It can’t get any easier than participating in Fawzia Sultan Healthcare Network’s (FSHN) annual charity sporting event, RunKuwait to help better the lives of children with special needs. Last year, the charity event contributed towards 795 treatment sessions offered at no-cost for children and this year, you have the ability to positively impact and increase that number!
Back for the eighth time in a row, RunKuwait is a charitable initiative aimed towards raising awareness and funds towards the rehabilitative treatment of vulnerable children with special needs. Since 2013, all registration proceeds are channeled directly towards the non-profit Children’s Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC), founded by FSHN.
Never participated in a race before?
The best part about RunKuwait is that you see people from all walks of life and shapes and sizes be part of this race, all for a good cause. Get a friend, colleague or your family members to join you for a whole morning of fun. The event’s race village will host different warm-up exercises, and other fun activities for children and family members or friends who will join the event to cheer for the participants.
If you’re a regular at marathons and at RunKuwait
You know the drill – get ready and be prepared because you might be the first to cross the finish line this year. We can’t wait to see you again!
As always, there will be a 5KM or 10KM run or walk starting from The Scientific Center and interested participants can register on runkuwait.org in order to receive their race kits and join the race. To check out images from previous races or find out more about the run, follow us on Instagram at @runkuwait
We hope to see you there, this year!
Free passes for the first 20 readers! Head to @RunKuwait on IG and DM us to get your free registration code.
An extremely busy weekend filled with different things to do. If you’re not going to be home on the couch playing Red Dead Redemption 2, below is a list of other things you could do:
A reader sent me a link to an article on FRANCE 24 Observers website on a domestic worker’s experience in Kuwait. The worker was held against her will by her employer and was sexually abused for several months. In the end, she got rescued and you can now read about her ordeal [Here]
Since we are on the subject of domestic workers, can I say how much the housekeepers category on the Q8 4Sale website bothers me? I really like the website but this category basically allows domestic workers to be sold off like household goods.. [Link]
Yesterday I was in Rihab Complex looking for Red Dead Redemption 2 (FYI: Might be out today in Kuwait depending on customs but most likely tomorrow) when I decided to go to the retro gaming store upstairs to check out what they had. I’d posted about that store on the blog a few years ago, it was called Global Game and was just filled with old retro video game consoles. But, a couple of months back the store got a facelift, a name change and I’m assuming, a new owner.
The Global Game store is now called Retro Dungeon and looks a lot nicer and more organized than it did before. The store still specializes in vintage gaming consoles and while there I spotted a whole bunch of them including:
NEC PC-FX
NeoGeo AES
NeoGeo CD
Nintendo 64
Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo GameBoys
Super Nintendo
Panasonic 3DO
Sakhr MSX
Sakhr MSX2
Sega Dreamcast
Sega GameGear
Sega Genesis
Sega CD
Sega Saturn
Sony PlayStation 1
Sony PlayStation 1 Dev Kit
Sony PlayStation 2
Sony PlayStation 2 Dev Kit
And more…
They also had a whole bunch of games, all nicely organized and all wrapped in plastic. The whole place looks way better than it did before but the prices are also on the high side. Somethings made sense, like KD120 for a NeoGeo AES or KD150 for the NeoGeo CD, but KD35 for Donkey Kong Country on the Super Nintendo and KD45 for Donkey Kong Country 2 just seemed over the top.
If you’re looking for vintage games or consoles, check Retro Dungeon out. They’re in an alleyway on the top floor of Rihab Complex, and their instagram account is @retro_dungeon
Not sure if you know this or not, but like watching people play video games is a huge thing, watching people eat is also a pretty huge, at least in Asia. The actual term for it is mukbang which is a combination of the Korean words for eating and broadcasting.
The first time I came across a video of someone eating was back in 2012 when I posted about Emmy who was sent a box filled with sweets and snacks from Kuwait to try. Nowadays though the videos I tend to watch don’t have any talking, they’re usually just of someone sitting in front of their phones and broadcasting themselves eating something. The only sound you’ll hear come from any crunching or slurping that’s taking place. An example is the video above which has 24 million views and is just of a guy eating some crispy fried chicken.
