Not sure if this is new but I just found out about it yesterday and find it very odd. Instagram is blocking alcohol related accounts in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (and maybe other countries as well). If you try accessing accounts like @absolutvodka, @heineken or @jackdaniels_us you’ll be met with a message stating you can’t follow them in your region. I don’t understand the reasoning for this and if it’s Instagram or the brands themselves blocking access. It’s not like we can drink any alcohol by visiting those accounts. Plus the ministry doesn’t even ban alcohol related websites in Kuwait, you can visit Heineken.com now and it’s not blocked. Oddly enough @budweiser, @greygoose and @stoli are accessible on Instagram and so is @playboy. To add to the confusion, if you visit the blocked Instagram accounts from your browser they’re accessible.
Spotted the notice above at my local Sultan Center. Kinda seems a bit too soon to start not accepting old currency since it’s barely been a year since the new ones were introduced.
Update: According to the Central Bank of Kuwait website, the old currency (5th issue) will no longer be accepted anywhere starting October 1st. After that date you’ll have until April 2025 to exchange your old currency for the new one by visiting the CBK Banking Hall. [Link]
Has anyone here dropped OSN (or any other cable provider) for Netflix and Hulu? I’m currently subscribed to OSN just for the History and Discovery channels but for the first time ever I’m actually considering canceling my subscription. I’ve started spending more time with Netflix and Hulu so don’t see a reason anymore to keep my OSN subscription.
Right now I’m paying around KD12 a month for my OSN subscription which is $40 a month (the Pinoy Plus Extra package). Netflix costs like $8 a month, Hulu is another $8. If you want to be all fancy you can add the Showtime Network to Hulu for another $9. If you want to splurge, you can add HBO GO which is $15. All combined come out to $40. I get a ton of more shows than I do with my OSN subscription and I can watch them whenever I want, from wherever I want.
For those of you wondering how to get Netflix, Hulu and the rest working in Kuwait it’s easy. Previously I’ve recommended using a VPN but unless you had a very fast connection and a decent VPN service, there would be a lot of slowdown. Now I’d recommend using a smart DNS service. It’s cheaper than VPN, faster and it’s really easy to setup. I tried three different DNS services but ended up going with SmartDNSproxy.com.
Have you dropped your dish provider?
Update: I just called OSN and cancelled my subscription. Update2: I’ve dropped StrongVPN and instead started using SmartDNS so updated the post to reflect that.
Last week after posting about how the new Iftah Ya Simsim was now being filmed in Abu Dhabi instead of Kuwait, two readers commented that even though Iftah Ya Simsim was being shot in Abu Dhabi, some of the editing was still being done in Kuwait. One of the readers even invited me to pass by the GCCJPI facilities to check it out which I did.
GCCJPPI stands for Gulf Cooperation Council Joint Program Production Institution. A super long name but if you grew up in Kuwait during the 80s, all it takes is one look at their logo to recognize who they are. GCCJPPI are behind some of the most memorable shows on television back in the 80s. They were behind most of the popular Arabized cartoons and they also created shows like Salamatak (سلامتك), Quff (قف) and of course the Middle East version of Sesame Street, Iftah Ya Simsim.
The GCCJPPI facilities are located in Salmiya across the street from Souq Salmiya. It’s a building I’ve driven by on numerous occasions but never really paid any attention to. The ground floor of the building has one of the largest theaters in Kuwait containing 850 seats while the rest of the floors are offices, recording and editing studios and my favorite, the GCCJPPI archives.
I had assumed all their archive was lost during the 1990 invasion but turns out they still have copies of everything, their archive is stacked old tapes. According to Nawaf Alshallal, the technical advisor who was showing me around, the Kuwait GCCJPPI office is currently digitizing their whole archive which I got to take a peek at. Not only are they digitizing all their videos but they’re also scanning all their old photos as well. Since I recently watched the documentary “I Am Big Bird” I was curious to see if they had behind the scene photos taken on set of Iftah Ya Simsim. Turns out they did and I flipped through them and there’s some really great never before seen stuff. I’ve already submitted a request to get a copy of these photos so I could share them on the blog. Hopefully I get the approval.
