Category: Travel

Josh Cahill is a German-Czech aviation vlogger and airline critic who is considered to be the most-watched flight reviewer on YouTube. Yesterday he posted a video review of his flight with Kuwait Airways and spoiler alert, he had a wonderful experience. He liked a lot of things including surprisingly, the Chicken Kiev which he described as one of the best meals he’s had on any flight. Now I feel like I have to try it. Check out his review above.

Thanks Nidal

A few days ago Saudi Arabia announced that any GCC resident can now apply for a tourism eVisa. Previously you could only apply for an eVisa if you were from specific countries, while everyone else had to go through a more complicated process that included getting bank statements and visiting the embassy.

With the new announcement, there are still some requirements like your passport being valid for 6+ months, your residency valid for 3+ months and your occupation should be listed as eligible, but these are just minor things.

Once you get your visa online, you can choose to fly to Saudi or just drive there. Al Khobar and Bahrain are around 3-4 hours after crossing the border while Riyadh is around 5. If you missed my guide to driving to Saudi check it here, or apply for a Saudi visa by going to visitsaudi.com/visa

Monday I headed to Saudi for the first time in my new Hilux. I wasn’t sure if I had all the correct paperwork to make it past border control since I’m an expat driving a pickup truck that isn’t mine and I so heard I needed a lot of different papers and permissions. But, I made it!

As I previously mentioned, as an expat I can’t own a pickup truck so I had to get the car under a friend’s name. The only paperwork I needed to travel with the car was a power of attorney stating that I was allowed to drive and travel with the car. Getting a POA is a super easy process which I posted about. So that was great.

What wasn’t so great is on my way back yesterday there was a major dust storm. Once I got to Kuwait I realized the dust had sandblasted my windshield and the car’s forward-facing camera. I had PPF on the front of the car but not on the camera and not on the windshield. So now I got to figure out how to get this shit sorted out and how to stop it from happening again (if you have any ideas let me know, especially about the windshield!). I now need to see if both the camera and windshield can be polished or if I need to get them replaced. Not something I wanted to do on a brand new car…

I posted an update to my T1 to T4 shuttle bus post, in summary, there is no airport shuttle bus once you leave the terminal but you can take the public bus. Read the update here.

So I flew out of the Kuwait Airways terminal on Friday and parked my car in the long-term parking there, but then had to change my return date and now flying back to Kuwait on Emirates which lands at terminal 1.

Does anyone know if there is a shuttle bus between the two terminals? I checked the T4 website which I didn’t know existed till a few moments ago and there isn’t any info there.

Update: Yesterday I landed at terminal 1 and ended up taking a public bus to terminal 4. There is no shuttle bus once you exit the airport (there is one for transit passengers inside the airport but before immigration). Once you pass immigration and exit the airport your only option is a cab to terminal 4 or a public bus. The public bus station is located off to the side of the airport (Google Maps) and when I got there I found five buses parked.

A KPTC bus was about to leave but I yelled and waved to the bus driver and he stopped. I wasn’t sure if he was gonna pass by T4 but it was one of their new buses so I wanted to try it out. When I got on the bus I asked the driver if he was passing by the Kuwait Airways terminal and he said yes. The cost of the ride was the regular 250fils bus fee. 2 minutes later he dropped me off at the bus station outside T4. Fast and easy.

Back in March, I posted about my trip to Khobar and Bahrain along with a detailed step by step guide of the requirements and the journey. This morning I drove to Saudi again but this time I headed to Riyadh. I left my apartment in Salmiya around 6:20 AM and made it to our office in Riyadh by 12:40 PM. This included a bunch of tops along the way for treats, fuel, bathroom breaks and photography. Not too bad.

The most surprising thing was the fact that 95% of the trip was on a two-lane two-way road. Right after I entered Saudi, Google Maps made me exit the main road onto a small side road. I thought it must have mixed up or that this small road would lead to the large highway but it didn’t. The road stayed that way till I got to Riyadh. It was pretty freaky at first since cars would be speeding toward me going over 120km/h and I’m just hoping they don’t hit me head on. But after an hour into the trip, there were no more cars on the road. It was very serene.

It was such a nice drive and the scenery was pretty nice in some parts. There was one long strip of road that lasted maybe two hours where there was nothing around except for red sand dunes. No people, no gas stations, no buildings, nothing. It felt great being out there alone.

The trip didn’t feel like it was 6 hours long and I would definitely recommend it if you like to drive.

I’m back from my trip to Lebanon and while there I realized I should post about the financial situation in Lebanon at the moment. It’s a bit of a mess but if you do it right then it could be a pretty affordable trip. If you’re planning a trip to Lebanon this summer or looking for an affordable place to travel to, this post is for you.

