2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003
The Daily Mail Online have an article on the tire graveyard out in Sulaibiya. According to the article the tire graveyard is so big it can be seen from space. That’s not really true though since the tire graveyard is actually visible on Google Maps which is not really the same as being seen from space. A bit exaggerated but then again this is the Daily Mail. You can check out their article [Here]
Two traffic officers in Kuwait are to spend one week behind bars for parking their patrol car in a spot reserved for the physically challenged.
Abdul Fattah Al Ali, the assistant undersecretary for traffic, said that the two uniformed men be transferred to a new department after they serve the seven-day sentence in jail, Kuwaiti daily Al Qabas reported on Wednesday.
“The official has given instructions that all legal measures be taken against the two men for flouting the rules,” a source quoted by the newspaper, said. “He said that there would be no leniency towards violators whether they are civilians or members of the police force,” the source, that the paper did not identify, said.
Abdul Fattah Al Ali has gained an impeccable reputation in Kuwait for his strict application of the law, regardless of the names or status of the violators.
No effing way. I’m super impressed. That’s pretty cool that they’re actually punishing two cops for this. [Link]
The Economist have an article on smoking and how even with all the warnings on the packets and the increase in knowledge that smoking is bad for you, in some countries smoking is still on the rise. Kuwait happens to be one of those countries. We’re definitely not nearly as bad as Myanmar and Lebanon but still bad enough to warrant a position on their chart above. Check out the full article [Here]
Thanks Narain
The Kuwaiti criminal court sentenced on Sunday four suspects to death for killing a Lebanese doctor with a cleaver in December last year.
Samir Yousef Jaber, 26, a Lebanese dentist born of a Kuwaiti mother, was repeatedly stabbed with the cleaver following a disagreement with the four young men at Avenues Mall.
It seems all four individuals involved in the murder will be getting the same sentence. [Link]
A fire that caught a Kuwait University (KU) facility early on Saturday has been quenched, a university official said.
Firemen responded immediately to a call from Kuwait University warning that there was a fire at an under construction KU building, and managed to put the conflagration under control within a record time, Dr. Rana Al Fares, the chief of the construction program of the Sabah AlSalem University City, said in news remarks.
The fire initially caught the 8000sqm College of Education for Girls and then moved to the 9,000sqm nearby College of Arts for Girls due to winds, she said. [Source]
The fire looked huge I’m surprised they were able to put it out by evening time. [YouTube]
Kuwait Airways plane, bound to Cairo, has returned after taking off from Kuwait International Airport due to technical error on Monday, the state-run carrier said.
The captain of the airplane discovered a technical error after taking off and returned to the airport in line with international standards, Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC) public relations and media director Khaled Al-Khulaifi said.
The captain dumped some of the fuel to decrease the weight of the plane, a well-known procedure in such cases, landed normally and all passengers left the plane, Al-Khulaifi said in a statement to KUNA.
The passengers were well received by the ground staff until an alternative plane is provided, he added. [Source]
The video above was taken by one of the passengers showing the fuel dump. [YouTube]
According to an article on KUNA by mid June we will be able to transfer our mobile numbers from one operator to another. A previous KUNA article stated we would be able to transfer our numbers last year at the cost of KD5 and the process would take around 24 hours. That never happened so not sure if it’s going to happen now. [Link]
(Reuters) – State-run Kuwait Airways will spend 850 million dinars ($2.98 billion) on 25 new Airbus jets and aims to lease a further 13 to upgrade its ageing fleet, a Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Sunday. [Source]
The planes will consist of 10 wide-bodied A350-900 jets and 15 of the slimmer A320neo. No A380’s so I guess the “Ya Kuwait Airways naby A380” campaign didn’t do so well.
Thanks Salem
Picture above is Kuwait Airways in the 70s
BBC have an article on how the lack of sleep affects children’s performance at school and they also included the chart above which shows Kuwait in 4th place when it comes to sleep deprivation for children aged 9-10. The blame is mostly on kids being on mobile phones and computers in bedrooms late at night. I can’t really relate since when I was in school we didn’t have smartphones. But, I can imagine if I did have one I’d probably be up late as well browsing the internet from under the sheets. Not sure though why Kuwait is that high on the list, I’m sure this must be the same with kids all over the world. [Link]
Thanks BuYousef and Matt
I just read on Zawya that the parliament might soon scrap the coeducation ban. That would mean both genders will continue to attend school and university together but I am also guessing this means the walls that currently divide the guys and girls in some university classes will also be removed. This is one proposal I’m hoping will get passed. [Link]
I first heard about this project around a year ago but due to secrecy reasons I wasn’t able to write anything. Then a few days back I noticed Frankom posted a link from AlQabas newspaper on this project so I guess it’s now officially announced.
The Green Island at the moment isn’t really serving any purpose and the proposed idea is to turn it into a mini city with a hotel, resort and a lot of restaurants located all around the island. There is a large bay in the middle of the island and if you surround the area around it with restaurants it will end up being a larger version of Marina Crescent which would be pretty cool.
If I understood the AlQabas article correctly, construction will begin end of this year and the project will be completed in 4 years. Check out the article [Here]
via Frankom
Kuwaiti author Saud Alsanousi won the 2013 International Prize for Arabic Fiction to become the youngest writer to win the prize. Saud won the prize for his story “The Bamboo Stalk” which is about a character called Issa who is a son of a Kuwaiti father and a Filipino mother.
On returning to his father’s homeland as an adult, Issa finds himself in a difficult position. Rather than the mythical country his mother has described to him, he discovers he is caught between the natural, biological ties he shares with his father’s family and the prejudices of a traditional society, which views a child of Kuwaiti-Filipino heritage as socially unacceptable. Skilfully constructed, The Bamboo Stalk is a story of great strength and depth which questions identity in modern society.
You can find out more about Saud and the prize by following this [Link]
BBC have a short film on Fawaz Al Hasawi, kinda like a behind the scenes look on who he is and why he chose to purchase the football club Nottingham Forest. Although Fawaz says the club isn’t a plaything and is a serious business, I think the way the film was edited by the BBC and the way they kept focusing on his riches made it look like it’s just another toy like his cars and houses. You can watch the video on the BBC website [Here]
They might as well have live streamed it with their social media person posting pictures on their Instagram account. [YouTube]
Update: Video link updated since previous one was taken down.
It took a lot of new burger joints and a lot of cupcakes but in the end we finally managed to top the list.
A round of double cheeseburgers on me! [Link]
Thanks Khalid