Search: “kuwait”

Looks like this winter is going to be packed with big events. Jon Batiste, the American musician, composer, and television personality, is coming to perform live in Kuwait this November.

If you haven’t heard his music before, it’s a mix of jazz, soul, R&B, and pop, and he has a way of blending it all together that makes his sound unique and uplifting.

Jon also won a number of awards over the years. In 2020, he teamed up with Nine Inch Nails members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (one of my favorite bands), composed the score for the Disney and Pixar film Soul. The three went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Score. In 2022, Batiste was the most nominated artist at the Grammys with 11 nominations and took home the most awards with five, including Album of the Year. In total, he’s won seven Grammy Awards to date.

If those accolades weren’t enough, Jon has also recorded and performed with big names like Alicia Keys, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Willie Nelson, Lenny Kravitz, ASAP Rocky, Ed Sheeran, and Lana Del Rey. He was also the bandleader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2015 until 2022.

According to Batiste’s website, he’ll be performing in Kuwait on November 29 at JACC. More details, including ticket information, will be available soon on the organizer’s Instagram @epicx.event

Popular Iranian-American stand-up comedian Max Amini is coming to Kuwait to perform live.

I didn’t recognize him by his name at first when a reader told me about him, but after watching his videos I realized he’s one of the funny stand-ups that often pop up on my TikTok feed.

With nearly 8 million Instagram followers, Max Amini would be the most popular stand-up comedian to perform in Kuwait. He hasn’t announced a date yet, but Kuwait and Bahrain are listed as stops on his page right after his India tour ends on December 3.

If, like me, you don’t recognize who Max is, head over to his Instagram account and watch some of his videos. @maxcomedian

Update: According to the organizers @epicx.event, he will be performing in Kuwait on December 18th.

There’s an interesting variety of events taking place this weekend, here are my favorites. As always, double check the event details with the organizers.

Thursday, September 18
The IMPROV Show
Miami Show 3.0
Al Hamra Career Fair
Korean Movie Night: Along With The Gods

Friday, September 19
John Achkar Standup Comedy
Welcome Lunch Potluck
Miami Show 3.0

Saturday, September 20
Stretch for a Cause
Floral Workshop: Contemporary Design
World Cleanup Day
Trios by Haydn, Mozart & More
Miami Show 3.0
Morning Paddle Cleanup Edition
Denim Charms Workshop
Soof Wool Mill Tours

Yesterday Carrefour stopped operating in Kuwait. They don’t list a reason for why, but it’s assumed the boycott hurt them a lot.

A reader emailed me to let me know that some Carrefour locations are now branded Hypermax. Hypermax like Carrefour is also owned by Majid Al Futtaim and is their own brand, not a franchise.

I previously mentioned that Spinneys would be taking over the Carrefour location in The Avenues. I think the chances of that happening now are really high.

It’s now official, Saint Levant is coming to perform live in Kuwait.

Fame Entertainment, in collaboration with Live Nation, is bringing Marwan Abdelhamid, AKA Saint Levant, to Kuwait. He’ll be performing at JACC on December 5.

Tickets just went on sale a few moments ago on the JACC website starting from KD 30. Based on the engagement my earlier post on Saint Levant got, I’m pretty sure they’ll sell out quickly, so if you want tickets you’ll need to move fast. Link

The Chinese food delivery service Keeta launches in Kuwait today, taking on Talabat, Deliveroo, Jahez, and Cari.

Keeta is the overseas brand of the Chinese company Meituan, the world’s largest food delivery platform. They launched in Saudi Arabia last year and it took them just four months to become the third-largest food delivery platform there. So I’m very curious to see how they’ll perform locally.

At launch, they’re offering a discount on your first order plus free delivery. After that, you’ll continue to get free delivery on all orders of KD3 or more (with no subscription needed). @kw.keeta

Kuwait Airways just won an APEX Five-Star award for outstanding passenger experience. That may come as a surprise, depending on how you feel about them, but according to APEX this was based on “neutral, third-party passenger feedback and insights.” So not one of those awards you can buy just for PR purposes.

