Search: “kuwait”

Symphony Mall have placed their logo on top of their building but I have no idea what it is. Anyone have a clue? Kinda looks like a falcon maybe? The whole thing looks kinda squished up there, not enough room for it. It’s like I mentioned last time, building signs always seem like a sloppy last minute addition here in Kuwait.

Thanks Issa!

Update: Turns out it’s Doctor Zoidbergs claw!

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Consistency in dieting can be a challenge, especially when living in a country that endorses food more than anything else. Most of our days start out with food, some coffee and dessert, a little strolling around and shopping, and some more food. And at night, a small gathering of friends that involves barbecuing and a lot of muffins.

Some clients, relatives and friends call me every weekend, with inquiries such as “I’m at Gaucho. What do you recommend?” or “Pinkberry! Yay or nay?” and “Dude, why isn’t my girlfriend returning my calls?” For starters, you can’t really go wrong with Gaucho if you stick to Filet De Lomo; Pinkberry’s loaded with 20g of sugar per serving; and you should try being less douchey.

I’m not saying you should eat out everyday, but when you’re cornered into a meal, the right recommendations will prove useful. Moreover, dieting puts you in a state of hunger similar to that of a heroin addict; aching and scratching for that next meal. One last advice before I start dissecting each and every restaurant: if it tastes too good, then it’s probably not what you’re looking for.

Oh, Fahad-san! Ret us begin with hearthy restaurants!

What I hate more than carb and fat-infested fast food chains are eateries that preach about health, but are everything but healthy; which is why I’ll be poking at them first:

Today I got a phone call from a friend telling me my tires arrived from the States. I went picked them up and then headed over to Michelin on Canada Dry street to get them installed. Michelin are also the dealers of BFGoodrich and the guys there are pretty cool so I figured would have them install the tires for me. The result? They look hardcore!

I ordered my tires from Gavin at TireRack.com, I had previously ordered my Z4 wheels from him. This time I ordered 5 BFGoodrich M/T KM2’s. I had asked the local dealer if they could order it for me but turns out they’re not authorized to sell mud-terrain tires for some reason.

Anyway the tires look great, I love them and I’m glad I went for mud-terrain and not all-terrain tires. Next thing I need to do is black out the silver parts on the FJ (already swapped the silver door handle for black ones).

So far my set up is as follows for those of you who have FJ’s and want a similar setup:

Old Man Emu Full Suspension
2x OME-884 Front Coils
2x 2″ ToyTec Lifts Super Flex Rear Coil Springs
2x 90000 OME Front Nitrocharger sport shocks
2x 60020 OME Rear Nitrocharger sport shocks

Tires
Kind: BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM2
Size: 285/75 R16

I ordered the lift kit from ToyTec
I ordered the tires from [email protected]

Thanks Troy for helping me out with all the shipping!

Update: I forgot to add something very important. You can get an OME lift from the local dealer in Kuwait and you can pick up some incredibly good BFG All-Terrain tires from the local dealer as well. Their prices are really good, OME is slightly more expensive than the US prices, the dealer is located in Shuwaikh at the corner of the turn that takes you to Ace Hardware. It’s the ARB dealer. For tires, BFG in Kuwait have the exact same prices as the ones in the States. They are located on Canada Dry right after McDonalds, the BFG dealer is the Michelin dealer. The only reason I got my stuff from the US is because I was looking for very specific items which weren’t available locally.

I use my In Focus posts to highlight some great businesses here in Kuwait and today’s post is no different. As I mentioned previously, I’m lifting my FJ Cruiser and installing large tires just like I did with my Wrangler. The previous place I had installed my Wranglers lift had shut down so I asked a friend from the FJ Club for a recommendation and he pointed me towards ORP.

ORP is short for Off Road Performance and that’s exactly what they specialize in. If you’ve got a 4×4 and want to install a heavy duty bumper, or get a suspension lift, larger tires and wheels, maybe a light bar etc.. then they’re the place to go. Personally I would love to install everything myself and if I had my own little house with an indoor garage I would attempt to do that but since I don’t, I have to get stuff installed at specialized places which I usually don’t like doing. With ORP I felt comfortable getting my lift installed there because the guys are 4×4 affectionados. I met two guys, both Kuwaitis. Yousef is the one I first spoke to over the phone while Saud I didn’t communicate much with since he was always busy working on a car. They’re both passionate about what they do and to me that’s extremely important.

First time I passed by ORP was to check out the location and see how much they would charge for my suspension lift install. Then I just set up an appointment, dropped my FJ in late at night and picked it up again the next evening. I needed to get the FJ aligned and they recommended I take it to a guy called John at Auto1 on Canada Dry street who also turned out to be really great. So overall I had a very good experience and their prices are very competitive. Now I have to go back and buy a shorter antenna since with the lift kit installed my FJ’s antenna is hitting every pipe in my underground parking. I haven’t even installed my large tires yet so I am starting to worry my FJ is going to be too big to take underground. Hopefully I should be ok.

