Category: Personal

So last week I bought two tickets to London since I am going to be there from the 27th of January till the 31st. Well today I wake up and check my email and it tells me I can now check in. I look at the email closely and it turns out I booked the tickets for December 27th and not January 27th! I now can’t fucking change my booking online for some reason, British Airways is currently closed and the flight is 8:55AM tomorrow! What is there I can do?? I have no clue how I booked December instead of January, no clue whatsoever!

Update: I couldn’t cancel or change my online booking because the departure time was less than 24 hours. I couldn’t get a hold of BA in Kuwait or UAE. I tried calling the UK office but it kept giving me errors since the number I found only works if you call from within the UK. Finally I tried with Skype and I got through somehow. The BA agent on the other end of the line was extremely nice and helpful. He fixed my booking and saved my ass basically. I think this is the last time Nat is going to make me handle anything related to traveling especially after my last fuck up in Paris!

Aramex dropped off my first Tamiya radio control kit this morning. The Frog which I purchased early in the month was a ready built model but now since I really want to get into this hobby I ordered two more car kits so I could enjoy building them.

I originally wanted to purchased the Tamiya’s from the local dealer since his prices are cheaper than the Internet but both of the cars I wanted were out of stock here, actually one of them (pictured above), the Lancia Delta HF Integrale was a discontinued model so I only managed to find it on eBay. The other car, an old Dodge van nicknamed the Lunch Box was coming in the next shipment due to arrive in February but I couldn’t wait that long so I also ordered it from eBay.

First thing I did once I got my kit today was pass by the Tamiya workshop in Muthana and pick up a metal ball bearing set and some spray paint which I am going to use once the Lunch Box arrives next week. Now I am going to spend all day and put this kit together. Will post pictures once I am done. The fact that my car was delivered to me on Christmas morning makes me feel like a kid all over again.

Update: Ok it took me around 5 hours but I finally was able to put the whole thing together and take it out for a spin in my parking lot. The car is great but I definitely need to do some upgrades, first thing will probably be a more powerful engine motor followed by better grip tires and probably a suspension upgrade.

The tiny “Print” and “Email” buttons under every post are now working again. The “Print” button simplifies the post so that it looks clear when you print while the “Email” button is useful if you want to send a friend a link to the post.

Back in October my agency pitched for and won the Wataniya Airways account. For those of you who don’t know, Wataniya Airways is the new “premium” Kuwaiti airline. I am highlighting the word premium because many people including me originally thought Wataniya Airways was going to be competing against the likes of Jazeera Airways as an economy no frills airline, it’s not. Wataniya Airways won’t even be using the regular airport instead they will be flying in and out of the new Royal Aviation Terminal, the exclusive terminal used by private jets. Anyway, the TV commercial is finally completed and here it is. I might later add some behind the scenes (making of) pictures but only if I find interesting ones. [YouTube]

update: Added a few behind the scenes photos below, might add more later.

Back in June when the price of a barrel of oil hit $142 it kinda made sense why Aramex sent the email below:

Thank you for using our SHOP&SHIP service. Our aim is to continuously enhance your shopping experience with us.

Aramex has found it necessary to increase the SHOP&SHIP rates to offset the increase in fuel price and operating costs. Effective July 1st 2008, our new rates will be as follows:

First ½ kg K.D. 3.000
Each additional ½ kg K.D. 2.500

We appreciate your understanding as this situation is completely outside the scope of our direct control since fuel represents a significant variable cost in the provision of transportation services.

Today the price of oil is around $40 a barrel so why hasn’t Aramex decreased their shipping prices yet?

Has anyone stayed at an easyHotel before? easyHotel is a no frills super budget hotel. I am going to London next month for 4 nights and I am looking for a cheap place to stay. The hotel I usually stay in costs around 130 pounds a night and isn’t anything special at all. I was checking out tripadvisor.com for other hotels in the area and I came across easyHotel in Paddington. It doesn’t have a closet, or a desk, or a phone, or Internet, or a safe but the room does have a double bed, window (there is cheaper option without one), and a cozy looking bathroom thats a size of a plane bathroom. The price for 4 nights comes out to 168 pounds. There is a flat screen TV but to use it I need to rent a remote which goes for 15 pounds for 5 days. House keeping is another 10 pounds. Reviews are all positive and since its in Paddington its 15 minutes from the airport via Heathrow Express so it seems practical. Still though, not too sure if I should go for it or not, should be an interesting experience if I do. They are opening up in Dubai next year which should be a big hit.

