2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

I previously interviewed Mohammed Taher, the Kuwaiti creative director and founder of the Brave Wave record label. Since then he’s been busy helping in the releases of various projects like Keiji Yamagishi’s (Ninja Gaiden’s composer) first solo album, Shovel Knight’s soundtrack and an album by duo composers Saori Kobayashi (Panzer Dragoon) and Yumiko Takahashi (Suikoden) under the name of AKANE.

It doesn’t seem like he or Brave Wave take any breaks because they recently started a new label called the Generation Series. Under the Generation Series name they’ll be releasing definitive, remastered soundtracks of classic games. The first game they’re working on is Street Fighter II. The Verge recently interviewed him and sound engineer Marco Guardia about the challenges they faced working on such a huge project.

The project is interesting for various reasons. First of all, convenience. Video game soundtracks are hard to come by and when you do find them they usually cost more than they should because of rarity. The reason I personally think the Generation Series is interesting is the idea of preservation. Other forms of media (like film) have people restoring and preserving them. Preservation is a new concept when it comes to gaming, especially video game music, so I really appreciate Brave Wave taking the initiative.

It’s great to see Kuwait being represented by someone like Mohammed Taher, so be sure to visit Brave Wave’s releases page to support them.

Sidra is another new food complex that is located and opening in Mahboula. This one belongs to Alshaya and includes seven of their American brands including: Starbucks, The Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang’s, IHOP, Shake Shack, Pinkberry, and Texas Roadhouse. The complex is opening tomorrow (Wednesday, October 28th) and here is the location on [Google Maps]

Effective January 13th 2016, United Airlines is stopping their service to Kuwait. A reader emailed me a link yesterday with some information about it and there seems to be a bit of conspiracy to why they’re ending the flights. Originally the article stated its in retaliation to the whole issue with Kuwait Airways refusing to fly Israeli passengers but the article was later updated stating it was due to financial reasons.

I called my contact at United Airlines and they confirmed to me that they will be ceasing operation in January. No official reason was given to the stoppage but according to my contact they hadn’t achieved their target and also maybe because of security reasons. Not sure what kind of security reasons but it did remind me of the rumor that British Airways were going to stop flying to Kuwait unless the airport upped their security game.

In any case its disappointing we’re losing United. I flew with them a few weeks back to Knoxville, Tennessee and they were by far the fastest way for me to get there. Their plane sucked since it was old, dark and cramped.. but it was a direct flight straight to Washington so saved me a lot of time. Next year would have marked 10 years of United Airlines operating in Kuwait.

Thanks Michelle

Back in 2011 I posted a list of places that are open 24/7 in Kuwait. Figured its about time I update the list with your help. If you know of a place that is open 24 hours and isn’t on this list, let me know in the comments:

Places open 24/7 in Kuwait:

Restaurants
• Burger King – Bneidar Gas Station 1, Bneidar Gas Station 2, Fintas, Hawalli, Messilah and Plajat.
• Caribou Coffee – King Fahad Road (towards Chalets)
• Coffee Republic – King Fahad Road (towards Kuwait City)
• Costa – Dar Al Shifa Hospital, Hawalli
• Dunkin Donuts – Amman Street (Salmiya) and Fintas
• Finger Sushi – Kuwait City
• Geant Easy – Salmiya
• Gloria Cafe – Salmiya
• Hardees – Bida’a and Salmiya (opposite Fanar)
• Johnny Rockets – Salmiya
• KFC – Kuwait City, Salmiya (opposite Fanar)
• McDonalds – Airport, Al-Qosour, Al-Rai, Bayan, Bnaider, Fintas, Jabriya, Surra and Yarmouk
• Pizza Hut – Faiha, Fintas, Hawalli, Mishref and Salmiya City Center
• Pizzetta – Seef
• Prime & Toast – Seef
• Shawerma Shuwaikh – Bneid Al Gar
• Starbucks – Dasman, Hadi Hospital and Salmiya opposite Fanar
• Subway – Khaldiya, Mangaf
• The Grove – Opposite Kuwait Stock Exchange

