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Some of you might noticed the blog went down and up a few times today. The reason for that is I had a problem with the server. I’ve actually been having a problem for around a month now, the site was feeling sluggish and it was going down often for a few minutes at a time. Well thanks to the Rackspace technicians where my server is hosted, they managed to find the problem.

Because the blog gets so many visitors a day small issues are big issues and in my case it turned out my “Related Posts” plugin was the small issue that turned big. You might have noticed before that when you click on a post, right below it you would find a section called “Related Posts” which would contain links to previous posts on a similar subject. Well the previous plugin I had that created those links stopped working so I installed another one around a month or so back. Turns out the new plugin I installed wasn’t programmed properly which resulted in the plugin using all my server resources to the point where the server was becoming unresponsive and required a reboot every so often hence the down times.

How bad was the plugin? The server resource utilization dropped from 121.82 load average down to 0.60 load average just by disabling it! That’s a humongous difference. So now the server is back to normal, it’s a lot faster and more responsive. I’ve also installed Super Cache as well so that should also take the load off from the server.

Everything should now be better than normal.

Update: Just realized why the server went to hell all of a sudden today and not earlier. Turns out the rumor about Jackie Chan passing away came back to life today. Since I’ve previously posted about it I got around 10,000 people come in from google using the search term jackie chan passed away since my link comes up first.

One of the best things about blogging is the fact I get invited to check out a lot of cool work in progress projects like Messilah Beach, Missoni Hotel and The Regency Palace. My dad’s an interior designer and as a kid I used to tag along with him on Friday mornings to various construction sites which is why now whenever I get invited to visit one I can never say no. It brings back good childhood memories and that’s why when I was asked if I wanted to tour the Al Hamra Tower I jumped at the opportunity. I’ve been a big fan of the tower for a long time to get a tour of it before completion would literally be a once in a life time opportunity since they’re only going to build it once.

First a bit of history and some facts. Al Hamra used to be Kuwait’s and the GCC’s first indoor cinema. It had two large theaters, one played Bollywood movies while the other played Western movies. Al Hamra Tower is being built in the same location where Al Hamra Cinema used to be located. It’s currently the second tallest building in the region with Burj Khalifa being the tallest. It’s the tallest asymmetrical structure in the world (no side is like the other side) and it’s also the second tallest concrete building in the world.

So my tour started off with a video presentation of the tower. It wasn’t really boring since there was a presenter and I was able to interrupt and ask questions. After the presentation I was taken to the mall that’s located at the bottom of the tower. The mall is made up of five floors and each floor will be around the size of a floor at Al Raya mall across the street. The fifth floor will hold the Al Hamra Cinema. Whats special about this cinema is the fact it will be the first non-Cinescape theater in 50 years. Back in 1953 Cinescape got a 50 year exclusivity for cinema’s in Kuwait. That exclusivity expired in 2003. The mall will be a luxurious one and having Hermes there is a good start.

Once we were done walking around the mall we headed to the main tower lobby (pictured above) which is really going to be huge when completed. Although the tower is super tall your average wait time for a lift will be under 30 seconds, the lift also travels at a speed of 10 floors a second. To get to the top floor of the tower we had to take a lift up to a lobby on the 54th floor I think and then swap to another lift and continue up to the very last floor.

[YouTube]

Once we got to the last floor it was filled with scaffolding since they still have a few more glass panels they’re installing at the very top. But the space up there is just astonishing, the ceiling is incredibly high and the view is just overwhelming. I shot the video above to try and show what I was experiencing and seeing but you really need to be there (Trivia: Can you tell when I hit my head on a scaffolding? Luckily I was wearing a hard hat!). Once completed this last floor will sadly be a private invite only chairman’s club and not a restaurant like I had previously heard. This means very few people will actually get to enjoy this beautiful view.

It’s hard not to like Al Hamra Tower, it’s an office tower done right and we don’t have many “done right” projects in Kuwait. I really can’t wait for it to launch which should be September of this year. Below are some pictures I took today.

Update: Forgot to mention that the windows will be cleaned by a team of robots and it will take a month to clean all the windows. Burj Khalifa on the other hand employs 36 window cleaners who take 3 months to clean all the windows. Burj Arab I believe uses 2 people who take a full month to clean their windows.

Al Manshar Rotana always have some pretty cool music events taking place poolside. This time they’re holding a Lebanese night with a live band playing some Lebanese classics.