You might have been to Lebanon before and think you don’t need this guide, but a lot of things have changed over the past couple of years because of the financial system collapse, the pandemic, and the massive Beirut explosion. The currency has devalued considerably and the cost of living there has skyrocketed for the residents, but to our advantage, has become cheaper for tourists.

I’m going to try and keep this as simple as possible so as not to confuse you or scare you off.

Previously, 1 US Dollar equaled 1,500LL. Now it’s around 1 USD = 30,000LL, it varies slightly from day to day but this was the rate as I was typing this post. This rate is what Lebanese call the “market rate” or “black-market rate”. The banking sector in Lebanon on the other hand has a different rate which as I’m writing this post is 1 USD = 25,000LL. The banking sector rate is the conversion rate if you use your credit cards in Lebanon. To make matters more complicated, all the online currency conversion apps are inaccurate because they still use the old 1$ = 1,500LL rate.

So tip #1, don’t use currency apps to convert the currency, use a calculator. A friend who used a currency convertor thought she was quoted 350KD for a haircut when in reality it was just 18KD.

Tip #2, take all the money you want to spend on your trip with you in dollars. If you use your credit card there you are going to technically be paying more and in some cases, you could be paying the a much much higher price (more on that below). The only thing you should use your card for is paying for your airline ticket and hotel, for everything else you should be paying cash in Lebanese Lira. Once you check in to your hotel ask them where the closest money exchange place is. I personally use Western Union / OMT stores or Whish ones and they’re both easy to spot. You should find them scattered around Lebanon but your hotel can point you to one near you. Go there and exchange enough money you need for a day or two. The reason I wouldn’t recommend exchanging more is that the currency has devalued so much, that you’ll be walking around with a huge wad of cash. 300$ exchanged to LL is going to give you ninety 100,000LL notes, the image above is how that looks like. Here is a money exchange shop in Gemeyze.

Tip #3, figure out how you are going to carry the wads of cash around because they won’t fit in your wallet. Most guys carry fanny packs in Lebanon, I just exchange for a day or two and so the wad is small enough to fit into my front pocket.

Tip #4, don’t leave Lebanon with Lebanese Lira. I don’t think anyone outside Lebanon will exchange them back to KD or Dollars, and by the time you come back to Lebanon next time, the money might not be worth anything. So make sure you exchange them back to Dollars at the exchange shops. If you’re leaving on a Sunday and need an exchange shop that opens on Sundays, here is one.

Tip #5, as I mentioned earlier, currency apps are not accurate since they still think 1$ is 1,500LL. Some websites and apps do not display the correct USD prices because they convert them from LL. For example, if you try to book a car with Avis Lebanon, the pay now price is the correct amount, but the pay later price is not. That’s because Avis has to list the LL rate for the pay-on-collection option since you would be paying for it when in Lebanon and the law says they have to list the LL rate. But, the Avis website uses an online currency exchange software that thinks 1,500LL is 1$ and so the pay-on collection price ends up being ridiculously high. You can see what I mean in the screenshot above. I have a friend on this trip who used a food delivery app and paid with his credit card in USD even though we had told him not to use his credit card in Lebanon. The app converted the LL to USD using the wrong rate and he ended up paying $200 for a chicken sandwich. He spoke to customer support and they’re thankfully refunding him the money back.

Tip #6, if you want to know the latest market rate and bank rate for the LL, use the lirarate.org website.

I think that’s all of it. So the gist of it is don’t use currency apps, don’t use your credit card in Lebanon, and bring all the dollars with you to Lebanon and exchange them to LL as you need them.

If you have any questions let me know in the comments.

Since I’m traveling today I realized I never posted about the best backpack ever. Earlier this year I was looking for a replacement for my Herschel backpack and ended up ordering the Sandqvist Ilon from the Sandqvist website. It looked cool, it had all the features I wanted and it wasn’t too expensive. But, it turned out to be the worst backpack I’ve ever owned. The bags canvas material was too rough and scratchy, the bag had no give, and the shoulder straps kept losing their set length every time I picked up the bag. After using it on one trip I decided never to use it again. I really really hated it.

In April while in London I decided to pass by the Sandqvist store. I don’t know why, I think I was hoping an employee would come up to me and ask me if I’ve owned a bag so I could then tell them yes and vent to them about how much I hated it and it was the worst purchase ever. The Sandqvist store small, I walked in, looked around and nobody asked me if I had a bag so that plan failed. But, while there, a guy walked in with a pretty cool looking Sandqvist backpack. I don’t remember how, I think I might have asked the employee there what bag that was and then the guy with the bag heard me and struck up a conversation about the bag. He couldn’t stop talking about how great the backpack was. He cycles a lot and told me how the bag was weather resistant and his stuff never got wet, and how the bag can hold a lot of stuff and was very comfortable to wear. He was really passionate about the bag, maybe as much as I was passionate in hating the bag I had gotten it. So he sold me on it and I ended up buying it, the Ruben 2.0.

