Category: Travel

Last night I got to see Imagine Dragons and Atlas Genius both perform live here in London. I was supposed to arrive at the venue two hours ahead of time so I could try and end up close to the front of the stage but in a typical Mark move I ended up arriving two hours ahead of time… at the wrong venue. The concert was being held at the O2 Academy Brixton but I ended up going to the O2 Arena so after finding out my mistake I had to spend 40 minutes in the subway heading to the correct location on the other side of town. Although I didn’t end up right up front it wasn’t bad at all since I was still pretty close to the stage.

[YouTube]

The first band to perform last night were Atlas Genius. Even though Imagine Dragons are performing in London for three nights, Atlas Genius were only opening up for them on the first night and since I’m a fan of theirs I decided to get tickets for that night. Atlas Genius aren’t that popular but they’ve got two songs I really love one of which would probably make it into my top 20 indie tracks list. They weren’t that exciting performers live but nevertheless it’s still always great to hear a favorite song being played live in front of you.

Dan Croll came on after Atlas Genius but I only knew and liked one song of his (From Nowhere) and even though his performance was better than Atlas Genius, I couldn’t wait till he finished so Imagine Dragons could come on.

[YouTube]

Imagine Dragons were the third and final act for the night and I had heard they were great live. After watching them live now I can say that is very true. I was actually surprised by their whole performance. Even though they had arrived to London from LA just 5 hours before the show, they played every song with so much passion and energy I was just blown away. My favorite song of theirs is Amsterdam (watch it here) but I think their performance last night for Radioactive which I’ve embedded above was my favorite. Oh yeah the stage was full of percussion instruments which the whole band participated in therapeutically venting out on through out the night.

Yesterday was the first time I took my GX1 camera with me to a concert. Micro 4/3 cameras like the GX1 are perfect for concerts since they look like point and shoot cameras which you’re allowed to bring in, but the quality of the shots is closer to DSLR’s which you aren’t allowed to bring into events. I was taking photos with my camera and then transferring them to my phone using the Eye-Fi card which I posted about the other day, and then uploading them to Instagram.

Two more concerts left and then it’s back to Kuwait.

If you’re looking for an advertisement free Kuwait Airport arrivals and departures tracking app then KAFI is the one to get. The app is very simple in case a flight you’re tracking hasn’t arrived yet you can turn on notification for that flight so that once it lands the app will let you know. The app is available for both iOS and Android and can be found by searching for KAFI or by using one of the links below:

iOS Version
Android Version

Update: Do not download this app. The app no longer works unless you agree to send adverts to your friends.

This is my last post on Abu Dhabi but I actually posted it on Blog Baladi since it’s related to Lebanon as well. Those of you who visit Lebanon in the summer and party at Skybar probably know that they close down in the winter because of the weather. Well Skybar are now launching O1NE in Beirut next month and it’s basically Skybar but indoors.

While I was in Abu Dhabi last weekend I found out they had opened up there so I ended up passing by to check it out. What I really wanted to see was the interior since a friend of mine who works for Skybar had previously told me they designed the interior with the concept to project visuals across the full 360 degrees of the interior. The outcome looks pretty great and if you’re curious to see how O1NE in Beirut will end up looking like check out my post [Here]

So the main reason I was in Abu Dhabi last weekend was for the Formula 1 Grand Prix which I had never experienced before. In Abu Dhabi the track is located on Yas Island surrounded by a whole bunch of entertainment facilities like a marina, a hotel, Ferrari World, Waterworld, O1NE by Skybar, Du Arena and more. The evening of the F1 practice sessions I was in the car heading to one of the super yachts when I heard the sound of the F1 cars live for the very first time. At that moment it was the most beautiful sound in the world that gave me goosebumps and sent an adrenaline rush through my body. It was incredible loud and powerful and I couldn’t wait for race day.

I think we had one of the best seats in the house for the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 event. Our seats weren’t really seats but more like a lounge with 5-star catering and a balcony with a seating area overlooking the start line and located right over the Ferrari pit lane. We were in the Paddock Club. If that wasn’t cool enough we had a few celebrities in our lounge including football legend Maradona, Knight Rider and Baywatch star David Hasselhoff and the founder of Pagani Motors, Horacio Pagani. With the Paddock Club access we also got access to the pit lane which meant we could check out the teams prepping the cars for the race.

Watching the race at the track was a pretty strange experience since I spent most of the time watching it on the large screens that were located across from us because you couldn’t see the whole track while sitting in one location. So even though I was physically at the race I was still watching it as if I was sitting at home except I was sitting next to Maradona and Hasselhoff.

