Search: “sti”

I’ve been thinking about swapping my halogen bulbs with LED versions and so after a bit of research I found two bulbs that were reasonably priced and highly recommended. Since I couldn’t find the specific bulbs I wanted locally I decided to order them from Amazon UK.

I got the bulbs, I tried them out and I’m disappointed.

The major benefit of LED bulbs is energy saving. Halogens are usually 35w or 50w while the LED replacements are either 3w or 6w. The 3w is supposed to be comparable in output to the 35 and the 6 to the 50. The bulbs I ordered were 6w and compared to the 35w halogens they replaced the 6w were considerably brighter.

As you can see in the picture above I ordered two different style of bulbs. The one on the left contains 3 LEDs with each one being 2w in strength. The one on the right is made up of 80 lower powered LEDs. The two bulbs turned out to be very different, the one on the left for example takes a second to light up once you turn the switch on and the beam of light it gives out is concentrated like a spot light. The one on the right on the other hand comes on instantly with a light beam that’s much wider. Both bulbs can not be dimmed.

Now what I hate about both bulbs is the color of the light. Halogens are pretty warm and even though I ordered these two bulbs as warm they turned out to be much cooler in color. By cooler I mean when compared to regular halogens, both these LED bulbs were more bluish than yellowish. They really don’t light up the room nicely which is why I found them very disappointing.

Who should buy LED bulbs? They’re for people who want to make the world a better place by consuming less electricity. Personally I wanted to try them out for my apartment in Lebanon. We don’t have 24/7 electricity in Lebanon so when the power goes off the backup generators come on and with the generators you have a limit to how much power you can consume. For the power of one 50w light bulb I could power eight LED bulbs of similar strength and still save electricity. That’s a big difference.

Here are the prices and models if you’re interested
Left: EDISON 6W LED GU10 – KD6.200
Right: 6W 80LED GU10 – KD6.000

I just found out an interesting fact. I originally thought that Google was the one that was adding more details to the Kuwait map like new streets and highways but it turns out it’s people around Kuwait who are doing the updates. The video above is a timelapse showing how Kuwait City originally used to be and how it’s become more and more detailed over time. The details are added using Map Maker and basically anyone can add updates but once they are added a moderator has to approve it and then it takes a month or two to show up. Interesting to know. [YouTube]

Thanks Yousef

Aramex Shop & Ship have now set up Chinese mailboxes for all their customers which sounds great but what exactly can we get from China and where do we order it from?

The first thing that comes into my mind is buying stuff from Hong Kong sellers on eBay. A lot of times when I am looking for Tamiya parts and cars on eBay, the sellers with the good stuff are based in Hong Kong. Another thing I can think of but still hobby related is websites like HobbyKing.com who have most of their stock based in Hong Kong as well. You can now order stuff from there HongKong warehouse and have them ship the items by EMS to your Chinese mailbox.

Does anyone have any other ideas? Did you know there is a Chinese Amazon?

Note: If the Chinese mailbox hasn’t shown up in your shopandship.com page be patient, they’re currently in the process of generating accounts for all their clients in all 26 Shop & Ship countries.

I was leaving Sultan Center a few minutes ago when I spotted a fire that had just started at Al Fanar Complex. I believe it’s River Island. [YouTube]

Update: They evacuated the whole mall. When I was there it was filling up with smoke really quickly and I was just checking twitter and people posted about being evacuated from the movie theaters via the fire escape:

@msallam88: Reporting live fron fanar cinema exiting through the fire exit cuz there’s a fire

@A_alshahry: 7areeeeeja bil fanar kaaaak & got kicked out the film

Also @A_ALTuwaijri uploaded the photo below, looks like it’s gotten worst since I was there.

Update2: Here is another picture this one taken by blackfoxx5, looks like the fire has spread to the adjacent stores…

Update3: Looks like the fire has been extinguished. Picture below by AzizohStix

Update4: The blogger spunkmania managed to take pictures showing the aftermath of the fire. Below is one of the pictures but he has more [Here]. I’m pretty impressed on how the fire managed to remain contained and not spread to the rest of the shop or the adjacent ones.

