2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

Got talent? If yes then check out the competition below.

Together with Art Jameel, Crossway Foundation has recently launched an open call to find talented young artists, photographers, filmmakers and designers aged 18-25 in the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UK.

Eight winners will have the opportunity to travel to Japan in November 2015 where they will experience one of the most inspiring cultures in the world. Kuwaiti visual artist, Monira Al Qadiri, has been appointed Artistic Lead, and will mentor the winners during their time in Japan.

To enter the competition, applicants must complete an application form on the Crossway Foundation website: www.crossway-foundation.org

Applicants must submit a creative project that relates to the theme: “Encounters with another World.” The project can either be pre-existing artwork or devised especially for the competition. The deadline for the competition is 15 September 2015.

Snapchat will be broadcasting Kuwait live tomorrow (Thursday) for the whole world to see. Last time they broadcasted Ahmadi which turned out to be so bad it was funny but, from what I understand this time all of Kuwait can participate. I haven’t been on Snapchat for over three months now since I’m so over it but I’m actually tempted to get back on it tomorrow and just snapchat all the overflowing garbage behind my house.

I was rummaging through some boxes and found some photos of when I was in Sunshine School back in the early 80s. For those of you who don’t know, the British School of Kuwait (BSK) used to be called Sunshine School before the 1990 invasion. Sunshine School originally started off as a nursery and then moved to the campus showing in the pictures below (except for the one with the Kids R Us bag). After that they moved to another campus (the picture with the Kids R Us bag) and then the invasion happened. After the invasion they moved to their current location and renamed themselves to BSK. My class was the last class to graduate from Sunshine School (Junior 4). They didn’t have a high school back then, Junior 4 was their highest grade. Anyway check out the photos below:

I’ve been hearing rumblings of a third cinema operator coming to Kuwait for awhile now but I didn’t think it would ever happen. The market is just too small and Cinescape is so dominant that I figured it just wouldn’t make financial sense for a third cinema operator to want to come in and compete. I guess I was wrong.

Sky Cinemas is the new cinema operator in town and they’ve just soft launched their first location in Dalal Complex on Salem Al Mubarek Street. If you’re wondering what building that is, it’s the new tower opposite Zahra Complex [Map]. Right now they have one theater operational and it’s playing Ant-Man but by next week they’ll have two more theaters operational as well as more movies to choose from including the new Mission Impossible.

Their ticket prices are KD3.5 which is exactly like Grand Cinemas and Cinescape plus they don’t have IMAX, so I don’t really see what their advantage is. They’re also located right in the middle between Cinescape Fanar and Cinescape Marina Mall so they have their work cut out for them. If you’re interested in trying them out, check out their website [Here]

The mall they’re located in is fairly empty at the moment with I think 4 shops open only.

I didn’t even know you could drift a tank! Kuwait also took part in last years Tank Biathlon which has to be the coolest and most insane sporting event ever. [Link]

If you want to see the full video leading up to the incident click [Here]

Update: According to Al Watan Newspaper, Kuwait is denying it was their team that flipped the tank [Link]

Failaka Island, Kuwait – About 20km off the coast of Kuwait City, tiny Failaka Island stands as a constant reminder of the Iraqi invasion a quarter-century ago.

Prior to the Gulf War, Failaka was reportedly home to about 2,000 residents, but they fled when the Iraqis invaded and most did not return. Over the years, the homes and offices they left behind have crumbled, many still scarred with bullet holes from the war.

Today, much of the island lies empty and in ruins, although a small tourism industry has emerged – with boat trips, overnight accommodations and cafes springing up on Failaka for curious sightseers. Failaka is also still used today for military exercises by the Kuwaiti army.

The last time I went to Failaka was back in 1989 so maybe it’s about time I head back there. Check out all the photos on the Al Jazeera website [Here]

Thanks Erik

The Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Center is set to be the largest museum in the world covering Natural History, Science, Space and Islamic Heritage, together with a Theatre and Fine Arts Centre. Construction has been on the way since June of last year and from what I am told construction will be completed by the end of this year. Once the buildings construction is completed, the interior work will begin and new renderings were recently released giving us a glimpse of how the museums might end up looking like. Below is some information on each of the museums as well as a link where you can check out the renderings.

The Space Museum (4,300m²) incorporates a 130 seat planetarium and tells the story of planet earth, the universe, space exploration and will also include an immersive reconstruction of the International Space Station. [Link]

The Science Museum (6,800m²) includes galleries for Human Body & Mind, Technology & Transport, Experiment and Robotics, with exhibits featuring hands-on experiments, games and simulator experiences. [Link]

The Natural History Museum (7,700m²) will offer visitors a unique insight into the natural world and includes a stunning ecosystem experience that allows visitors to explore a living rainforest, mangrove and coral reef. [Link]

The Islamic Museum (2000m2) tells stories of the importance of knowledge in Islam, the Islamic way of life and Islamic legacy in Kuwait. Features include stunning scale models of iconic mosques from around the world, a Treasures gallery and interactive exhibits that communicate the development and preservation of Islamic knowledge in science, arts and literature. [Link]

If you’d like to see how the exterior is going to look click [Here]

Thanks Khaled

So about my garbage problem, I decided to try and create a timelapse to see how the garbage ends up building up so much. I hadn’t done a timelapse before and this was my first attempt and although it’s not great I think it’s pretty clear what the main problem is. Not only do we need a few more garbage bins in the lot but some of the bins aren’t being emptied which is why the garbage is getting pilled up all around them. In the video you’ll see a garbage truck come by but they only empty one of the bins and leave the other three. This timelapse was around a day and half long, 432 images in total, one image taken every 5 minutes. I’m going to try and make one thats a few days longer and see how that turns out. [YouTube]

