2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

I don’t think there is anybody who doesn’t like soft serve ice cream which is why setting up your own machine at home, diwaniya or chalet is such a great idea and one that turns out isn’t too expensive.

There are just three things you need, the soft serve machine, the ice cream flavors and the biscuit cones.

I’ll start with the machines since this is where most of the investment is. I passed by two locations, a small store in Dajeej and the Mabrook store in Shuwaikh. I’m sure there are other stores as well but those are two I was told about. The small store in Dajeej had only one machine and was selling it for KD4,000. Mabrook on the other hand a around 4 or 5 different machines with the most affordable starting at KD500. It’s the Italian made Ugolini mini gel and it holds only one flavor. They also had other machines that were more expensive including the Taylor branded one pictured above which is the same brand Pinkberry uses. Obviously that’s overkill for home use but in case you have around KD5,000 to splurge that’s the Rolls Royce of these machines.

The second thing you need to make your soft serve ice cream is the actual product mix which you’ll have to fill the machine with. KDD sells them and they had two sizes to choose from. The picture above is of their 1 liter pack and you can get it in either vanilla or chocolate flavor. Each pack should be enough for around 6 to 9 cones. The 1 liter pack costs 575 fils and this is the size I would recommend getting for home use or small diwaniyas. But, they also sell 12 liter packs. The 12 liter packs cost KD6.5 each and can make around 80 cones. They also have an offer now where if you buy 5 packs they give you one free. Finally you need cones. KDD also sell the biscuit cones and a pack of 800 costs KD4.860.

So to summarize the post it’s going to cost you around KD500 to set up a small soft serve station at home, diwaniya or chalet. Depending on how often it’s used it could be pretty feasible.

It’s a vest you fill with ice cubes so you could stay cool in the summer. Someone needs to buy a whole bunch and sell these here in Kuwait. Price? KD20 on [Amazon]

I was in Dajeej today and noticed City Centre was opening up over there. The signs on the main road were covered but the signs on the inside road were uncovered which is where I was able to snap the picture above. Looks like they’ll be competing with Sultan Centre which is located very close by. No idea when they’re opening up but I spotted some food trucks at the loading dock so I’m guessing pretty soon. This will be their third location. Here is a map of the [Location]

Unlike initial reports turns out the fire yesterday off the 30th wasn’t actually the electrical transformer station. Turns out someone threw a cigarette near a pile of garbage and abandoned furniture which ended up catching fire. There was a car parked near the burning trash and that also caught fire. As you can see in the picture above this happened right beside the electrical transformer station which is why many people thought that’s what was burning in the video.

Thanks Kazik

An electrical transformer caught on fire earlier today near Kabab al Hajat and one of my readers was able to capture the footage above while driving by. [YouTube]

Thanks Keith

Update: Below is another video taken from the opposite site (heading towards Fahaheel) and it was shot just as the fire had started. [YouTube]

Thanks Cajie

According to surgeons like Al Sanea, the bariatric boom can be traced to the buildup to the 1991 Gulf War. That was when hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops descended on the Gulf nation, bringing with them Taco Bell, Hardee’s, Baskin-Robbins, and Nathan’s Famous hot dogs, among others. “The [war] was the demarcation line,” says Dr. Abdulwahab Naser Al-Isa, at the Department of Community Medicine & Behavioral Sciences at Kuwait University. Andrew Smith, the author of the Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food, says, “The American military went in, and obviously they wanted fast food. Therefore, the number of fast-food establishments expanded exponentially.” And Kuwaitis fell in love.

An interesting take on the obesity issue in Kuwait although I’m not sure I believe the Americans are to blame. War or no war fast food chains were going to start popping up in Kuwait anyway. Check out the full article on Business Week [Here]

Thanks Kris

Two days back I found out Ralph Lauren had a summer sale (50% off) taking place so I passed by today and picked up a few shirts. To my surprise it turns out I now wear size “small”. Thank you Fahad for that. If you’re interested, sale is on till July 10th. The classic polo shirts are not included in the sale.