I’ve always found this fascinating so when a friend of mine called Fajer started doing something similar here in Kuwait I got super excited. I’ve known Fajer for years, she’s always been a big foodie and I always love going out to eat with her. Recently she started gaining popularity with her food eating videos. At first, she started posting them on her personal instagram account, but then she got invited by the popular local food account @q8food to do live broadcasts of herself eating there. That’s when she really started blowing up and now even has her own account @fajereats.
I honestly think its a brilliant idea and I’m not only saying that because she’s a friend. With every girl in Kuwait left and right trying to be a fashionista, I love how Fajer is having fun by just being herself in front of the camera, stuffing down a 5 patty burger because she feels like it.
So if you’re into mukbang or curious to check it out, she does a live broadcast a few times a week on @q8food and you can also check out some videos on her own account @fajereats.
Singarea, the popular Asian supermarket now carries live French oysters! They say they’re the first in Kuwait to carry live oysters but that can’t be true right? First or not first it doesn’t really matter though, if you want live oysters I don’t know of any other place you can get them. If you’ve never been or heard of Singarea then click [Here]
Just a quick update to my Kuwait Airport Terminal 4 post from last week. In addition to Kuwait Airways GCC and Middle East flights, Kuwait Airways flights to and from Europe (excluding London) now also use the new terminal.
If you missed my previous post check it out [Here]
For the last 8 years we have been working hard to bring world class entertainment and educational gurus to Kuwait.
Our last entertainment project was the Eddie Griffin stand up comedy show which unfortunately was banned today the 21st of October 2018 by the Ministry of Interior in Kuwait.
We respect all the rules and regulations of the state of Kuwait and hope that we can progress in our already existing rights and freedoms.
We would like to thank everyone who’s supporting us and believes in what we are doing and we promise that we will keep working hard to bring world class entertainment to Kuwait while still protecting our values as a society.
Also, for everyone who bought tickets to attend the Eddie Griffin show, you will be reimbursed through your bank accounts by our ticketing partner Eventat.com [Source]
No reason was given for the ban but most likely it has to do with Eddie Griffin’s religious beliefs (he’s an atheist) and previous religion-related sets which he’s performed. The strange thing is, Eddie Griffin had previously performed in Saudi Arabia which many believe to be more conservative than Kuwait, and Eddie Griffin is currently set to perform in three different Saudi cities over the next few days. So bizarre!
I’m not into the NFL but if you are then you’ll be interested to know that there is a pretty big NFL community in Kuwait. Since the weather has gotten better, they’ll be holding their first NFL viewing event of the season tonight in Salmiya. The viewings are outdoors and the games are projected on a large screen and there’s always food and lots of seating. So if you’re interested, you can get more details [Here]
Oh G! is an ice cream business that I found out about from a friend. I had originally tried their ice creams at Tampopo last week and thought they were delicious so when I found out Oh G! had provided the ice creams, I decided to order some for me.
At Tampopo I had tried two flavors of for dessert, a dark chocolate with sea salt, and a Yuzu ice cream. But, Oh G! change flavors every week and when I wanted to place an order from them they had the following flavors for me to choose from:
Naughty
– Dark Chocolate Sea Salt
– Dark Roast Arabica Coffee
I ended up ordering a pint of each except for the peanut butter since I hate peanut butter (Note: I really hate peanut butter). All three flavors were delicious with my favorite combination being mixing the dark chocolate with the banana brûlée together and eating it like that (Note: I really love banana mixed with chocolate). The pints cost KD4.5 to KD5 depending on the flavor and they’re good enough for 6-8 scoops so they’re not overly expensive. If you’re an ice cream fan and are looking for a new place to try ice cream from then give Oh G! a try. They’re on instagram @ohg.kw
I just found out that the popular British online food delivery company Deliveroo is coming to Kuwait. Deliveroo is the British equivalent to Carriage and they operate in over two hundred cities including Dubai. Kuwait is going to be a pretty tough market for them since Carriage and Talabat have the market cornered here, but competition is always great for us.
