Search: “about the blog”

Ok, so he is a bench warmer for the Phoenix Suns, but it still makes for an interesting read though. [Link]

John Carmack (creator of the game Doom and more)

David Duchovny
Rob Zombie

Celebrity Blogs Part 1

Rosie O’Donnell now has her own blog:
https://onceadored.blogspot.com/

Other celebrity blogs:

Wil Wheaton
https://www.wilwheaton.net/

Zach Braff
https://gardenstate.typepad.com/

Any more?

I just finished working on the site’s template. I think I am nearly done. I created this blog as a B-Side to Miskan. Basically I sometimes I have little things I want to say and I can’t say them on Miskan because I can only post once a day there. With this site I can post whenever I want, about whatever I want and even post pictures which didnt make it to Miskan . As a bonus, my wife (nat) is also gonna start posting here. She never had a blog before so this will be her first time. I would also like to thank Tivo Guy for hosting this blog on his server. Thank you!

Kuwaiti Word a Day is an interesting blog where every day they teach you one new Kuwaiti word. Actually I think the writer herself is learning a new Kuwaiti word everyday and sharing it with her readers. What I found specifically interesting about the blog is the fact that the posts are informal, sometimes personal and generally pretty entertaining. You can check it out [Here]

Radiant Guy emailed me to tell me that my blog was mentioned in the new brownbook urban city guide on Kuwait. brownbook is an urban lifestyle magazine focusing on middle eastern lifestyle agendas, events and developments. The magazine is available internationally (even on Amazon) and the city guides should be available everywhere soon. This is what the article says about the blog:

This is a kind of strange selection for shopping, but when doing our research we found out that mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com offer an aerial perspective towards the shopping as well as the social development in Kuwait. With the blog constantly updated by Mark and Nat, a couple who are living in Kuwait offer an in depth perspective towards Kuwait.

248am.com

The brownbook magazine is very stylish and trendy and the guide is also designed beautifully so its a really cool thing that I am in it. I am also the only blog in there. Here is a larger scan of my page from the guide. [Picture]

Thanks Radiant Guy!

The Cobogo House is a private villa in Funaitees that was completed a few years ago, but last month it got featured on the Natuzzi website which is how I came to find out about it.

The name of the project comes from the cobogó bricks used across the villa’s façade. These are decorative perforated concrete blocks, similar in concept to Islamic mashrabiya screens, that let air and light through while still giving you shade and privacy. The bricks also cast interesting light and shadow inside the house which you will notice in some of the interior photos.

Cobogo House was designed by the local architecture firm Babnimnim, who are probably most known for the beautiful contemporary mosque in Al Massayel, the Mamluki Lancet Mosque.

To check out all the photos of the space, the photographer Mohammad Ashkanani has the photos here.

Since the 24th Annual Kuwait International Camel Racing Championship starts today, I thought it would be the perfect time to share these photos taken by Mark Lowey in 1988.

Mark Lowey (also known as AbuJack) worked for the Kuwait National Petroleum Company and lived in Kuwait with his wife from 1985 to 1988. One Friday on his day off, Mark and a friend headed to the camel races, where he captured a number of photos. This was during a period when camel jockeys were mostly children, a practice that was later banned in the 2000s.

Mark actually put together a photo essay from that day, complete with a detailed write up, but it was published on the Aramco Expats website, which shut down a couple of years ago. Luckily I still had some of the photos saved from when I first shared his photos on my blog back in 2021.

Also, for those of you interested in the camel racing championship, it’s taking place from February 7 to 12 and I’ve shared the schedule below.

Saturday, February 7
Morning Races start at 8AM
Afternoon Races start at 3:30PM

Sunday, February 8
Morning Races start at 8AM
Afternoon Races start at 1:30PM

Monday, February 9
Morning Races start at 8AM
Afternoon Races start at 1:30PM

Tuesday, February 10
Morning Races start at 8AM
Afternoon Races start at 1:30PM

Wednesday, February 11
Morning Races start at 8AM
Afternoon Races start at 3:30PM

Thursday, February 12
Races start at 1:30PM

Here is the location of the race track on Google Maps.

