2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

If you’re looking for a cool and free spot to watch the World Cup matches then you should probably head over to the Sheikh Jaber Causeway. Castra who were in the news last week because their desert lounge setup got shutdown for not having a license are back now (with a license) and have set up a World Cup viewing area on the Southern Island of the causeway (called Al Saji Island).

The Castra setup is right on the edge of the island with a beautiful view of Kuwait City and is surrounded by food trucks and plenty of seating. Although they were still working on setting up a kiosk area for pop-ups when I visited, they’ve been open and broadcasting the games daily.

There is no entrance fee which is great and because it’s located on the Southern Island of the causeway I think makes this location really fun and interesting to visit. Weirdly, there isn’t anything posted about this anywhere, not even on the Castra Instagram account which is @castra.kw

If you want to head to the location, here it is on Google Maps

If you’re a fan of America’s Got Talent then you’ll probably be excited to know that the magician and illusionist Rob Lake is coming to perform in Kuwait next month.

I don’t watch America’s Got Talent and unless it’s David Blaine, I generally don’t care about illusionists. But, Rob was a featured act and quarter-finalist on season 13 of America’s Got Talent and is fairly popular so it’s pretty cool that JACC are bringing him to Kuwait to perform.

Rob has shows taking place from December 8 to December 10th and tickets start at 10KD and can be purchased directly from JACC. Link

Last month the Ministry of Finance and the Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority reached an agreement with Apple to operate Apple Pay in Kuwait after removing all the obstacles that prevented the service from operating here.

That announcement was followed by a lot of hype with banks testing Apple Pay and even launching the service on their websites. But, that was a month ago and since then the Apple Pay pages were pulled down from the bank websites and there hasn’t been any news, not even leaked videos or photos.

I wonder what happened since it looked like they were set to launch at the start of the month.

Kuwait Airways have posted that there will be a second airshow today from 11 AM to 12 PM near the Kuwait Towers. So if you’ve got a sea view from your office, keep an eye out for them in a bit.

Thanksgiving is in a couple of days so I’ve put together two lists, one of restaurants that are serving Thanksgiving dinner, and the other of restaurants that have turkey to take home. If there is a place you know I haven’t listed, let me know so I can add it:

Dine-In
Four Seasons Hotel @fskuwait
Hilton Garden Inn @hiltongardeninn_kuwait
Hilton Kuwait Resort @hiltonkuwaitresort
Radisson Blu Hotel @radissonblukuwait

Take Away
Dean & Deluca @deandelucame
Four Seasons Hotel @fskuwait
Little Deli @littledeli
Madison & Heig @madisonandheig
Monoprix @monoprixkwt
Radisson Blu Hotel @radissonblukuwait
Sultan Center @sultan_center
The St. Regis @stregiskuwait
Waldorf Astoria @waldorfastoriakuwait

Is it me or is Kuwait getting a lot of Overlanding tourists this year? Back in September, I posted about Petra, the German lady traveling around the world in her huge MAN KAT 8×8 but I keep spotting other visiting overlanders parked on the Gulf Road or mall parking lots. Yesterday one tourist overlander posted a photo showing three other overlanders parked near him. It seems they all use the app iOverlander which has a list of safe to camp spots in Kuwait and around the world which is how they all end up parked in the same spots.

Speaking of places to park, all the Gulf Road parking lots are starting to look like RV campgrounds with lots of motorhomes (not overlanders) parked each taking up multiple parking spots. We clearly don’t seem to have any regulation against this and you know what that means, eventually they’ll just ban motorhomes so they don’t have to deal with it.

Anyway back to the subject, currently, there are at least 4 overlanders passing through Kuwait, @aufaufunddavon_, @the_travely, @busleven and @defendter_. It’s really interesting checking their accounts and watching what they do while they’re in Kuwait. They all seem to really love it here, @busleven for example have spent the most time in Kuwait than any other place they’ve been to so far because of how much they’re liking it. So check out their accounts, they usually all have great photos as well.

I just found out the Red Arrows will be performing aerobatic shows today (Monday 21) between the Kuwait Towers and Green Island from 3:45 pm to 4:30 pm. If you’re hearing jets, that’s what’s going on. @ukinkuwait

Alo Yoga, the Los Angeles-based premium lifestyle/yoga brand is opening at The Avenues this coming Wednesday afternoon. It will be their first store in Kuwait and it’s going to be located next to the Mercedes showroom in the Grand Plaza.

To stay posted on the launch or to check out pictures from their event this past weekend, check them out on Instagram @alo.me

Since the weather has gotten cooler it’s a good time to visit the camel races if you’ve never visited before. Last year I posted a pretty thorough article on the experience and I’ll probably do an updated one this year but, I’m not planning to visit until my FJ40 comes back from Abu Dhabi since I wanted to visit the races in that car.

