Winter Fayre at Sadu House

Winter Fayre at Sadu House this Saturday from 10 am-4pm!

Operation Hope will be there as well as many other participants. This is the first even held by Sadu house, show some support by attending this Saturday. Not only is Sadu House a beautifully restored Kuwaiti home it also sells items made by local weavers.

For more info: fayretradeq8@yahoo.com

Vintage & Classical Car Museum

The other day my husband and I were in Shuwaikh looking for a car from Al Ghanim. Needless to say all of the cars I was interested in were "booked," I don't understand what that means but they weren't for sale. Anyways as we were leaving we passed by the Car Museum and make a quick u-turn. I thought it was in Jahra but actually it's Jahra road in Shuwaikh duh!

Front of the museum...
Outside parking....

Entrance of museum..

Love the cars!!!!

Entrance is free!

Holiday Bazaar Pictures

The holiday bazaar was filled with people and lots of items for sale. This is the first time I've been to it and we had a good time. There were door prizes being given and raffle prizes to win. We made a nice amount of money that will be used to buy items for the winter bags.

Operation Hope booth...

Items for sale....
Santa of course!

Can't wait til' next year!

Thanksgiving is some Native Americans' 'Day of Mourning'

Thanksgiving thoughts from other folks perspective...

Thanksgiving is some Native Americans' 'Day of Mourning' – In America - CNN.com Blogs:

For many Americans, Thanksgiving means turkey with all the fixings, spending time with family, and being grateful for the blessings of the year. But for many Native Americans , the holiday is a bit more complicated.

The introduction of European settlers to the Americas had a mostly tragic outcome for many indigenous communities. They lost land to people who distrusted and disrespected their way of life. They lost millions of people to territorial conflict, starvation and diseases brought from Europe. Their cultures were misunderstood, devalued and deemed inferior. Some think the traditional Thanksgiving narrative – generous Pilgrims, helpful Indians – implies Native Americans should be grateful about the events that led to their suffering.

Mahtowin Munro is co-leader of United American Indians of New England, which organizes a National Day of Mourning each year on Thanksgiving. The event began in 1970, as a way to memorialize indigenous people who died as a result of colonization and to protest continued discrimination and exploitation.

The goal: Offer an unvarnished view of what the archetypal Thanksgiving celebration meant for those who lived in America when the Pilgrims landed.

There are always 2 sides to every story. Just thought I would bring thoughts from the other people who attended the event many years ago.

‘Solve problems of limited income citizens’

‘Solve problems of limited income citizens’:

KTUF slams threats to quell unrest

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 23: The Kuwait Trade Union Federation (KTUF) has repeatedly asked the government to address the problems of citizens with limited income but its pleas have fallen on deaf ears, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily quoting KTUF Chairman Fayez Al-Mutairi.
Criticizing State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Ali Al-Rashid for claiming in a television interview that he discussed the issue with the legal experts and the chairperson of the union, Al-Mutairi asserted there is no truth in the minister’s statement.

“We have demanded several times the formation of a committee, consisting of experts from the government and other concerned authorities, to initiate a dialogue on the problems of the Kuwaiti workers with limited income.
We heard nothing from them, except threats and various means of oppression to quell labor unrest,” he explained.
Addressing the minister, Al-Mutairi said, “You provoked the people to take to the streets against you, because you continue to ignore their legitimate demands.
You have widened the gap between the workers due to the approval of unequal pay scales, putting those with limited income at the losing end.”
He then appealed to the government to immediately solve the issue before it is blown out of proportion.

For all those out there who think every Kuwaiti citizen has an oil well in their backyard and millions of dollars read this article. Yes, there are citizens who barely survive due to limited income, inflated prices and having loan payments that take up more than 70% of their salaries. Unfortunately due to this situation some citizens will never get ahead.

It all starts with low salaries and the need to have a car, apartment and furnishings for a family. Easy to take out a loan to cover the costs. The payment takes most of the salary which means one can't afford anything else in the future. Only option is to re-do the loan and take out more for a longer period of time. Then you die owing the money and your children inherit your problems.

Another scenario is when a father/mother asks their unmarried sons/daughters to take out loans for them. Of course a child will not tell their elder "no" which means this citizen already has a loan at 19 and when they get married they re-do their loan and get deeper in debt. If they cannot make the payments they are blacklisted which means they cannot get passports, even for their children, cannot travel and are stuck until they find a way out. Interest is haram yet every bank in Kuwait charges some form if it.

Why doesn't the governement control loans to citizens with interest free payments?

Boycott France!

Avoid sending hijab-wearing docs:

‘Training in French hospitals’

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 23: The Cultural Bureau at the Kuwaiti Embassy in France has recommended that Kuwaiti female doctors, who wear ‘hijab’ (veil), should not be sent for training in French hospitals due to a French law that prohibits public sector employees from wearing religious symbols like the hijab in their work places, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily quoting a letter sent by the bureau to the Scholarship and Workforce Registry Sector at the Civil Service Commission (CSC) in Kuwait.

