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This past long weekend I spent it in Lebanon and among the activities I did the most fun was an ATV road trip adventure. I didn’t really know what to expect, I had just previously heard off a friend that you can take an ATV trip with a guide from the popular ski area Faraya, all the way to the Cedars (a few mountains away) and back. The trip ended up being just unbelievably fun.

Depending on where you stay in Lebanon, getting to Faraya will take you anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour with no traffic. Faraya is a popular destination in the winter since a lot of ski resorts are based there, but in the summer, it’s a popular destination for outdoor activities like offroading, mountain biking, camping and ATV exploration. I had booked a bunch of ATVs for me and my friends before arriving to Lebanon and because we wanted to start the day early we got to the starting location in Faraya at around 9:30AM. From there we got geared up, given basic safety tips and the chance to try out the ATVs before heading out on our trip.

The trip is 80% off road with the rest of the time being tiny tarmac roads. It was an incredibly fun journey full of beautiful scenery and general seclusion with no people for miles and miles away. The route heading out was different than the route coming back so that way we didn’t get to experience the same scenery twice. We weren’t expecting the weather to be cold so we didn’t get jackets but our guide recommended we got some since we would be going up to the highest peak in Lebanon (around 2,750 meters high). Luckily we found a small store near the starting point that rented out ski jackets and good thing we got them because with the jackets on we were still freezing our asses off in some stages of the trip.

The journey in each direction took around 3 hours and we past through a variety of different environments and terrain. We were constantly putting on and taking off our jackets and the road surface would change from rocks to dirt and to sand as we went up and down different peaks and valleys. Our destination was a small restaurant in the middle of nowhere next to a beautiful lake. Once we were done with lunch we headed back to our starting point but this time on a different route and an extremely beautiful one filled with green fields, lots of hills and a dirt trail (a lot more comfortable than a rocky one).

The total journey with lunch lasted just over 7 hours but time really flew by quickly and I even wished it had lasted longer. There were a lot of interesting things we got to see along the way as well. At one point I thought I was going to get kidnapped when a man on the side of the road walked towards me with an M4A1 Carbine Assault Rifle as I drove by. Luckily turned out he was after something/someone on the other side of the road and not me. We also got to drive through huge (and I mean HUGE) cannabis fields where at one point a dodgy looking lifted pickup truck filled with men tried to stop us as well. Our guide had also told us we would be driving through snow walls as high as 6 meters. Of course none of us had believed him since we were in June so you could imagine our surprise when we did end up surrounded by 6 meter snow walls at one point of the trip.

This was an incredibly fun adventure and one I really can’t wait to go on again. Since we were four people the cost for the trip was $225 per person (guide included). If you’re less than four it’s $250 and if you’re more than four you could probably negotiate a better price. You could also share an ATV with someone else since it can hold two people and that way split the amount. But I have to say it was EXTREMELY worth $225. Make sure if you do take this trip to expect to end up covered in dust and dirt. Also bring a jacket with you as well. We rented the ATVs with the guide from a place called Red Runner. Their phone number is +9613178866. Have fun!

The Eight is a new project by Tamdeen that will feature 70 sea view apartments, in-line retail shopping, fine dining, cafes, and drive thru services that vary from financial institutions to fast food restaurants. The Eight is going to be located in Sabah al Salem, West of the Fahaheel express way and adjacent to the sea. Based on the 3D renderings it looks like it’s going to be a mini city of a sort with lots of stores and restaurants surrounding the apartment block. Check out all the pictures and more information [Here]

A few months back I upgraded from the entry level Kindle to the Kindle Paperwhite and although I hated it at first I’ve grown to like it, a lot.

Literally 10 minutes after getting the Kindle Paperwhite in the mail I was offering it up for sale because I hated it so much. I found it incredibly sluggish and hated the new graphical interface. I just couldn’t see myself using the Paperwhite without hurling it out the window 2 minutes later and I just wanted to get rid of it right away. Thankfully I didn’t. Some of my followers who found the Paperwhite frustrating at first told me if I used it for awhile I’d get used to it and a week later I was.

Once you get used to the Paperwhite it’s actually a pretty good ereader. First of all the biggest improvement over my entry level Kindle is the fact the Papwerwhite is backlit which means I can use it in complete darkness. The second improvement is the fact the Paperwhite has no buttons and uses a touch screen. At first this annoyed me but after using it on the beach a few times I now appreciate the fact the Paperwhite doesn’t have any buttons where little grains of sand can hide under. The Paperwhite is slightly larger and heavier than the entry level Kindle but I no longer notice the difference. Battery life is still extremely long, even with the backlit on it still lasts over 2 weeks with me per charge, maybe even more.

