I was going through some articles about Kuwaiti homes on Architectural Digest when one home caught my attention. The house had a giant bronze pumpkin by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama in their courtyard. I recognized the pumpkin because I had previously come across photos of them nearly a decade ago when they were being exhibited outside in a garden at a gallery in London (see below).
So random that one of them ended up here in Kuwait. To get an idea on how much these sell for, Yayoi is considered to be the most expensive living female artist at auction and a smaller version of this pumpkin got sold for a million dollars back in 2017.
Arablit, the magazine of Arabic literature in translation published an article yesterday on how the Kuwaiti English literature landscape has changed in the past 10 years. Accompanying the article, Arablit also shared a list of 10 important Kuwaiti novels (in English) from the last 10 years which included:
The new iPhone 14 and 14 Pro will be available to pre-order on the Apple website in a few days and if you don’t want to wait for it to officially launch in Kuwait, you can pre-order the phone from Apple directly.
There are two things you need, a US forwarding address like Shop&Ship or MyUS, and a US Apple Store account.
US Forwarding Mailbox
This is something you most likely have already, if not you can get an account by visiting myus.com or shopandship.com and signing up for one. When ordering from Apple.com I always prefer to use MyUS due to the fact the mailbox is located in Florida and so all the items you purchase from Apple are tax free. The amount I save on tax I use to pay for shipping. Last year I paid 16KD to ship the phone from my MyUS mailbox to Kuwait using FedEx 1-3 Days Priority. If you don’t mind waiting there are cheaper shipping options available as well.
US Apple Store Account
Unlike what a lot of people think, you don’t need to have a US credit card to order from the Apple.com website. I have an account that uses my Shop&Ship address as my billing address and my NBK credit card for payments, and I have no issues purchasing laptops and phones from the website and shipping them to my MyUS address. I’ve been doing this for years now and just a couple of weeks back ordered the new MacBook Air that way.
Is it cheaper to buy the iPhone from the US? Yeah, it is. Depending on which iPhone you’re thinking of buying it could be a bit cheaper (and not really worth it) or a lot cheaper. Not only that but you could actually make a bit of money buying an iPhone by reselling it in Kuwait for more than what you paid for since demand, in the beginning, will be a lot higher than availability.
If you have any questions, let me know in the comments.
Was going through old versions of the TEC website using web.archive.org and I came across an old map with all the various TEC projects. Sadly most of the places have been closed down:
Kuwait Towers
Waterfront
Bend Algar Club
Green Island
Swimming Pool Complex
Ice Skating Rink
Musical Fountain
Shaab Club
Yacht Club
Al Shaab Slipway
Shaab Garden
Ras Alard Sea Club & Harbor
Showbiz
Plajat
Al Bida Sea Club
Missila Beach
Touristic Garden
Entertainment City
Abdali Shelter
Sabahia Garden
Ugaila Beach
Mangaf Beach
Nuwaiseeb Shelter
Kheiran Resort
You can view the larger version of the map by clicking here.
Last week Saudi Arabia announced that any GCC resident can now apply for an tourism eVisa as long as you meet some basic requirements. I got in touch with their eVisa team for more information and here is everything you need to know.
Once you visit that link click on the letter “E” on the top left to go to the English page. Then on the right column under “Login Of Individual Visitors To Saudi Arabia” click on Register to create an account.
After creating an account log in and then click on “Add A New Application” on the right side. Click Agree a couple of time and you’ll eventually reach the Visa application form. Make sure for “Visa Type” you select Tourism and then under “Saudi Mission in” you select “Kuwait”.
Other than that it should be fairly simple. There are some requirements which are:
Your residency visa has to be valid of at least 3 months
Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months
Resident’s occupation should be among the eligible occupations listed on the portal (more on that below)
For those under the age of 18, one of the parents must apply first and must be present with them
First-degree relatives (Parents, husband, wife, and children) can get the visa online, as long as they are coming together with the one holding the residency
Regarding the resident’s occupation, it’s too long a list to share but everything I thought of seems to be listed including salesman, waiter or call center operator. So it’s not just managerial positions. The only occupation I couldn’t find was “Driver” but even that might possibly be listed under a different name.
