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The National Geographic Ultimate Explorer experience is now open in Assima Mall. It’s kind of a mix between a museum and entertainment park targeting children:

Designed to inspire children to become the next generation of scientists, engineers, astronauts, biologists, thinkers and explorers, National Geographic Ultimate Explorer blends augmented reality, virtual reality and 3D technology to create a fully immersive play-based learning experience for children between 5-12.

The Kuwait Ultimate Explorer is composed of 14 different experiences but as of this post, only 10 are open. The prices are the following:

Baby 0-2: Free
Toddler 3-4: KD6
Child: KD12
Adult: KD10

I didn’t go in so if you want a peek of whats inside, check out some of the tagged videos on Instagram. There is also a gift shop which you can visit without having to buy a ticket.

The game-changing all-new Peugeot 508 GT 2022 has been completely re-imagined to emphasise Peugeot’s new sharp, futuristic design language. Its exemplary road-handling, efficient new engines, and, countless technology features is a quantum leap in terms of quality and innovation, making the new Peugeot 508 a game-changer in the executive salon segment, challenging premium automotive brands.

A bold design

The designers behind the new Peugeot 508 stated their aim clearly; to move away from the conventional boot-lid, four-door shape and evolve the design towards a five-door fastback.

The front end’s purposeful stance is highlighted by the radiator grill, complete with a chrome-plated chequerboard effect, it sits between the LED headlights with the famous Peugeot Lion centered on its grill and the 508 logo on the bonnet.

Vertical LED daytime running lights provide a distinct identity, and the bonnet has been lowered to enhance the dynamic look perfectly aligned with modern Peugeot design language, as well as the roof line of the new Peugeot 508 is low and sleek – following premium sector design cues.

Cutting-edge technology: PEUGEOT i-Cockpit®

Inside the new Peugeot 508, the focus is on quality and originality. The premium instrument panel is centred around the latest version of the exemplary Peugeot i-Cockpit® which is now in its third generation.

PEUGEOT i-Cockpit® includes:
• A compact steering wheel
• 8-10-inch HD touch-screen
• Head-up display unit with a high-resolution 12.3-inch digital screen
Entirely customizable with six different display modes, the i-Cockpit® head up display unit is positioned above the steering wheel and presents driving information within the eye line of the driver.

High-end/ sporty finishing and first-class quality

The 508 GT features a refined, yet sporty interior and is fitted with comfortable AGR certified, red Nappa leather seats- or optionally black Alcantara & Nappa leather seats which envelops passengers in a soft, modern, refined environment. The car is also equipped with a wide-opening panoramic sunroof that floods the cabin with light, a hands free tailgate with a foot sensor and a premium audio system by Focal® for unmatched acoustics.

An intense driving experience

The new Peugeot 508 is faithful to its DNA and benefits from technology and dynamic expertise developed by the PSA Group ensuring a sensational driving experience and breath-taking performance.

The new Peugeot 508 features the PureTech turbo engine with six-speed EAT6 automatic gearbox has an electric gear-lever with one-touch control and electric power-steering ensures the perfect balance between smooth and firm handling for all driving situations.

Exclusive offer for Peugeot 2022 models

Peugeot is offering exclusive offers that you don’t want to miss out on, ranging from Lease to Own programs to 6 yrs offer for your peace of mind!

Lease to own program starting from 145 KD monthly!

6 years peace of mind exclusive offer:
• Starting from 6,950 KD
• 6 years warranty or 150,000 km
• 6 years maintenance or 100,000 km
• 1 year comprehensive insurance
• Highest trade in value

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Instagram: instagram.com/kaico_peugeotkwt
Facebook: facebook.com/PeugeotKwt

Geocaching is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a Global Positioning System receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called “geocaches” or “caches”, at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world.

A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing items for trading, such as toys or trinkets, usually of more sentimental worth than financial.

Someone was asking about geocaching in Kuwait and I hadn’t heard that term in years. The first time I heard about geocaching was back in 2002 and back then GPS devices weren’t as common, Google Maps didn’t exist and phones didn’t have GPS built-in so the only way to find a geocache was using a dedicated GPS device like a Garmin. I faintly remember a geocache located near Radisson Blu and after a bit of researching it turns out it was actually the first geocache in Kuwait.

The cache was called “Ya Darina Ya Kuwait” and the coordinates were N 29° 17.860 E 048° 05.205. The cache was placed there back in June 2002 by a user called walzuhair.

What’s cool about caches was that you never knew what you’d find and you were always meant to take whatever was inside and then replace it with other items for the next person to find. There still seems to be a bunch of active geocaches in Kuwait so it might be a fun activity to do this Ramadan.

