Search: “kuwait”

I remember a time when people were complaining about the lack of bookshops in Kuwait, well things have changed drastically. Below is a list of all the English bookshops I’m aware of in Kuwait. If I missed any let me know in the comments.

Aafaq Bookstore
Al-Asriya bookshop
Better Books
Book Seller
Book Stop
Bookish
Books and More
Books in Kuwait
Brilliant Company
CAP Bookshop
Center for Research and Studies on Kuwait
Claudia Al Rashoud
Jarir
Kuwait Heritage Library
Little Bee’s Books
Page Turner
Q8 Bookstore
Qasr Al-Thaqafa
Red Balloon Books
Saint Books
Spectrawide Bookstore
That Al Salasil
The English Bookshop

Every year the Palestinian Cultural Center holds an exhibition with a lot of handicraft and embroidery available to purchase. But, due to the pandemic that’s been put on hold and this year instead of an exhibition, there will be a four-day shop (a pop-up).

The Palestinian Culture Center aims to support needy families and preserve the rich and vibrant culture of Palestine. It does this by encouraging ladies to continue a beautiful handicraft, embroidery, which has been in Palestine for hundreds of years and ensuring that the tradition is carried on to the younger generation.

The Center has been in operation since the early 1970’s in Kuwait and then moved to Jordan after 1990. Today, the PCC, has over 450 women from the Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan working on these beautiful pieces. For these women, the payment they receive is a great support for their families. The PCC also aims at supporting education and helps various schools and education programs in Palestine as well as needy families.

As a charity organization we use a simple rule in all our pricing. Thirty-three percent of the sale cost of an item is given to the woman that produces the work, thirty-three percent goes towards covering the cost of the item, and the remaining amount is distributed to schools, orphanages and needy families mostly in Palestine.

So if you’re looking for something to do during the day, the pop-up runs from today until Wedneday. For more info check out the Palestinian Culture Center Instagram account @palestiniancc

Since live markets are still not allowed, the popular craft market is back again virtually. This weekend, the Spring Craft Market will take place virtually with all the vendors offering a 10% discount.

Each vendor has also paid a small fee to take part in this market which has been donated to ‘Operation HOPE’ who are continuing their great work helping the less fortunate in our community, even more so now as a lot of people are impacted by the covid situation. You can find out more about Operation HOPE by visiting their Facebook page.

So how does a virtual market work? Simple, all the vendors taking part in the Spring Craft Market are listed on the market’s Instagram account @the_craft_market_kuwait. Scroll through the account and when you find an offering you like, say books or paintings, click through to that vendor’s account. Then you just find something you like and leave a comment or DM the vendor telling them you want it.

As a lot of the items are hand-crafted and one-off unique pieces, once they’re gone they’re gone. Please support your local artists, crafters, and small businesses and check out the market this weekend, it’s taking place tomorrow and Saturday. Here is the link again @the_craft_market_kuwait

I’m very routine-oriented so every year when my car registration expires I take it to the same traffic department in Jabriya and go through their long clumsy process to get the papers renewed. What is the process? First I have to go to an insurance office to renew my insurance. Then I then need to head to the traffic department in the morning, wait in a long line for my car to get checked. If it passes I then need to find a place to park my car so I can go to a small office in a shack to get my papers stamped. Once that is done I then need to leave and come back in the afternoon and head to the super busy main traffic department building (the mornings are only for Kuwaitis) and buy a stamp and then submit my papers to have the registration booklet printed. If I have a fine I’ll have to get my papers back and head to the fine payment section upstairs, wait in a long line and then head back down and submit my papers again. A very complicated and inefficient process.

But years ago private car inspection centers started popping up but I never thought to try them out until now. Due to Covid and not wanting to deal with large crowds, I decided to try a private center and all I can say is WTF, I can’t believe it took me this look to go the private route!

I just renewed two of my cars last month and the process couldn’t have been easier. I went to a place in Al-Rai called Super Service and both times I was in and out in under 30 minutes. The first thing you need to do is drive your car into the center and leave it running. You then head inside and give your registration booklet to the receptionist who photocopies it and then tells you to hand over your documents to one of their employees at a counter. That employee will fill in all the paperwork, renew your insurance, and also let you know if you have any fines to pay. You then pay for everything (fines included) using Knet and go sit down and wait. 10-15 minutes later your car is done getting checked and your new registration is printed and you get in your car and leave.

That’s it!!

I paid KD29 to renew my paperwork which is very reasonable considering how fast, smooth and anxiety-free the process was. There is no way I’m ever going back to renewing my car registration the old-fashioned way at the traffic department, not unless I have to. There are a number of private inspection centers but if you want to visit the one I went to, here is their location on Google Maps.

So two things here. Firstly I wasn’t aware that we had Skoda in Kuwait, or maybe I was aware but because it’s such an unexciting brand I might have forgotten about it.

The main story though is that Behbehani who are the VW and Porsche dealers just announced that they’ve acquired the Skoda brand which makes sense since Skoda is part of the VW Group. The brand previously was with Fouad Alghanim & Sons Automotive (@skodakuwait), the same dealers as Audi and Lamborghini (which also fall under the VW Group).