Around a month ago I found a video on YouTube of a guy in Kuwait making pizzas and since then I’ve been eagerly waiting for them to open up. I’m a huge pizza fan and the pizzas in the video all looked delicious but they hadn’t opened the restaurant yet and so I had to wait. Then a few days ago while I was in Lebanon I get an email saying they’re opening on the 15th but since I was busy yesterday I decided to pass by tonight instead to try them out.

Solo Pizza Napulitana is a new small Kuwaiti owned business that’s located in an old building in Kuwait City right behind the newly opened Japanese restaurant Tatami. From the outside it doesn’t look very appealing and on the inside it’s honestly not that great looking either. But the restaurant is as close as you will get to a mom and pop store in Kuwait. This is not a franchise, this is not a big business, this a tiny pizza joint where the owner makes the pizzas and from what I could tell his friends help him out waiting on tables and taking care of the payments.

I passed by after the gym in my shorts and t-shirt expecting the place to be empty but to my surprise it was pretty packed. I decided to sit on the one table outside but no one served me. So after growing impatient I popped my head inside and asked if I could have a menu. A minute later I got the menu which is pretty small, I think they had only 3 pizzas and 3 salads and maybe 2 desserts. I’m a fan of small menus as I’ve mentioned before and I quickly looked through it and decided to go with the Margherita since I couldn’t find a mushroom pizza on the menu. A few minutes passed by and no one came to get my order so I decided to move inside. I was seriously thinking of just leaving since I didn’t want to wait indefinitely for someone to come get my order but I kept reminding myself that they’ve only been open for 2 days and they’re already packed and probably not prepared for this much pressure. Finally a guy came over and was very apologetic for making me waiting very long. I told him it wasn’t a problem and asked him if they had mushroom pizza. He told me they did so I decided to go with that. From my table I could see the owner prepare my pizza and around 2 minutes after taking my order my pizza arrived. I was thinking to myself that’s ridiculously fast!

The pizza wasn’t sliced up which I thought was interesting since I don’t think I’ve ever had a pizza that didn’t come cut up into triangles. I took some shots quickly and then dug in. What a pizza, it was ammmaaaazing. The pizza crust, the tomato sauce, the cheese, the mushrooms… it was all just delicious and I couldn’t find anything to pick on. I was eating it and thinking to myself where have I ever tasted a pizza that was as good as this and I couldn’t think of any place. I mean sure we don’t have many pizza places in Kuwait to compare to but I’ve had a ton of pizzas in Lebanon and I even just got back from a trip where I tried two new great pizza places over there and yet here I was sitting in this tiny little restaurant in some dodgy back street of Kuwait City having what I thought was one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had anywhere.

Once I was done with my pizza and I paid my bill (KD3.750 for the pizza), I decided to go up to the owner and introduce myself. I told him what I thought of his pizzas and he explained to me how he worked at some famous pizzerias in Naples and how he belongs to this group that’s trying to preserve the famous Naples pizza. He also asked me if I noticed how quickly the pizza gets done since it takes less than 60 seconds to cook. I wished him good luck and told him I would definitely be back again.

So if you are looking for what I think are the best pizzas in Kuwait then you need to pass by this place. It’s in a crappy location, it’s tiny and the interior isn’t that great looking but damn the pizza is just really great. Here is a link to their website where you can find a map and a phone number. They’re currently only open for dinner. [Link]

[YouTube]

I’ve posted about MILSIM before [Here] and [Here] but in case you missed it MILSIM is short for military simulation. It’s an outdoor activity where unlike paintball you use very realistic weapons and the game focuses more on strategy than running around shooting randomly. Anyway they’re now open in Shaab Park, I haven’t been there yet but you can see a bit of the place in the video above in which they demonstrate some of the weapons you get to use. If you need more information you can visit their website [Here]

Hairspray is the latest musical performed by the Kuwait Little Theater. It’s directed by Kirsty McDonagh with an all singing, all dancing KLT cast of talented actors. Most of the performances are already sold out but they still have some openings available so if you’re interested you need to book right away.