Update: Just booked a standard room with a window and a double sized bed for four nights. Total price with tax KD79. Thats just an extremely good deal. Makes London more affordable specially with the special offers like the one British Airways had, KD150 Kuwait – London Kuwait. Also found out they do have internet, 10 pounds for 24 hours and an extra towel is 1 pound. They also can store my bags, 5 pounds for 24 hours for up to 3 items. Thats perfect cuz last day my checkout is 11AM but my flight is in the evening so I can just store my bags with them while I shop. Early check in is also available for only 15 pounds. (1KD = 2.4 pounds)

I don’t like the Ruby Tuesday on the Gulf Road for numerous reasons so when I saw the one at Avenues opening I didn’t think much of it. That is until I heard that the Ruby Tuesday in Avenues was owned by someone else. Turns out there is a new owner of Ruby Tuesday in Kuwait and the previous owner is not letting go of the brand which makes things a bit of a mess. Anyway the Ruby Tuesday at the Avenues is the first location opened up by the new owner and I passed by and had dinner there tonight and I liked it.

Ruby Tuesday is located in the food court but its a big location and has an amazing view of the 5th ring road. The decoration was very cozy, the service was very friendly and the food was great. Overall it was a huge contrast over the Gulf Road version and I would definitely go back.

Update: According to a reader both the previous owners and the new owners are legit Ruby Tuesday franchise holders. If that is the case or not, it doesn’t change the fact that the new Ruby Tuesday at the Avenues follows the original US franchise a lot closer in my view. So far the menu seems to be exactly the same as the US one which you can view [Here]

Update2: I got the following in my email today…

Dear Mark,

National Arabic Company holds the master franchise in the middle east, they gave Sultan group a sub-licance to operate in the avenues. NAC is monitoring the Avenues Branch. The menu MUST be the same. There are no options regarding that.

thanks

While out playing with my Tamiya Frog today I hit this big rock and ended up dislocating the drive shaft from the rear axle and ripping up the joint boot. Its not a problem though since I already took apart the rear of the Frog and will fix it and put it back together again tonight. Just need to pass by the My Toy workshop in Muthana and pick up some grease and a new joint boot. This is what I love about these RC cars, you can take them apart and put them back together or swap out parts when something goes wrong just like real cars.

I needed to get a 7up so I went downstairs to the coke machine under my house and put 100fils in it and nothing happened. I put another 100fils and it still wouldn’t give me a 7up. The machine ate my money so I hit it a few times and pressed the money return button a few times and ended up getting KD1.200 back in change!

I’ve had this cookie recipe ever since I was in university and when used with proper ingredients it never failed me. Problem is I can’t find good chocolate chips in Kuwait. My favorite used to be Baker’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks but all I can find in Kuwait are the Nestle and Hershey ones which suck. Anyway I baked some cookies today (used the Hershey chocolate chip) and I think they came out a 2.5 out of 5. I might be able to score a 3 if I use better brown sugar next time but it would still be a hopeless case without the proper chocolate. Maybe I should just order packs from Amazon..

My favorite cookie recipe

1 cup (2 sticks) (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup (150 grams) white sugar

1 1/4 cups (270 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 3/4 cups (525 grams) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking soda

1 1/4 teaspoons (6 grams) baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups (375 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 165 degrees celsius. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper (or use non stick cookie pans).

In a mixing bowl cream the butter. Add the sugars and beat until well combined. Beat in eggs one at a time making sure to beat well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until just incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips and nuts, if using. The cookie mixture will be moist and hold together.

Using two tablespoons, drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (38 grams) on the prepared baking sheets. Do not flatten cookies. Bake on the center rack of oven for 12 minutes, or until golden brown and still soft when gently pressed.

Makes about 48 cookies.

Took the Frog out for some bashing in the sun. It was a lot of fun, check out some more pictures below.