From what I felt during my visit, the GCCJPPI are finally coming back to life. I was even told they’re planning on bringing back Salamatak and Quff which is something I think we really need. I just hope whatever they create ends up on YouTube because theres no way I’d go back to watching KTV again.
We regret to share that early last morning the storage room in our shelter caught fire and burned down. Fortunately all our staff and animals are safe and did not suffer any injuries or burns as the storage room is located outside the animal sheltering building. Thanks to the speedy response of the Wafra fire department, the fire was contained and doused well in time. We are presently investigating the electrical problems that caused the fire, the electrical damages, and measures to avert future accidents. Cleaning and clearing is in process at the shelter.
Meanwhile, we urgently need dog and cat supplies since the fire burned all dog and cat food in our storage room. Please help us and spread the word to enable us to feed our 200 dogs and cats.
We need:
(1) Pedigree dog dry food (kibble)
(2) Whiskas or Friskies cat dry food (kibble)
(3) Cat’s Pride cat litter
If you are able to donate, please email us at [email protected] to arrange for a pick-up of the supplies. Anything you donate will be much appreciated!
It’s been awhile since I’ve put a things to do list but thats because there wasn’t much taking place over the summer. Now it looks like things are starting to pick up again, it’s still not a big list but it’s a start.
It looks like Instagram ads have started popping up in our region. I spotted the ad above in my feed while another user spotted a Kraft ad. As I mentioned in my previous post, they’re soft launching at first with some preset partners, two of which seem to be Kraft Foods and Unilever. If you run into any ads let me know in the comments, I’m trying to figure out who all their partners for this soft launch are. On the other hand according to a blog post by Instagram, they’ve opened Instagram advertising to all businesses in the US market so Kuwait will most likely follow before the end of the year.
I was recently looking into getting a Honda dirt bike to off-road with this winter season when I found out from a friend who works for Honda that they’ve just opened up a brand new showroom. I saw sneak peek photos of the showroom when it was still empty and it looked pretty interesting so I told them to let me know once they had the bikes on display so I could pass by and check it out.
The new Honda showroom is located right across from Ace Hardware in Al-Rai. It’s three floors, the ground floor is where they have all their bikes and ATVs, the basement is where they have all their power equipment like lawnmowers and generators while the top floor has all the riding accessories along with a lounge. Theres also a service area in the back as well as their spare parts shop. The place is currently open although when I passed by yesterday they were still working on displaying all the accessories upstairs. The official opening of the showroom will be soon. [Map]
According to a Zain press release, Zain and Uber have partnered up to offer Zain customers discounted and preferential services when using the Uber platform. The service is already active in Bahrain, Jordan and Saudi Arabia but according the press release, Kuwait is next. If this isn’t definitive proof that Uber is coming to Kuwait I’m not sure what is. [Link]
When I first viewed the video above I didn’t think much of it since I’ve seen better shot videos of Kuwait. BUT, then I found out that if you click and hold down the mouse button on the video while it’s playing you could move around in 360. You could look up, down or turn around completely while the video is playing. That’s pretty cool. [YouTube]
A reader of mine captured the video awhile ago in Egaila. According to my reader the coast guards where testing out the hovercraft which is around 2-3 years old but hasn’t really gotten much use. It’s currently being surveyed so they could start using it on a regular basis. If anyone can hook me up with a ride let me know! [YouTube]
I just want to bring to focus the blogs classifieds section just in case you didn’t know about it. It’s free to use and there’s hundreds of items for sale so check it out [Link]
A reader emailed me about a Boy Scouts of America open day thats taking place end of this month along with some photos. I had no idea the Boy Scouts of America had a local chapter and based on the photos I was sent it actually looks like it’s pretty legit. I was a boy scout when I was younger back in Lebanon and I loved it since we spent so much time outdoors. Check out some photos below and for more information on their upcoming event click [Here]
