2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

Twenty years ago, I, along with my oldest friend (@nibaq) and my sister (@rampurple), decided to launch a blog together called qhate.com. To give you an idea of how long ago that was, none of the social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter existed back then. Gmail wasn’t even born yet; some of you reading this weren’t born yet either.

After launching Qhate, the blog quickly turned into a war blog covering life in Kuwait during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The blog gave the world a glimpse into our lives during those uncertain and sometimes scary times. If you want to check it out, the blog is still up; it’s a time capsule.

When the war ended, we decided to stop that blog and start different solo projects; mine eventually became 248AM.

I’m incredibly thankful for all the benefits the blog has gotten me over the years, including the relationships I have formed, the memorable experiences I’ve had, and the financial benefits it has provided. (Insert all the cheesy hashtags here)

So thank you for all your support.

Note: It’s so weird that I published this post on Instagram first. When I initially started Instagram it was meant to support the blog but now the blog feels like it’s the Instagram accounts backup.

The annual camel racing tournament starts this Saturday, February 4th, and will last until February 9th. If you’ve been meaning to go to the races but have been putting it off, now would be the best time to go.

There will be races every morning and afternoon except for the last day when it will only be held in the afternoon. Below are the start times of the races:

Sat Feb 4 – 8AM and 3:30PM
Sun Feb 5 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Mon Feb 6 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Tue Feb 7 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Wed Feb 8 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Thu Feb 9 – 3:30PM

There is no entrance fee and you can either watch the races from the track stands or drive up to the starting lines and watch the start of the races.

Here is the location on Google Maps.

Below are all the events I found taking place this weekend, if I missed anything let me know in the comments:

Thursday, Feb 2
The Promenade Family Fun
Meet Me At The Terrace
Arabian Products Expo
965 Outlet
Trend Exop
Feria De Kuwait
Burger Show 2023
Shrek The Musical
Gala Performance: Twelfth Night
Trivia Night at Al Andalus

Friday, Feb 3
Kites Watching in Bnaider
Meet Me At The Terrace
Arabian Products Expo
965 Outlet
Trend Exop
Feria De Kuwait
Burger Show 2023
Shrek The Musical
The Stadium – Fitness Challenge
Samra Night at Palama
Trip: Into The Stars

Saturday, Feb 4
Meet Me At The Terrace
Treasure Hunt At Alshaheed Park
Arabian Products Expo
965 Outlet
Trend Exop
Feria De Kuwait
Burger Show 2023
Kashta Show
Shrek The Musical
Rewire Your Brain & Heart
Workshop: Embroidery & Sewing
Art N Dine: Dreamy Garden
Live Drawing Session
Riso Workshop
German Classic Cars Meetup
Qout Market

Exhibitions
Ala Taraf Lisan Al Ard
Bridging East and West
Surrender

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

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

New This Weekend:
Bandit (6.4)
Blood (6.9)
Pinocchio and Friends (6.7)
The Price We Pay (4.8)
The Son (6.1)

Other Movies Showing:
Avatar: The Way of Water (7.8)
M3GAN (6.1)
Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre (7.2)
Plane (6.9)
Shotgun Wedding (7.3)
The Amazing Maurice (6.4)

The classic films below are currently showing at the 1954 Film House:
Beauty and the Beast (8.0)
Blade Runner (8.1)
The Lion King (8.5)

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

On the occasion of Kuwait Flag Day, Kuwait Airways have a 24-hour sale today with up to 25% off on ticket prices for all destinations. I just checked the price of tickets to Paris and Bangkok and both had only a 15% discount on the economy tickets but around 23.5% on the business class tickets. So the discount I guess will depend on where you’re flying to and what class.

The sale ends at midnight tonight. Link

Update: Discount doesn’t apply to the following days 16FEB-23FEB/19APR-22APR/22JUN-30JUN/01JUL-10AUG2023

This might come in handy one day, a reader recently lost one of his license plates and decided to share the process of getting a new one in case it happens to anyone else. Here are the steps he had to take:

1. Go to the police station and get a police complaint

2. Go to your traffic department and get an application typed by the typing center there (tell them you need to get a new license plate). You will need your civil ID copy, a copy of the car registration, and the original copy of the police complaint from the first step

3. You’ll need to purchase a stamp, the amount depends on the type of license plate you have

4. You need to go to the department head and get his signature and stamp. He will also ask you to write your name, number and sign the paper.

