2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003
I’ve always heard of counterfeit alcohol that’s bottled locally, but I think this is the first time I see how an operation looks like. The photos below have been making their rounds on WhatsApp and shows how dealers bottle and label bottles. Although the photos are being labeled as taken in Kuwait on WhatsApp, they’re actually from Saudi Arabia (the logo is of the Saudi National Guard).
One of the dangers of illegally obtaining alcohol is you never know what you’re really buying.
The IMPROVengers comedy night is back and taking place tonight. There are still seats available so if you’re looking for something to do tonight, I highly recommend this. Here is the list of all the events taking place this weekend:
Thursday
SnowTown in K-Town
Fishackathon
Session: Heritage Workers
Music Night at GUST
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: Ghadi
Photography Exhibition: Omar Zuriqi
Live Music with Zak Musawi
Live with the IMPROVengers
Friday
SnowTown in K-Town
Fishackathon
Concert: Russ
Saturday
SnowTown in K-Town
Fishackathon
Farmers Market
Guided Tour: Grand Mosque
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: Cameraperson
Q8 Readers Book Club – Meet Mr. Saud Alsanousi
If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]
Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so always double check with the organizers.
Screenshot from Kickboxer: Retaliation
The movies below are now showing at either Cinescape, Grand Cinemas or Sky Cinemas:
New This Weekend:
Braven (6.5) ♦
Kickboxer: Retaliation (5.0)
Space Chicken (5.4)
The 15:17 to Paris (6.2) ♦
Winchester (5.3) ♦
Other Movies Showing:
12 Strong (7.5)
All the Money in the World (7.1)
Coco (9.1)
Den of Thieves (7.2) ♦
Ferdinand (6.8)
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (6.9) ★
Maze Runner: The Death Cure (7.2)
Phantom Thread (8.4)
Proud Mary (5.0)
Slumber (4.7)
The Commuter (6.8)
The Greatest Showman (7.9)
The Post (7.5)
Throne of Elves (6.2)
Wonder (7.2)
The movies below are also now showing at the Scientific Center IMAX theater:
A Beautiful Planet 3D (7.9)
Amazing Mighty Micro Monsters 3D (7.4)
America Wild: National Parks Adventure (N/A)
Dream Big 3D (7.9)
Extreme Weather 3D (6.6)
Tiny Giants 3D (8.0)
Watermelon Magic 3D (7.4)
Numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at time of publishing.
★ is for movies I’m interested in. ♦ implies movie might contain censorship.
A couple of days ago the Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre was inaugurated by the Emir and the event was broadcasted live on TV. In case you missed it, the ceremony is now available to watch on YouTube.
The cultural center will be open to the public later this month.
Thanks lovelykuwait
A couple of months back I attended a “Marine Mammals of Kuwait” seminar which focused mostly on dolphins and whales. It was kinda upsetting because it turns out we don’t have that much data on the whales and dolphins located in our waters. We don’t even have a proper database that archives sightings and we have too many local organizations that don’t seem to work or share data together. I actually had a huge rant I wrote right after attending the seminar but decided against posting it because I’m trying not to let shit like this get to me.
Sharks & Rays of the Arabian/Persian Gulf is a book I found out about after attending the seminar. I was sharing my frustration with a friend of mine and she told me about a Kuwaiti biologist who had a deep interest in sharks, so much so that she published this book that documents the sharks and rays in our waters. The book was only available on Amazon or The Palms dive center, so I didn’t end up picking it up until a few days ago when I found out that the book was now available at the Scientific Center gift shop.
The book costs KD10 with 60% of the income going to support sharks and rays research around the Arabian Peninsula. So if you care just a little bit, then you should really pick up a copy of this book.
I posted my first blog post ever exactly 15 years ago to this day. It wasn’t on 248AM, I launched that two years later, it was on another blog called qHate. Back then I was still living with my parents, I was piss-ass broke and didn’t really know anyone in Kuwait. Crazy how that was just 15 years ago since a lot has happened over that time. It’s kinda scary when I think about where I’ll be 15 years from now, probably in L.A. working in the electronics section of a Walmart would be my best bet.
My computer setup back in 2003
There are dates that represent important moments in my life, I was born in 1978, 1988 was my first trip to L.A., the Gulf War in 1990, graduating from high school in 96 and so on.
2003 is when I started blogging.
I’ve seen this building a bunch of times and always wondered what it was. The below was taken from archofkuwait:
Bait Ghaith Bin Abdullah Bin Yousif was built in the 1930s. It is located in Sharq, near the Museum of Modern Art, which was previously Al Sharqiah School for Girls.
Bait Ghaith is one of the old Kuwaiti houses and represents social, economic and cultural features of Kuwaiti society in the past. The house features an intertwined architectural layout typical of the original urban structures in old Kuwait City, particularly in terms of its empty space, its multifunctional features and the way it was built.
