Author: Mark

I died! [YouTube]

I got the below by email from K’S PATH:

We regret to share that early last morning the storage room in our shelter caught fire and burned down. Fortunately all our staff and animals are safe and did not suffer any injuries or burns as the storage room is located outside the animal sheltering building. Thanks to the speedy response of the Wafra fire department, the fire was contained and doused well in time. We are presently investigating the electrical problems that caused the fire, the electrical damages, and measures to avert future accidents. Cleaning and clearing is in process at the shelter.

Meanwhile, we urgently need dog and cat supplies since the fire burned all dog and cat food in our storage room. Please help us and spread the word to enable us to feed our 200 dogs and cats.

We need:

(1) Pedigree dog dry food (kibble)

(2) Whiskas or Friskies cat dry food (kibble)

(3) Cat’s Pride cat litter

If you are able to donate, please email us at [email protected] to arrange for a pick-up of the supplies. Anything you donate will be much appreciated!

It’s been awhile since I’ve put a things to do list but thats because there wasn’t much taking place over the summer. Now it looks like things are starting to pick up again, it’s still not a big list but it’s a start.

Thursday
KASA 11th Annual Exhibition
Public Speaking: Perfect Pitch

Friday
KASA 11th Annual Exhibition
Bahri Water Sports Event
Staged in Kuwait Welcome Lunch

Saturday
KASA 11th Annual Exhibition
Bahri Water Sports Event
Yoga at the Park
Guided Tour: Grand Mosque
BAIA Carnival
Eat Pray Love

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

It looks like Instagram ads have started popping up in our region. I spotted the ad above in my feed while another user spotted a Kraft ad. As I mentioned in my previous post, they’re soft launching at first with some preset partners, two of which seem to be Kraft Foods and Unilever. If you run into any ads let me know in the comments, I’m trying to figure out who all their partners for this soft launch are. On the other hand according to a blog post by Instagram, they’ve opened Instagram advertising to all businesses in the US market so Kuwait will most likely follow before the end of the year.

I was recently looking into getting a Honda dirt bike to off-road with this winter season when I found out from a friend who works for Honda that they’ve just opened up a brand new showroom. I saw sneak peek photos of the showroom when it was still empty and it looked pretty interesting so I told them to let me know once they had the bikes on display so I could pass by and check it out.

The new Honda showroom is located right across from Ace Hardware in Al-Rai. It’s three floors, the ground floor is where they have all their bikes and ATVs, the basement is where they have all their power equipment like lawnmowers and generators while the top floor has all the riding accessories along with a lounge. Theres also a service area in the back as well as their spare parts shop. The place is currently open although when I passed by yesterday they were still working on displaying all the accessories upstairs. The official opening of the showroom will be soon. [Map]

They still have the best chicken tikka in Kuwait. That’s all I’m going to say. [Map]

According to a Zain press release, Zain and Uber have partnered up to offer Zain customers discounted and preferential services when using the Uber platform. The service is already active in Bahrain, Jordan and Saudi Arabia but according the press release, Kuwait is next. If this isn’t definitive proof that Uber is coming to Kuwait I’m not sure what is. [Link]

Thanks Musaed

When I first viewed the video above I didn’t think much of it since I’ve seen better shot videos of Kuwait. BUT, then I found out that if you click and hold down the mouse button on the video while it’s playing you could move around in 360. You could look up, down or turn around completely while the video is playing. That’s pretty cool. [YouTube]

A reader of mine captured the video awhile ago in Egaila. According to my reader the coast guards where testing out the hovercraft which is around 2-3 years old but hasn’t really gotten much use. It’s currently being surveyed so they could start using it on a regular basis. If anyone can hook me up with a ride let me know! [YouTube]

Thanks Fahad Al Hindi

I just want to bring to focus the blogs classifieds section just in case you didn’t know about it. It’s free to use and there’s hundreds of items for sale so check it out [Link]

A reader emailed me about a Boy Scouts of America open day thats taking place end of this month along with some photos. I had no idea the Boy Scouts of America had a local chapter and based on the photos I was sent it actually looks like it’s pretty legit. I was a boy scout when I was younger back in Lebanon and I loved it since we spent so much time outdoors. Check out some photos below and for more information on their upcoming event click [Here]

The Ahmadi Music Group is Kuwait’s oldest and largest performing arts organization. Their concerts include orchestra, choir, rock band, ballet, hip-hop and everything else. They’re currently looking for new members to join, no auditions necessary and everyone is welcome regardless of experience.