I passed by My Toy a few hours ago and picked up a Tamiya Frog radio controlled buggy. Originally released in 1983 the Frog was re-released in 2006 and I think its one of the coolest looking buggies. Interesting fact, the largest off-road track in the world is currently being built in Kuwait. Check out this link for some pictures. [Link]

update: In case anyone is interested here is the phone number of My Toy 22256707

I posted just over a week ago about my kitchen from IKEA. Originally when I posted they were over installing my kitchen and it was a positive post but as the workers progressed with the installation things took a turn. In short they installed my kitchen bar crooked and had to fill the space on the side with a ton of silicon, also 2 panels were installed crooked and 2 major parts still weren’t in stock.

Surprisingly I got a call a few days later from a manager asking if everything was ok and if I had any feedback. He was a very nice guy and when I told him about my problems he offered to come by and check the kitchen which he did. He told us he would solve our problems and make sure the remaining items (two horizontal wall cabinets and two pull out corners) would be released from customs as soon as possible.

Today IKEA was back in my kitchen finishing up the install and fixing the problems from last time. When they were done I went to check the kitchen to make sure everything was fine. I opened the horizontal wall cabinet upward and the door came crashing down. I was like isn’t this supposed to stay open like the ones at display in IKEA? The employee was like this is the new model it doesn’t stay open. So every time I need to get something big from the cabinet I need to hold the door open with the top of my head while I use my two hands to take out an item? I didn’t get a response. I then opened the corner cabinets and to my surprise they had installed a rotating shelving system instead of the pullout I had chosen at IKEA. When I asked why they told me the pullout doesn’t fit in my cabinet, it needed a bigger cabinet. Fine but why didn’t the salesman tell me that instead of misleading me to believe I was getting the pullout? Not only that but we were really excited about the pullout shelves and we could have gone with larger corners if we had known.

A quick call to IKEA resulted in no help. There isn’t anything we can do about the corners, we were screwed by the salesman and to solve my wall cabinet problem they would replace our cabinet hinges with the older model off a display cabinet from the showroom.

The employees left and I was confused. The wall cabinet hinges are huge (pictured above) which doesn’t make sense if their only job is to open and close the doors. I also figured IKEA wasn’t stupid enough to make cabinet doors that don’t stay open so I took out the cabinet instruction manual and tried to see if I could fix it myself and guess what? I did! Turns out there was a screw they needed to rotate to the right like 30 times and that adjusted the door to stay open. The doors work perfectly now and stay open when lifted which means IKEA needs to start hiring people that read the goddamn manuals! My kitchen corners are screwed up but at least I don’t have to bang my head every time I take out a plate from the cabinet.

In conclusion, IKEA kitchens are affordable but you get what you pay for and that’s terrible finishing and sneaky salesman. If you do decide to get a kitchen from them make sure you not only go through the list of items one by one but also have the salesman show you each item one by one. A friend of mine had warned me about this based on his experience with IKEA and so I was careful but it seems not careful enough.

***REDUCED PRICE***

I’m selling my bike if anyone is interested. It’s an excellent condition Ducati Monster 620ie with upgraded Termignoni exhausts and has around 5000KM mileage on it. If you’re interested, send me an email. [Email Me]

Update: Bike is sold

IKEA are over today installing my new kitchen. My experience so far with them has been really great. I think it was around 2 months ago when I first approached them about getting a kitchen and they quickly sent someone over to get the sizes. After that it was kind of a long process for the design since me and Nat kept changing things around until we finally settled on something we were both happy with. After that it was all about trying to keep the cost down as much as possible and we were able to chop around 25% of the cost by removing things we didn’t need and when we finally paid we used an NBK credit card and got another 10% off as vouchers which dropped the price down even further. The guys installing the kitchen are telling me they need two days to finish the installation but they’re pretty quick so I think they might end up finishing today.

Update: I guess I spoke too soon. Its not even 3PM and the guys were packing up to leave, they told me they had another kitchen at 3PM they needed to go to. I was like WTF? My kitchen is 80% done and I booked this day over 2 weeks ago how could you leave after half a days work? So I called their manager up and complained, I told him I took a day off work and the employees came in at 10 and they are now leaving at 3. I told him the kitchen is nearly done so I don’t understand why they can’t work a full day on it and get it completed. He told me they only work from 7 to 3:30, I told him if they did come in at 7 we would be done by now plus they told me they have another kitchen they have to go and work on. The manager asked to speak to one of the guys over at my place and when he was done I was told they would stay longer and try to get the kitchen done today.