Skoda is considered to be a cheaper alternative to Volkswagon. The cars are made in the Czech Republic, China, Russia, India and Slovakia so producing them is cheaper due to lower labor costs. As I already mentioned, I personally don’t find their cars to be exciting, but anyone looking at Skoda’s is probably doing so because of value and not looks. If you’re interested, the Skoda Behbehani Instagram account is simply @skodabehbehani

Thanks Fahed

It looks like Saveco has taken over the Q Electronics location in Shuwaikh across the street from Mayar Complex. Q Electronics (technically called Q By Al Yaqout) opened up towards the end of 2017 and then shut down shortly after in 2019. The location was pretty big so it makes sense for a supermarket but this looks to be a new concept by Saveco since they’ve called it “the urban market”.

My guess is they’re going to be a bunch of smaller stores in this big store, kinda like a street market but indoors. There is no mention of it yet on their Instagram account and I’ve reached out to them for more info but still waiting for a reply.

Update: Saveco got back to me with the following:

Saveco Urban market will provide a first of its kind supermarket experience in kuwait, a sensational trip of taste and sights. Everyday shopping will be an exhilarating and gastronomical experience through a variety of live hubs, all whilst maintaining a high level of supermarket customers need everyday.

Basically what I understood is it’s going to be another Saveco but just looks a bit more premium.

The video above is the most detailed tour of the new airport Terminal 2 so far. It was shot earlier this month and the engineer in the video takes us through all the different important areas of the airport showing the current status. According to the video the terminal is meant to be completed in August 2022 which I find hard to believe based on the progress shown. But, they do mention that although the airport construction is going at full force, due to covid some of their suppliers aren’t working at 100% and so that might end up causing delays.

In any case, right now I miss traveling so much that I don’t mind our old airport, so they can take their time with T2 as long as we get to fly out again soon from any of our airports. To stay posted on the progress of the airport you can follow @t2.engineers on instagram.

Thanks LovelyKuwait

It’s been over a year now since I got my 1970 Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV and I’ve put over 10,000KM on it. That’s a lot considering it’s one of 4 cars I currently own, I didn’t drive it in the summer because it doesn’t have AC, and we had curfews last year and a full lockdown. But it goes to show how much I’ve been loving the car. It’s beautiful to look at and it’s so much fun to drive.

But, it hasn’t been problem-free, the more mileage I put on the car the more old parts break and need replacing. As I type this post my car is sitting in my basement waiting on a new rear differential since mine broke a couple of weeks back. At the rate I’m swapping parts out I should end up with a brand new car by the end of the year. I’ve mentioned this on one of my previous posts but I’m still surprised at how easy and quick it is to get parts for my 51-year-old car, classicalfa.com is a lifesaver. I’ve been doing most of the work on the car myself or with a help of a friend and it’s been fun, I describe it as Lego for adults. The first step is always figuring out what’s wrong with the car which is not as easy as it sounds, and then the second step is ordering the parts and swapping them out. The mechanic I had previously been using to work on the car got stuck outside Kuwait when corona hit and since he’s over 60 he can’t come back in. The fact he was old is why he was good at what he did and this goes back to my other post on how we are gonna lose a lot of experienced people with this ban on 60+ year old expats.

Anyway, so a few years ago I posted about how I highly recommend getting a classic car, well I’d like to revise that statement now and add that it isn’t for everyone. When you do buy a classic car you need to be fine with the idea that the car will eventually breakdown and leave you stranded in some random parking lot or on the side of the road. You also need to have some basic car knowledge so you know when something is wrong, and definitely have a good mechanic you could take the car to when it breaks down. Keep a bunch of tow truck numbers saved on your phone and before you buy a classic car check and see how easy it is to get parts, if it’s not easy then look for another car to get. Oh and you need to be patient and calm when things do go wrong (which they will). If you’re fine with all the above then yes, I highly recommend getting a classic car.

While I’m on the subject of classic cars, my 1972 Datsun 240z is nearly done and as you can see it’s no longer blue. The 240z is basically going to be a new old car once done since I’ve basically rebuilt the car from the ground up with brand new parts. Hopefully, it should be ready and on the road in a few weeks time, it will have air conditioning so I will be driving it throughout the summer. I can’t wait.

Around a week before they closed restaurants in Kuwait for dine-in, 360 Mall opened up their foodhall. A foodhall is similar to a food court except instead of fast-food restaurants they’re more upscale or artisan. I passed by to check the space out and I thought it looked great with a good variety of places to eat at including some brand new places.

Even with dine-in closed it’s still worth passing by it and picking up food to go. The new foodhall is located at the end of the new 360 Mall extension near Ikea and Nike.

Here is a list of all the places open inside the new foodhall, hopefully I didn’t miss anything:

Alto
Apizza
Bakehaus
Bao
Chotto
Doh!
Elate Tea
GoFresh
Junas
La Maison Du Fromage
Nabat
Natureland
November Co
Off The Menu
Prime Cuts
Raha Stone Mill
Soucolat
Taboonat
Twarrad
Texture
Vol 1
Wachamean
Woop!