Update: Forgot to add they’re also opening up a huge flagship store in Avenues Phase III.

Back in April I posted a rumor that the trendy furniture brand BoConcept might be reopening again under new ownership at Avenues Phase III. Well today I finally got a confirmation that the rumor was true. Turns out Behbehani have taken over the brand and they should be opening at the end of the year.

Turns out it was parked illegally in the taxi bay along with another Mercedes G Class from Kuwait that was also got towed. [YouTube]

via Q8allinone

Update: I found out what happened in the video above and it turned out to be just an innocent mistake that was blown out of proportion because the car that was towed was an Aventador. The store is the owner of the car parked the car in an illegal parking spot not knowing it was a spot dedicated to taxis. The sign was written in French and there were other cars parked so he just parked next to the other cars. Turns out the spot he parked in specifically was a taxi spot which is why it got towed.

A beautifully designed chalet in Bnaider by AGI architects. Lots of pictures and details [Here]

According to Net Index, Kuwait ranks 104th place worldwide when it comes to the average internet speed while Luxembourg tops the list with an average speed of 41.01 Mbps. They also have a list of the fastest ISP’s and currently WiMD who are my current favorite ISP are leading the list by a good chunk. That probably has to do with the fact that the slowest speed they are willing to sell you is 6Mbps while with others like Qualitynet you could sign up to 1Mbps if you want to. Check out all the date on Net Index [Here]

The Q8 Expats Photography Club is organizing a star trails photography workshop this weekend. Star trails photography involves long exposure shots of either the sky or landscapes where the movement of the stars in the sky form light trails in your shots.

If you bring an extra camera or if you get bored trying to capture star trails they will also be painting with light so you could participate in that.

Here is a list of gear you need to bring:

1. A DSLR
2. A tripod
3. Cable release or intervalometer (for star trailing shots)
4. Bring extra batteries or at least fully charge yours
5. A high capacity memory card
6. Torch/Lights/Flash (for light painting)

The gathering will take place in Al-Rai outside The Sultan Center right next to McDonalds on the 4th Ring Road. It’s opposite all the car dealerships. The meetup will be at 4:30PM and they’ll then depart to the main location at 5:00PM. For more information visit their Facebook page [Here]

Photo above taken by Saleh AlRashaid

The first RaceRoom in the Middle East is opening up today inside Baroue at the Avenues. The RaceRoom is sort of an arcade but one that’s filled with realistic car simulators. They used to have one simulator before which was the Gulf Run simulator and I guess it was really popular because they’ve now expanded on that idea. For a bit more information you can check out their Facebook page [Here]

Update: I passed by Baroue awhile ago and turns out they’ve remodeled the whole top floor. It’s now a proper arcade FILLED with racing games. The place looks super cool and it’s just one racing game after another all around the place. Sadly they don’t have a vintage gaming section filled with original Daytona 1 and Sega Rally 1 machines, that would have been the icing on the cake for me. The actual RaceRoom is a private room located in the middle of the arcade floor filled with 6 realistic racing simulators. That room is going to be open from tomorrow but the rest of the floor is open right now. I took a bunch of pictures which you can check out below.

Blogger Mathai has put together a bunch of links which you should check before you travel just to be on the safe side. Many people get to the airport only to find out they can’t travel because they have an unpaid bill or a travel ban so this list is a good way to check if you’re problem free.

Traffic Violations
Travel Ban
Telephone Bills
Water and Power Bills
Lawsuits
Arrest Warrants

Late last month I picked up the Fuji X-Pro1 camera from Xcite to review and after spending a lot of time with it I can confidently say I loved it. How much? Well I wouldn’t mind it over the much more expensive Leica M9 but more on that later. I took the camera with me to Lebanon while on vacation and I carried it around and shot with it as much as I could.