The house is located on a 280 sq.m. of land and was adjacent to several stores and houses including the Rashid Al Omer, Humoud Al Mutawa’, and Abdullah Al Madhi houses. The house of the late Ghaith Bin Abdullah Bin Yousif comprised a backyard, two rooms, a store, a bathroom, a kitchen and an upper room for his privacy. The house also contained a cistern to store water.
Ghaith bin Abdullah Bin Yousif was a merchant who used to buy goods and merchandise such as fruits, crates… etc. from ports and ship it to various countries by boats.
Today the Ghaith house maintains its characteristic architectural features, such as the wooden ceiling, the beams, and some of the wooden doors. In addition, the rooms still present the original construction of walls made of sea rocks. The National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters refurbished and maintained the building as an example of the old Kuwaiti architecture.
Bait Ghaith before restoration, 2005
For a few more pictures, click [Here]
I was talking to a friend last night who doesn’t drive and has to walk or take a cab to go get her groceries. So I was like why don’t you just order your groceries online?
We actually have a lot of options to choose from, so I decided to put together a list. Here are all the websites I’m aware of that deliver groceries:
Baqal
Baqala
Blue Passion
Dukkan
E-baqala
FAME
Fresh Mozzarella
Gourmet Me
Gourmet Shelf
Healthy Shop
InstaSalla (Only App)
OnCost
Lulu
Natureland
Prime Cuts
SaveCo
Taw9eel
The Approved Market
The Sultan Center
Tons (Only App)
If I missed anything let me know!
The new Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre (ASCC) is set to open towards the end of this month, but if you drive by at night, you can get a sneak peek at some of the dinosaurs on display.
Dazed and Confused is showing this weekend at Cinemagics! It’s easily one of my top 10 favorite movies ever and you should definitely watch it if you haven’t already. Other than that, the Madeenah walks are also back! It’s their first walk of the season so if you’re looking for something to do Friday morning, sign up to that. Check out the rest of this weekends events below:
Thursday
GulfRun Car Show
SnowTown in K-Town
Live Music: Temple Tree
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: La Haine
Friday
GulfRun Car Show
SnowTown in K-Town
Showjumping Competition
Madeenah Tour: City on Display
Kuwait Music Academy at Muse Lounge
KELSO Goes Off-Shore
Saturday
GulfRun Car Show
SnowTown in K-Town
International Self-Development Conference
Guided Photography Tour: Mosques
Q8 Readers Book Club – I Shall Not Hate
Qout Market
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: Dazed and Confused
If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]
Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so always double check with the organizers.
Screenshot from Den of Thieves
The movies below are now showing at either Cinescape, Grand Cinemas or Sky Cinemas:
New This Weekend:
Den of Thieves (7.2) ♦
Phantom Thread (8.4)
Proud Mary (5.0)
Slumber (4.7)
Throne of Elves (6.2)
Other Movies Showing:
12 Strong (7.5)
All the Money in the World (7.1)
Coco (9.1)
Dead Awake (4.6)
Ferdinand (6.8)
Guardians of the Tomb (7.2)
Insidious: The Last Key (7.2)
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (6.9) ★
Maze Runner: The Death Cure (7.2)
The Commuter (6.8)
The Greatest Showman (7.9)
The Post (7.5)
Wonder (7.2)
The movies below are also now showing at the Scientific Center IMAX theater:
A Beautiful Planet 3D (7.9)
Amazing Mighty Micro Monsters 3D (7.4)
America Wild: National Parks Adventure (N/A)
Dream Big 3D (7.9)
Extreme Weather 3D (6.6)
Tiny Giants 3D (8.0)
Watermelon Magic 3D (7.4)
Numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at time of publishing.
★ is for movies I’m interested in. ♦ implies movie might contain censorship.
Earlier this morning I was able to tour the new phase of Avenues, Phase 4. The Avenues extension is set to open on February 25th and so they invited the media today to walk around, explore and take photos.
Avenues Phase 4 includes expansions of existing districts like Prestige, Grand Avenue, and The Souk. But, they’ve also added new districts that include Arcadia, The Grand Plaza, The Forum, Electra and The Cinema, as well as a five-star and four-star hotel.
Phase 4 is HUGE, and its beautiful. They’ve basically taken the Grand Avenue indoor-but-looks-like-outdoor-look and built on it. It’s bright, airy and the main street is wide with lots of little alleyways that connect the various districts.
From what I saw there won’t be much open by February 25th other than a bunch of Alshaya brands, but it will still be a great space to wander about and explore.