Yes the interface is still sluggish specially when compared to other touch devices like the iPad or any touch screen phone on the market, but I’ve really gotten used to it and it doesn’t bother me as much anymore. I’ve now given my older Kindle away because I can no longer go back to it and yesterday when a friend asked me which Kindle to get I recommended the Paperwhite to them. Even with whatever little faults it has, at KD35 it’s a really good deal. [Amazon Link]

The Economist have an article on smoking and how even with all the warnings on the packets and the increase in knowledge that smoking is bad for you, in some countries smoking is still on the rise. Kuwait happens to be one of those countries. We’re definitely not nearly as bad as Myanmar and Lebanon but still bad enough to warrant a position on their chart above. Check out the full article [Here]

Thanks Narain

Who Took My Lizard is the creation of the multi talented artistic genius that is Lewis Chapman. He is a master painter, insane musician, teacher and even created the lizard costume itself! We filmed this video all over interesting spots in Kuwait. For future videos and projects with the lizard fan created content about lizards will be used so get those creative juices flowing and hit up the websites below to find out more about this amazing project and of course the always cool Lizard itself! The song was originally acoustic but he and master producer Amin Fari teamed up to make it a fun dance track for everyone to enjoy. [YouTube]

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If you’re ever in Lebanon you need to pass by a small restaurant called Onno. It’s located in an area I love called Burj Hammoud which is the “Little Armenia” of Lebanon. The area is a must visit destination in any case and this tiny restaurant should be even more reason for you to go there. I found out about the restaurant from an Anthony Bourdain episode and since I had a friend visiting Lebanon we decided to pass by and try it together. The small family run restaurant serves delicious Armenian dishes at very reasonable prices with my favorite dishes being the “kebe adas” and the “basterma with quail eggs”. You can watch the Anthony Bourdain episode on Lebanon below which features the restaurant at the start and here is a link to their [Facebook Page]

[YouTube]

I’m in Kuwait and I’m in big trouble.
My dealer thinks his social networking sites are being tapped by Kuwaiti police. Can police or secret service or whatever see facebook chats? and can they still see it with Secure Browsing (https) turned on please, help an ent in need. I really don’t want to die. I’m going to delete this post after 24 hours

That’s too funny. [Source]

How much are your body parts worth in Kuwait? From a legal perspective and a legal perspective only, according to the Decree on the Regulation of the Table of Blood Money (DIYAH):

If someone hurts you by mistake with no criminal intent then they pay you the amounts listed below. If someone hurts you with criminal intent, then they pay the amounts listed below in addition to also getting punished for the crime.

Just a small note, the body parts add up. Death is actually cheaper than breaking an arm, a leg and losing an eye. Some animals cost more than KD10,000 so you would think a human life would be worth more.

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
Have a Kuwait law related question? Email me at [email protected]

The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.

ATARI is an Asian influenced tapas restaurant that just opened up a couple of days ago across from Al-Seef Palace next to Slider Station. They’re still in their soft launch phase so they’re only open from 5pm to 11pm daily except for Mondays. For more info and some pictures including their menu, visit their Instagram account [Here]

Update: I was just told they’re not officially open yet but they’re taking reservations

I’m not really a musical fan, actually before tonight I don’t think I’ve ever been to a musical in my life. I’m still not a fan of musicals but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the performance tonight by the Kuwait Little Theatre. Right now they have Grease running and as of this post they still had one day left where tickets weren’t sold out.

If you’ve never been to a KLT show before you should, they have some really great performers and Grease was pretty fun to watch. If you want to book tickets visit their website [Here]

Note: You’ll probably wanna pass by Johnny Rockets when done.

Based on the newspaper grab above it looks like there was some sort of In-N-Out tasting event that took place in Dubai. Is this a sign they might finally be opening up shop in the region?

Photo by @sambyi via Moey

If you have ever smiled at one of the Dr. Seuss books, such as The Cat in the Hat, or Horton Hears a Who, you will love SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL, a show filled to bursting with Dr. Seuss’s wonderful characters including Horton, The Whos, The Grinch, Amayzing Mayzie, Gertrude & her one-feathered-tail, and many more . SEUSSICAL is one of the most popular and successful new musicals of the millennium; a delight for all ages, packed with wonderful songs, humour, colour and spectacle and guaranteed to entertain you be you four or ninety four.

Performance dates and times are as follows:
Wednesday June 5 at 7.30pm (KD5) Preview Night
Thursday June 6 at 7.30pm (KD7.5)
Friday June 7 at 3pm and 7.30pm (KD7.5)
Saturday June 8 t 12 noon and 4pm (KD7.5)

Location: Live Theater at Discovery Mall

If you’re interested in booking a ticket, visit their website [Here]

(Reuters) – State-run Kuwait Airways will spend 850 million dinars ($2.98 billion) on 25 new Airbus jets and aims to lease a further 13 to upgrade its ageing fleet, a Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Sunday. [Source]

The planes will consist of 10 wide-bodied A350-900 jets and 15 of the slimmer A320neo. No A380’s so I guess the “Ya Kuwait Airways naby A380” campaign didn’t do so well.