It has been reported that Kuwait had previously signed an agreement with France to give a number of Kuwaiti doctors a chance to train in French hospitals. However, the bureau’s letter stated that “all female doctors, who want to train in these hospitals, must be aware of the difficulties they might face due to a law banning government sector workers in France from wearing religious symbols while on duty. Kuwaiti physicians, who train in French hospitals, are considered public sector workers; hence, they need to abide by the law. It is then better if Kuwait does not send female Kuwaiti doctors wearing hijab.”

Sources clarified this law is not related to a recently-approved bill that bans face veils.

Seems like Kuwait should ban French people from coming to Kuwait and advise Kuwaiti citizens to avoid France due to racism!

Historical SCORE!!!!

I had posted about Kuwait in the 70's based on an article written from a 1969 edition of National Geographic that DG had psoted about. She had a scanned copy of the book. I thought it was so great to have pictures and info about early Kuwait. On Saturday I was volunteering with Operation Hope and one of the volunteers was sorting the book donations. He brought up a magazine and when I saw the cover I couldn't believe my eyes, it was the original 1969 National Geographic edition. The same one DG had posted about!

Then he brought up another magazine from 1952 with an article about Kuwait. OMG! It was in brand new condition. I looked at the pictures and realized they were the same pictures as my slide show of early Kuwait. The article was so 50's and the advertisements were awesome. There was also a 1987 magazine about Saudi women and a 1991 magazine about the Iraq invasion. Needless to say I bought them up immediately. I couldn't believe I had the history of Kuwait in my hands.

My collection........
Original 1952, volume 6!!!!!!!The article about Kuwait in 1952

Some of the pics...

More amazing pics in color!

The 1969 edition

1987 Saudi Arabia

1991 edition about the invasion...

I will have some history for my kids to read about. Unlike other countries Kuwait has taken little action to preserve historical sites. It's like everyone wants to be ultra modern and have the best clothing and expensive cars. Maybe some more festivals like they have in UAE would remind people of where they came from even though most want to forget. You can see women weaving and crafts made from the early days at the UAE festivals. Other than Sadu house are there any other workshops? I know the area in Qurain by LuLu is supposed to be for artisans yet I did't see any workshops or crafts for sale.

There are so many old buildings crumbling away in Salmiya. Why not fix them up and make them rentals? I saw an old building in Kuwait City and it was beautiful yet it was left alone. The palaces that have been forgotten, what about those? Such beautiful and historical buildings in shambles. I really wish I saw them when they were new, I bet they were gorgeous. Stop the greed rich people! Start saving the few old buildings left. It's like rich people don't want to fix the buildings or sell the land. They want to hold on to it just because they can.

That's called greed!

Flamingo Poaching in Kuwait

I was checking out DG's blog and was horrified to see beautiful migrating flamingos dead and dying. An employee of KOC found the animals in the Abdaliya Nature Preserve in West Kuwait. K's path rescued the 2 surviving birds, but 11 perished. They received medical care from the Royal Animal Hospital.

Such a tragic end for innocent animals. They migrate to Kuwait, doing no harm to anyone. Humans or animals, neither of them are safe in Kuwait. So much for the nature "preserve." Thanks to K's path for helping the 2 surviving flamingos!!

You can see more photos from K's path on facebook.

Protestors occupy Assembly

Protestors occupy Assembly - Police, demonstrators clash … teargas used:
8 injured as public rally turns violent, arrests made
KUWAIT CITY, Nov 16:

Thousands of Kuwaitis stormed Parliament on Wednesday after police and elite forces beat up protesters marching on the prime minister’s home to demand he resign, an opposition MP said.

“Now, we have entered the house of the people,” said Mussallam al-Barrak, who led the protest along with several other lawmakers and youth activists also calling for the dissolution of parliament over alleged corruption.

The demonstrators broke open parliament’s gates and entered the main chamber, where they sang the national anthem and left after a few minutes.

The police had used batons to prevent protesters from marching to the residence of Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, a senior member of the ruling family, after staging a rally outside parliament.

Witnesses said at least seven demonstrators and one securityman were injured and treated on the site. Some activists said they will continue to camp outside parliament until the premier is sacked.


Some of the protestors were said to have been arrested from the Parliament.
The injured included former MP Mohammad Al-Khalifa, Fawaz Al-Bahar, Fawaz Al-Shamari, Mohammad Al-Hamlan, Dr Mishari Al-Mutairi, Mohammad Al-Afasi, Dr Ahmad Al-Zaibadi and Khalid Al-Faraj.
The police had to use tear gas to disperse the demonstrators as they tried to head towards the residence of Prime Minister.


So far Kuwait had escaped violence but I guess the people can only take so much talk and no action until they have to do something drastic. What's next?