If you want to check out more pictures of Phase 4 then check out my story on instagram. I’ve archived the story and so it should be up for some time. Check it out @mark248am
Update: I was just informed that February 25th is the target date but they’re still unsure if they’ll open by then. Also I uploaded a bunch of photos in hi-res which you can view [Here]
This is such a great show, mostly because of how super weird and dark the subject matter is, and yet, its a comedy. This Netflix original focuses on James, a 17-year-old kid who enjoyed killing animals while young and now is considering killing this girl he met called Alyssa, but he kinda likes her. Super weird yet very cute at the same time and I love that.
The series is 8 episodes long and each episode is just 20 minutes so you should be able to get through it in one night. Its super entertaining and pretty fast paced without a single boring moment. The casting director did an incredible job with the show which is filled with great personalities. If you have Netflix, you need to watch this. [Link]
Lavan is a new Indian restaurant that opened up in the city last month. When I first got invited to Lavan I didn’t really have high expectations. Lots of Indian restaurants pop up all the time and most tend to be average so I wasn’t expecting Lavan to be any different. When I got to the place I realized my expectations might be right, the interior was bland, so much so that I wasn’t even sure I had walked into the right restaurant. There was nothing Indian about the interior and the fact the restaurant didn’t have a sign outside didn’t help either. We definitely didn’t start off on the right foot.
But once the food started coming out my view of completely changed. Every single dish we had ordered was just delicious. I left so impressed that first time, I went back three more times since then. I’ve now practically tried every dish on the menu and it’s my favorite Indian spot at the moment. Here are some of my favorite dishes:
Starters
Sweet Potato Chat
Prawns Amritsari
Tandoor
Humour Tikka
Tiger Prawns
Lamb Tikka
Biryani
Chicken
Mutton
Lavan Special (Goat)
Pricing is on par with the likes of Asha’s and Copper Chimney which I think is very reasonable. You can get a better idea by checking their menu which I’ve uploaded [Here]
Like I mentioned earlier, Lavan is currently my favorite Indian restaurant. I still find the interior bland and lacking charm, but the food makes up for it which is why I keep going back. For a map of the location as well as more photos, you can check out their instagram account @houseoflavan
Last month while visiting the Lotus dealer with a friend of mine, I was given the opportunity to upgrade my car. A friend had ordered a Lotus Exige 380 Cup, but once it arrived at the local dealer he decided he wanted the more powerful 430 Cup instead. So, the dealer gave me first dibs on the car along with a too good to be true buyback offer on my Lotus. So after a lot of deliberation in my head (which mostly sounded like yada yada yada, you only live once, yada yada yada, mid-life crisis, yada yada), I decided to pull the trigger and get the car.
So what are the biggest changes over the Exige I already had? (skip this paragraph if you’re not into cars)
To start with, the 380 Cup is over 100KG lighter than my previous already super light Exige. The Cup weighs in at just 1,057KG! It also produces 375 hp compared to the 345 my previous car made and does 0-60mph in 3.4 seconds. The aerodynamics of the Cup car is also much more aggressive producing over 250KG of downforce compared to my previous Exige. You can really feel the car being pushed down to the ground once you hit high speeds. The wheels are also lighter forged aluminum, and the tires are larger and come with the track and competition Michelin Cup 2 tires. The AP Racing brakes have been upgraded and the gearbox is now a manual instead of paddle-shift and looks incredible with all the metal gearing exposed. The suspension is two-way adjustable so I can make it softer for the road or harder for the track. Finally, the car is covered in carbon fiber, everywhere, from the roof to the interior, even the rear engine window was replaced with a carbon fiber hood to save weight. So yeah, loads of changes compared to my previous Exige and that’s not even including overall usability improvements. I should also add that the 380 Cup is limited to just 60 cars worldwide (and the only one in the region), so its super rare.
I’ve had the car for around 10 days now and I’ve put just a bit over 1,000KM on the car already so I’ve gotten a good feel for it. The Cup is a lot faster than my previous Exige, and because it’s more track-focused, it rides really rough, is pretty noisy and is now even more unpractical than what was already a very unpractical car to begin with.
But I love it.
Its raw, it’s not bullshitting you pretending to be something it isn’t, it’s as honest a car as you can get. And it’s not just me, EVO magazine gave it a 5 out of 5 and Road & Track called it “too much fun to be street legal”. It is too much fun.
I was planning to take the car to Bahrain for their open track day on February 15th, but turns out I need to have at least 3,000KM on the car before tracking it and I don’t think I can get that done in two weeks. So not sure when I’ll have the car on the track but hopefully pretty soon.
If you’re looking for a good place to take car photos by the way, I’d highly recommend the rooftop parking of the complex in front of Mayar in Shuwaikh. I took all the photos here with my iPhone on the roof and loved the spot because of the neutral colors and clean lines. Here is the location on [Google Maps]
