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Over the weekend I passed by Digits and picked up an iPhone 11 Pro to replace my iPhone XS with. I’m going to be posting my opinion on it later this week but if there is anything specific you want to know or want me to try out, let me know in the comments so I can include it in my post.

Just read a terrible story on Reddit of a girl’s ordeal trying to report a rape case here in Kuwait. If you don’t want to read the full story, basically after having to repeat her story at least 6 times to different males on different occasions, being refused to have a female officer question her, refusing her request for a translator, got hit on by her lawyer, she was finally charged and arrested herself. It’s such a mess and really upsetting. You can read the full story [Here]

I spotted this Alfa for sale online back in late March and I then flew to the Netherlands a week later to check it out in person. Once I got back to Kuwait I bought the car and since then it’s been a painstaking process to bring it to Kuwait. Most of the delay took place in the Netherlands were they needed around two months to register the car and get the paperwork in order before the car finally left Netherlands at the end of July and reached Kuwait earlier this month. My shipping company had a bunch of paperwork to do before it was finally released from Shuwaikh port and was delivered to me late last night. I still need to get the car registered since it doesn’t have any license plates yet but at least it’s now with me and parked in my basement.

When they dropped the car off around 12:30AM I decided to take it for a spin around the block. It felt so good driving the car and now I can’t wait for the remaining paperwork to get finished so I can drive it properly. The Public Authority for Industry gave me a temporary release for the car and I had to call a number and have someone come to inspect the car today. They actually just came took photos of the car and my car’s vin number. I had to pay them a fee of KD18 they will be uploading the photos to the Public Authority database for the next step of the registration process. Other than that I also had to pay a 5% customs fee on the car before it was allowed to leave the port.

Not sure what the next step is since my shipping company (Transcrate) are taking care of the whole process for me. I originally was hoping to create a sort of a “How to import a classic car to Kuwait” guide with all the steps you need to take, but I’ve now realized since I’m not doing the paperwork myself, these posts aren’t turning out that way. Hopefully, they’re still a bit helpful.

Last week JACC released the new full season calendar spanning from now up until April of next year and sadly there doesn’t seem to be any interesting English events coming up. In fact, there are just two, a circus act at the end of this month and an orchestra in November. I’m hoping there will be more English events added down the line but for now, if you want to check the current schedule then click here.

Not sure what I was searching for on eBay but I ended up finding a 35mm slide of Kuwait for sale taken back in 1961. My curiosity kicked in so I decided to see if there were more 35mm slides of Kuwait and ended up finding a few for sale and a whole lot that had previously sold. I saved all the ones I found, they’re 32 photos to be exact and I’ve shared them below.

All these photos were sold by the same person on eBay and they all date back to 1961. The interesting part is that all these slides were sold individually and each one had multiple bids on them. Some ended up selling for over KD40 (per slide) and some quick poking around made me realize most were purchased by the same person.

Whoever is buying up all these slides, email me!

Check out all the photos below, there are some great shots of Kuwait I hadn’t seen before.

Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) took feedback from the popular TripIt app and determined the results of the Passenger Choice Awards and the Official Airline Rating. Kuwait Airways ended up getting an5-star airline rating which sounds like a big thing, but technically, the lowest it could have scored on this list was a 4. Still, a 5-star rating puts it ahead of airlines like British Airways and Etihad Airways which both scored a rating of 4. It’s a small victory but still an important one since it shows how quickly Kuwait Airways has changed for the better now that they’ve got the newer planes and a dedicated terminal.

Here are the results of the Passenger Choice Awards:

Best Seat Comfort – Qatar Airways
Best Entertainment – Emirates
Best Wi-Fi – Delta Air Lines
Best Cabin Service – Qatar Airways
Best Food and Beverage – Qatar Airways

On a side note, Kuwait Airways also came ninth in flights timing accuracy between 175 airlines according to the UK’s Official Aviation Guide (OAG).

For the full APEX results click here.

Not a super busy weekend but the events season still hasn’t really started so it will get busier as the weather cools down. Below are this weekends events:

Thursday
Exhibition: 100 Grams of Reality
Kuwait Game Jam 2019

Friday
Kuwait Game Jam 2019
Staged in Kuwait Welcome Lunch
Q8 Readers Book Club: The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak

Saturday
Kuwait Game Jam 2019
Yoga at the Park
Guided Tour: Grand Mosque
Q8 Walking Club
Ultimate Frisbee

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so always double-check with the organizers.

Earlier this year, Korea Grill, the small Korean restaurant in New Park Hotel closed down along with the hotel and so they were forced to relocate. Last week they finally reopened but this time at the Radisson Blu and they’ve rebranded to The Kimchi.