Etihad Airways and Gulf Air were two other airlines from the region that won an APEX Five-Star award. Qatar Airways and Emirates were strangely were not listed. Not sure why, but both did win APEX Best awards:

‎Best Entertainment: Emirates
‎Best Cabin Service: Korean Air
‎Best Food & Beverage: Qatar Airways
‎Best Seat Comfort: Eva Air
‎Best Wi-Fi: Delta Air Lines

APEX stands for Airline Passenger Experience Association and they were the first airline rating program to based solely on certified passenger feedback. The last time Kuwait Airways won an APEX Five-Star award was in 2021.

Ulta Beauty Kuwait has an official opening date and it’s Friday, November 7.

Kecia Steelman, the CEO of Ulta Beauty, announced the date at a pre-launch party in Dubai this past weekend. Their first location in Kuwait will be at The Avenues, taking over the spot where Dean & Deluca used to be. It will also be the first Ulta Beauty location outside the U.S.

I visited Ulta Beauty for the first time a few weeks ago while I was in LA. The store felt like a mix between Boots and Sephora and wasn’t that visually appealing, but I’ve been told the Kuwait and Dubai locations will have a more premium look.

Ulta Beauty’s Middle East instagram account is @ultabeautymiddleeast

It’s been a pretty slow couple of weeks for events, but here are a few things happening this weekend. Swipe left to check them out, and as always, double-check the details with the organizers.

Friday, September 12
Sun Stories
Sunrise Paddle

Saturday, September 13
Girls Game Day
Art as a Catalyst for Social Impact
Paint & Sip: Unwind Edition
Riso Workshop
K-Pop Night
Sunrise Paddle
Upcycled T-Shirts
Journal Club: Cozy Nights Edition

I just got the official prices for the new iPhones in Kuwait. These are the prices authorized Apple resellers will be following:

iPhone 17 256GB – KD 300
iPhone 17 512GB – KD 370

iPhone Air 256GB – KD 378
iPhone Air 512GB – KD 448
iPhone Air 1TB – KD 518

iPhone 17 Pro 256GB – KD 410
iPhone 17 Pro 512GB – KD 480
iPhone 17 Pro 1TB – KD 550

iPhone 17 Pro Max 256GB – KD 445
iPhone 17 Pro Max 512GB – KD 520
iPhone 17 Pro Max 1TB – KD 590
iPhone 17 Pro Max 2TB – KD 740

I also asked about the prices of the new AirPods and Ultra Watch since I’m interested in both:

AirPods Pro 3 – KD 92
Watch Ultra 3 – KD 280

As I mentioned earlier today, pre-orders start on September 12 and then become available on the 19th.

Update: Here is the price of the iPhone 17 Pro 256GB compared to the rest of the world:

Kuwait KD410

Australia KD404
Canada KD353
France KD476
Germany KD465
Honk Kong KD370
Italy KD480
India KD468
Saudi KD423
Spain KD472
Switzerland KD420
UAE KD391
UK KD455
United States KD336

Last night Apple announced the new iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, and the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, and according to a contact of mine, Kuwait already has a launch date.

Starting this Friday, September 12th, pre-orders will open up in Kuwait, while the phones themselves will be available a week later on September 19th. This is the exact same pre-order and launch date as the US.

Out of the four new devices, I think the iPhone Air is the most interesting. I don’t really need a thinner phone, but it does look pretty cool. The one I’ll most likely get is the iPhone 17 Pro. I currently have the 15 Pro, and since I take a lot of photos for the blog using the phone, the updated camera system will be very useful. The cameras are usually the main reason I keep upgrading my phone, otherwise I don’t think I would bother.

Kuwaiti visual artist Monira Al Qadiri just unveiled her latest work, a large-scale public sculpture in Central Park, New York. Standing nearly 5 meters tall, the piece is titled FIRST SUN and takes the form of a giant burgundy bust with a face concealed by a flat iridescent beetle. I’ve always found Monira’s work interesting and weird, and this sculpture, inspired by her research into ancient Egyptian history, is no different.