I’ve previously mentioned a place in the city where they still develop film but 35mm.kw has compiled a list of other studios around Kuwait where you can develop film. I’ve copy-pasted his list below but check out his website if you want to know their prices:

Shamia Studio
Location: Shamia co-op Shamia Mall (Google Maps)
Contact: 96644934
Film development: 35mm & 120 medium format
Scan 35mm: Yes
Scan medium format: Yes
Print: Yes

Ashkanani Studio
Location: Rumaithiya Co-op, outside shops (Google Maps)
Contact: 55654050
Film development: 35mm format only
Scan 35mm: Yes
Scan medium format: Yes
Scan Slides: Yes
Print: Yes

Iris Studio
Location: Salmiya, Easa Al-Qatami Street (Google Maps)
Contact: 67647879 – 66990058
Film development: 35mm & 120 medium format
Scan 35mm: Yes
Scan medium format: Yes
Print: Yes

Ghadeer Studio
Location: Qurtoba Co-op, Qurtoba mall (Google Maps)
Contact : 25319648
Film development: 35mm & 120 medium format
Scan 35mm: Yes
Scan medium format: No
Print: Yes

Kashmir Studio
Location: Kuwait City just before Al-Shamlan Mosque (Google Maps)
Contact: 97896914
Film development: 35mm & 120 medium format
Scan 35mm: Yes
Scan medium format: Unknown
Print: Yes

CityBus has introduced 80 new eco-friendly buses onto our roads and one of the new features of these buses is that they now have a ramp for special needs passengers. I actually didn’t realize that up until now our buses weren’t wheelchair friendly, and other than these 80 new buses, none of the other public buses have ramps.

Although it’s kinda odd that we’re only just now introducing wheelchair-access to buses, it’s still pretty cool that we are. If you’re interested in public transportation make sure you check out @kuwaitcommute as well if you haven’t already. Also, check out the Alqabas video below where one of their journalist’s decides to use public transport and share her experience.

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This list has never been as unimportant as it is now considering it doesn’t really matter what passport you have at the moment (well, unless you want the vaccine) because we’re all stuck here and can’t travel anywhere. But I wanted to share this years ranking since Kuwait has moved up the list of most powerful passports coming in 28th place up from 36th last year. Kuwaitis can now visit 44 countries (10 more from last year) without requiring a visa and they can also get visa on arrival in 39 other countries. Here are some countries with their rankings:

1 – Germany
4 – United Kingdom
12 – UAE
15 – Canada
16 – United States
26 – Qatar
28 – Kuwait
36 – Bahrain
41 – Saudi Arabia
42 – Oman
58 – India
62 – Egypt
67 – Lebanon
76 – Afghanistan

Want to see how your passport compares? Check out the full list here.

I’ve seen a few people online ask where to find weighted blankets in Kuwait before and it didn’t seem like they were available here. But, yesterday while picking up some items from Ace Hardware I noticed some weighted blankets while on my way out.

I spotted the Bell + Howell weighted blanket pictured above, it weighs 12lbs and was priced at around KD36 which is not bad. On the Walmart website the same blanket sells for KD18 without tax but because of its weight, expect to pay over KD20 on top of the price just to ship it to Kuwait. According to the Ace website, they have three different weights of blankets with the lightest being 10lbs and selling for KD27 and the heaviest 15lbs and priced at KD45.

Weighted blankets are considered to be therapeutic and can benefit people with anxiety, autism, and insomnia. Some people find sleeping with a weighted blanket very calming.

There’s a new drive-thru-only Starbucks that popped up overnight in front of AUK in Salmiya. I think this might be the only Starbucks in Kuwait with just drive-thru and no seating option. The location is pretty great for them, they’re right next to Arabica and Toby’s while also being right off the Gulf Road so it should get pretty packed.

Currently, only 6.9% of the community has been vaccinated, a low number, and some people are baffled by it and I’m not sure why. They’re mostly vaccinating Kuwaitis at the moment with a few exceptions so obviously the number is going to be low but, there also hasn’t been a proper government run vaccination drive campaign.

Thankfully though, the private sector has decided to step up and try to solve this issue by offering their vaccinated customers discounts.

If you search for the hashtag #خصم_التطعيم on Instagram you’ll find over 200 offers including ones from big names like Ooredoo, Circuit+, Spark, and some popular local coffee shops. STC and Zain aren’t offering any discounts at the moment but they are trying to help by running campaigns to encourage people to go vaccinate. Imagine if brands like Starbucks, IKEA or Zara also offered discounts how many more people might want to get vaccinated. I know it doesn’t sound logical to offer incentives to go vaccinate, you’d think not getting sick and dying would be enough incentive but you aren’t dealing with logic here.

If you’ve gotten vaccinated already then click here to see what deals are available to you. If you haven’t signed up to vaccinate yet here is the link.