2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

Fitness First, the largest privately owned health club group in the world is opening soon at 360 Mall. They have another branch that supposed to open in Salmiya near my place but I guess the 360 Mall location is going to be their first.

Last night I got the chance to watch the premier of the new James Bond movie Skyfall at Grand Cinemas in the Al Hamra Tower. As soon as I got to the floor Grand Cinemas was located on we were given a goodie bag by Aston Martin, that included an iPhone 5 case with the Skyfall logo on it and some other Aston Martin branded merchandise. The attendants were quite helpful, answering our questions and giving us directions to which theater we’d be seated in. We then were able to get some popcorn and soda. They only had regular popcorn available and no water, that will obviously change once Grand Cinemas opens. The first thing I noticed as soon as I entered the theater was just how cold it was. Movie theaters tend to get chilly, but it was incredibly cold, much colder than other theaters. The seating was quite comfortable and the only real negative thing (beside it being too cold) that bothered me was that they kept the “Exit” signs lit up throughout the movie which caused a green glare on the side of the screen which was slightly distracting at times.

Once the show started, about 15 minutes of advertisements for Aston Martin played which wasn’t a big surprise since it seemed like they were the ones who helped put this event together. Once the movie began, I instantly noticed how the image seemed crisper and sharper on the screen. It was a good sign. Then about 10 minutes into the movie, the sound was acting up, we couldn’t hear what the characters were saying but we could still hear the music and the sound effects. It felt like we were watching a silent movie. After a few minutes of that the entire sound cut which happened a minute or so before the movie intro credits started rolling. This situation also made things kind of awkward because you could hear people all around you just crunching away at their popcorns while the theater stayed surprisingly quiet throughout this whole ordeal. This went on for a good 10 or 15 more minutes, I was thinking of walking out of the theater because the movie was basically being spoiled. Then one of the guys in charge walked in and made an announcement that the theater amplifier blew out and that they needed a few minutes to switch it out. Not sure how an amp could blow out at the very first show, but apparently it did. As soon as he left they thankfully stopped the movie. Sure enough a few minutes afterwards the movie had started, the movie was rewinded to where the technical errors began and the sound was working. After that it was smooth sailing, I really liked how crisp the image was and the volume of the movie was just loud enough. Did I mention how it was cold? It became nearly unbearable near the end to the point that it became distracting.

Now about the movie. I’m going to come out and say this right away, Skyfall is probably my favorite Bond movie. Daniel Craig and Javier Bardem were both fantastic and seemed to feed off each others on-screen energy. Bardem’s role as the villain was really memorable and his character will be remembered for a long time. Sam Mendes did a great job at directing this movie which includes one of my favorite fight scenes that I’ve experienced in a movie, the cinematography, the lighting, the intensity of the scene, it was just beautifully shot. The movie had some amusing moments, some charming Bond moments, it was aggressive when it needed to be and it was surprisingly dark at times, especially for a Bond movie. Bond movies are usually more upbeat and they’re typically about Bond being nearly superhero like, saving the day. Let me put it this way, Skyfall is to Bond as The Dark Knight was to Batman. This movie release is going to coincide with the 50th anniversary of James Bond and the movie features some neat little nods to past Bond movies and in a way, there were segments in the movie that felt like old-school Bond. It’s a little on the longside though, running at about 2 hours and 30 minutes long but it is definitely worth the watch.

So all in all, I feel like Grand Cinemas will be a great addition to Kuwait. Except for that little incident regarding the sound which was fixed, the only downside of last night was how cold it had gotten, I’ll just remember to bring a coat next time I decide to watch a movie there.

Posted by Patrick

On the occasion of the James Bond 50th anniversary, a James Bond World is going to be setup next month at the exhibition hall in 360 Mall. There will be a whole bunch of activities taking place at James Bond World but probably the biggest highlights will be the actual cars from the James Bond movies. Among the cars that will be on display is the Aston Martin that was used for the big crash scene in “Casino Royale”, the Aston Martin with mounted weapons used in “Tomorrow Never Dies”, the Vanquish DBS from “Quantum of Solace” and the DB5 featured in the latest James Bond movie “Skyfall”.

Originally the hot actress Gemma Arterton from “Quantum of Solace” was also supposed to attend the opening night but that was when the opening night was originally set for October 26th. Now that the event has been pushed back she most likely won’t be able to make it.

James Bond World is set to open to the public on November 1st. The pictures of the James Bond cars in this post were taken by my contact who also provided me with the information above.

Update: Just added all the pictures of the cars I received below.

Their old logo (above) was not that great but their new one (below) is just horrible. They should have just hired the agency that did the 360 Mall branding.

Getting close to the opening of The Avenues new districts and our plans for future expansion of The Avenues we created a new iconic logo with a distinct personality that conveys a more abstract thought of simplicity and boldness. It’s an interactive logo with maximum flexibility for messaging.

Iconic? Don’t think so.

The Voice for Success program was initiated by en.v to give greater visibility to social activists who are trying to make a positive impact on their society and community. The videos and articles were created by en.v to celebrate the achievements of people we consider successful, not in the traditional sense of being C.E.O. of a company or a film star, but because they have dedicated themselves to a specific cause / issue, doing what they can to make a positive contribution.

The Voice for Success program recently announced the winners to their online competition. The three winners were Dr. Alanoud Al Sharekh, a leading Kuwaiti women’s rights activist, academic and political researcher; Maali Al Asousi, co-founder of the Business and Professional Women’s Kuwaiti chapter and founder and chairwoman of Tamkeen, a non-profit organization promoting development in the Arab world; and last but not least, Zeina Al Sultan, founder of the Special Mothers group working to raise awareness about adoption and promoting the rights of orphaned / abandoned children and adoptive parents in Kuwait.