He wasn’t wrong, this is by far the best backpack I’ve ever owned and I’ve owned a lot. The bag’s material is soft to the touch, has give so very usable when full, it’s light, fits a ton of stuff, looks great and has all the pockets I want (front pouch, pouch inside, laptop sleeve, and two side pockets on the outside to hold my water bottles). I ended up wearing it everyday while in London to carry my stuff and all the shopping I did. I then used it to travel with a few times and so far it’s been amazing. The material also seems pretty durable since I throw the bag around without care and there are no scratches or any blemishes at all. It’s also really easy to clean so I don’t worry about spilling anything on it. The one and only negative comment I have about it and I’m being really picky is that I wish the inside pouch was located a bit higher up the bag since I use it to put my passport in. Right now I have to dig down into the bag to get to it but that really is the only negative thing I have to say about it.

If you’re looking for a great backpack get this! I paid 62KD for it in London (£165) but it’s available for slightly less (58KD) on the Sandqvist website. Here is the Link.

I can’t be alone in thinking how great Kuwait Airways has become right? I just got to the airport because I’m traveling today and once I got there it was pretty busy. I thought to myself it’s going to be such a disaster inside even though I didn’t have any bags to check in. I printed my boarding pass from one of the machines, got to immigration and breezed through it and then the same with security. I’m now sitting down near one of the gates just 30 minutes after arriving to the airport. That was really fast for a busy airport.

I try to fly Kuwait Airways as much as possible because of how good the overall experience has become. The planes are comfortable, the airport terminal better than the other ones we have and so far I’ve never had issues finding parking in the long term lot. It’s not Qatar Airways but it’s much more convenient when flying direct than to stop in Doha or Dubai first. I really like Kuwait Airways.

A Business Insider article was published yesterday on the worst airports in the world and Kuwait came in 2nd. The problem is the list Business Insider used is from 2019 and so the list being shared locally is outdated.

In the current ranking, Kuwait STILL has the 2nd worst airport, but the rest of the list is slightly different:

1- Lisbon Portela Airport, Portugal
2- Kuwait International Airport, Kuwait
3- Eindhoven Airport, Netherlands
4- Henri Coandă International Airport, Romania
5- Paris Orly Airport, France
6- Malta International Airport, Malta
7- Frankfurt International Airport, Germany
8- Dubai International Airport, United Arab Emirates
9- London City Airport, United Kingdom
10- Manchester Airport, United Kingdom

The biggest difference between the 2022 list above and the 2019 list is that Kuwait is joined by UAE on the list. Dubai’s International Airport is currently ranked the 8th worst in the world for some reason. Qatar’s airport on the other hand is still ranked as the world’s best airport.

For the latest ranking of best and worst airports, check out the full list on AirHelp.

Last year I bought the Fujifilm X100V to use as my compact camera when taking photos for my blog and for when I travel. I just loved the way the camera looked and so convinced myself that my Sony A7 III was too big and bulky for traveling and I needed the X100v. I wasn’t really exaggerating much, the A7 was actually a bit big and heavy, even with a compact lens. I had tried taking the Sony with me on a few trips and I just ended up leaving it in the hotel room most of the time. I was hoping I’d carry the lighter and more compact X100V more and after having now taken it on three different trips, I can easily say this is the best travel camera I’ve ever had.

Most cameras nowadays can take great quality photos, but what sets aside the Fuji for me is the way it looks, the way it feels, and most importantly, the weight. Walking around a city for hours with the X100V hung across my shoulder was never an issue at all. When I traveled with the Fuji I always had it on me and rarely ever left it in the hotel. It was never annoying to carry no matter how long I was out of the hotel for. On trips that required me to wear a heavy jacket because of the cold, I could barely even tell I had the camera on me.

The battery life was also great, I’d go for days without having to recharge the camera and when I had to it used USB-C which is what I carry with me because of my MacBook. So I didn’t need to pack an extra cable or charger with me. The camera is also really well built and weather-sealed so I didn’t have to worry about knocking it around or being stuck in the rain with it. I think one thing I liked about the camera was how it made me want to take more photos, especially when it came to capturing moments I came across. No hassle, no having to think about anything, I’d just see a moment and quickly grab the camera from my side, turn it on and by the time it’s up at my eye it was ready to shoot. The simplicity and speed allowed me to capture a lot more moments compared to any of my previous cameras I traveled with.