The first thing I loved about the camera is the way it looks. When I first saw pictures of it online I was like I need to have it! It’s a simple black boxy looking camera that has a very timeless look to it. It’s bigger than I expected it to be but not that much different from the Leica M9. One thing that’s a lot different to the Leica is the weight. While the Leica M9 is a pretty hefty camera, the X-Pro1 is a lot lighter and that’s a good thing. I walked around with the X-Pro1 strung across my shoulder and I never felt the camera was bothersome or heavy. On the other hand I’ve walked around with a Leica M9 slung over my shoulder before and it’s presence was felt very quickly. Although the camera doesn’t look very ergonomic it felt comfortable in my hands and during use.

The X-Pro1 is a 16MP camera with a sensor that’s similar in size to most DSLR’s. I had the very bright 35m f/1.4 lens for the review and it’s really the only lens you need. The 35mm lens is equal to a 50mm lens on a full frame camera and that’s generally considered the most popular focal length since it’s close to what the eyes see. There are two knobs on the top, one for the shutter speed and one for the exposure. The camera also has a quick menu button which brings to focus the most commonly used options and a customizable FN button which in my case was calling up the ISO list.

Carrying the camera around and shooting with it was a lot of fun. The camera has a hybrid viewfinder similar to the Fuji X100 which is always fascinating to use. The hybrid viewfinder is something unique to Fuji and it’s basically an opticalviewfinder with information digitally displayed on top of it. There is also a switch on the front of the camera which when pressed turns the hybrid viewfinder into an electronic one. I didn’t use the EVF much since I’m not a fan of them but many people will appreciate it’s accuracy over the hybrid viewfinder. Although I read online about the camera’s focusing issues I didn’t run into any while shooting with the camera. I didn’t shoot any sports or fast action but I was shooting with the camera wide open and in different lighting conditions and maybe only once or twice did I have difficulty getting focus. ISO performance is another thing this camera is good at. At ISO1600 the noise is barely noticeable.

I have a few issues with the camera but none very major. First the on/off button gets switched on by mistake all to often and I can’t even count the times I found the camera on when it should be off. I have a similar issue with the aperture ring on the lens, it’s too loose and easily rotates with a minor bump or rub. Another more important issue is manually focusing with the camera. Manually focusing using the hybrid viewfinder isn’t an easy task since there are no markings on the screen to aid you and you can’t estimate using the focus ring on the lens since the focus ring works digitally (it also rotates infinitely).

Now the difficult part is deciding if this camera is right for you. If you’ve always wanted a Leica M8 or Leica M9 then get this camera. Other than the fact the Leica is nearly 4 times more expensive, the X-Pro1 has another advantage and that is the fact it has auto focus. The lenses are also like 10 times cheaper so really it’s a no brainer. If you’ve considered the Sony NEX-7 at one point then you should also consider the X-Pro1. I think the NEX-7 is a great camera but let down by a terrible collection of lenses. Personally I want this camera but I can’t seem to figure out when I would use it. I have the Panasonic GX1 which is my compact camera I take on vacations and dinners. Then I have the Nikon D800 which is what I use for my important stuff. The Fuji would have to replace one of those two but it wouldn’t be able to do the job of either of them right. It’s not compact or versatile like my GX1 and it also doesn’t have the large full frame sensor of my D800 or the lenses to compete with it. As I said earlier, deciding on this camera is the most difficult part.

The camera is selling as a kit for KD646. The kit includes the X-Pro1 camera, the 35mm f/1.4 lens and the original case kit. It’s only available at the new photography section in the Xcite store in Avenues. I just found out the camera kit is actually available at three Xcite branches:

X-PRO 1+X35mm Lens+X-Pro 1 Case (kit) – KD646 – Available in Rai, Fahaheel & Avenues
X18MM (Prime Lens) – KD159 – Available only in Avenues
XF60MM (Macro Lens) – KD182 – Available only in Avenues
EF-X20 (Shoe Mount Flash) – KD58 – Available only in Avenues