Supermarkets
• City Centre – Dajeej
• Co-op – Al Adan, Al-Faiha, Al Qousor, Al Qurain, Dasma, Jabriya, Mishref, Qurtoba, Rumaithiya, Salmiya, Salwa and Yarmouk
• Saveco Supermarket
• Sultan Center – Dajeej, Fahaheel, Hawalli, Jabriya, Mangaf, Al Rai, Salmiya, Salwa, Shaab and Souk Sharq
• Trolley Market – Alfa Gas Station Hateen

Other
• Burgan Bank – Airport
• Debenhams – Airport
• Edge Fitness – Crown Plaza Hotel Farwaniya
• Gold’s Gym Salmiya
• Oula Car Wash – Jawazat Roundabout, Salmiya
• NBK – Airport
• Pharmacy 24 – Baghdad Street Salmiya
• Platinum Gym – Salmiya and Kifan
• Viva – Airport
• Wataniya – Airport
• X-Cite Electronics – Al Rai, Fahaheel and Hawalli
• Zain – Airport

Note: The list above might not be accurate, please call locations before heading there

Pick Yo opened up a new location in Shuwaikh a few months back and it’s definitely my favorite branch of theirs. It’s fairly big, cozy and their fridges are the most stacked with food items compared to their other locations. For people working in that area its also one of the very few good places for lunch. If you’re interested in checking it out, they’re located in Lilly Center near Tilal Complex. Here is the location on [Google Maps]

The Kanye West, Yeezy Season 1 collection is launching worldwide on October 29th and Kuwait will be included as part of the launch. Like with the Yeezy Boosts, Harvey Nichols will be carrying the Yeezy Season 1 collection exclusively in Kuwait. I’ve got my eye on two pieces which I’m hoping (a) I will be able to pull off and (b) will be worth the price. I’ve seen some price lists floating around the web and most of the pieces looks pretty expensive. According to my contact at Harvey there will be no shoes released with this collection, the only accessory will be bags. They’re also just releasing menswear so tough lucky ladies. If you’re interested, the pieces are launching this Thursday, October 29th at 10AM at Harvey Nichols in Avenues. I’m assuming they’re going to sellout pretty quick.

One interesting tidbit I learned from my contact is that they will be releasing the white Yeezy Boosts sometime November/December. According to rumors online, Adidas might be releasing a new colorway for the Yeezy’s next month but no official announcement has been made yet. In fact, Adidas are expected to make a Yeezy Boost announcement tomorrow so it could be in regards to these white boosts.

120 of the best athletes from around the world are coming to Kuwait this weekend to compete in Battle of the East, the most recognized and respected crossfit event in the Middle East. The event it taking place at Marina Crescent this Friday and Saturday and if you’re interested in watching the event you need to purchase a ticket. For more information on the event and tickets click [Here]

Netflix has confirmed they will be launching in the Middle East soon. In an email to IGN ME, Netflix’s Joris Evers said, “We plan to complete our global expansion by the end of 2016. Of course the Middle East is part of that, hence our hiring.” [Source]

Around 10 days back a local redditor noticed that Netflix had changed their usual error message while trying to access Netflix from his Roku device. The usual error message “Sorry, Netflix hasn’t come to this part of the world yet” was replaced with “Good news! Netflix will be coming soon to this part of the world. Stay tuned.” Now it’s actually confirmed which is pretty interesting news.

I wonder if the regional library of films and shows will be similar to that of the US. But I think I’m even more curious to see how this will affect OSN as well as the other regional streaming services like Telly.