Location: Kuwait Little Theater
Dates still available: May 17th, 18th, 24th and 25th
Time: 7:30pm
Price: KD5 per person

You can book online [Here]
or call the Box office on 99373678

For more information visit the [KLT Website]

Back in October I posted about a reader who’s neighbor installed telecom transceivers on his roof and covered them up to look like decorations. After complaining to the baladiya they came and removed the telecom towers a few weeks ago. So a happy ending right? Well a few days ago another neighbor suddenly had what looks like a water tower popup on his roof. After careful inspection turns out there were telcom transceivers hidden inside them.

So now he’s going to go back to the baladiya to complain again. This time he knows the correct department to talk to so the towers should get removed pretty quickly. It is illegal to place telecom transceivers on the roof tops of residential buildings. So know your rights and know how to spot them.

A reader shared with me a story that happened to him recently which I found shocking and wanted to share on the blog. I don’t have anyway of verifying his story but if it is true then it’s pretty messed up and freaky. Below is his story slightly edited by me.

Two weeks ago, I got jumped by five guys! Yep, five guys. It all started in the gas station, where this SUV loaded with these a-holes eyeballing me for no obvious reason. I have never met them in my life. So I gased up my car and left not caring about them or causing any trouble.. I mean come on who am I to cause any trouble with an SUV loaded with muscular guys.. I was alone.

So I left.. as I entered some dark parking lot, this SUV appears and blocks me! And they come out running towards me, so I obviously shift to reverse and let my foot give an orgasm to the pedal. BUT! They run back into the car and follow me, RAMMING ME.. yes, this is in Kuwait.. just like in the movies, they’re ramming and whacking the shit out of my 2009 Corvette and trying to block me, they did that for like 5 or 6 km! Everyone was looking at them just basically ramming me trying to stop me, I managed to escape to a main street where people would see me and help! Finlly, they hit me from the left rear and my car spins and ends up a few meters away from the street light!

And the story doesn’t end there. After everything they did one would think they’d run away or something but that didn’t happen. They got out of their car came over to mine and beat the shit out of me! All of them! Can you imagine? Everyone on the street was just standing there watching not helping. What the hell, am I being executed? I was shocked, alone and helpless.

The reason he emailed me is he wanted to know the legality of self defense weapons like stun guns and pepper spray. If you had one would it be legal to use in a situation like his? Is there a store in Kuwait the sells self defense weapons? I don’t know what I would have done in his situation.

Update: Below is a picture of the rear of the car. Note the rear wheel…

Update2: Here are more shots plus a map of where the incident took place. This was also in the papers.

Here is a large size of the map [Picture]

Update3: Here is an update I just received which explains a lot of things. It wasn’t a random attack and it did involve a girl.

I had my girlfriend with me and the reason why I was going to the parking lot is to drop her to her car. After the investigation it appears that the SUV’s driver is her ex-bf which she left over a year ago.. Some fucking grudge huh? And one of the guys with him is his younger brother, and rest are his friends.

I didn’t want to give out that information since I didn’t want it to interfere with the investigation or whatever, I’m telling you now because I made sure that it is ok to talk about the incident and won’t cause me any legal issues.

Anyhow, the girl was with me the whole time and they beat her up too! And the reason why no one in the street helped is because the guys were yelling “it’s a family/honor matter” Which it’s not! I tried to explain to them on the spot but no one listened.

When the police came, all of the guys managed to escape except the driver. But they eventually got them because their were a lot of witnesses. And of course, they’re denying everything they did!

Since I’m traveling for five days I decided to give my diet the finger tonight and headed towards Dandosh right after my gym to get a kebab. I first ordered a chicken shawerma since I wanted to make up my mind on if it’s better than Badar Al Badoor or not. After careful consideration I believe that Badar Al Badoor still has the better shawerma.

The second thing I ordered was the double kebab sandwich. I didn’t know they did the double until a reader pointed it out. While a single kebab sandwich costs 300fils a double costs 500fils and involves two kebab skewers. Personally I think I prefer the single kebab since it’s easier to eat but single or double the kebabs are amazing.