Nat Geo will be premiering a 20-minute film on the Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre tonight called “Kuwait Culture”. Here is the synopsis:

The 20-minute film entitled “Kuwait Culture” explores the various aspects and features of the colossal project, envisioned as a beacon of art, creative and scientific thinking in Kuwait. Spread over an 18-hectare site, it encompasses 6 museums including the museum of Natural History, Science & Technology, Fine Arts & Theatre, Museum of Islamic History and the Space Museum, all tied together by a central street, a covered thoroughfare forming ASCC’s spine shaped like human DNA. The new National Geographic Abu Dhabi film gives audiences a rare glimpse into the massive and complex task of building the Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre, which started in 2016, and involved over 3,000 suppliers from different companies working together to deliver the mammoth project on time.

I don’t have Nat Geo so hopefully they’ll publish the film online after it airs. If you do have Nat Geo, the film premiers tonight at 7PM (Kuwait time):

Premier: Monday 21 September 2020 at 7:00PM
Repeat: Tuesday 22 September 2020 at 8:00AM
Repeat: Tuesday 22 September 2020 at 2:00PM

Here is the link to the documentary on the Nat Geo website.

A day before our three-week total lockdown I got a delivery from Amazon, the NEOGEO Arcade Stick Pro. It’s an arcade stick pre-installed with 20 old-school NEOGEO games. I’m a huge fan of NEOGEO ever since I was a kid since it was an unattainable gaming console back then due to the costs involved which was extremely high. Back in the 90s a single game could easily cost over 100KD for example, so paying 40KD for a NEOGEO arcade stick with 20 games included seems like a steal.

But, I really wasn’t interested in the games that were included, instead, the reason I wanted to get the Arcade Stick Pro is that someone found a way to install even more old-school games onto it.

Like all the classic mini-consoles that have gotten released over the past few years, the Arcade Stick Pro runs off USB power and connects to your TV via an HDMI cable. I spent hours and hours the first week of lockdown going through nearly 2,000 classic games from the 80s and 90s one by one. Whichever game I liked or reminded me of my childhood, I put aside to create my ultimate old school gaming playlist. The Arcade Stick Pro was obviously best at emulating NEOGEO games but it also did a great job of emulating other home consoles and arcade systems like CPS1, CPS2, and more. I wasn’t interested in emulating home consoles though since I could do that with my SNES mini and my Odroid Go Advance. Instead, what I really wanted to do was emulate games I used to play in the arcades when I was a kid and shooting scrollers (both horizontal and vertical) like Blazing Star and Mars Matrix which the Arcade Stick Pro did a phenomenal job with.

If you don’t want to copy your own games onto the Arcade Stick Pro, the system comes with 20 fighting games built-in and an additional 14 bonus games which includes a bunch of Metal Slug games and Super Sidekicks. The Metal Slug series alone would be worth the $120 price tag.

There aren’t really any negatives, except for one major inconvenience. With my SNES Classic mini system, I have it set up next to my TV and I bought a wireless controller for it. This means I can sit back on my couch and play games comfortably without having to worry about running power and HDMI cables. With the Arcade Stick Pro, the actual controller is the console so you need to have power and HDMI running to wherever you’re sitting. So if your couch is 3 meters away from your TV, you need a 3 meter long HDMI cable running to your couch and a USB cable to power up the system. It’s a hassle and anytime I think about wanting to play on it I have to think about setting it up. A second issue that might be a problem to some people but isn’t for me is 2-player games, if you want to play 2-player games you need to purchase an extra controller for it which is another $25.

I really do love this arcade stick and it made the lockdown a lot more bearable for me. If you’re looking for an affordable arcade stick that can run some of your old favorite NEOGEO and arcade games, this is a pretty great option. The stick costs $120 on Amazon and I think I paid KD14 for shipping and customs. I wasn’t able to find it here but Rihab Complex was also closed back then so they might have it now.

I booked a week-long vacation starting next Wednesday to Tbilisi, Georgia since I heard a lot of good things about the city. The last time I took a proper vacation was back in August 2018 and it was also for a week so I’m really really looking forward to the time off. I’m taking Jazeera Airways since they fly to Tbilisi directly and then going to rent a Land Cruiser LC76 while there so I can also drive over to Armenia next door.

I’m looking for things to do, see, and places to eat at so if you have any recommendations please let me know!

For those of you who used to follow my blog in the early days, you might remember I had a dog called Geo. My ex-wife and I got him right after getting married and he was the friendliest, cutest and silliest dog ever. Everyone who met him loved him and he continued to be silly and act puppy-like even though he got older and bigger.