If you need anything for your 4×4 I highly recommend them. They’re very easy to find in Shuwaikh. If you’re on Canada Dry street with McDonalds on your right keep going straight past the bridge and then do a u-turn at the round-about so you’re heading the same way you came from, then take your first right and drive maybe 100 or 200 meters and you will find them on your left. (see map above). Their website address is www.orp.com.kw and you could also call Yousef on 99422254.

The creator of the SumSushi iPhone app emailed me telling me he’s now included Kuwait, Bahrain and UAE Yo! Sushi prices in the application. So the next time you pass by Yo! Sushi it’s a lot easier to keep track of your bill. Once you download the app just go to the iPhone’s settings and then click on SumSushi and choose your country. The app is free. [Link]

An update for the 2:48AM iPhone App is now available in the app store. In this version I added the Bazaar Magazine category to the app so now you can read the magazine on your iPhone. Bazaar have also added a full RSS feed to their site so you can now add them to your feeds. I think I like the direction this app is going where I’m trying to get a variety of local entertainment in one app. If you have a suggestion that would fit leave a comment below. Next update will be for the Kuwait Blogs app. [Link]

Found this short film about the Kuwaiti martyrs. Not sure if I’m too hard or I’m expecting too much but I didn’t like it. Although the subject is an emotional one this movie isn’t. It tries to be but fails and I’m guessing its because of the music and weak voice over. On the bright side I always like seeing local productions and one I am looking forward to watching is Mustache. Anybody seen that yet? [YouTube]

Update: P0ach interviewed Abdulmohsin Al Hashim the director behind this movie. You can read the interview [Here]

I just realized that just over a year ago I posted about the McGangBang and how great it was but now I haven’t had a McDonalds burger (or BK, KFC, Hardees etc..) for nearly a year. I’m eating a lot healthier, having a ton of salad and not really missing any of the fast food. I went from eating at those fast food joints practically daily to never. I think it’s like quitting smoking (I don’t smoke but I’m guessing). It’s difficult at first but then once you’re off you’re off.

A few weeks back a good friend of mine in Lebanon told me he wanted to start a Lebanese blog. I thought that was something I would be interested to be part of so I decided to work with him on it. First thing we had to do was come up with a name. We went through a few names and for awhile we were going with zouzou ebba (you’d get it only if you’re Lebanese) before finally settling on Blog Baladi.

There are a total of 5 writers on the blog (including me) with that list mostly likely to grow in the near future. The majority of the posts will be related to Lebanon in the same way 2:48AM is related to Kuwait. So if you’re in Lebanon or a Lebanese living outside of Lebanon, make sure you check out and bookmark Blog Baladi. [Link]

Canon Middle East are holding a photography competition titled “My City”. If you’re over 18 and live in one of the following countries you’re eligible to enter:

UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia.

All you need to do is register and email them a picture you’ve taken of your city and you could win a new Canon DSLR camera and an all expenses paid trip to Dubai and Beirut. The competition already started from last month but there is still time to participate if you’re interested. For more details visit their website [Here]

Thanks SJM!

[YouTube]

I don’t know where in Kuwait this place is or who these guys are but I’d like to fire a round or two with them.

[YouTube]

Someone in Kuwait is selling 4 white extremely rare white Asian cubs on Bayt.com. These are Asiatic Lions which are classified as ‘Critically Endangered’ (an estimated 350 left in the world) and classified under appendix 1 of CITES. (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species). Kuwait has been a fully signed-up member of CITES since 11th November 2002 therefore the local authorities have a legal obligation to act.

I hope someone reading this can contact the right people. I also don’t understand how bayt.com is allowing the sale of these endangered animals on their website. Hopefully they will collaborate with the authorities by helping them catch the guy. Here is a link to the sale ad [Link]

Thanks Andy

Nat was about to leave to the gym when she decided to take little dyski (the dog) for his walk. I sat down in front if the TV and loaded up The Rainmaker to watch. Five minutes later Geo (my other dog) starts barking and someone is banging crazily on my door. I run down and open the door to see my neighbor yelling the dog the dog and pointing towards the lift. I closed the door and ran to the lift and noticed the elevator door slightly open and the dog glued to the door.