Here are some visa details they also shared with me:
Cost is 300SAR along with health insurance fees
Multiple or single entry, this is not an option for the applicant, authorities (MOFA) will decide on a case by case basis
Validity of 1 year for the multiple entries, and 3 months for the single entry
Length of stay is 90 days for the multiple entry, and 30 days for the single entry
The new regulation took effect from the 1st of September 2022
You will receive the visa within 48 hours at the registered email
You can use the tourist visa to perform Umrah, but not during the Hajj season
This visa is also valid for land, port or air entry.
Finally, they also shared the below requirements for entering Saudi as a tourist:
The tourist visa includes medical insurance covering infection with the Coronavirus
If you are going to drive, you must hold a valid international driving license or a license issued from a GCC country, and the car must have insurance. Insurance can be done at the border on the Saudi side. For more information on traveling by car check out my previous guide here.
And that’s pretty much it. If you have any questions let me know in the comments and I’ll try to answer it.
I ordered an item from Amazon that costs $4.99 and weighs just 0.1lbs. It’s a stupid adapter I needed which I couldn’t find in Kuwait (I found the non-L-shaped version only). Since the item weighs less than 100g and I have a Shop&Ship Flex account where they calculate shipping per 100g increments, this is the lightest weight they charge you for. It also costs under $100 so its exempt from customs.
If you’re curious as to what is the cheapest you can pay for a Shop&Ship package with the new rates, this is it:
Josh Cahill is a German-Czech aviation vlogger and airline critic who is considered to be the most-watched flight reviewer on YouTube. Yesterday he posted a video review of his flight with Kuwait Airways and spoiler alert, he had a wonderful experience. He liked a lot of things including surprisingly, the Chicken Kiev which he described as one of the best meals he’s had on any flight. Now I feel like I have to try it. Check out his review above.
A Disney store is opening in Avenues Phase 4. I was aware Alshaya had gotten the Disney brand for the MENA region but supposedly just for shop-in-shops where they would open small Disney stores inside existing stores like Debenhams and Mothercare. But, based on the hoarding, looks like they’ll also be opening a standalone store.
ROKA, the award-winning modern Japanese restaurant is opening at the Waldorf Astoria this coming Tuesday. If you want to know what kind of food they serve or their prices, their menu is available online and you can check it out here.
They also opened up reservations and it’s filling up pretty fast. As of this post, the next available booking is on October 12. If you want to book, here is the link.
Here is something you didn’t think we needed, a luxury driving school. UDrive is a new driving school that just opened and they currently have two premium learner cars, an MG SUV and a Porsche Macan.
The Porsche is what caught my attention since I’ve never seen a Porsche learners car with two steering wheels. I didn’t even know they made them or would be willing to make them.
Currently, UDrive offers two courses, the first one is Introduction to Driving 101 and is intended for brand new students who’ve never driven before. It’s a 12-credit course and the cost is 379KD and will use the MG SUV.
The second course they have is called Advanced Driving 102. This is also a 12-credit course but costs 679KD and uses the Porsche as the learner’s car.
Both courses provide you with all the necessary education and training needed to get a driver’s license in Kuwait. If you’re looking for a “premium” learning school, their Instagram account is @UDriveKW and their website is udrivekw.com
Has anyone ordered from Amazon directly to Kuwait and had the item shipped with Aramex? The last few items I ordered were shipped with Aramex and I noticed an odd pattern once the package arrived to Kuwait.