Four months ago we found out Geo had cancer and his condition started deteriorating rapidly ever since. A couple of days ago we sadly had to put him to sleep. He had just turned 13 last month.

For the past two years, Geo’s been living with my ex-wife in Canada where he got to experience snow for the first time, go for long walks in the forest and play fetch in beautiful green parks. I didn’t get to say goodbye, so I guess this post is my way of saying goodbye to him. I miss you stupid dog.

Yesterday I was in Rihab Complex looking for Red Dead Redemption 2 (FYI: Might be out today in Kuwait depending on customs but most likely tomorrow) when I decided to go to the retro gaming store upstairs to check out what they had. I’d posted about that store on the blog a few years ago, it was called Global Game and was just filled with old retro video game consoles. But, a couple of months back the store got a facelift, a name change and I’m assuming, a new owner.

The Global Game store is now called Retro Dungeon and looks a lot nicer and more organized than it did before. The store still specializes in vintage gaming consoles and while there I spotted a whole bunch of them including:

NEC PC-FX
NeoGeo AES
NeoGeo CD
Nintendo 64
Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo GameBoys
Super Nintendo
Panasonic 3DO
Sakhr MSX
Sakhr MSX2
Sega Dreamcast
Sega GameGear
Sega Genesis
Sega CD
Sega Saturn
Sony PlayStation 1
Sony PlayStation 1 Dev Kit
Sony PlayStation 2
Sony PlayStation 2 Dev Kit
And more…

They also had a whole bunch of games, all nicely organized and all wrapped in plastic. The whole place looks way better than it did before but the prices are also on the high side. Somethings made sense, like KD120 for a NeoGeo AES or KD150 for the NeoGeo CD, but KD35 for Donkey Kong Country on the Super Nintendo and KD45 for Donkey Kong Country 2 just seemed over the top.

I used to have a pretty large collection of gaming consoles before I sold them all off (so much regret). But now I just have my Game & Watches and my SNES left which I pop out every so often to play on.

If you’re looking for vintage games or consoles, check Retro Dungeon out. They’re in an alleyway on the top floor of Rihab Complex, and their instagram account is @retro_dungeon

Customs officers at the Al-Ebdelli border entry point found a homing pigeon used as a drug mule to smuggle 178 amphetamine pills which were wrapped and tied round its body.

The officers spotted the bird which was coming from Iraq and pursued it till they caught it perching on a building rooftop, with a belt around its body that was stuffed with the pills. [Source]

If I saw a bird flying across the border I wouldn’t have thought anything of it.

Snapchat Geofilters are special overlays for Snaps that can only be accessed in certain locations like the ones pictured above. If you’ve ever used Snapchat while traveling you’ll sometimes notice different special overlays depending where you’re located so if you’re in Paris near the Eiffel Tower you would get an Eiffel Tower overlay. Turns out you can design your own and submit them to Snapchat for approval. So if you’re a designer, go ahead and make one for Kuwait by clicking [Here]

Speaking of Snapchat, yesterday Dubai was live on Snapchat and there were a bunch of great Snaps. They’re actually still in my feed this morning so they’re probably in yours as well so check it out. Also if you want to add me on Snapchat my handle is “mark248am”

I mean I might be able to understand how a pigeon can sell for KD45,000 but what I can’t understand is why the venue in such poor shape. If I was throwing that much money around I’d expect a 5-star venue and I’d also probably store the pigeon in something fancier than a cardboard box. [YouTube]

Note to self:
1- Capture pigeons
2- Setup instagram account called @pigeonsq8
3- Sell pigeons

[YouTube]

He enjoys chilling out outside my office window.

Back in September I posted about how Kuwait was featured in National Geographic Traveler and how I felt the article was superficial because they focused on just The Avenues. Many of you also had your views on the article and it looks like National Geographic Traveler read them because in their latest issue they’ve featured us in their Inbox section which you can read below.

That’s taken from their January/February 2011 issue. Sweet!

Thanks Dalia

Kuwait Chamber Philharmonia & Radisson Blu Hotel present:

Carmen – Georges Bizet

Date: Saturday December 11, 2010 at 8PM
Location: Al Hashemi II Grand Ballroom at the Radisson Blu Hotel

Performed by International Soloists:
Alicja Wegorzewska – Whiskerd – Carmen – Verica Grmusa – Micaela – Tomasz Kuk – Don Jose – Adam Szerszen – Escamillo

Tickets: KD16 (available at Radisson Blu tel 25673000 and Virgin)

For more information visit www.kuwaitcp.com