So if you’re interested in joining them you can pass by their first rehearsal next Sunday (13 September) between 7-9PM at the New English School (NES) in Jabriyah. There will be free donuts.

For info, call Richard Bushman 97288859 or [email protected]

For the past year on my way to The Avenues I’ve been passing this large rust colored warehouse located on the main road. I didn’t know what the building housed, I knew it had something to do with sports because of the large neons covering the building but I couldn’t tell what was inside since the building looked like it was still under construction. Then last week I found out the place was an indoor football arena and that they had actually been open for a few months now but still look like they’re under construction because of the empty shops facing the main road. So I passed by to check it out.

The large building houses three indoor football fields and has air conditioning which means no matter how hot or cold it is outside, you could play football anytime of the year. MAS also have showers and locker rooms in case you want to change before heading out which is something I haven’t seen at other football fields. Price wise they’re much more expensive than the outdoor fields, an hour of indoor football is going to cost you KD45. If you’re interested you can book a field by calling 66148079 or 22230096. They’re open from 9AM to 10PM and here is their location on [Google Maps

Update: The official opening is next month

For Sunday night’s MTV Video Music Awards, Britney Spears donned an attention-grabbing, mostly sheer minidress. Not to be outdone was Nicki Minaj, who flaunted an equally eye-popping gown that landed the star on many a best-dressed list.

No, these gold body-hugging looks weren’t by red-carpet faves Atelier Versace or Givenchy. They were by a nearly unknown brand called LaBourjoisie, leaving fans asking: Who is that?

LaBourjoisie turns out is a local based brand run by 35 year old Lebanese designer Antoine Salameh. His shop in Shaab is dressing A-list celebrities located on the other side of the world. Just writing that sounded so weird, it’s insane. [Link]

Thanks James

Last week a reader called Abdulai Shani left the following comment under the post “The rescue of a domestic worker in Kuwait”:

I’m happy I came across this page. To be frank I’m fascinated as to how most Kuwaitis respond positively.

This is my own story and how I got to Kuwait. It all started somewhere in February this year, I met a guy back in my country in Africa, that is Ghana to be specific who told me he have some “connection” as normally termed in Ghana here in Kuwait and that a reputable company needs security guards to employ. I showed interest because he said I will be paid $1000 per month. I was happy and more than willing, so he demanded I pay $1500 for the processing my my visa and tickets which I paid. When I arrived at the airport of Kuwait on the 1st of April it was a different scenario. I was taken to an agency in Jahra and was told I’m going to take care of sheep on the desert. That was a blow I haven’t recovered till now, because I’m trapped in the sense that I quitted my job which is 100 times better than what I’m doing right here in Kuwait. And the wages i was promised never manifested instead I receive 70kd a month. I can’t even call my mom to tell her what I’m going through because I fear I might break her heart. I Fasted 30 Days during the fasting and can tell you it was hell. I Iive in a tent and the weather is extremely hot. I Have been on the desert for five months now. It’s I’m not the only one over here, we are trapped. We work 24hours a day and no day off and this will continue for 2years. We don’t go any where ,we just work even at night because we have to stay awake and look after the sheep. I’m a muslim and what I have been taught is that a man should not be ashamed of his work if it brings you good deeds and avoid you from stealing, so I’m not ashamed of being a shepherd although I’m well educated but the thing is my freedom have shackled. And the funny thing is our employers call themselves Muslims but will not allow us to go to the mosque on Fridays. All they do is they want us to always work,t hey don’t care even if we don’t pray. Hmmm on the day of Judgement Allah will fight for what they are denying us. Maybe someone reading this will say why we don’t run away or protect, but I tell you if we try to run away they will file a false case against us. And another problem is abuse, they beat my co workers although non have tried that on me yet. We just hope one day our two years contracts will be over. So that we can go back peacefully to our various countries.

After reading that I had no idea what to think. It didn’t make sense, the person who left that comment speaks English fairly well, was able to find my blog and was also able to leave a comment. How is this guy a shepherd? At first I thought it might be a prank but I emailed the guy anyway asking for his number so I could contact him and confirm his story. He sent me his number and I proceeded to chat with him via Whatsapp. Again I was very suspicious, how does a shepherd know what Whatsapp is? In the end he sent me his location and I decided I would drive out to meet him. Friday, after brunch with some friends, I drove an hour and a half alone into the middle of the desert so I could meet a stranger called Abdulai. I honestly had no idea what to expect which is why I had passed the location to my friends… just in case.