5. After getting your paper signed you will have to go to one of the computer counters. They will enter your details and then call you and ask you to take photocopies of two papers and go to the license plates room. Make sure you don’t have any fines before giving them your papers or else they’ll give them back to you and ask you to go pay your fines first

6. The license plates person will give you a small sheet of paper with details attached to the photocopies you gave them

7. Take the paper and then head to the Assima traffic department in Shuwaikh and head to the license plate factory there which is on the ride side of the main building (Google Maps)

8. Give the paper to the guy at the reception and he will ask you to get a signature from the manager. When you get that signature give the paper back to him

9. He will ask you to wait and 5-10 minutes later you’ll have your new license plate

Thanks Uzair

If you ever wondered what a KD2,000-a-night hotel room looks like, here you go. I originally saw this room last summer when the Grand Hyatt gave me a tour of the hotel, but back then the room was still being accessorized so I didn’t share any photos. A few days ago I went back to see the room because I figured it would make an interesting post.

So here are some facts:
– This is the Presidential Suite
– It’s 260 sq m
– It’s basically a luxurious large apartment, with 2 bedrooms, 3 living rooms, 3 bathrooms, a walk-in closet, a large dining room, a kitchen, and its own private elevator access

I tried to cover the whole room on video in under a minute and barely made it. I even had to leave out some parts like the kitchen and some corridors, that’s how huge the room is. Swipe left for the walkthrough video.

I heard there’s a KD4,500 per night hotel room in Kuwait as well which makes me think I should probably check that out next.

Bonjiri, the Yakitori bar by Chef Maryam Alnusif (Mimi) last night became the second restaurant from Kuwait to make it to the Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Bonjiri came in the No.50 spot, a few spots behind White Robata which came in 42nd but still an amazing accomplishment considering all the competition in the region.

If you’ve never been to Bonjiri before, check out my review here. For the full top 50 list, check out @theworlds50best

The annual list of the Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants was revealed last night and for the second year running, White Robata won the award for The Best Restaurant in Kuwait for 2023. They came in 42nd place overall in the Middle East & North Africa, one spot higher than last year.

The best restaurant this year was Dubai’s Orfali Bros Bistro. For the full top 50 list, check out @theworlds50best

The Red Bull Half Court is a 3×3 basketball tournament that takes place in 29 different countries including Kuwait. This year the tournament will be taking place in Kuwait from February 3rd to the 11th and there are still spots for teams available to sign up.

If you and your friends want to compete, it’s free to register. The tournament winners will get an all-expense paid trip to Serbia later this year to compete in the world finals.

To register your team simply go to redbullhalfcourt.com and sign up.

Sirdab is a new local online store that just launched yesterday that sells furniture that’s second-hand, antique, vintage, or handmade. Even though they launched yesterday their store has a ton of items for sale already including chairs, tables, lamps rugs, and various accessories. The website is also surprisingly good, it’s fast, easy to navigate, and easy to sort.

Delivery starts a 2KD for small items and goes up to 10KD for the larger stuff. If you want to check them out their Instagram is @shop.sirdab and their website is shopsirdab.com

This isn’t something a lot of people would need but is very useful for those who do. EQPAD is a small business that specializes in high-quality acoustic treatment solutions. It all started when the owner struggled to find high-quality sound absorbers and bass traps in Kuwait and decided to get things done himself. He then decided to turn it into a business and now offers a service that includes the design of the product customized to your room, delivery, and installation.

If you’re interested check them out on Instagram @eqpad.sound

The financial services company Remitly analyzed and published a list of the most popular dream jobs around the world.

Remitluy used Google search data to establish the annual search volume in each country for ‘how to be a [job]’. The most searched for job was then used as the top career for the specific country.

According to their results, the top dream job in Kuwait is being an influencer. Everyone else in the GCC wants to be a poet for some reason while the most popular dream job overall in the world was a pilot. Click here to view the full map or visit the source.

Aseer Time are the largest juice shop franchise in Kuwait and they’ve been around for over a decade now. They have over 200 branches around the world including stores in Bahrain, KSA, Qatar, UAE, Oman, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Denmark, and USA. They’re actually the first Kuwait brand to open more than 5 stores in the US.

With their continued transformation into a globally recognized brand, they’re looking for new franchise partners and you could be one of them.

The steps to joining Aseer Time are simple and straightforward:

1. Submit the Franchise Request Form
2. Get to know each other physical meeting or through video conference meeting
3. Signing of the Franchise Contract
4. Secure a site and construct your shop
5. Training the team to be ready to run the business
6. Grand opening

If you’re interested in owning a Aseer Time franchise, contact us on:

WhatsApp: +965 60065377
Email: [email protected]
Website: aseertime.com

Yesterday Kuwait Airways revealed their new uniforms designed by the Italian fashion house Ettore Bilotta. The fashion house is known for collaborating with many international airlines including Etihad and Turkish Airlines.

Kuwait Airways also announced new flight routes:

Starting from June 2023

Antalya – Athens – Budapest

Starting from October 2023
Abha – Alula – Barcelona – Berlin – Qassim – Taif

I wish the Barcelona route started sooner since I’m meant to be flying there in June and I’d rather not have a stopover anywhere. Having a direct flight to Berlin is also great, it’s been on my to-do list for a few years and a direct flight makes it all the more accessible.