It was a once in a lifetime experience and as I told our hosts, I’m now probably spoiled and don’t think I could ever watch a Formula 1 event live again unless I get to experience it the same way I did on this trip.

Before I arrived to Abu Dhabi I was given a bunch of activities to choose from and one of the available options was a tour of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Ever since I watched the video of the 3D mapped projections on the mosque two years ago I’ve been fascinated by the mosque. I hadn’t seen or heard of the mosque before that video and after watching it I thought that place looked really beautiful.

I was put up at the Ritz Carlton in Abu Dhabi which was located practically across the street from the mosque and as I drove by on my way to the hotel I realized the place was as big as I imagined it would be. On the second day of my visit I was taken on a private tour of the mosque and I loved it. While still outside the mosque the first thing you’ll realize is that you can see the courtyard inside since the sides of the mosque are open and overlook a pool of water giving the place a very open feel. Once you walk through the main entrance the first area you get to see is the large courtyard. The sky was a nice blue and the mosque was crystal white so I was able to get some beautiful shots of the courtyard before we were led to the other end where we had to take off our shoes before being taken inside the mosque. Once inside I just couldn’t focus anymore, there was so much to see all around with one of the largest chandeliers in the world hanging above my head to the worlds largest carpet below my feet. The walls and ceilings were all intricately designed and I was just wandering around with my jaw dropped while the guide was explaining everything. It’s such a beautiful place and like nothing else I had ever seen before.

If you’re in Abu Dhabi and want a tour of the mosque they do offer public tours a number of times a day. You can find out more about that on the mosques website along with more information [Here]

Since I knew before hand I was going to visit the mosque I ended up borrowing the super wide angle Sigma 12-24mm lens from AAB World. If it wasn’t for this lens I wouldn’t have been able to capture the mosque in the way I did in the photographs above. Especially once I was inside the mosque since a normal lens wouldn’t have been able to fit so much detail and architecture all into one shot. I was planning to have a stand alone review for this lens but while I was getting all the photos ready for this post I realized sharing these photos would be the best review I could give it. It’s definitely not a day to day lens but on occasions like this I wouldn’t want to be stuck without this lens.

I’m currently on the way back to Kuwait from Abu Dhabi after spending an exciting and thrilling long weekend here. We were in total around 14 writers who were brought in from different parts of the world to experience Abu Dhabi during the Formula 1 weekend and I’ve got quite a bit to write about. In summary, wow that was fun.

It’s currently 3AM right now and I’m at the airport waiting to board a flight to Abu Dhabi. A couple of weeks back I got an email from the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority inviting me to visit Abu Dhabi for their Formula 1 weekend and enjoy all the activities they had lined up. They sent me my weekends schedule and it includes kayaking in the mangroves, sand surfing, tour of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the Jay Z concert, the Muse concert, Ferrari World, Waterworld and best of all, I get to watch the Formula 1 Grand Prix this weekend from the paddock club suite followed by the Depeche Mode concert! I’ve never been to Abu Dhabi so this is probably the best way to experience it. I’ll be posting pictures on my Instagram to add me if you aren’t already following me @mark248am

If you’re still in London then you should stop by Scalini before you get back to Kuwait. Scalini is supposedly Signor Sassi’s direct competitor here in London and it’s also supposed to be better. I tried both out and even though I preferred Scalini they’re both really very similar. Scalini have a great seating area with a skylight which I loved since it brought in a lot of natural daylight into the place.I also enjoyed the food at Scalini a bit more than at Signor Sassi. I had the fresh clams linguini at Scalini and the spaghetti lobster at Signor Sassi and between the two I preferred the fresh clams linguini just because I hadn’t had clams in years and thought the dish was delicious.

Price wise Scalini and Signor Sassi are very similar. The bill at Scalini for three people came out to just over 200 pounds but nearly half that was for the wine. So, it’s around KD15-20 per person without the wine but including two shared starters, three main dishes and three different desserts. Scalini is located walking distance from Harrods at 1-3 Walton St. You need to call and book in advance.

Princi is a beautiful bakery and restaurant located in the Soho area of London. A large section of the place is dedicated to the bakery which displays freshly baked goods and you buy what you want and eat it in a large cafeteria-like dining area where everyone sits down on the same long tables. On the other hand, they also have the pizzeria with its own private dining area and à la carte menu. Since we got there early we decided to sit in the dining area which usually has a long waiting list. We ordered the heritage tomato salad with buffalo mozzarella to start with, 3 different pizzas and the wild mushroom linguini. We then followed lunch with dessert from the bakery which included tiramisu and a pear and chocolate cake.

