StaBene: The cultural hub bringing art, heritage, and creativity together to reignite the timeless charm of Egypt's Port Said

"Between the canal and the sea, reborn anew… a genius city… And this is Port Said. A country like no other… Arabs and foreigners… They built houses that tell stories"

- Ahmed Shalaby, poet from Port Said (English translation)

Stepping into the co-working area of StaBene, nestled on a small street in Port Said, feels like entering the soul of the city itself.

With quotes of beloved local poems written on its tables, archival photographs scattered throughout the space, books lining the shelves and semsemya music instruments adorning the walls, the space serves as a vibrant hub for both locals and visitors, breathing life into the essence of Port Said with its uncountable stories and multilayered history.

Further inside the room, a large map displayed on a sidewall marks the city’s position between the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea, reminding visitors of the distinctive geographic location of a city that has been shaped by movement, exchange and encounters across shores over time.

Named after the phrase “esta bene” (meaning “we have a deal” or “everything is okay” in Italian and still heard in Egyptian slang today), StaBene recalls the fusion of languages and identities that shaped the city's character and continues to echo through its streets, buildings, songs, words and food until today.

An unfolding story of youth civic engagement

Founded in February 2022 by architect Mohamed Hassan, in collaboration with Omar Hassan, Mohamed Mosaad, and Mohamed Hassan Ayad, StaBene traces its roots back to the NGO Port Said Ala Adeemo. 

This earlier initiative began in 2014, when Mohamed, supported by a group of local young people, launched a movement driven by a shared desire to preserve and celebrate their city’s rich, yet often overlooked, heritage.

Motivated by this vision, Mohamed took the step of founding an NGO with a clear mission: to document Port Said’s intangible cultural heritage and engage residents in its protection.

The aim was not only to safeguard the city’s unique identity but also to restore its historical and cultural prominence as a destination for local and international tourism.

“I was saddened to see my city’s reputation deteriorate, especially after the tragic events of the 2012 stadium riots in Port Said, while its rich cultural and historical legacy was being forgotten,” Mohamed tells The New Arab, reflecting on what inspired him to begin this journey. “There was a real need to shed light on a different image of Port Said."

What began as a few informal city walking tours quickly grew into a fully-fledged project, ultimately expanding with the foundation of Port Said Ala Adeemo for Art Production and Cultural Management company, driven by the need for financial sustainability and the ambition to reach a wider audience.

StaBene is one of the flagship projects of the company, which now includes a co-working space that hosts a wide range of workshops and cultural events and is currently planning to open the city’s first hostel.

Over the past few years, the initiative’s co-founders, together with numerous young volunteers, have organised a variety of heritage and cultural tours, workshops, exhibitions and artistic performances, while also taking part in restoration and heritage preservation projects, establishing numerous local, national and international partnerships.

“One of the activities I most enjoyed organising was the 2024 'Outside the Capital’s Borders' initiative with the Goethe Institute, including a series of workshops dedicated to documenting the history of the semsemya,” explains StaBene co-founder Mohamed Mosaad.

“The programme culminated in a final musical performance, a unique occasion that brought the people of Port Said together around this unique and culturally significant instrument."

Through this growing range of activities, the initiative stands out as a youth-led effort to raise awareness and revive interest in Port Said’s distinctive architecture and layered history, while building a sustainable foundation for cultural tourism and youth engagement rooted in the city’s streets and stories.

This vision earned StaBene national recognition with the prestigious State Encouragement Award in the Field of Arts in 2023, positioning it as an inspiring example for other cities across the country.

Beyond preservation

“At the beginning, people were questioning the benefit of talking about heritage, especially in a difficult economic climate, feeling it wasn’t useful to them,” Mohamed Hassan explains to The New Arab.

Persistent in their mission, StaBene continued offering free tours to share knowledge about Port Said, engaging both locals and visitors.

Slowly, people began to connect with and value the city’s historic places. As awareness grew, the community started recognising not only the true worth of their city’s heritage but also the numerous benefits across various dimensions that came with preserving it — such as the the ongoing Bazar Abbas rehabilitation project, launched in 2022 as a collaboration between Brandenburg University, Galala University and the NGO Bayt Yakin, with funding from the British Council, demonstrates how preserving heritage matters.

Focusing on the physical restoration of the historic building while integrating educational workshops for youth on heritage documentation, preservation and storytelling, the initiative has revived people’s interest in that area, significantly contributing to its urban, social and economic development.

Indeed, StaBene does not merely offer a futile nostalgic look into the past. Rather, it stands as a forward-thinking initiative that brings heritage to life through, with and for its community.

The headquarters hosts various events in collaboration with local residents. One distinctive activity is the organisation of semsemya music nights, often in partnership with So7ba Semsmia, a local group that performs with this traditional instrument, raising awareness of its symbolic significance and cultural centrality.

StaBene also establishes long-term partnerships with local businesses, supporting the local economy.

“StaBene bike tours not only allow us to enjoy and discover the city in a special way,” explains Sama, content creator coordinator at StaBene, “but they also support the local businesses.”

Indeed, these popular bike tours, often held on Fridays, are organised in collaboration with the neighbourhood bicycle shop run by ‘Amm Mohamed, and a bike rental service is available throughout the week.

Walking through the city’s multi-layered history

During the weekly tours, both local residents and visitors, whether Egyptians or foreigners, are invited to walk through Port Said and uncover the layers of history woven into its streets.

From shorter tours around the historic Ferial Gardens, where the inauguration of the Suez Canal took place and which StaBene recently enhanced through collaboration with other local associations, to longer walks through the distinct Arab and European neighborhoods, ending with the highlight ferry ride to the quiet residential area of Port Fouad, StaBene team members and trained volunteers provide insightful, well-documented and original perspectives on the city.

Along the way, history comes to life through archival photographs, storytelling, traditional songs, and local treats like cassata, a layered ice cream dessert also found in other areas around the Mediterranean like Sicily, each offering a taste of Port Said’s rich tapestry of cultural influences.

Transmitting this sense of belonging and awareness to the new generation has contributed to fostering a strong community spirit among the youth of Port Said.

“StaBene has become my favourite place in Port Said,” Rukaya, a local university student, tells The New Arab during one of StaBene's tours. “When I come here, I feel connected, not just to people, but to my city.”

This initiative proves that heritage is not only about the past; it is about what we choose to remember today and carry forward tomorrow.

By connecting people, especially youth, to the city’s heritage, StaBene ensures that the spirit of Port Said will not be forgotten, but rather preserved, lived and passed on, as echoed in one of the city’s iconic semsemya songs, Seven nights and a day that chants: “Oh Port Said’s young and old men, You should be proud throughout the ages, You fought the occupation army, Seven nights and a day.”

Born in Italy and educated in France and Egypt, Veronica Merlo has gained extensive experience in journalism, media, and communications, collaborating with a diverse range of media outlets, international organisations, and NGOs across Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, and France. She is the author of the book Sorprendersi in Egitto

Follow her on Instagram: almuhit_theocean