Last year I went in my Alfa and it was pretty fun and I got some great shots, so I wanted to do it again but in another car this year. If you do want to go before my updated post, the biggest change this season is the timing of the races.

Starting this past Saturday the races now begin at 2:15 PM instead of 1:00 PM. Other than that I think everything else should pretty much be the same. So until my 2022 post is up you can use my previous post as a reference.

Last week I posted a couple of ways you could watch the World Cup tournament including subscribing with TOD for $80. But, a reader left a pretty negative review of his experience with the service after trying to watch the first game yesterday:

Tod is the Worst app on the planet , missed most of the game , it keeps crashing . Its a waste of money, its a scam not worth 80 dollars subscription, you cant even contact them. I watched 10 min of the game then it stops , after resting the app it tells you you need to register the device. I registered my tv maybe 10 times. Dont recommend it at all. And even on your phone it takes a long time to work if it works.

Did you stream with TOD? How was your experience?

In other surprising news, the container park KWT FAN BOX did in fact open in time yesterday to broadcast the opening of the World Cup.

Blast From The Past, the burger concept born out of the Oak and Smoke kitchen launches today. I generally don’t post about new burger places because they’re a dime a dozen now, but, Oak and Smoke actually make really good burgers, probably some of the best of any restaurant so I have very high expectations.

Their new concept Blast From The Past is only delivery to begin with, and only on Cari. If you’re looking for a new burger place to try you can check out their menu on Instagram @bftpkw

The poster below is of the first-ever Kuwait International Book Fair that was held 47 years ago in Kuwait back in November of 1975 (source). The current book fair taking place at the Fair Grounds is #45 and I passed by it last week to check it out.

This year the event looks a lot better than before since the standard booths seem nicer, or maybe they’ve changed the carpet but either way, it just looks visually better overall. There are English books but not many and isolated to a small corner in one of the halls. It’s still worth passing by and checking out especially since it’s going on for another 6 days. For timings and more info check out my previous post here.

The famous contemporary circus ‘Cirque du Soleil’ is coming to Kuwait next month bringing OVO, their production inspired by the world of insects. The show will be held at The Arena with tickets starting at 25KD for the bronze seats and going up to 125KD for the royal seats.

It’s a family-friendly show and they will be performing in Kuwait over five days, from December 14th to December 18th. If you want more information or are interested in getting tickets, here is the link.

The Arena only

Below is this weekend’s list of events taking place. If I missed anything let me know in the comments.

Thursday, Nov 17
Kuwait International Book Fair
JACC: The Tiger Who Came to Tea
WAGMI Talk Sessions
Plant a Tree at Boulevard
Healing Circle

Friday, Nov 18
Kuwait International Book Fair
JACC: The Tiger Who Came to Tea
Gulf Run
Sailing: Friday Sunset Cruising
Doll Making Workshop
Grounding Beach Art
Football: Belgium vs Egypt
Disney Store Meet & Greet

Saturday, Nov 19
Kuwait International Book Fair
JACC: The Tiger Who Came to Tea
Gulf Run
Operation Turtles Beach Cleanup
Treasure Hunt at Al Shaheed Park
Family Medicine 5K Race
Storytelling Through Songwriting
Art Sandsation
Al Andalus Retro Poster Workshop
Ceramics Workshop: Qahwa Cups
Cooking Class: Fried Chicken 101
KTAA Fall Bazaar
Disney Store Meet & Greet
Grand Mosque Tour

Exhibitions
The Divine Agent by Lilia Nour
Ghada Al Kandari x Mercedes Benz

Activities
Albohayra Farm
Ascend Rock Climbing
Indoor Karting
Little Jungle
Murouj Farm
Movement Classes at Omni Studio
Roller Blade at Roller Hub
Yoga at Darātma

Museums to Visit
Abdullah Salem Cultural Center (ASCC)
Amricani Cultural Center Museum
Bait Al Othman Museum
Tareq Rajab Museum

The movies below are now showing at Cinescape, Grand Cinemas and VOX:

New This Weekend:
Joker (2019) (Re-release) (8.4)
Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend (N/A)
Super Furball 2 (6.4)
The Bunker Game (3.5)

Other Movies Showing:
Black Adam (7.5)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (7.4)
Boonie Bears: Back to Earth (5.9)
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (6.5)
Prey for the Devil (5.0)
Smile (6.6)
The System (3.6)
The Woman King (6.3)

The classic films below are currently showing at the 1954 Film House:

Classic Movies Showing:
The Shawshank Redemption (9.3)

The films below are also showing at the JACC Cinema:

Classic & Indie Films Showing:
Beirut Hold’em (6.1)

Numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at the time of publishing.