A bunch of interesting events are taking place this weekend. Tonight I’m heading to the Staged in Kuwait Improv Comedy night, I went to it last year and it was hilarious so looking forward to it again. Tomorrow there is an interesting event hosted by the Korean embassy, if you’re looking for a unique cultural experience then it should be worth going to. Finally there is the Fit4Life Expo taking place at Murouj on Friday and Saturday which should also be worth visiting. Check out the full list of events below:

Thursday
Exhibition: Still (Curated by Mark Dean)
Exhibition: Al Maqama
Mix N’ Mentor
Diwaniyya en Español
Staged in Kuwait: Improv Comedy
Outdoor Sports & Safari Expo

Friday
Flying Start Triathlon
Time and Space in Harmony – Korean Cultural Performances
Fit4Life Expo
Outdoor Sports & Safari Expo

Saturday
The Secret Garden Project
Fit4Life Expo
Outdoor Sports & Safari Expo
Writing at the Park
US Military Band Performance

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

A good friend of mine is hosting a Zumba event early next week. She’s bringing the international recording artist and world renowned Zumba instructor Liana Veda to Kuwait for this event. If you’re interested in taking part, it’s for women only and you can get more details [Here]

Update: Just remembered I previously posted her impromptu dance in Japan with a bunch of strangers [Here]

The Aquarium Lounge is the ideal touristic platform for exploring sensational dining while enjoying top-notch panorama: a truly one of a kind experience. The dining outlets carefully handpicked exclusively present unparalleled offerings at Aquarium Lounge that features only the finest restaurants.

Because we need another restaurant complex, Aquarium Lounge is another one that’s being constructed in Mahboula. It will be trying to set itself apart from all the other food complexes by having restaurants overlook a huge aquarium. No word on completion date but the project has already started. For more information click on the different sub-categories of “Projects” on the developers website [Here]

Thanks lovelykuwait

Early last month I posted an article about Abdulai Shani, a former teacher back home in Ghana who got an opportunity to come to Kuwait to work as a security guard and earn good money. On arrival it turned out all the promises were empty ones and he was taken instead into the middle of the desert to live in a tent surrounded by a barren landscape to take care of sheep. If you haven’t read that post then check it out [Here]

After posting that article I asked if anybody would be able to help Abdulai get a better job. I received a lot of responses (thank you everybody!) and after filtering through them I ended up connecting Abdulai with a reader named Abdulrahman. Abdulrahman visited Abdulai in the desert and after meeting him decided to contact his sponsor. To quickly summarize things, he managed to convince his sponsor to let Abdulai go, at first the sponsor agreed and then on the day Abdulai was supposed to leave, the sponsor backtracked and asked for money. Abdulrahman ended up paying the sponsor off and once he collected Abdulai’s passport and civil ID, he handed them to Abdulai and then they drove off towards the city and back to civilization.

Abdulai is now living in Mahboula in an apartment he is sharing with a couple of other guys from Ghana. His new sponsor Abdulrahman is a great guy, they called me last weekend from the Avenues where they were out having lunch. Abdulai’s paperwork is currently being finalized and he’ll be starting his new job soon. He’s clearly in a much better place and he’s thankful to everyone.

Markaz Al-Kuwait has started selling the collectors edition of Halo 5: Guardians seven days before the world wide release date and for KD150. Amazon in comparison is selling the collectors edition for $250 which is around KD75, so it’s obviously a lot more expensive here.

No word on if the regular version of Halo 5 is out yet, chances are shops will try to sell as many as these collector editions before making the regular, more affordable version available!

UPDATE: As Yousef points out in the comments, the Collectors Edition doesn’t even include a CD of the game, but a code to download it. So even if you buy this version of the game you won’t be able to play it until the release date.

There’s a huge Lego store opening at 360 Mall on the top floor opposite the bowling alley. No idea when its set to open up but the first store in the Middle East just opened up in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.

The Kuwait Government Online website is getting a facelift and you can get a preview of it right now. The redesigned website looks a lot cleaner and up to date than the current version as well as being easier to navigate. The new website is still in beta form so not everything is working yet but you can get a sneak peek at it by clicking [Here]