The Kimchi took over the location of the Polynesian restaurant Kon-Tiki which had opened back in 2004 when Radisson Blu used to be the Radisson SAS. I believe Kon-Tiki closed down over a decade ago (not sure) and I think its been empty ever since. I remember I saw the place when I got a tour of the hotel after they refurbished it, but I don’t recall what this space was being used for back then. The interior was always nice looking with lots of wood and bamboo and private rooms built to look like small Asian structures. The restaurant is located underneath the Al Boom ship and the hull of the ship is integrated into the interior. The Kimchi updated the space a bit and it still looks good although I do wish the lights were dimmed a bit to give the space a moodier feel.

The menu is pretty huge now so I’m assuming everything that was on the menu at Korea Grill is still there along with a lot more new items. I went for some Korean BBQ and ended up ordering their set menu of assorted cuts for 2-3 people. It was good but I felt it was overpriced at KD28 considering neither of us left full. I actually contemplated passing by Peacock to continue dinner there because I was still hungry. I didn’t want to order any more food at The Kimchi since the service was incredibly slow and disorganized. I know that’s normal for a place that just opened but it was still frustrating having to ask for things multiple of times or watching people get their drinks or food before us even though they had come in later. I couldn’t wait to leave honestly.

I’ll give the place at least month or two before I head back again, hopefully by then they would have worked out all the kinks. Right now The Kimchi is open daily for lunch from 12PM to 3PM and then again for dinner from 6PM to 10PM. The place is big with lots of seating so I don’t think you need reservations. For more information and photos check out their instagram account @q8koreagrill

I canceled my live TV cable connection around 5 years back and signed up to Amazon Video, HBO, Hulu and Netflix for my TV fix. In addition to subscribing to those 4 I also have a YouTube, F1 TV and a UFC Arabia subscription bringing the total number of subscriptions to 7. But, even with all those subscriptions, I was still missing out on a lot of content, mainly shows on the History Channel and Food Network so I recently decided to sign up to Philo.

Philo is an internet television service that allows you to stream live TV channels as well as watch them on demand. There are over 50 channels on Philo including Food Network, History Channel, HGTV, Discovery and Motortrend. Since I signed up I’ve been mostly binging on Forged in Fire and Wheelers Dealers, two shows I like but previously only got to watch in hotel rooms during my trips.

I downloaded the Apple TV app for Philo and I found it fairly easy to flip through the channels and watch stuff, but it can be a bit overwhelming when there is so much TV. You can choose to watch shows currently playing live or watch older episodes that are archived and the combination of the two means you spend a lot of time just flipping through a ton of channels trying to figure out what to watch.

There are two main issues with Philo with the first being the price. Although it’s one of the cheapest options you can sign up to for watching live TV, it still costs $20 a month. That’s the most expensive subscription I have at the moment and to make matters worse, it’s full of commercials! At first, I didn’t mind the commercials because I hadn’t watched any in ages, but then when I realized I couldn’t skip through them and that they popped up frequently, it started getting really annoying very quickly. I wouldn’t mind paying $20 for live TV but to pay $20 and be forced to watch commercials I don’t think I can handle that.

It’s been less than a month since I subscribed to Philo and I am yet to decide if I will continue with my subscription or not. I’m still enjoying a bunch of shows and so I might keep the subscription going for another month or two before I make my decision. Like other subscription services, you need to use a VPN or a Smart Proxy service (which is what I use) to trick Philo into thinking you’re living in the US or you won’t be able to access the service.

If you’re looking for ways to stream live US channels, Philo is currently the most affordable route I’m aware of. For more info you can visit their website here.

I recently joined the Rimowa world by purchasing my first Rimowa suitcase last month and I loved it so much I ended up buying a second bag when I visited the Rimowa store in Dubai. Their stores are pretty cool (for a suitcase store) with lots of different accessories you can buy from limited edition stickers to customizable parts. Now Kuwait is getting it’s first store and it will be opening up in Avenues Phase 4, right next to the VOX Cinema escalators.

Review written by Tarek J

Movie studios have been purchasing and investing in properties over the past few years as their main currency: Marvel, DC, Disney, Star Wars… What property can we own and milk for years and years to come. But there’s one property no one has a monopoly on: Nostalgia. In this age of endless information, bad news, white nationalism, prejudice, and dabbing, people have had a need to relive the good old times. But when a film adaptation of IT was announced off the heels of the success of Stranger Things, I said “here we go again”. Surprisingly though, Andy Muschetti’s film turned out to be one of the most entertaining and well directed films of the year.

