2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

Last night I got to see Imagine Dragons and Atlas Genius both perform live here in London. I was supposed to arrive at the venue two hours ahead of time so I could try and end up close to the front of the stage but in a typical Mark move I ended up arriving two hours ahead of time… at the wrong venue. The concert was being held at the O2 Academy Brixton but I ended up going to the O2 Arena so after finding out my mistake I had to spend 40 minutes in the subway heading to the correct location on the other side of town. Although I didn’t end up right up front it wasn’t bad at all since I was still pretty close to the stage.

[YouTube]

The first band to perform last night were Atlas Genius. Even though Imagine Dragons are performing in London for three nights, Atlas Genius were only opening up for them on the first night and since I’m a fan of theirs I decided to get tickets for that night. Atlas Genius aren’t that popular but they’ve got two songs I really love one of which would probably make it into my top 20 indie tracks list. They weren’t that exciting performers live but nevertheless it’s still always great to hear a favorite song being played live in front of you.

Dan Croll came on after Atlas Genius but I only knew and liked one song of his (From Nowhere) and even though his performance was better than Atlas Genius, I couldn’t wait till he finished so Imagine Dragons could come on.

[YouTube]

Imagine Dragons were the third and final act for the night and I had heard they were great live. After watching them live now I can say that is very true. I was actually surprised by their whole performance. Even though they had arrived to London from LA just 5 hours before the show, they played every song with so much passion and energy I was just blown away. My favorite song of theirs is Amsterdam (watch it here) but I think their performance last night for Radioactive which I’ve embedded above was my favorite. Oh yeah the stage was full of percussion instruments which the whole band participated in therapeutically venting out on through out the night.

Yesterday was the first time I took my GX1 camera with me to a concert. Micro 4/3 cameras like the GX1 are perfect for concerts since they look like point and shoot cameras which you’re allowed to bring in, but the quality of the shots is closer to DSLR’s which you aren’t allowed to bring into events. I was taking photos with my camera and then transferring them to my phone using the Eye-Fi card which I posted about the other day, and then uploading them to Instagram.

Two more concerts left and then it’s back to Kuwait.

As a commercial lawyer and the owner of a small business (Q8BookStore) I was pleased to attend a discussion panel held last week by the British Embassy on small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Even though it was great to hear Mohammed H. Alsahya and the Mayor of London Speak about SME’s, I was actually more interested to hear Dr. Mohammed Alzuhair, the executive chairman for Kuwait’s SME fund.

Dr. Mohammed Alzuhair spoke about the government’s new vision for encouraging business in Kuwait. The government of Kuwait has really been trying to develop business in Kuwait for locals and foreigners alike and new important laws have been issued with practical changes, such as:

1) New companies law 79/2013 – Now we can have non-profit companies in Kuwait.

2) New commercial permit’s law 111/2013 – Apparently you can get a commercial permit by applying online. I’ll be investigating this soon.

3) SME fund law 98/2013 – A 1 billion Kuwaiti Dinars fund to support SME’s in Kuwait and rumor has it that their permits will be separate

4) Promotion of direct investments in Kuwait 116/2013 – Kuwait Foreign Investment Bureau is turning into an authority, all sectors will be open to foreign investors, and foreign investors will be allowed an equity share of up to 100%.

The laws are changing and I am excited to understand these changes. If you have an SME or you’re considering launching a start-up soon and want to get an email with related information, email me on [email protected] with the following info: your name, job position (at your SME and/or daytime job), type of business.

If you have more information about the above laws and would like to share changes also email me at [email protected]

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.

The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, The Red Arrows are going to be performing tomorrow in Kuwait as part of their Middle East tour. The RAF Red Arrows are considered to be one of the world’s premier aerobatic teams and they just finished performing yesterday in the UAE. If you’re interested in watching the show below are the details:

Date: Tuesday 26th November, 2013
Time: 1PM
Location: Marina Crescent and the vicinity

Update: I got the 1PM timing from the Red Arrows Facebook page but according to Arab Times it’s at 3PM.

Lorenzo is a locally created Italian restaurant that opened up before the cupcake and burger craze took over the market. They’re old school and although they have a bunch of locations around Kuwait my favorite is easily their Salmiya branch located in Al Khalid Complex where Gia recently opened up.

The interior is small but nicely designed and pretty cozy. The carpeted floors continue along the wall and then curve up onto the ceiling which is an old fashioned thing to do but somehow works out nicely here. Since the location is small they’ve managed to make it look bigger by splitting up the restaurant into two spaces with the back space being a more intimate area separated from the rest of the restaurant by vertical mirror pillars. There’s lots of marble everywhere which helps makes the place feel luxurious without looking tacky at all.

Their menu hasn’t really changed since they first opened up with my favorite items being the fresh bread they serve as well as their mushroom soup and chocolate cheesecake. When I do want a main course I usually go for their fish dishes, either the sole or the hammour.

It’s a very nice location that’s empty most of time. I usually have business meetings there and I’ve never seen the place filled with more than two or three tables. To top it all off the service is really good and the staff are very friendly as well. If you’re looking for a nice quiet restaurant to go to that’s not in a mall than this Lorenzo location would be a great option. It’s in Al Khalid Complex in Salmiya and here it is on [Google Maps]

The American School of Kuwait is holding a production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ at the ASK auditorium. There will be four showings held over a three day period and they’re selling tickets for just KD1. Here are some details:

Show Times:
Wednesday November 27th, 2013 at 2:45PM
Thursday November 28th, 2013 at 6PM
Friday November 29th, 2013 at 1PM
Friday November 29th, 2013 at 6PM

Ticket Prices: KD1

Location: American School of Kuwait [Map]

Tickets are available before the show in the reception area of the auditorium.