The documentary above was uploaded onto YouTube yesterday and includes interviews with various Kuwaitis that were in Kuwait during the 1990 invasion. The documentary also features a lot of amateur video that was taken during that time. Sadly (for non Arabic speakers), the video is in Arabic and doesn’t have English subtitles. [YouTube]

Thanks Q8D

Honestly I’m just sharing this timelapse because I love the first 10 seconds of it with the Kuwait Towers. The rest of the video is fairly boring. [Vimeo]

The Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) promotes scientific and applied research, particularly in matters related to industry, natural and food resources and other primary constituents of the national economy. The project is located in the dense urban coastal neighborhood area of Salmiya facing the Gulf Road.

As well as its use for research and development of plants and sustainable technologies, the project aims to demonstrate the best practice in the field of research and development for the management of green space by current and future generations of Kuwait.

…

In addition to landscaping the site, Pace has designed nine buildings within the project, including an educational and research facility, observation pavilions, a demonstration greenhouse, and research offices.

The area where this project is proposed to be built is on the coastal part of Salmiya near where Gia and The Secret Garden are located and right down the road from where the worlds largest museum is being built. [Link]

Every year on the anniversary of the 1990 Kuwait Invasion I always like to share the important links below:

Free Kuwait
This is a website that focuses on the campaign that was led by Kuwaitis in exile and is loaded with photos and information.

Kuwait Invasion – The Evidence
This is a website that contains over 1,200 pictures taken right after the 1990 invasion as photographic evidence to all the destruction caused by Iraq.

Short movie: Hearts of Palm
Hearts of Palm is a short movie set in August 2nd 1990 and deals with Kuwaiti students living in Miami Florida during the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait.

The Class of 1990
This is a short documentary about reuniting class mates years after the 1990 Iraqi invasion.

Homemade video from the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait
Video clips taken by a Kuwaiti family during the Iraqi invasion

Desert Storm Photos
Photos taken by soldiers during Desert Storm.

Short Animation: Sandarah
A captivating story based on true events that took place during the 1990 Iraqi invasion.

Photo on top by Adel Al-Yousifi

When I got back from my LA trip I had major jet lag so I was waking up at the oddest hours wanting to have breakfast. I couldn’t figure out where to go since most of the places I went to between 4AM and 6AM were closed. So I decided I would put together a list of breakfast places along with their timings so that if anyone ever googles breakfast places they get a nice comprehensive list. Check out some of the popular places below:

Baking Tray
8:00 AM – 1:00 AM

Baker & Spice
Weekdays: 8AM to 1PM
Weekends: 8AM to 2PM

Breakfast Club
KIPCO: 6AM to 12AM
Mahboula: Open 24 hours and breakfast all day

Cheesecake Factory
Friday & Saturday: 10AM to 4PM

Cocoa Room ★
8AM to 12PM

Dar Hamad
8AM to 11:50AM

Dough Cafe
8AM to 2PM

Early Bird ★
Fahaheel: 5AM to 3PM
Jabriya: 5AM to 5PM

Eggcellent
Weekdays: 6:30AM to 2PM
Saturday: 7:30AM to 3PM
Friday: Closed

Gia
Weekdays: 9AM to 12PM
Weekends: 9AM to 1PM

IHOP
Jabriya: Open 24 hours and breakfast all day

Johnny Rockets ★
Salmiya: Open 24 hours but breakfast only from 7AM to 12PM

Ladurée
360 Mall: 9AM to 2PM

Le Pain Quotidien
Marina Crescent: 7:30AM to 11PM

McDonalds
Gulf Road: 6AM to 11AM

Prime & Toast
Seef: Open 24 hours and breakfast all day

Q at The Yard
Weekdays: 7AM to 1PM
Weekends: 8AM to 6PM

Ryoog
6AM to 11PM

Street by Al Makan ★
Saturday: 9:30AM to 2PM

Yellow Lemon
Sunday to Tuesday: 8AM to 4PM
Wednesday to Saturday: 8AM to 7PM

Zaatar W Zeit
Marima Crescent:7:30AM to 12:30AM

★ My favorite places

Update: List updated on 02/01/2017.

For some unknown reason, Cinescape have increased the ticket prices of their IMAX movies. They increased the price from KD4 to KD5 while all the other ticket prices remained the same. I tried to find out why the increase happened but I was told a memo was sent out to Cinescape employees not to discuss it. Very odd.

Update: On a side note has anyone watched Rogue Nation, is anything cut?

One of the first things I did when I was in LA earlier this month was pass by In-N-Out burger. I hadn’t had it before but I’d heard so much about it from people online and from friend. Everyone kept saying it was the best burger ever so I wanted to check it out for myself. Did it live up to the hype? Not really.

During the 3 weeks I was in LA I think I had In-N-Out 5 or 6 times. I tried it a bunch of ways until I found my perfect combo which was a 3×3 (3 patties x 3 cheese) with just grilled onions and their special sauce. It’s a pretty good burger and mostly because of their kick ass special sauce but no way the best burger ever. Quality wise its a step up from McDonalds but in line with other burger joints like Five Guys, Elevation and Shake Shack. I didn’t like their fries at all but their chocolate shake was really good and was around 500 calories which wasn’t too bad.

So basically, if we never get In-N-Out in Kuwait it’s fine, we’re not really missing out on much.