Location: Al Manshar Rotana – Rooftop pool
Date: March 31st, 2011
Price: KD12 per person (includes dinner)

For reservations call +96523931000 ext 223. Here is a link to their flyer which also contains contact information [Link]

This is a very cool event that’s happening tomorrow, Saturday the 26th of March at Pro Kart. It’s actually a bunch of events which I will try my best to explain clearly.

Karting Speed Max Challenge 4 Hours
The first event is a 4 hour karting race. 40 drivers will compete in scoring the best time with 5 drivers racing every heat and the winner continuing on to the final race. The race starts at 4PM and ends at 8PM. The race is open to the public and it’s free of charge!

Dolphin Karting Cup
The second event is an event for juniors aged 5 to 8 year-olds. This race event starts at 3PM and is also free of charge.

Motocross Challenge
The final event is a motocross challenge which will be held at the motocross track adjacent to the karting one. This event will start at 1PM and will be divided into a seniors and juniors race. Participating in this event is also free but unlike the karting events you would need to bring your own dirt bike here.

For more information on these events and a map to the location plus contact numbers you can visit the Pro Kart website [Here]

*****NOTICE*****
Due to the dust storm the event was postponed till next week.

There is an interesting article on 5 things that Donald Duck invented and Kuwait was mentioned in one of the stories:

In 1964, a freighter capsized off the coast of Kuwait. This caused a bit of a problem, as the ship’s hold had been filled with 5,000 sheep, who were now drowned and decomposing in close proximity to Kuwait’s drinking water. And really, no one wants to drink dead sheep water (well, except maybe the Scots). So Danish inventor Karl Kroyer designed a ship-raising technique that involved filling the vessel with small, buoyant balls injected through a tube. The combined buoyancy of which would float the ship to the surface. It took 27 million balls, but it worked. The Al Kuwait rose from the depths, with the furious ghosts of 5,000 dead sheep and all.

So, what does this have to do with Donald Duck? Well, Kroyer wanted to patent his idea and so he applied for it at a Dutch office but they stopped him accusing him of stealing his idea from Donald Duck. Turns out in one of the Donald Duck stories they lifted a sunken ship by pumping millions of ping pong balls into it, an idea similar to Kroyer’s. Anyway you can read the full article and check out the original comic by following this [Link]

I thought is was interesting that the first ship ever raised from the sea bed was here in the coastal waters of Kuwait.

Thanks lloyd_911

[YouTube]

As most of you probably already heard, Wataniya Airways is shutting down their operations. I know a lot of you are fans of the airline and will be sad to see it go but I’ve got an even greater attachment to it. I was a part of the team that helped launch the airline and I’ve been working on the brand ever since. The first thing we did was launch the airline with a teaser campaign followed by the revealer and the TV commercial (above). That was back in December 2008 and you can find out the story behind the commercial and check out some behind the scene shots over [Here]

[YouTube]

The following year we released the second commercial (above) which I thought turned out very cool as well. It was just a really great experience working with the brand and they truly wanted to offer the people of Kuwait the best airline experience. Their terminal kicked ass, it was a lot cooler than the main airport terminal, it was cozy, the seating area was very tastefully done, they had free wifi everywhere, it was peaceful, no long cues and just very pleasurable. Their planes were also cool and the fact I could use my phone to check email, make a call or chat with my friends on the Blackberry was also amazing.

But, all good things must come to an end I guess. To me Wataniya Airways will end up being a great Kuwaiti brand that I will always remember just like Hungry Bunny and Pizza Italia.

My friend (who’s involved with Fat Burger) told me earlier today they’re opening a new branch soon in Kuwait City at Burj Jassem. I for one hated driving all the way to Mangaf Mahboula just to have a burger so the fact they’re opening next to my work place is cool. Sadly I’m still on a diet and can only have burgers once a week.

I managed to get a hold of the new iPad 2 today courtesy of X-cite Electronics and I’m glad I did since there were a lot of questions I had which I managed to get answered after spending some time with the iPad 2.

The iPad 2 I got is the 3G version so the first thing I wanted to check is to see if the iPad was locked to AT&T or not. This time around there are two versions of the iPad 2 3G, there is the AT&T version and there is the Verizon version. The one I got was the AT&T version and it runs perfectly fine in Kuwait. I took out my micro sim from my iPhone 4 and placed it inside the iPad 2 and it worked right away and I was able to browse webpages and stream music from my favorite stations without a problem.

Now physically I was expecting there to be a lot more difference between the old and the new iPad but honestly I felt they were pretty similar. Sure the new iPad is 33% slimmer but it doesn’t feel that different to me (I’ve got big hands maybe?). I never felt the old iPad was actually thick so the fact that the new one is slightly slimmer is a bonus but not really worth upgrading from the old iPad. One thing I want to point out is the fact that I found it difficult to connect the iPad 2 to the keyboard dock due to the way the dock connecter at the bottom of the iPad 2 is on a curve. It took me a few tries the first time and I am guessing I would get better at it after a bit of practice.