I’ve had my eyes on the Sony noise canceling headphones ever since their first generation was launched a few years ago, then last year I was tempted to get their second generation (the XM2’s), but never ended up pulling the trigger. Then, a few months ago, Sony surprised everyone by launching their third generation XM3 headphones and they instantly became a huge hit. Many were calling it the best wireless noise canceling headphones you can buy and most of the reviewers agreed that they were miles ahead of the popular BOSE QC35 II. I decided I wanted one.
Since the headphones had just been released a couple of months back and were super popular, they were sold out at every US and UK retailer I checked from Amazon, to BestBuy to Currys. Even on eBay they were being sold at ridiculous prices. After a week of searching, I finally found a retailer in Australia that was selling them at retail price and I ended up ordering my pair from there and shipping them to my Australian Shop&Ship address. Surprisingly, Aramex were pretty quick with the shipping and I managed to get my pair delivered this past Thursday just before I traveled to Dubai. After using them while working out of Arabica and then again on the plane, I’m in shock at how good these are.
For those of you who’ve been reading my blog for years, you probably know I have an obsession with headphones. I actually just found a list of some of the headphones (and earphones) I’ve owned:
AKG K81 DJ
Bang & Olufsen A8
Bang & Olufsen H5
Beats by Dre
BeyerDynamic DT770 600ohm
Sennheiser Adidas PMX 680i
Sennheiser IE80
Sennheiser PX100
Sennheiser PX100-II
Sennheiser PXC250
Shure E2
Shure SE210
Shure SE215
Sony MDR-XB500
UE Super.fi 5 Pro
UE Triple.Fi 10 Pro
So I’ve used a lot of headphones over the years but my current go-to pair when traveling were the fantastic Sennheiser IE80. They sounded terrific and because they were wired, it meant they never ran out of batteries. But they had two issues, the first being they were wired, wireless is more practical of course especially on a plane. The second issue I had was with the comfort, the IE80’s are in-earphones so on long trips my ears would get really warm and sweaty. I wanted a new travel pair and these Sony’s solved all my issues.
Firstly, the Sony’s are wireless, but they also have a 30-hour battery life which means even on my longest flight to LA, I’d be able to use the headphones on the plane, during transit and still get to LA with lots of battery left. Secondly, the Sony’s are super comfortable. I haven’t used them yet for more than 2-3 hours at one go, but so far they’ve been extremely comfy. The Sony’s fit around my ears so they aren’t applying any pressure on them and the padding is super soft. The most important aspect of these Sony’s and what really makes them so great is the noise cancelation abilities. I haven’t used a lot of noise-canceling headphones but people who have say these are the best ones you can buy right now. I’m going to believe them because based on my experience this past weekend, they work like magic. On the plane, they COMPLETELY cancel out the lound rumbling engine sound, my flight to Dubai and back was extremely quiet and peaceful. Every time I took the headphones off I was actually in shock at how loud the plane was without them. I actually feel that way whenever I take the headphones off after using them anywhere. We are surrounded by so much sound everywhere we go and we don’t tend to realize it because we’re so used to it. These headphones really transport you into a quiet space, so you’ll get the library silence wherever you are. They aren’t perfect, while using them at Arabica, if I didn’t have any music playing I could still kinda hear people chattering.
The headphones have a lot of cool features and can even be connected to an app that allows you to control the amount of ambient sound they let in, but, I’m not going to go into too many details since you could watch or read more comprehensive reviews online. What I will say is this, these Sony’s sound great, are super comfortable and kill the sound around you so good that you won’t believe it.
If you’re interested in a pair I couldn’t find any place locally to get them and they’re still hard to get online. BUT, while I was at the Duty Free in Dubai I spotted them being sold there and for around KD110. So if you have a trip to Dubai planned or know someone traveling, let them get you a pair. Here is a link to them on Amazon but they’re out of stock as of this post [Link]