The video above is for Dr. Alanoud Al Sharekh. [YouTube]
Here is a link to Maali Al Asousi’s video [YouTube]
Here is a link to an article on Zeina Al Sultan [Link]

Last month I purchased and posted about the Mophie Powerstation, a small device that will charge your USB powered devices like an iPhone or iPad while away from a power supply. This month I purchased and tried the Trent IMP120D iCarrier, a slightly bulkier device that holds three times the amount of power reserve at 12000mAh compared to the 4000mAh of the Mophie Powerstation.

Although the Trent holds three times as much power its selling on Amazon for the same price as the Mophie which makes it a great deal. I tried it out last weekend while camping and found it very practical. The Trent comes with two USB ports which allows you to charge two devices at the same time. I ended up charging three phones that night, an iPhone 4s, a Galaxy III and a Blackberry. I also had the iPhone plugged into the device all night playing music. By next day the Trent iCarrier was showing me that it still had around half the power left! That’s just crazy.

The only disadvantages over the Mophie is the fact the Trent iCarrier is bulkier and the build quality isn’t as good. If you squeeze the device a bit you can hear the plastic squeak so not sure how it’s going to handle being thrown around in my backpack in the long run. But, at around KD22 on Amazon this is a great buy specially if the size of the device doesn’t matter much to you. [Amazon Link]

The largest cinema chain in the Middle East is opening in Hamra Tower this coming Friday with the movie Skyfall. The theater once open will have a total of 9 screens with one of them being a VIP theater which I’ve previously been told will rival those of Dubai. [Link]

I follow Radisson Blu (previously known as SAS) on Facebook and one thing about them I find cool is the fact they keep posting pictures of the build progress. Below is how the hotel will look like once completed and the above is one of their latest shots showing the progress of the hotel. Originally they were even supposed to have a live webcam but that didn’t work out. You can check all the latest shots of the place [Here]

Green Turtle Rescue 2012 from John Peaveler

Last week we were called out to the Chevron camp at Al Zour to help with a turtle found on the beach. A resident had found the turtle exhausted on the beach with fishing string wrapped around its flipper. We arrived very quickly as we had been working in the Chevron area all day. Since we have no experience with sea turtles, we went to the experts. First we paid a visit to Dr. Jill at Royal Animal Hospital. She gave the turtle a good prognosis since there was good movement, nothing broken, and just some minor bruising and swelling. An injection of antibiotics and a topical antibiotic were the only treatments and we were out the door in 20 minutes headed to our final stop: the Scientific Center in Salmiya. Those folks were amazing. They opened their doors late, took the turtle in, and gave me a behind the scenes tour of their tanks. They have an entire area dedicated to rehabilitation. The last clip in the video is from their green turtle rehab tank where you can see several healthy turtles ready for release. The Scientific Center will be doing all of the really hard work on this one. We are just happy we could help. Many thanks to everyone involved in helping this turtle get a new lease on life.

As always, please ‘like’ our Facebook page. Our sponsors want to see the support of our community. Your ‘likes’ save lives.

Post by John Peaveler
Managing Director
Kuwait Society for the Protection of Animals and Their Habitat (K’S PATH)

The U.S. Embassy is hosting an (Early) Voting Day for eligible U.S. citizens. Below are some details.

Who: Eligible U.S. Citizen Voters
Date: October 21, 2012
Time: 1:00 to 4:00 PM
Location: U.S. Embassy (Masjid al Aqsa Street, Bayan)

If you have any questions you can contact them on [email protected] or visit their website [Here]

A gas leak took place while drilling an oil well wednesday at the Al-Rawdhatain oilfield, Kuwait Oil Company and security sources said, as that the pungent and repulsive smell of hydrogen sulfide reached as far as Kuwaiti City as reported by many residents. The sources said Abdali firemen and KOC emergency teams later contained the leak by burning out the escaping gas to prevent it from spreading far. [Source]

Lucky for me I’m not in Kuwait right now.

Thanks Jafar

The Kuwait Science Club sent a Kuwaiti flag into space using a weather balloon. They recorded the whole thing with a GoPro camera and you can watch the footage above. [YouTube]

Thanks Anes

It was bound to happen. [YouTube]

Thanks Salem

Dubai Session has a bunch of photos of the UAE Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid walking around the Avenues. I have no idea what he was doing at Carrefour though. [Link]

K’s PATH is organizing their second Bark in the Park event. There will be a dog show competition, funny races, fabulous vendors, children’s entertainment and a lot more.

Date: Saturday 3rd November 2012
Location: KOC Ahmadi Japanese Garden (GPS Co-ords: 29.091577,48.074874)
Time: 11:00AM to 4:00PM

Mutt Competitions:
1. Best Look Alike
2. Best Mixed Breed
3. Most Obedient
4. Most Adorable
5. Temptation Alley
6. Best Child Handler
7. Best Dressed
8. Best K’S PATH Alum
9. Agility Round (Simple obstacle course)

– Advance registration & entrance fee required
– Download registration form at this link: https://www.kspath.org/latest/item/download/10
– Registration closes Wed, Oct 31st
– Entry fees: Adults KD5; Children under 14 KD3; Participating dogs KD6; Non participating dogs KD2
– Civil ID or Passport must be shown at entrance

To book your very own booth or general inquiries, email: [email protected]
For more information visit the event Facebook page [Here]