If you’re in New York anytime over the next year, the sculpture will be on display in Central Park from September until August 2, 2026. It’s a very cool achievement, and if you want to see more photos of this sculpture or her work, head over to @moniraism

Thanks Zaydoun!

Internations released their list for “The Best and Worst Countries for Expats in 2025” and Kuwait once again is at the bottom of it. They have a section dedicated to why that is and it’s for all the reasons you expect, weather, pollution, lack of a nightlife, and lack of good public transportation:

An Insular Society in Kuwait (46th)

No stranger to last place is Kuwait in 46th. Not only are the Quality of Life and Ease of Settling In Indices also in last place, but so is expats’ overall happiness with their life in Kuwait (46th). And at 10 percentage points higher than the global average, 17% of expats plan to leave the country within a year.

The majority of respondents (70%) moved to Kuwait for job-related reasons (vs. 36% globally); in fact, 93% are working full time (vs. 56% globally). Yet the Working Abroad Index is in the bottom 10 (38th). Although the state of the economy is strong (8th), expats aren’t satisfied with their job security (45th) or work–life balance (44th) and don’t agree that they’re paid fairly for their work (44th).

Indeed, 38% of expats in Kuwait don’t feel their disposable household income is enough to lead a comfortable life (vs. 31% globally). And around the same share as the global average is satisfied with their financial situation (56% vs. 54%). So although Personal Finance is Kuwait’s best-performing index, it’s in a below-average 29th place.

Expats’ biggest concern before moving was the climate & weather (43% vs. 16% globally). Once there, about half (49%) give this factor a negative rating. And there’s no pleasant natural environment (46th), urban environment (42nd), or good air quality (44th) to distract from the desert heat. Other subcategories of the Quality of Life similarly disappoint with the lack of culture & nightlife (46th), public transportation (39th), and opportunity to travel (42nd). The availability of healthcare (26th) and the dining options (24th) are at least less dire.

For the full article, click here.

The team behind the popular fried chicken brand BEAK just opened their second concept, a sliders brand called Anji.

Like with BEAK, they’ve kept the focus on sourcing the best ingredients. But, what also makes them stand out is that they’ve perfected the beef-to-bun ratio, so you get the experience of a full-size burger in slider form. And if you like your burgers meaty, you can stack up to four patties in your slider.

Anji’s branding looks pretty cool and so does the store which has indoor seating. Their first location is in Kaifan, right outside the Kuwait Sporting Club. They’re not on any delivery platform yet, just pick-up and dine-in. Check them out @anjisliders.

Yesterday while looking for photos for my baseball post, I came across a shot of the UNIQLO store we once had in Kuwait. UNIQLO is a popular and affordable Japanese clothing brand, and it’s one of my favorite stores to check out whenever I travel.

Back in 2019, someone in Kuwait decided to open a UNIQLO store. They had tried to officially bring the brand here, but UNIQLO wasn’t interested. So, the owner went ahead and opened his own unofficial store in Bida’a inside a department store. He would buy products at regular retail prices, ship them to Kuwait, and then slap a markup on them. The result was some pretty high prices. Here are a few I had written down:

Low Cut Socks
Online: KD 1.2
Kuwait: KD 2

Dry Pique Short Sleeve Polo Shirt
Online: KD 6
Kuwait: KD 17.5

Fleece Long-Sleeve Full-Zip Jacket
Online: KD 6
Kuwait: KD 24

Oxford Slim Fit Long Sleeve Shirt
Online: KD 9
Kuwait: KD 24

Women Ezy Jeans
Online: KD 12
Kuwait: KD 30

Sprz NY Basquiat Short Sleeve Graphic T-Shirt
Online: KD 4.5
Kuwait: KD 24

Only in Kuwait would we get an unofficial UNIQLO with triple the price items. It obviously didn’t last long, but it’s kind of hilarious when I think about it now.

What sucks is I couldn’t find any of my photos of the store other than the one I used for this post. But I couldn’t even find the original photo in my library, just this one which I had used for my initial post.