So when Vox Cinemas invited me to the premiere of IT Chapter Two, I didn’t hesitate. The event itself was quite fun, every seat had a gift bag with a poster, a funky pop Pennywise doll, and a few other little trinkets. For added effect, each seat had a red balloon tied to it. But the standout was an extremely dedicated actor dressed (with some impressive makeup) as the titular character. He would provide some fun jump scares to the guests as they walked into the theater (but thankfully disappeared when the actual film started). As a whole, it was a great experience from Vox and I hope they do this with every major release. Now let’s get to the film:

IT Chapter 2 picks up 27 years after part one, and after a disturbing opening sequence, we catch up with our characters all grown up, mostly successful, but separate from one another. However, after the resurgence of a familiar string of missing people back home, it becomes clear that they have to reunite and fulfill the pledge they made to each other at the end of the first film. And that’s as much as I’ll spoil in terms of the plot, because half the fun of the film is discovering it as it reveals itself.

It Chapter 2, like its predecessor, is one of the most entertaining films of the year. There was not a moment where I shifted in my seat or looked at my phone. The film is exciting, at times surprisingly hilarious, and sometimes pretty scary. The best thing about these films remains the characters and the performances. The casting of Chapter Two is impeccable. Probably the best casting I’ve seen where the adult actors look like their child counterparts. The characters themselves are fully developed and individual enough that they always keep the film entertaining. The performances by James McAvoy and Jesica Chastain are solid as always, but its clear the standout here is a hilarious but ultimately moving performance by Bill Hader (Barry fans rejoice!). The film as a whole doesn’t take itself too seriously and is aware that some of its plot’s sillier aspects (faithfully adapted from the original Stephen King novel who has a fun little cameo here) aren’t given too much weight to take away from the film itself. The story itself and the turns it takes is a bit disappointing, but it’s clear that Mushcetti has a lot of love and passion for this story and for filmmaking itself. Which brings me to the production. A second highlight of this film is its production value, specifically the cinematography, musical score, and directing itself. It’s directed with a strong visual and emotional intelligence, harkening back to the days of early Speilberg and Zemeckis, giving the film a kind of 90’s bravura of big visuals, big sound, a living camera, and little bit of cheesiness. As a director, Muchetti is definitely a talent to look out for. Some of the more “harrowing” sequences are beautifully shot and executed, and having a big budget horror spectacle like this is rare these days, so that alone is worth the watch.

However, not all things are great. Midway through the film it’s clear that the scares (while “bigger” here) aren’t as effective as the first time around. There is some creativity with the way Pennywise manifests the character’s fears, but it slowly gives the feeling of when you’ve seen one scary sequence you’ve seen them all. In addition, the themes of the different trauma’s the characters and the town endured growing up and how that helps them in the end, while clear to me as a book reader, didn’t translate so well in the finale.

And that brings me to the final 20 minutes of the film, which are exhilarating. I was kind of dreading it as everything the film was building towards felt a bit like the final sequence would be predictable, but I was so happy to be wrong. The film builds and builds and then it delivers a non-stop rollercoaster ride of horror, comedy, and emotions that by then I felt I could overlook the issues I had earlier on.

All in all, this is a GREAT time at the cinema. It’s not a perfect film, and it’s not as solid as the first one, but it’s definitely worth the price of the ticket, and is the kind of horror film that everyone (above 18) can enjoy.

The Ministry of Interior website has finally been revamped and although it still needs some work, at least it no longer looks like it was done by an intern using Microsoft Frontpage. The biggest change other than the visual appearance is the ability to check your traffic fines right from the front page (scroll down). That’s probably the most used feature on the website and so makes sense to have it on the main page.

I actually hadn’t checked mine in ages and just did and found 5 violations! I used to get an SMS telling me I had violations but I guess the SMS feature isn’t working. Sucks.

Anyway if you want to check out the new look click here.

Thanks Santo

The popular UK based Italian bakery Princi is coming to Kuwait soon based on job listings by Alshaya. Princi was created by the restaurateur Alan Yau who is behind other popular brands like Wagamama and Hakkasan. I posted about Princi back in 2013 after trying it out and since then the brand Princi got sold to Starbucks a few years ago which is how it ended up on Alshaya’s portfolio. No clue when it’s opening but it’s probably safe to bet that they’ll be opening a location at the Avenues.

