Author: Mark

When I launched the section Kuwestions last month I quickly found out that a lot of people were having javascript issues and weren’t able to answer any questions. Well, I think I fixed the issue, I’m not getting those errors anymore on my side so please check it out and let me know if you still run into any problems. [Link]

A redditor who’s dad is currently a resident engineer/architect at the Jaber Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Hospital shared a few pictures of her recent tagalong with her dad. Some of the pictures show the inside of the hospital which I hadn’t seen until now and it looks like its going to be beautiful when completed. Too bad as an expat I won’t be able to use it. Check out all the pictures [Here]

Thanks AK

The 2016 Mercer’s Cost of Living Survey was released recently and Kuwait came out pretty low on the MENA list (which is a good thing). The most expensive place to live in the MENA region turned out to be Dubai and the cheapest place to live turned out to be Jeddah.

Top 10 most expensive cities to live in the MENA region:
1- Dubai, UAE
2- Abu Dhabi, UAE
3- Beirut, Lebanon
4- Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
5- Manama, Bahrain
6- Doha, Qatar
7- Cairo, Egypt
8- Muscat, Oman
9- Kuwait City, Kuwait
10- Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Mercer’s survey includes 209 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, and entertainment. The survey is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees. New York is used as the base city, and all cities are compared against it. Currency movements are measured against the US$. [Source]

The 10 most expensive cities to live in the world are:
1- Hong Kong, Hong Kong
2- Luanda, Angola
3- Zurich, Switzerland
4- Singapore, Singapore
5- Tokyo, Japan
6- Kinshasa, Dem. Rep. of the Congo
7- Shanghai, China
8- Geneva, Switzerland
9- Ndjamena, Chad
10- Beijing, China

If you want to see the full report you need to register on the Mercer website [Here]

via BlogBaladi

Haven’t tried using this app yet but hopefully it’s more reliable than the other taxi app I’ve tried using before, Q8 Taxi. I tried ordering a cab with Q8 Taxi when I had to drop off my car for detailing and the drivers kept canceling my taxi request. Whats taking Uber so long to launch in Kuwait??

To download Abi Taxi on your iPhone just search for Abi Taxi in the app store or click [Here]

Last week I posted about how The Approved Market started home delivery and now they’ve launched their online website alongside that service.

Their website features all their in store products and you can pay online using Knet. Delivery is within 24 hours so if you don’t want to drive all the way to the city to pick up an item, you can now order it online. Here is a link to their [Website]

Thanks Ahmad

4DX auditoriums include high-tech motion seats and special effects including wind, fog, lightning, bubbles, water, rain and scents. These effects work in perfect synchronicity with the action on screen creating the most unmissable and exhilarating cinematic experience yet.

Cinescape is launching 4DX tomorrow with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2. Ticket prices for 4DX films is KD8 which is double the price of regular tickets. According to the Grand Cinemas website they’re also going to be launching 4DX soon.

Not sure if I care for 4DX much, it sounds like a gimmick but I guess I’ll have to try it out at least once before I make up my mind on it.

Thanks ShadowofMath

Make sure you get to the airport super early and email me photos from the airport if it looks insanely overpacked like the picture above which was taken this past weekend.

Update: A reader @BoozAzzouz took the photo below earlier today, I’m guessing you’re going to have to get to the airport at least 3-4 hours earlier to make sure you don’t miss your flight.

Yesterday while at my mechanic getting some work done on my Datsun I decided to kill time by exploring the area a bit. For some odd reason there are around a dozen scuba diving shops near my mechanic and in between them was this one store called Alazame that sold outdoor gear. I decided to walk in and check their products out when I noticed they sold NiteCore flashlights. I’ve been wanting to get a new flashlight for awhile now since the one I have I now keep in my Datsun. I had researched a few and had decided on ordering a NiteCore one off Amazon and luckily I hadn’t placed the order yet. Alazame turned out to be the local dealer for the NiteCore brand and their prices are exactly like on Amazon. The two flashlights I had my eye on were the P12 and the MH12, the P12 sells for KD18 and the MH12 for KD24, which are their prices on Amazon not including tax or shipping. I ended up picking up the MH12 and figured I’d post about the place in case anyone is ever googling looking for one of their brands in Kuwait.

