The participants in the monthly meetings typically discuss a book or a film. They may also discuss a theme where people share their experiences and get to know one another.

'Wanas' (companionship) is one of many cultural activities in the BEE Creative Club. It is the brainchild of Professor of Architecture Heba Safieldin.

"The idea was inspired by a popular TV series that highlighted the theme of loneliness in our society despite being connected in virtual reality and the immense need to reconnect in real life," Safieldein explained in her introduction.

Last month, the participants discussed Dina El Qamhawy's most recent novel, Dar Maysoun. They explored the book's central theme, which concerns the decision of several women to leave their past behind and live together in a house. While reflecting on the book, the attendees broached various issues, including Empty Nest Syndrome and loneliness. Their questions and responses reflected their life experiences.

The day brought together women from all walks of life who shared their stories, advice, and ways to seek emotional support. However, in recent months, Wanas began attracting men who shared their experiences in a gender-balanced environment. Sitting in a room full of people who share a common thought is a very uplifting social encounter that perhaps the new generation does not know and the older generations greatly miss.

The Moqabla Day 
 

"The Moqabla Day was a weekly meeting where middle-class women would meet up to share their thoughts, handwork, and news with their neighbours and relatives," explained Nahla Emam, professor of customs and traditions and former Heritage Consultant of the Minister of Culture, to Ahram Online.

"I remember seeing my mother and her lady neighbours in Garden City gather in rotation in one of their apartments and how each would have their telephone with her. Back then, the regular landline came with a very long cord to cross between apartments in the same building," Emam noted.

"Working-class and less affluent neighbourhoods had a similar notion with different dynamics," she explained. "For example, female neighbours would meet for breakfast and go together to buy food from the marketplace. Men, on the other hand, would hang out at the local coffee house after lunch."

In addition, the phenomenon was not restricted to cities and urban areas. According to Emam, the Mastaba (a large wooden bench outside the houses or shops) is where men (or women) in villages and rural areas would meet up and sip tea together. These weekly social gatherings cemented ties between the community and society members. Women even arranged marriages during such weekly encounters.

Technology has been blamed for alienating people from one another and causing loneliness, which forces people to become impostors as they lead fake online lives. Emam, however, seems to believe that things depend on how technology is perceived. She cites the example of many virtual groups that brought together, in real life, people who otherwise could never have met and revived such an intangible tradition of our cultural heritage.