Everything was delicious even though the pizzas were a bit on the heavy side. My favorite item was the pear and chocolate cake which I thought would be a strange combo at first only to be surprised by how moist and yummy it was. Pizzas cost around 10 pounds each which like everything else in London is not cheap.

Princi is located on 135, Wardour Street. Get there really early if you don’t want to wait. [Link]

If you’re going to be in London this coming week then make sure you pass by Burger & Lobster. They have only 3 items on their menu, lobster, a burger and a lobster roll. Whichever item you choose it’s 20 pounds. You NEED to have the lobster roll, it’s crazy good. It’s so good I actually can’t decide if I loved the bread it came in more than the lobster or vice versa. Try to go early if you do, there usually is a line and it could take up to two hours to get a table. Here is a link to their website [Link]

Also make sure you try Bubbledogs, a place that serves only hotdogs and champagne.

Since FlyDubai started flying out of the Sheikh Saad Terminal I’ve been getting emails from readers asking if they have long term parking. So I called the airport and found out they do have long term parking but it costs KD5 a day which is more than double the cost of long term parking at the main airport. The reason for this probably has to do with the fact there are a lot less parking spots available at Sheikh Saad Terminal.

Back when the airport was serving Wataniya Airways they had valet service who charged KD1 a day to park your car. An affordable alternative to parking your car yourself. But, I checked and there is no longer any valet service at Sheikh Saad Terminal so long term parking is your only option if you’re planning to take your car.

If you’re going down to Lebanon next week for Eid then below is my personal recommendation list:

The Gärten by Uberhaus
They’re only open Saturday night from around 8PM to 6AM and it’s my favorite place this summer. It’s an outdoor club that’s open just for 16 weeks with a large green garden filled with bean bags on one side and a huge open dome which is the dance floor on the other. You need to pass by and if you’re flying out on the morning MEA flight just head from The Garten straight to the airport. The place is easy to find, its right at the entrance to Biel (near Skybar). Here’s a video I shot the last time I was there [Here]

Tawlet
This is a very popular and a great Lebanese restaurant. They bring a new chef daily (usually a grandma) from a different part of lebanon to cook home made food. (01-448129)

Radio Beirut
Arguably my favorite pub this summer located in Mar Mikhael. I don’t think I’ve ever sat inside since the sidewalk is where everyone hangs out and drinks.

Lebanon. Lose Yourself. from Wissam Abdallah

The Lebanese Ministry of Tourism should hire this guy. Watch it in full screen and in HD.

via BlogBaladi

Travelogue is a new short film travel series by Zahed Sultan. It’s a fast-paced video diary that captures the little moments Zahed gets to experience as he takes his music to different countries and cities around the world.

I was just thinking the other day of a cool way to document all my traveling and I think local musician Zahed Sultan cracked it. All I do at the moment is Instagram pictures with the hashtag #markinsomewhere. Some people collect shot glasses, some people collect fridge magnets and I’m collecting hashtags I guess. So far this year I’ve collected the following:

#markinjapan
#markinrotterdam
#markinamsterdam
#markinparis
#markinprague
#markinbarcelona
#markinbasel
#markinmilan
#markinmanchester
#markinliverpool

Zahed Sultan’s video diaries (I think he is going to be doing a bunch of these) is a fantastic way to document all his traveling. I love it. [YouTube]

Note: You can’t view my Instagram photos unless you’re following me @mark248am

This past weekend I was in Lebanon and up in the area Tannourine so I decided to pass by the Baatara Gorge. I had only seen pictures of it before and really wasn’t expecting it to be so huge. The gorge is around a 5 minute drive off the main road and then around a 15 minute hike down a valley. There is no tour guide there or any fees you need to pay its just there for you to see and explore.

During the spring there is a large waterfall that flows down through the gorge but when I was there it was just a small stream of water dripping down. Still it was a beautiful sight to see and since it’s in the middle of nowhere it was very peaceful. There are no fences or any kind of safety features so it wouldn’t be recommended to go with children. I took a bunch of pictures but they really don’t do the place any justice.

You can check out some great photos of the gorge [Here]

While in Tannourine I would also recommend you visit the large Cedar Reserve (pictured above), it’s a great hike on a trail with beautiful views as well. [Link]