Alazame are the dealers for the following popular brands:

Leatherman
Gerber
NiteCore
Jack Wolfskin
Buck Knives
SOG Specialty Knives
Buff Headwear

They have an online store with some of their products and brands which you can order from although it’s not very accurate, the NiteCore P12 for example shows as out of stock but they actually did have it in stock. Still its a good source to check prices out and if it’s something you really want you could always call them and check if they have it in the store. Their website is alazame.com and their phone number is 66322666. If you want to pass by their store then here is their location on [Google Maps]

Salhiya are building a new mall/office tower right across from KIPCO Tower in Kuwait City and they’re calling it Assima. The video above is a 3D rendering of how the project will end up looking like but honestly the most exciting aspect for me is that there will be a multistory parking lot which means customers to Solo Pizza which is located right next to this project (check map below) will no longer have parking issues. [YouTube]

via Frankom

I’ve been curious for the past couple of years to why Kuwait is so popular with international bodybuilders. I mean I’ve heard of a number of current and previous bodybuilding champions who are currently coaching at some of the gyms in Kuwait and I never understood why. Carter, a British bodybuilder has an interesting theory to why that is the case and I think he makes a good point.

Carter suggests that there are certain PED’s (performance-enhancing drugs) only available locally that are attracting all the big name athletes. It’s an interesting theory and one I could believe being possible along with the fact that we have some great bodybuilding gyms here and the coaches probably get a good salary as well. Check out the video above. [YouTube]

Note: Trying to be Fahad posted about HGH (human growth hormone) a few years ago and he mentioned it being dirt cheap and that you could the absolute best brand for next to nothing [Link]

Meme’s Curry is a Japanese curry restaurant that opened a few years back by two Kuwaiti chefs. It originally started off as a home business before opening their first location… in Rihab Complex. I was never a fan of the location for obvious reasons but a couple of weeks ago they opened up in a new location in The View, the same complex that houses Marks & Spencer and Whole Foods in Salmiya. So if you’ve been meaning to try them out but been put off with their original location, here is their new location on [Google Maps]

Abdullah Alshalabi, one of the cofounders behind the local startup FishFishMe has published an article on his blog on how Kuwaitis should go about investing in startups. He shared his own investment theory along with an investment cheat sheet, so if startups interest you, check out his post [Here]

Super tiny list this weekend. One new thing I’ll be doing from now on is adding table top gaming events from Good Game to the list like the Magic: The Gathering event taking place on Friday. If I find out about anything else taking place this weekend I’ll add it to the list but for now this is whats going on:

Thursday
Ramadan Bootcamp by Diet Care
Cooking 101 at The Yard

Friday
Yoga Flow with Rosy
Good Game: Magic: The Gathering

Saturday
Yoga at the Park (Hatha Yoga)

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so double check info with organizers.

If you were hoping the American supermarket chain Whole Foods would open in Kuwait one day, well this is the closest thing you’re gonna get. Wholesome Foods is a new supermarket that Saveco have opened up and not only does it have the same name as Whole Foods, it basically has the same interior look and color scheme along with a similar concept (they mostly carry organic and healthy food products).

It’s not a very large place, but it’s two floors and they have a good variety of items you won’t find at other supermarkets. They’re located in Salmiya in The View building where Marks & Spencer is so the place is pretty close to where I live. Since I’m always frustrated with the lack of product range at Sultan I’ll probably be passing by Whole Foods (can we just call it that?) to pick up whatever I can’t find anywhere else.

If you’re wondering about the prices, they’re similar to Saveco. Whole Foods is open daily from 10AM to 1AM and here is their location on [Google Maps]

Truefitt & Hill is the oldest barbershop in the world established back in 1805 in London, and they’re opening their first location in the Middle East here in Kuwait at the Symphony Mall. I hadn’t heard of them until a redditor mentioned them and according to him they’ll be opening up by the end of the year.