When I was done I decided to head over to Tabab and try their kebabs as well. I’ve heard A LOT about Tabab but never had the chance to try them out until tonight. I ordered a single kebab sandwich and since I had it right after Dandosh I found it easier to compare. Tabab didn’t seem as popular or packed as Dandosh and I don’t think anyone goes there for their shawermas.

People go to Tabab for their kebabs and thats actually the center of attention at the shop. The large kebab grill is outside the shop right in the middle with the cashier right next to it. I thought the Tabab kebabs were a lot juicier and greasier than Dandosh. Taste wise is where things get tricky. The Tabab kebabs taste great when you’re eating them but once you’re done all the taste is gone. On the other hand with Dandosh, while you’re eating the kebabs there isn’t much taste but once you’re done there is an amazing tingling flavor which really makes me want more.

But in the end there has to be one winner, or maybe two? Since both Dandosh and Tabab are near each other I would recommend you pass by Tabab first, eat a kebab there and then head over to Dandosh and have another. But, if I was stuck on an island and had to choose only one kebab place to be there with me… I would go for Dandosh. After I had a single kebab at Tabab I managed to leave without craving another. Dandosh on the other hand… I leave by force. To me that’s a sign of a great kebab.

Here is Dandosh on [Google Maps]
Here is Tabab on [Google Maps]

I found out the other day that you can actually order items from Amazon.co.jp and have them shipped to you via a mail forwarding company called Tenso to your Aramex mail forwarding mailbox in New York. This opens a whole new door on gadgets we can buy and price wise it seems pretty reasonable.

Basically you need to open an account with tenso.com who are a company that specialize in forwarding products from Japan to other parts of the world. Their prices are ok, I checked how much it would cost for 1KG and it turned out to be approximately KD10 including their service fee and shipping fee. Once you have an account with them (free to setup) you can order items from Amazon Japan and pay with your Kuwaiti card or order from other Japanese websites or even the Japanese eBay Yahoo auctions. When you place your order you give them your Tenso address in the same way you give US sites your Aramex address. Once the package arrives to your Japanese mailbox they will ship the item to your US mailbox. They sadly don’t ship directly to Kuwait. They also don’t ship batteries so if you order say a camera, they will remove the battery before they ship it to you. You also might have to pay US customs depending on the items you order.

I know there are quite a few negatives but it’s still good to have this option. Check out tenso.com by clicking [Here]

Update: I was just told another option for buying from Japan is using the site From Japan. From what I understood they ship to Kuwait directly as well. Check them [Here]

Here’s a quick spoiler, I’m very disappointed. When I first saw pictures of the X100 I fell in love with it right away but after playing with the camera all day I’m having trouble understanding how Fuji went wrong with this. The issues this camera has aren’t major but there are many which I am going to try and go through some below.

The first issue is with the Menu/OK button on the rear (pictured above). I read a lot of complaints online about how the button is too small and very difficult to press. I thought psshhht whatever, can’t be that bad. Well it IS that bad, I don’t know how the engineers at Fuji missed this but the button is tiny and nearly impossible to press. Every time I try to press it I end up pressing up or down instead. It’s really bad and very annoying when you’re trying to quickly select an option or delete a file since you keep missing the OK button and spend wasted seconds going up and down instead.

The second issue is with the focusing. It doesn’t focus! It’s ridiculous how terrible the focus system on the camera is. At first I thought I was having problems focusing on low contrast objects but I was just checking some portrait shots I took today and I don’t think any one of them is focused properly. Another issue with the focus is the fact the camera thinks macro mode is like a mile away. With most cameras you need to activate the macro mode when you get super close to objects but with the X100 you have to activate macro mode on objects that are more than 50cm away. And if that’s not bad enough after you’re done taking a picture in macro mode the camera puts it back in regular mode so if you have to shoot another shot in macro you need to activate it again. Finally when in macro mode the optical view finder turns into an electric view finder (which I hate) so during my shoot today the camera spent a lot of time swapping between the two modes and it annoyed the hell out of me.

