Built in the 60s in the heart of Beirut, The Sporting Club has become more than just a beach club, but rather an institution clearly entrenched in the mindset of the Lebanese populace. With the same look and feel since its opening, it brings together sun worshippers from all over the city, from bronzed bikini-clad demoiselles with a Gitanes perched on their lip to oiled-up portly men playing backgammon under straw hats. In contrast to the glittering beach resorts that have been sprouting up on Lebanon's coast for the past few years, The Sporting Club is unpretentious, and nostalgic for an authentic Beirut culture. With its worn off wall paint, concrete platforms, plastic chairs, blue and yellow accents and rusty umbrellas emblazoned with Almaza advertising (the much-loved local beer), Lebanese society come together to lizard out in the sun.