It was around 1PM when I pulled up outside Abdulai’s tent. I had called him up minutes earlier trying to figure out where his tent was exactly and the first thing he asked me was if I had driven through the valley of dead sheep. I surprisingly knew what he was talking about since just before I called him I had driven on a strip of road with dead sheep on both sides. A horrific scene mind you. As I was getting out of my car Abdulai had a big smile on his face, I walked up to him and we shook hands before we headed inside his tent. Abdulai lives on a farm, no, I can’t call it a farm since it’s really not but not sure what else to call it. It’s just a 4×4 tent (his home) with a small sheep pen outside it and that’s about it. It was very hot and although I was sitting inside his tent in the shade I was sweating profusely. He doesn’t have electricity so there is no air conditioning. Before we started I asked him if I could post his full name and his photo and he said yes. I told him I didn’t want to get him in trouble and if he wanted to stay anonymous or not be in a photo that would be ok. He told me he didn’t care since this was his reality.

Abdulai Shani is a high school graduate but dropped out of university. He’s just 25 years old and before coming to Kuwait was teaching 7 year olds English and Mathematics at a school in Ghana. Like he stated in his comment on the blog, he was offered the opportunity to work in Kuwait as a security guard with a starting salary of $1,000 which was more than what he was making teaching in Ghana. So he took the chance, paid the agent $1,500 in fees and flew out of Ghana on March 31st of this year to come work in Kuwait. He didn’t have a copy of the contract before he left since his agent told him he would get one on arrival to Kuwait. When he arrived in Kuwait he was greeted by a man who he assumed was his boss. That man took his passport then drove him to a house in Jahra where he was locked up with three other people. He was told his sponsor would be coming to get him in a couple of days and was then asked if he was informed on what he would be doing. He replied saying he did, he would be a security guard. The person told him no, he was going to be a shepherd. Abdulai responded saying he was told he would be a security guard by the agent. The man then asked him if he knew how much he would be getting paid. Abdulai told him $1,000, the man told him he would be getting only KD70. Abdulai didn’t understand and at that time he had just arrived to Kuwait and so he was scared and didn’t know what to do. Three days later his sponsor came in the evening. His sponsor paid the people holding Abdulai and he was released into his custody. He felt like he was a slave being traded.

Since April Abdulai has been working at this sheep pen out in the middle of nowhere. His meals are bread for breakfast, rice for lunch and rice for dinner. He doesn’t have electricity except for a small solar panel that charges his phone and his flashlight. The sponsor gave him a smartphone with a phone line that has internet which is how he is able to get online. He found my blog while researching slavery in Kuwait trying to understand what rights he had and why things are the way they are. According to Abdulai he is getting paid although he ran into an issue recently. His first two salaries he had the sponsor send to Ghana since it wasn’t safe to keep his money in his tent. Then the other 3 salaries he told the sponsor to keep with him. But when he asked for them at the end of last month the sponsor wouldn’t give it to him. After an argument he was told to give back the mobile phone. Abdulai gave him the phone but told him part of the contract says I get a phone so if you’re taking it back then I want to go back to Ghana. So they took him to the agency who gave him two choices.

1) He leaves to Ghana but doesn’t get paid.
2) He stays and he would get paid. He chose to stay.

At this point I wanted to know what he wanted out of all of this so I asked him. He replied telling me he just wanted to get the word out that slavery still exists. He told me back in Ghana he didn’t live in a tent, he lived in a home, a decent one. He told me two months back when the weather was really hot he started to bleed from his nose. So he told his sponsor he wanted to go to the hospital to check and see why he was bleeding. His sponsor told him he wasn’t going to take him to the hospital but instead should just wrap his head with a shemagh. I asked Abdulai if he wanted to go back to Ghana or if he wanted to stay and get a better job. He told me he wanted to stay but get a better job since that’s why he originally came to Kuwait.

On my way back to the car he gave me a tour of the property. Right outside his tent door was a bench, that’s where he sleeps at night since it’s too hot to sleep inside the tent. He then showed me the sheep pen which he attends to all day long, seven days a week. He doesn’t understand what the sheep are for, in the five months he’s been there none were sold or taken or anything. We walked together back to my car and said our goodbyes.

In some ways Abdulai is lucky. He’s educated and speaks English which is how he was able to reach out to me and now I can shed light on him and hopefully with the help of the blog find him a better job. But this also got me thinking, what about all the other people who don’t speak any English and don’t know how to reach out for help? And what if this was the tipping point for change? With local telecoms phasing out regular phones and pushing out smartphones with internet access to all their customers, are more and more people like Abdulai going to come forward and share their story with the world?