The only issue I had with the Fuji was related to the transfer of the images from the camera to the phone. It’s all done wirelessly which is great but the Fuji software can be a bit buggy sometimes and I’d have to quit the software or turn on and off the camera a few times to get things working.

At around 400KD the camera isn’t cheap but it’s half the price of my Sony A7 III and so I felt a lot more comfortable taking it with me on trips. It really is such a great camera, I love it and can’t recommend it enough.

Since I just got back last week from my vacation I’m not leaving again but I’m curious to where people are thinking of traveling to. Lebanon used to be a popular destination but with the recent issues, a lot of people are steering away from it so I’m guessing Dubai is most likely the most popular spot.

[poll id=”19″]

While in London I spotted an Amazon Fresh grocery store next to my hotel using their grab-and-go concept. Basically it’s the next step after self-checkout, there is no checkout. You basically walk into the store, open your Amazon app and pull up a QR code which you need to scan at the entrance before going in. After that, you just take whatever you want from the shelves and then walk out without having to go through the checkout process. The store’s AI matches you to your Amazon account and using various cameras knows what you take and just charges your credit card.

The process felt pretty weird cuz on the way out you don’t have to scan or do anything, you just walk out. So it feels like you forgot to do something or that you’ve stolen an item. But it’s pretty great and after my first purchase, I got £10 credit put into my account to use during the day at the store, and then the second time I picked up something, I got another £10 credit put into my account to use during the evenings at the store. So basically was shopping for free.

I still don’t understand why our supermarket chains here don’t install self check out machines. Dear Sultan Center, please install self-checkout machines it’s 2022!

A couple of days back ago I got back from a 10-day trip to London. Other than a day stopover in 2018 on my way from LA, it was my first time back in London since 2015. I flew Kuwait Airways which btw, is so much better than flying British Airways. Firstly the timings of the flights make a lot more sense (no late night flight so no need to sleep on the plane) but also the overall experience is better because of the Kuwait Airways airport and the less busy flight. Because I was staying for 10 days I needed a reasonably priced hotel that wasn’t a shoebox, was somewhat trendy looking and located in a great area. After doing a ton of research I decided to stay at the Kingsland Locke in Dalston.

I hadn’t heard of Dalston nor had I been to it up until this trip. It’s an area in East London, part of the Hackney borough. If you’ve been to Shoreditch before then it’s around a 30-minute walk up from there. Dalston turned out to be the best place I could imagine staying. I had the award-winning bakery The Dusty Knuckle like a 5-minute walk from my hotel so that sorted out my breakfast and coffee routine every morning. Instead of losing weight on this trip because of all the walking, I think I put on weight because of all the pastries I was having every morning. I was also within walking distance from the bar 🔶🟥🔵 which became my go-to spot for a nightcap and to chill at the end of the day.

I was also surrounded by loads of grocery stores including M&S and Amazon Fresh (post on that coming soon). There was also a Pret-A-Manger, a community garden and an amazing Indian restaurant called Attawa all a few minute’s walk.

The area is connected to the rest of London via Overground and there were two different stations next to the hotel, one that was a 2-minute walk and another a 5-minute walk. Both stations were on different lines so it made getting anywhere rather simple and quick. Shoreditch and Peckham were both reachable without swapping any trains while areas like Oxford Circus or Notting Hill would require swapping to the Underground line which was just 2-stops away.

The hotel itself was pretty cool. It gave off a slight hipster vibe but it was subtle. The interior was nicely designed, and the staff were friendly. The hotel works like a short stay apartment which it what helps keep the costs down. It’s like a tiny studio apartment so you get a fully functioning kitchen in the room and a laundry area in the basement if you need it. There isn’t a daily cleaning service, depending on how long you’re staying you might get a complimentary clean included or you can request it for an extra cost. If you want new towels, shampoos, toilet paper etc, you can just request those at the front desk.

I stayed in their City Studio room which was fairly small but larger than the room I stayed in last year at The Hoxton in Paris (which also cost twice as much). The bed and pillows were super comfy, and the whole room gave a very cozy vibe. Even though this hotel was one of the affordable ones I found, it still cost KD60 a night, so it’s attainable but wouldn’t call it cheap. You can obviously find cheaper rooms but don’t think you can find one that has as cool a personality and vibe that was located in a good area. I’d totally stay there again if I go back.

If you’re traveling to London this Eid and haven’t booked a place to stay in yet then check this place out. Here is a link to the hotel website Link

I’ve been in London for the past 10 days but heading back to Kuwait today. I wasn’t planning to not post while here but I just didn’t have the time or mindset to do so. I think I just needed a break.

Things should be back to normal here starting tomorrow.