There are some cool things about the camera, just not enough to make me want to get it. I love the retro look and the metal body although I do wish it was a bit heavier. The X100 has something called a hybrid viewfinder where information is displayed on top of what you’re seeing through the viewfinder. Hard to explain but imagine looking through a view finder and seeing information displayed on top of your subjects [Check this visual]. Some reviewers online complained about the start up speed and recording speed but it didn’t cause me any issues when I was shooting.

Now compared to my GF1 I prefer the GF1 in every way except for two things, the knobs and the optical view finder. I really like the exposure dial on top of the X100, it’s similar to the one I have on the Canon G11 and it’s a knob that should be on top of all the cameras. The shutter speed and aperture ring around the lens are also two things the X100 has and I wish the GF1 had as well. Lastly I wish the GF1 had an optical viewfinder like the X100. The X100 has both an optical viewfinder and an electronic one which you can swap between. I don’t care for the EVF, I have it on my GF1 and would rather have a proper optical viewfinder instead like the X100. Size wise the GF1 is slightly smaller and heavier than the X100. Focusing, although the GF1 isn’t that great focusing and although it gives me trouble every now and then it’s like ten times better than the X100, that’s how bad the X100 is.

Basically because I got to try out the X100 I’ve decided to cancel my Amazon.com order and stick with my Panasonic GF1. I really really wanted to love the X100 but I didn’t enjoy using it and if I’m not going to enjoy using it then whats the point in getting it? Now keep in mind my review was based on my experience with the camera in one day. There are a ton of better reviews online which I’ve listed at the end of this post. But personally I had issues with the camera shooting today and ones that would effect my ability to take shots the way I want. I’m not a great photographer and need every help I can get out of the camera and I felt the X100 was holding me back with some of it’s annoyances. Below are some pictures I took with the X100, they’re not as is from the camera since I’ve color processed them.

The X100 is available on Amazon for around $1,200 [Amazon Link]

Here are some reviews online:
Luminous Landscape 1
Luminous Landscape 2
The Pictorial
DigitalRev
Steve Huff Photo 1
Steve Huff Photo 2
Steve Huff Photo 3
Enticing the light 1
Enticing the light 2
Enticing the light 3
Photo Radar
ePhotozine
DC Resource
135 Street

Since on Friday I didn’t cheat the way I wanted to I decided I would sneak in 1 kebab sandwich from Dandosh after my gym yesterday (don’t tell Fahad) based on the recommendations of some readers. I made sure I carried only 500 fils with me since I wanted to control my intake and 500 fils would buy me just one sandwich which costs 300 fils. I ordered my kebab with just tahina and fries and started eating it. It tasted like every other kebab I’ve had and was actually kind of let down. Then suddenly the aftertaste kicked in, wow what a shocker. I don’t know what’s in the sandwich but the aftertaste is just incredible. It has a slight tingling sensation since it’s kinda spicy but not too much and for some reason this tingling sensation kicks in around a minute after finishing the sandwich. Since I only had 200 fils left I checked to see if I had any change in my car and I found exactly 400 fils. So I went back and ended up eating two more sandwiches. I think they have the best kebab sandwiches in Kuwait, I left after 3 sandwiches still wanting more… or maybe it’s because I’ve been deprived from this kind of food for too long. Here is Dandosh on [Google Maps]

Hearts of Palm is a short movie set in August 2nd 1990 and deals with Kuwaiti students living in Miami Florida during the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait. It’s written and directed by Faisal AlNashmi, a film student studying in the University of Miami. I’ve seen quite a few short movies related to the invasion but they’ve always been from the perspective of people inside Kuwait so I thought it was interesting for this film to be from a perspective of the students studying abroad. I can imagine it must have been very difficult for them being all across on the other side of the world and not being able to do anything other then sit and watch the news. [Video Link]

This must be fake (I hope) but it’s still funny:

It’s like a safari, only better
“Safari” is the Swahili word for adventure and that’s just what we have in store for you.

We sail up and down the coast of Somalia waiting to get hijacked by pirates. We encourage you to bring your ‘High powered weapons’ along on the cruise. If you don’t have weapons of your own, you can rent them on the boat.

It’s $800 a day plus $25 a day to rent an M-16. [Link]

Thanks Darth Ibrahim