Since Souk Sharq closed down a couple of days ago, I thought I’d post about the time it was hit by an Iraqi missile.

Back in 2003 I was running the blog Qhate with a couple of friends and my sister. It quickly turned into a war blog once the situation with Iraq escalated, and we started covering life in Kuwait during that period. Many people had fled Kuwait out of fear of another invasion, and those who stayed were buying gas masks and taping up their windows. It was a strange and tense time to be living here.

Just after midnight on March 29, 2003, an Iraqi missile landed outside Souk Sharq, injuring two people and causing damage to the mall. Most of the damage was to the movie theater, which is located in the part of the mall closest to the water where the missile landed.

I had shared photos from the aftermath back then and still have them. They’re not high resolution, but they’re still worth sharing. It was a pretty scary time, and along with the photos I’m also sharing posts below written by my friend and my sister, who covered the incident on the blog.

If anyone is interested, the blog is still online as a time capsule of that period. You can check it out at qhate.com

The Kuwait-based advisory firm Ali Bahbahani and Partners recently released its annual Kuwait Automotive Market Report for 2025.

According to the report, 2025 was Kuwait’s biggest year on record for car sales, with 151,489 vehicles sold. The data is based on official vehicle registration figures from Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior, which go back to 2013. Last December was also the strongest single month on record, with 16,223 cars sold.

Other interesting facts:
– SUVs now make up 57% of the market, while sedans have fallen to 36%. The remaining 7% includes pickups, vans, and commercial vehicles.

• Toyota is still the #1 brand in Kuwait

• In 2017, Chinese brands sold just 681 vehicles in Kuwait. Last year, they sold 42,901, a 63x increase in only eight years.

• Japanese brands held 55% of Kuwait’s car market in 2013. Today, they hold 40%. Over the same period, Chinese brands grew from 0.5% to 28%.

• The top seven sellers in the budget-conscious segment are all Chinese brands: Jetour T2, GWM H9, Chery Arrizo 5, Changan Alsvin, MG 3, Omoda C5, and MG 5.

• Ten brands sold fewer vehicles in 2025 than in 2024, even as the overall market grew 16%. These include Geely, Lexus, Jeep, Ford, and Honda.

• Some brands rely heavily on a single model. For GMC, 72% of its sales come from the Yukon, while 70% of Jetour’s sales come from the T2.

• The Jetour T2 outsold the Nissan Patrol last year, a model with decades of heritage in Kuwait.

Finally, the top 10 selling cars for 2025. Seven of the 10 models are SUVs. Only one of the top 10 is Chinese, while the majority of the best sellers are Japanese. Here are is the list:

1.  Toyota Prado (7,650)
2.  Toyota Land Cruiser (6,379)
3.  Jetour T2 (4,309)
4.  Nissan Patrol (4,181)
5.  Nissan Sunny (3,880)
6.  Ford Territory (3,539)
7.  Toyota Corolla (2,951)
8.  Chevrolet Captiva (2,269)
9.  GMC Yukon (2,266)
10. Kia Sportage (2,177)

For more interesting stats, click here.

Over the weekend I went on a desert trip with some friends and decided to bring a kite along, which turned out to be the best idea. I hadn’t flown a kite since I was a kid, probably back in the 80s, and I didn’t even own one until a couple of days before the trip. Now I own three.

The idea of getting a kite came up because a friend was worried it was going to be windy in the desert, so I started thinking about how we could actually take advantage of that. My first thought was to get a kite for the kids, but once I found out no one was bringing their kids, I figured I’d just get one for the adults instead.

I did a bit of quick research and found someone in Kuwait selling Prism kites. They looked great and he had a wide range of options to choose from. I ended up going with the Zenith 7, one of the larger single line kites. The reviews were very positive, and the kite itself is pretty big, spanning over 2 meters wide, which I thought was very cool.

Flying the kite was surprisingly a lot of fun. There was no cellphone reception in the desert and it was really quiet, just dunes and nothing else, so flying the kite felt kind of therapeutic. It might not look that fun when you’re watching from the side, but when you’re actually flying it, it really is in its own way.