I’ve scaringly visualized a scene like that before in my head and it was horrifying just thinking about it, but now, it was happening for real. Turns out Nat got into the elevator with the dog and then just as she was pressing close the dog ran out and the lift closed and started going down. She had a retractable leash (pictured above) which she let go of just as the door was closing. The leash handle got jammed between the doors and when the lift started going down it pulled the little dog which was outside the door. The leash handle was stuck in the lift near the top of the door and the dog was getting squashed outside still tied to the lift which was around a full floor below and trying to take the dog down with it. Then somehow the lift stopped.

Nat didn’t have her phone with her and the dog was screaming in pain and crying. She was yelling and banging on the lift door for help but no one was coming. She tried to open the door and push the leash out but she couldn’t do it, the door wouldn’t budge. Luckily a neighbor on my floor was going to use the lift when he heard the dog and noticed him getting squashed.

Thats when he decided to call me. I came running towards the dog in my socks and slipped and hit the floor hard. From the immense pressure on his chest the dog pissed on himself while he was getting squashed and I didn’t notice until I slipped. I got up quickly as a second neighbor arrived, they tried to pull the doors apart while I tried to squeeze my hand in between so I could try and pull the leash up or at least disconnect it from the dogs harness. I couldn’t do it. The leash wouldn’t budge and because it was pulled extremely tight I couldn’t even unhitch it from the harness. I quickly decided to try and cut the harness off the dog which wasn’t making a sound anymore and looked like it could barely breath. I ran back into the house and into the kitchen and came back with two sharp knives and a scissor. I tried to cut the harness but it was squeezing the dog so tightly I could barely shove the scissor between his body and the harness to cut it. At that point one of the neighbors went to get the building caretaker. Nat was still stuck in the lift below yelling wanting to know where the dog was and if it was still alive. It was just too crazy, the whole time I was concentrating on trying to cut the leash and thinking I wasn’t going to let this dog die like this. I managed to cut two straps from the leash but had one more which was extremely tight and I just couldn’t get the scissors in. I thought about sticking my hand through the lift door and try to cut the main line but the gap was too tiny and I barely managed to squeeze my hand through the first time and I wasn’t going to risk dropping the scissor which was the dogs only chance of getting freed. I don’t know how long all of this took, it felt like a few seconds but it must have been a few minutes. I just kept trying to cut the last strap off to free the dog when suddenly the leash loosened up, the door opened slightly and I managed to pull the dog towards me and unhitch the leash which fell down the elevator shaft. The lift came up and I could see Nat inside. With the help of the neighbors we pulled the door open. Nat ran out towards the dog which looked like it was in shock but other than that fine. The neighbors had gotten the building caretaker to force the lift up which ended up saving the dogs life.

What a horrifying experience, just really fucked up. We took the dog to the vet right away and they checked him and didn’t find anything wrong. This dog seriously has gone through hell this past 3 weeks. First he gets lost, then Animal Friends rescue him, a few days later there is the big fire at Animal Friends which he luckily survives, he gets adopted by us, he then get neutered and then a week later nearly gets squashed to death!

I’m sitting typing this post with one hand by the way. It seems when I first slipped and fell I landed on my wrist in the same place I had injured it a few years ago when I fell off my motorbike. I have a cast on and need to go back on Monday for another check up. I am very pissed since it means I can’t work out for at least 2-4 weeks. I sooo did not need this right now, I hate wearing casts and I NEED to go to the gym! Its depressing! On the bright side the dog is fine and although Nats a bit shaken up and traumatized by the whole thing shes doing ok. I am glad I’ve got some great neighbors, not sure what would have happened if they hadn’t spotted the dog and called for help. What a day…

The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait is sponsoring a blues concert that will be held at the Kuwait University on the 14th of April at 7:30PM. The U.S. Embassy is bringing over the Little Joe McLerran Quartet as part of their Gulf Tour. The event is open to the public and is free of charge. Tickets and seat reservations are not necessary. Here is some info about the bands tour of the region [Link] and here is a link to the flyer [Link]

Last week I ordered a lift kit for my FJ from Toytec Lifts. I’m planning to install a 3″ lift along with larger tires. So yesterday I went to get a set of tires but I couldn’t find any mud-terrain ones in the size I wanted. I checked Hankook, BF Goodrich, Maxxis and Goodyear. BFG actually were the most helpful, they told me they were getting some All-Terrain KO’s soon in the size I wanted but no plans on getting the mud-terrain KM2’s which I want. So now I am stuck with no idea what to do. I contacted Tirerack.com and they quoted me KD110 to ship 5 tires to Kuwait which isn’t too bad considering how heavy they are. But still, thats around KD22 extra per tire which I would rather not pay.

I’m now thinking maybe there is some small off-road shop in Kuwait that might carry BF Goodrich tires, does anyone know of any? Also does anyone by any chance know who the dealer in Bahrain is? I tried googling but didn’t find anything. Maybe I could drive to Bahrain to pick up the tires myself…