Screenshot from T-34

The movies below are now showing at Cinescape, Grand Cinemas and VOX:

New This Weekend:
47 Meters Down Uncaged (5.3)
Angel Has Fallen (7.0)
El Chicano (5.2)
Fantastica (4.7)
Ready or Not (7.3)
Sheep & Wolves 2 (4.8)
T-34 (6.3)

Other Movies Showing Now:
Aladdin (6.5)
Avengers: Endgame (9.2)
Crawl (6.6)
Dora and the Lost City of Gold (5.9)
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (7.5)
Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (6.5)
Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood (8.4)
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (7.1)
Spider-Man: Far from Home (8.2)
The Angry Birds Movie 2 (6.8)
The Art of Racing in the Rain (7.2)
The Boat (6.3)
The Current War (6.2)
The Lion King (6.2)
Toy Story 4 (9.0)

The movies below are also now showing at the Scientific Center IMAX theater:

Movies Showing Now:
Amazon Adventure 3D (6.6)
Backyard Wilderness 3D (8.4)
Fly Me to the Moon (4.5)
Galapagos 3D (8.6)
Oceans: Our Blue Planet (7.4)
Volcanoes 3D (6.6)

Numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at time of publishing.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a long time you probably already know how nostalgic I am which is why I also love old video games. Over the years I’ve posted about a variety of game consoles including ones that allow you to play old video games like the Pandora and Dingoo. LDK Game is a console I recently picked up and I’m so in love with it!

Firstly just a bit of background. My first game console ever with the Coleco which my parents got in me in the early 80s. Since then I’ve gone through everything from the Sakhr MSX2 and Commodore, up to the current consoles like the PS4 and Switch. My favorite console ever would have to be the Super Nintendo followed closely in second by the Sega Dreamcast.

The LDK Game is a pretty tiny portable unit that plays nearly every console from the 80s and 90s including a lot of games from the original PlayStation. For such a small (and cheap) game system it just blows my mind how well it does playing some of my favorite games. Out of the box, all you need to do is plug the unit into your computer via a regular USB cable and it will then show up as an external hard drive. You can then just drag and drop the games (roms) onto the unit in the proper folders, so SNES games in the SNES folder and PlayStation games in the PlayStation folder and that’s pretty much it. You then just launch the games using one of the many built-in emulators. If there is a missing emulator (like the MSX or Coleco one) you can then just download them and install them easily. Currently, I have games from the following consoles running on my LDK:

Coleco
DOS
Gameboy
Gameboy Advance
Mame
MSX
NeoGeo
Nintendo Entertainment System
Sega Game Gear
Sega Genesis
Sega Master System
Sinclair
Sony PlayStation
Super Nintendo

In addition to the above, I also have Doom, Quake, Wolf 3D and Duke Nukem 3D installed. I really have 90% of my favorite games ever running on this tiny console.

All the games I have installed run flawlessly. Older consoles like the NES and Gameboy obviously run flawlessly on many other systems but I used to run into issues running some SNES games on my previous game consoles. I don’t have that issue here, and not only that, somehow this unit can run PlayStation games. Not all of them mind you, 3D intensive games like Tekken run but aren’t playable on this but 2D games like Castlevania, NBA Jam and Mortal Kombat Trilogy run perfectly, and games like Ridge Racer, Tony Hawk 2 and GranTurismo seem to also run really well. Another surprise was the fact that it also ran DOS games. I managed to install some really old games like Prince of Persia, Test Drive 3, Captain Comic and even the original Need for Speed and they all ran flawlessly. Oh and even sprite intense NeoGeo games like Metal Slug and Mars Matrix run without a hint of slowdown.

The screen has a 4:3 ratio which means you can play old games without having awkward black bars on the sides like you do when playing old games on your new TV. The sound is also fairly loud because there are two speakers on the back but you can also plug in your headphones if you prefer. The LDK has 6 buttons, four on the front and two shoulder buttons which means you won’t have issues controlling SNES or PlayStation games.

The coolest thing about the LDK Game though is that it sells for just $56! That’s not a lot to pay for a game console that can basically run ALL the cool old games. In fact, if it only ran Castlevania Symphony of the Night I would have paid $56 to get it and not only does it run it and really well, but I can also play Super Metroid, NHL ’94, Neo Drift and a ton of other games all on the same device. I still can’t believe I can play Symphony of the Night on this! Even the battery life is great running at over 4 hours and because it uses a standard USB port, you can charge it on the go with any battery pack.

I ordered the console from the LDK website and shipped it to my US forwarding mailbox. But, the device ended up shipping from China so if I was to order it again I’d ship it straight to Kuwait or at least my Shop&Ship Chinese mailbox. If you want to get one, here is a link to their website.