Whenever I handed the kite over to someone, they instantly understood why it felt so relaxing. That’s what convinced me to buy two more kites, a slightly smaller Zenith 5 and a different style kite, a two line foil kite. That way next time we can fly multiple kites at the same time.

If you’re thinking of getting a kite, they’re not that expensive and you can fly them almost anywhere, not just in the desert. The Gulf Road walkway would be a great spot, and even parks work well. It gives you something to do other than just sitting on a bench and watching people go by.

The guy I bought my kites from has a pretty good selection on his website which you can check by clicking here.

Similar to last year, I put together a year in review highlighting some of the most popular posts from the past year.

Last year I had one post that went viral internationally, and that was my Gaza Cola post. I still don’t really understand why it took off the way it did, and honestly it brought a lot of unwanted noise with it. I ended up closing the comments and repeatedly hiding and unhiding the post until things finally quieted down. In the end that post got over 2 million views and over 160,000 likes.

I generally don’t like posts going viral since they tend to attract followers outside my usual audience. I love it when a post does really well, but once it goes past around 5,000 likes, things start to get really weird.

When it comes to ads, the most liked ad last year was my post on HBR opening in London which got over 5,600 likes. The runner up posts were for OffTheCoal and Aseer Time. The income I generated last year from ads actually allowed me to quit my job to blog full time. My previous job not paying salaries definitely helped push that decision, but either way, I blog for a living now. The last time I quit my job to blog full time was back in 2012, but back then I still took on a part time job back for the extra income.

Since quitting my job I now live in gym gear, with pants reserved for special occasions. I also don’t play as many video games as I hoped I would, but on the other hand, I think my dog is happy that I now hang out with him all day. Although most of the time he’s just sleeping while I’m working on my Mac.

Other random info: the most shared post for 2025 was my Primark post, which is interesting since the most shared post for 2024 was also Primark related. That shows just how much interest there is around Primark. The most controversial subject last year was gym pricing, with two of the top three most commented posts being gym related.

Finally, I ended 2025 with around 96K followers, compared to 55K at the end of 2024. It’s not double, but I do spend a lot of time removing fake followers, so at least it’s real.

Check out the most popular posts below.

Posts with Highest Views

Gaza Cola is Now Available in Kuwait
2,295,025 views

Primark Kuwait Prices Compared to the UK
598,661 views

Bella Hadid is Coming to Kuwait
417,638 views

Posts with the Most Likes

Gaza Cola is Now Available in Kuwait
160,721 likes

It’s Official – Wingstop is Opening in Kuwait
12,442 likes

More Old Kuwaiti Houses from the 1960s
11,766 likes

Posts with the Most Comments

5 Reasons Women’s Gyms in Kuwait Cost More
433 comments

The Drama Behind the 750s Latte
378 comments

Men vs Women: Gym Prices in Kuwait
372 comments

Posts with the Most Shares

Primark Kuwait Prices Compared to the UK
22,952 shares

It’s Official – Wingstop is Opening in Kuwait
20,434 shares

Bella Hadid is Coming to Kuwait
20,268 shares

Best Performing Ads

Kuwaiti Burger Brand HBR Opens in London
5,608 likes

This Might be the Most Unique Spot in Kuwait
4,488 likes

Aseer Time Just Opened in China
4,112 likes

West Elm is closing down next week, so they’ve been running clearance sales to get rid of their stock. I passed by over the weekend and went back again today, only to find out they just started their big sale. Everything is now at least 70% off. Some of the accessories are even discounted by more than 90% because they have buy one get one free deals on top of the discounts.

I’m pretty sad that West Elm is closing down. It was my favorite furniture store, and we really don’t have many other places that offer a similar style.

They’re closing down on December 25, but I’d head there sooner. The store was super busy when I was there, and I’m sure a lot of the good stuff is going to get sold. Pottery Barn is also having a massive sale since they’re also closing on the 25th.

I just found out that the Max Amini comedy show, which was supposed to take place this Thursday at The Arena, has been canceled. According to The Arena, the show was canceled for reasons beyond their control. My guess is that it might be related to issues surrounding some of the recent shows, but if I find out more, I’ll update this post.