Once the package arrives to Kuwait I start getting “errors”. For example, Amazon would first email me the following:
Unfortunately, ARAMEX wasn’t able to complete your delivery and needs additional information to try again. We’re sorry for the inconvenience.
and then a day later:
Unfortunately, a problem occurred during shipping and we had to cancel your delivery. The package is being returned, and we will issue a refund within 3 – 5 business days after the return is processed. We’re very sorry for the inconvenience.
The first time that happened to me I freaked out and of course, there is no way to contact Aramex. Their call center number won’t allow you to talk to a real person and so you have to send them an email. When you do email them you’ll get a generic response asking you to resend your complete address so they can deliver your package.
I learned that if you ignore all the errors both Amazon and Aramex spit out, or the email request for your address, Aramex eventually delivers your package a few days later.
I didn’t think of it much until my friend complained to me about the same issue. So, I have a theory to why this is happening.
Amazon probably has expectations from Aramex on delivery time. Because Aramex can’t meet it, they put the blame on the customer by saying the address isn’t complete. That way they no longer are the reason for the delayed delivery, the customer is. It’s bad business practice.
So I’m curious as to how often this happens, it’s happened with my last 3 deliveries, has it happened to you? Just to be clear this isn’t using Shop&Ship, this is Amazon straight to Kuwait via Aramex.
I’ve been putting together a list of shows that you should watch (or not watch) and because I didn’t post it sooner the list is fairly huge. So I’m going to go through it fairly quick:
Cheer – On Netflix, a reality show about cheerleaders, I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought it would. Got totally sucked in just 5 minutes into the first episode.
Severance – One of the most beautiful shows in a very long time or maybe even ever. It’s also starring Adam Scott, Christopher Walken, Patricia Arquette and John Turturro whom I all love. But, I did find the show very slow moving but it’s still worth watching. It’s on AppleTV+/
Julia – I wasn’t expecting much and was caught off guard. A great show, really entertaining, it’s based on a true story and it’s starring Niles and Lilith from Fraiser.
We Own This City – If you’re a fan of The Wire you’re gonna love this. Like The Wire, this series is also based in Baltimore and stars a ton of actors from The Wire (but now 20 years older). One of my favorite shows on TV and it’s on HBO.
The Essex Serpent – Started watching it because of Claire Danes but quickly got bored of it. It’s on AppleTV+.
Physical – I had bookmarked this show ages ago but only started watching it recently. It was really really good and nothing at all like I expected it to be. Definitly recommend watching it. It’s on AppleTV+
The Baby – It’s on AppleTV+, I got bored by episode 3.
The Terminal List – The series stars Chris Pratt which is the biggest issue with it. It was fun to watch but I’m so used to Chris being the goofy character on Parks & Rec that it feels really weird watching him try and be this serious angry maniac. It’s on Prime Video.
Industry – What Euphoria is to Sex and the City, Industry is to Billions. Would definitely recommend it. It’s on HBO.
The Patient – Just started watching this new show starring Steve Carell. I’m two episodes in and it seems interesting but I have a feeling I might get bored in a couple of episodes. It’s on Hulu.
Welcome to Wrexham – Rob McElhenney from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Ryan Reynolds partner up to buy a football team in Wales. This isn’t a joke, it’s actually based on real life. So bizarre. It’s streaming on Hulu.
I Love That for You – Light-hearted comedy, would watch or at least have playing in the background. It’s on Showtime.
City on a Hill – If you can’t tell I’m a huge fan of crime dramas and this show is no exception. Stars Kevin Bacon who is so incredibly good, like one of my favorite actors on TV right now. Season 3 is streaming right now on Showtime and is produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.
While prepping for my previous post on Pinot, I was going through some old emails and found one where he sent me photos of the old Al-Manara Bookshop that was located in Salmiya next to The Video Club.
Al-Manara was a fairly popular bookstore but there aren’t any photos of it available online. It’s one of those places you never thought about photographing and eventually it’s gone. The photos were taken on March 28, 2008 with a Nikon Coolpix P1.