Update: I just received an email from the director saying that they just found out the show is for ASK students and their families only.

Out of Kuwait Saad Aldosari from John Parks on Vimeo.

The video above is of the “Out of Kuwait” exhibition that is currently being held in London. The exhibit brings together the works of thirteen emerging Kuwaiti artists and you can see some of the works that they’re exhibiting in the video above. The exhibit is running for four more days so if you’re in London check it out [Link]

Note: A higher quality version of the video above is available on BBC [Here]

Peruvian Chef Roberto Segura will be presenting authentic recipes with quinoa this week at the Dasman Diabetes Institute. He will first present a short introduction to quinoa followed by cooking demonstrations on various quinoa dishes followed by a tasting. If you’re interested here are the details:

Location: Dasman Diabetes Institute
Date: Tuesday November 26th, 2013
Time: 4PM to 6PM

Please RSVP to [email protected] or call 22242999 ext 2052

Note: Just in case you didn’t know (I didn’t until a few moments ago), quinoa originally comes from Peru.

[YouTube]

Last night I got to see ‘Baths‘ perform live at Oval Space in London and he was just phenomenal. I’m a huge fan of ‘Baths’ but wasn’t so sure on how the music would translate into a live performance since it’s so digital. I was worried it might just end up super boring with Will Wiesenfeld in front of a laptop but that was definitely not the case. Will came on stage wearing running shorts with a tshirt and sneakers as if he was about to take part in a marathon but once he started performing I realized why. He was literally all over the place since the music is extremely fast paced and at some points he was just jumping around from vocals to keyboard to laptop to his tech and back like he was jacked up on Molly.

I was standing right in the front row so the music was extremely loud hence why the sound in the video above is not that great. At one point during the performance they had to lower the bass since it was so powerful that it was unplugging all the cables on his setup. Will is very laid back and personal when performing. He’s very down to earth and he makes you feel like you’re in his room and he’s just jamming with you. There’s another video I uploaded which you can watch [Here] (starts past the 2 minute mark) in which you can get an idea of how he was communicating with us at the event. According to Will this was the largest audience he had gotten so far since they started headlining shows and I found that difficult to believe since we weren’t that big of a crowd. I don’t understand how Bieber can fill up a stadium and ‘Baths’ barely a small warehouse.

If you haven’t heard ‘Baths’ before but are into electronic music then I would highly recommend you buy the CD’s, download the tracks from iTunes or check them out on Spotify. Here is a link to the ‘Baths’ [Website]

If you’re looking for an advertisement free Kuwait Airport arrivals and departures tracking app then KAFI is the one to get. The app is very simple in case a flight you’re tracking hasn’t arrived yet you can turn on notification for that flight so that once it lands the app will let you know. The app is available for both iOS and Android and can be found by searching for KAFI or by using one of the links below:

iOS Version
Android Version

Update: Do not download this app. The app no longer works unless you agree to send adverts to your friends.

The Japanese Society in Kuwait (under the auspices of the Kuwait Environmental Protection Society) are conducting their annual beach cleanup tomorrow called “Operation Turtles”. If you’re interested in participating below are the details:

Date: Saturday, November 23rd 2013
Time: 10:30AM to 12:00PM
Location: Beach park in Shuwaikh near the KPC building [Map]

Everyone is welcomed to participate in the beach cleanup even though it is planned by the Japanese Society in Kuwait.

The Xbox One is now available in Kuwait and surprisingly it’s priced KD20 cheaper than when the PS4 was available on the first day even though the PS4 is actually a cheaper console. The price is also slightly more consistent across the store with the Xbox One selling for KD260 at Rihab Complex and Blink while Digumz is selling it for KD270. This is the PAL version that includes a digital copy of FIFA 2014 as well as the Kinect sensor.

Like the PS4, the prices should drop considerably once the console becomes more readily available.

Commercial: Foot Locker’s Week Of Greatness 2013
Rob Ford performs the epic split
Jaguar F-Type Coupe
Zaha Hadid Unveils Design for Qatar 2022 World Cup Stadium
Mayor Rob Ford knocks over Councillor
Giant radio controlled A-380
Histagrams
Georges St Pierre’s Hardcore Bodyguard
Breaking Bad Alternate Ending
IKEA the Movie
Lost at IKEA

Cinemagics will be playing the two movies below this weekend:

Thursday November 21st, 2013 at 7:30PM
Surprise Film of the Month
Every month we’ll be playing a surprise film, where you won’t know what you’re watching until just a minute before the film begins. One thing is for sure, every month the surprise film will be either my favourite film of the list, or the most unique in one way or the other. This month’s film is the winner of over 61 awards worldwide, carrying groundbreaking performances and the work of a visionary director on top form. Unmissable.

Saturday November 23rd, 2013 at 7:30PM
The Devil’s Backbone
From visionary filmmaker Guilermo Del Toro, who brought us the incredible Pan’s Labyrinth, The Devil’s Backbone is a unique horror film that is both elegant and heartbreaking whilst also being creepy and nightmarish. After Carlos, a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War, arrives at an ominous boy’s orphanage he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets that he must uncover.

For more information on Cinemagics rooftop movie nights click [Here]

Shakshooka, the nomadic farmers market is taking place tonight from 6PM to 7PM outside Q8 Book Store in Salmiya. If you don’t know where the place is, it’s located in Bayt Lothan and here it is on [Google Maps]

Don’t forget to bring cash and a carrying bag if you will be buying stuff.

Photo above by @faisalthef

Preparations are already on their way for the upcoming Proud 2 Be Kuwaiti event that will take place early next year. The above video is a timelapse of one of the sand sculptures that was built for the event which looks like its going to be even bigger than last year. Sadly some of the sand sculptures got damaged during the storm and the P2BK instagram account has two videos showing the damages. [YouTube]