The smart cover is pretty cool since it’s very minimal and easy to take off and put on. I didn’t like holding the iPad with the cover on but what’s great about the smart cover is you just pull it off to remove it so it’s very practical to put on and take off and when on it doesn’t add to the thickness by much.

Now I left what I think is probably the most important upgrade till the end and no it’s not the camera which I find useless but the new faster A5 processor. The new iPad 2 is a lot faster than the older iPad and games like Sim City and Red Alert for example run a lot smoother on the iPad 2 compared to the original iPad. Even when launching the apps the difference is very obvious as you can since in the video I recorded above (The iPad 2 is on the bottom).

If you still don’t have a tablet and are looking to get one I wouldn’t recommend anything other than the iPad (both original and 2). If you already own an iPad and are wondering if you should get the iPad 2, well personally I don’t think there is enough change to justify the upgrade. For me the only reason I might get an iPad 2 is if they come out with cool games that take advantage of the new faster iPad 2 processor but other than that I don’t think I would get one. Some people might need the camera or want the smart cover but I use my iPad to read magazines and play games and the original iPad will do both those nearly as good as the iPad 2. But a few months from now I will probably eat my words and end up getting the iPad 2 just because I’m an Apple fanboy.

You can check out the iPad 2 yourself since they are on display at the X-cite Avenues and Al-Rai branch. They are also taking orders and will be delivering them in a week or two. Here are the prices:

Ipad2-16GB-WiFi Black/White KD199
Ipad2-32GB-WiFi Black/White KD249
Ipad2-64GB-WiFi Black/White KD289
Ipad2-16GB-WiFi 3G Black/White KD259
Ipad2-32GB-WiFi 3G Black/White KD309
Ipad2-64GB-WiFi 3G Black/White KD349

I know it sounds bad but this is actually great news. If you remember back in 2007 I posted about how Kuwait was ranked the 8th fattest country in the world and actually ranked 1st if you only counted the industrialized nations. Well according to the latest statistics by the World Health Organization, Kuwait now ranks back down in 13th place. That actually means Kuwait’s lost weight!

World’s Fattest Countries
1- Nauru
2- American Samoa
3- Tokelau
4- Tonga
5- Kiribati
6- French Polynesia
7- Saudi Arabia
8- Panama
9- United States of America
10- United Arab Emirates
11- Egypt
12- Bahrain
13- Kuwait

I believe this has to do with the increased awareness on obesity and the fact that people today are more informed on what causes it. Restaurants are also adding more healthy items on their menu and more and more people are on diets recently. Hopefully Kuwait will keep dropping down the list. Speaking of the list, cick here to download the full list [Link]

Taken from WHO

Thanks lowlael2ml

Just found out by mistake that there is a mini Olympics of a sort just for women that being held in Abu Dhabi for the next six days. Not sure if it’s been publicized or not but I just found out about it now and not sure if the games will be broadcasted on television or not. Kuwait is participating in the games as well as female athletes from Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and UAE. They will be competing in athletics, volleyball, equestrian, taekwondo, bowling and shooting. Not sure who or how many from Kuwait are participating so if anyone has more information on this I will gladly post it. Here is a link to an article about the games. [Link]

A couple of days back I found the image above of Lionel Richie on a website and it cracked me. So, I decided to replicate it and put it up in my office. But, I then decided to print a couple of more copies and paste them around town (check an example below) since I figured it would put a smile on the face of a stranger when they saw it.

Now I’m sharing the PDF of the flyer I did in case you want to print and paste it somewhere as well. It’s a silly little thing but it’s fun. [PDF]

If you don’t get this post click [Here]

This has to be the strangest thing I’ve read in ages. According to Badoo the compilers of the world’s largest ever study on online flirting, Kuwait ranked 3rd in flirtatious behavior online. 3rd place out of 200! Isn’t that so very weird?

Top 10
1 Athens
2 Moscow
3 Kuwait City
4 Baku
5 Tunis
6 Kiev
7 Beirut
8= Turin
8= Rome
10 Bari

Here is a link to the article [Link]

Thanks FYI

On my trip to Dubai I decided to stay at EasyHotel. I had a good experience with them on my last trip to London so was interested to see how the hotel was in Dubai. What attracted me to the hotel was the fact rooms start at just KD7.5 a day (99dhms). Yes KD7.5 a day! I thought that was ridiculously cheap and specially for a hotel in Dubai. I looked for reviews online but couldn’t find anything and the only pictures I found were the PR shots. I was a bit worried to book a room but figured what the hell its only for 3 days so worse comes to worse it would be over quickly.