Thanks Salem
Picture above is Kuwait Airways in the 70s

When I picked up the B&O Beolit 12 last month I also ended up picking up the Bang & Olufsen A9. I wasn’t planning to originally but it was so hard to resist. I first spotted the A9 when I was at the B&O store in Prague and it was love at first sight. It’s an AirPlay compatible speaker that will allow you to stream music onto it wirelessly and in case you don’t have Wifi you can connect your iPhone/iPod using a USB cable. The speaker has a very minimal design being just a circle with no buttons on the front and even in the back other than the power button there isn’t anything else. To increase and decrease the volume you just caress the speaker on the top from the left to right, to decrease the volume you swipe your hand right to left and to mute it you just hold the speaker on the top. The touch controls are very practical to use.

Sound wise the speaker is pretty loud and bassy for it’s size. That’s what actually sold me since I was not expecting the sound to be that big. I mostly listen to indie and electronic music on it and so far there isn’t anything really that it had difficultly playing. If we go back to the looks I should mention the speaker can be customized when it comes to colors. The front fabric cover by default comes in white but you can purchase different colors as well to match your environment like black, red, green etc.. Same with the wooden legs, you can get them in 3 different colors. In case you want to mount the speaker on the wall you can do that too.

Setting up the device was as easy as setting up the Beolit 12 and I didn’t have any trouble although a lot of people do get stuck and frustrated but that’s because they don’t follow instructions. I actually love the iPhone App since it allows me to control the settings on both my B&O devices with great ease.

My only gripe about the A9 and one many of you will remark on is the price, it’s KD890 (including the legs). At that price point it’s pretty much competing with full fledged sound systems that would deliver a lot more bang for the buck. But obviously none would look as good as the A9 or come in as simple a setup. The only other speaker system that I imagine could compete with the A9 is the Parrot Design Zikmu by Philippe Starck. But that isn’t affordable either costing around KD600 and the A9 is nearly 5 times more powerful (100w vs 480w RMS). It’s a luxury product that’s for sure but that’s the case with everything B&O produce. I love it and don’t regret getting it.

It’s been a while since my last post and since then I’ve gotten a lot of questions and rent was one of the most popular topics. That’s why I decided to put together a small FAQ on rent which you can take a look at below.

(All questions were answered according to rent law 35 for year 1978)

I have been living in my apartment for 3 years; can my landlord increase my rent?

No your landlord cannot increase rent. A landlord can only increase rent in the following situations:
1) If the tenant agrees to the proposed increase
2) Its been 5 years and the contract has ended (rule is once every 5 years)
3) The rent is 50% less than the market price

My landlord says he wants to increase the rent because he wants to do maintenance work? Does he have the right to do that?

No since the landlord is responsible for any maintenance and not the tenants.

I have a rental contract for 1 year but I’ve been living in the apartment for 18 months and the contract was never renewed. Now the landlord wants to kick me out. I know I have overstayed but do I have to leave immediately?

No in this situation he cannot kick you out but he can inform you to leave while giving you a grace period.
By law, if your rent contract ends and you continue living there then it renews by default for the same time of rent pay. Huh? What? Lawyers and there confusing terms… Simply put, if you pay rent on a monthly basis (which is how the majority of people pay rent in Kuwait) then your contract will renew automatically for a month at a time. If you paid rent every three months, then it will renew for 3 months, if you paid rent every 6 months your rent will renew every 6 months and so on.

What is the grace period?

Grace periods are only for when contracts renew by default (as explained above) and they depend on how often you pay your rent.

When can you really get kicked out? (with no grace period)

Reasons a landlord can kick you out are (for residencies and not commercial contracts)
1) If tenant hasn’t paid rent
2) If the tenant rents out the residency to a third person without permission
3) If the residence is being used for illegal activities
4) If the building is no longer structurally safe
5) If the landlord wants to rebuild the building or reconstruct it. There are a lot of variables for this one which I won’t get into.

My American friends can rent an apartment without a marriage certificate but I can’t seem to do the same? Do different citizens get treated differently in Kuwait by law?

Nationalities are not mentioned in the law so the law doesn’t talk about one nationality being treated differently than another (unless its Kuwaiti but that’s not in the rent laws), and therefore it is very disappointing to see that this kind of discrimination is being implemented in Kuwait.

Marriage certificates are also not mentioned in the law and my guess and only guess is that they ask for marriage certificates because unmarried couples might possibly engage in illegal sexual activities. The law restricts apartments from being used for illegal activities and sexual activity between two unmarried couples is considered illegal by law.

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
Have a Kuwait law related question? Email me at [email protected]

The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.