlivery, an online beverage service, has seen an increase in orders in recent days. “Our orders increased 5 or 6 days ago. We had a lot of work last weekend, especially Friday evening,” said Mireille Ordekian, barmaid and manager of Barlivery. "Some people are organizing small parties at home and are calling us to deliver their alcoholic cocktails. But we are also receiving smaller orders from people who enjoy having a drink at home alone," said the young woman, assuring that sanitation and hygiene measures are strictly observed "while preparing the drinks and delivering them."
Ordekian, whose company delivers in Beirut as well as on the Metn coastline, concluded, saying: "It is good to see that people are getting on with their lives."
(This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour on the 17th of March)