The hotel is located in the Jabel Ali free zone which is around 40 minutes from the airport and 30 minutes from Dubai Mall. I rented a car from the airport and headed with my GPS towards Easy Hotel. Even though the software on my GPS is the 2010 map it seems since the map got released the roads in Dubai changed because the GPS made me take the wrong exit and I spent 40 minutes trying to get back to the main Sheikh Zayed road. Once you find the hotel though its pretty easy to get there.

My first impression with the hotel was positive. The building was very clean and simple on the outside with ample parking underneath. The reception was also very clean with a few vending machines on one side and some computers connected to the internet on the other. I should mention this in case you didn’t know already but Easy Hotel is a no frills hotel in the same way how Jazeera and Fly Dubai are budget airlines. The rooms are cheap but that’s because you get just the basics and you pay for extra stuff. The Easy Hotel I previously tried in London was also extremely tiny (see review here) but if all you care about is a place to sleep at night then you really won’t mind it all.

The rooms at Easy Hotel Dubai are pretty big compared to the London branch. There was ample space around the bed , a flat screen tv (with just 4 channels), a small open closet with shelves and hangers. There was even a little desk next to the window and a small safe to put your items in. The bathroom wasn’t that bad as well, the sink was kinda small but the shower area was pretty big.

As I mentioned with Easy Hotel you pay for extras. For example the fact I wanted a room with a window.. thats an extra cost. If you don’t care about a window then you pay less for the room. TV remote? You pay for that as well (although we were given one for free), extra towels? you pay, Internet? you pay, you want your room cleaned? you pay, water? you pay, room service? its a vending machine in the lobby. Surprisingly I didn’t have to pay to park my car at the hotel!

But with all that I loved staying there and in the end my room with extras came out to just KD10 a night which is still incredibly cheap and this is DUBAI!!. The hotel was super clean, the Internet was fast and the staff were very friendly. From now on that’s the hotel I will be staying in when I fly there.

Things to keep in mind though, you need to rent a car since the hotel is 30 minutes away from places like Dubai Mall. There are no cabs outside or near the hotel so you would have to order one and I don’t know how long that would take. There is a metro nearby but not walking distance. There is also nothing around the hotel, nothing you can walk to. But, because the hotel is so cheap you can splurge on a rental, my Toyota Yaris from Budget cost me just KD15 a day with all the insurance, gas and crossing 4 electronic toll systems a day. Would I recommend EasyHotel? Yes I would.

Just an FYI, I’m going to be talking tonight at GeekFest about blogging in Kuwait and my Benihana lawsuit. I sadly won’t be there for the event but I will be presenting via Skype video. If you’re in the UAE and want to find out more about this event you can visit their website [Here]

I think they’ve arranged for a bus from Dubai to the venue twofour54 (hmmm) and there is more info on that in their Facebook page [Here]

I tried FlyDubai for the first time on my recent trip to Dubai. I booked everything the last minute and FlyDubai had the cheapest prices so I decided to try them out.

My experience with FlyDubai itself didn’t turn out bad. We started off on the wrong foot since when I tried to check in at the airport I had to wait around 20 minutes because the ticket staff lost the list that contains all the job occupations that can get a visa on entry to Dubai. That was extremely annoying and frustrating. Then once we boarded the plane I thought the interior was gloomy. I think its the color of the seats (brownish orange with a dark blue) made the interior look old. But I thought the uniforms of the flight attendants were cool and trendy plus they were also very friendly and polite. On my way there the seats didn’t have a TV screen but on the return flight there was a screen with a credit card slit. You could use your card to purchase movies or tv shows to watch (movie is 25dhm tv show is 5dhm). You could also order duty free and food items using the screen including alcohol.

Actually my only issue with FlyDubai is the airport they fly in and out from in Dubai. FlyDubai uses Terminal 2 which is one of the saddest airports I’ve been to (and I’ve been to quite a few). After falling in love with Dubai on this trip (mostly because of Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa) I found the airport a step in the opposite direction. It was old, small, dark and had no source of entertainment whatever. The Duty Free looked very poor and the only restaurants available were McDonalds, a Kebab place and Costa. On the bright side there was free wifi at the terminal but after spending time in a very futuristic and modern city to end the trip in that depressing airport was an extreme let down. The airport sadly is a deal breaker for me which is a shame since everything else wasn’t bad at all.