CNN also reported about it: http://www.blogger.com/www.cnn.com/2011/11/16/world/meast/kuwait-parliament/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

All-American Muslim on TLC

Well, TLC was trying to bring light on the Muslims living in America, too bad it fell short of representing Muslims in a positive light.

My mom who is in the states now watched it and labeled it the "Muslim Kardashians." I visited the TLC website and read up on it and it's pathetic. If you haven't watched it or can't watch it you can visit the TLC website and judge for yourself.

http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/tv/all-american-muslim

Drastic cut in visas reduces expat count

Drastic cut in visas reduces expat count:

‘45,000 leave Kuwait’

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 14: Around 45,000 expatriate workers left Kuwait this year, while the number of new work permits issued reached 90,000, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor Undersecretary Mohammad Al-Kandari.

Al-Kandari revealed the ministry has taken several measures over the years to reduce the population of foreign workers from two million to 1.2 million. He said the population of Kuwaitis increased from 31 to 34 percent and the number of new work permits declined from 179,000 in 2007 to 72,000 in 2008. He attributed this remarkable drop to the measures taken by the ministry to limit the issuance of new work permits to expatriates with the skills required by the local labor market.

Asked about the shortage of staff in various labor departments, Al-Kandari hopes the problem will be settled soon, especially since the ministry has asked the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to find ways to encourage citizens to work in the labor and social care sectors.

Around 45,000 left and 90,000 were issued work permits... doesn't that make 45,000 additional people? The government isn't doing a lot to cut the number of expats. The population of expats will continue to increase until it's so crowded no one will be able to leave their homes. At least the UAE nationals can run away to Abu Dhabi or surrounding areas, Kuwaiti citizens have no where to run. Next thing we will see is Kuwaiti citizens giving up their nationalities for other GCC countries.

I know several citizens who are really thinking of leaving Kuwait because of overcrowding and high prices. Not everyone will be able to afford a house here without having to pay until they die and then that payment will probably be handed down to their kids. Future of Kuwait looks kind of bleak.

Holiday Bazaar this Friday

Don't forget to join us for a good cause!!!!

Friday Market + Animals = Cruelty

These images may disturbing but this is what goes on at the animal market located in the Friday Market area. It's really sad that no one regulates the conditions of these poor animals. It's also ironic that the sick and sad animals are right across from the veterinarian hospital. They have however removed the dying dogs they used to bring to sell that were severely malnourished. My mom and I were there one time when Baladiya showed up and everyone was running and hiding. My mom contacted the man in charge and offered help with the situation.

She even sent him a written proposal on how to deal with the issues at hand. He spoke English and was very interested at the time but of course he didn't respond back to her and the tragedy continues. I'm sure some missing pets end up there too as I've heard stories of animals being stolen and sold at the market. The prices are crazy which means no one will ever buy any animals. There was a sad looking Chiuaua with overgrown toenails and no food, the guy wanted 300 KD for him! Really?!

There was only one shop that had the animals in cages with water and some food. They had some kind of green mats for the cats to lie on and when we asked why the other animals had no mats they just looked at us like huh? Dead birds lay in the dirt and poor little dogs look for any kind of attention.

The little monkey that made me want to cry.


Beautiful animals locked up...
Supposedly they make coffee from it's crap?

Las time I checked animals do not eat bread and rice....

I swear this dogs looks like he belongs to someone..

More exotic animals...

Why?

No one really cares about these animals even though "cruelty to animals in Islam is treated with grave contempt and the harshest of penalties, the fire of hell is accorded to any individual who dares to be cruel to animals"

The Prophet (PBUH) stated "Verily, there is a heavenly reward for every act of kindness done to a living animal."

It is mentioned in Hadith : "Animals do pray to God as other creations do."

There is no excuse for any animal to be treated like this!

Operation Hope

Another lovely Saturday spent volunteering at Hope House preparing 400 winter bags for the workers on the farms in Wafra......preperations are being made for Esther's Attic which will be located in Hope House pictured below. Gently used items will be sold and earnings will be used to benefit the many programs offered by Operation Hope.

Hope House...


Some of the High School volunteers steaming clothes.....


More donations...

One of the current projects going on is helping the maids living at their embassy's shelters. They aim to provide each with a toiletry bag containing a toothbrush, toothpaste, boady soap shampoo and sanitary napkins. There is an estimate of over 1,000 such shelter residents in need of these basic toiletries. The estimate for each bag is 4KD. You can help by sponsoring 1, 2 or as many as you want.

You can also purchase and bag the items and bring them to OH or directly pay the wholesell merchant for the number of workers you wish to sponsor. OH also needs racks and hangers to display clothing for Esther's Attic, garbage bags to transport items, blankets and winter items.

Join Operation Hope on Friday, November 18, 2011 at the Holiday Bazaar located in the Salwa Al-Sabah Theater and Hall from 10:30 a.m.- 9 p.m. There will be items for sale, a 1 KD entrace fee will be charged.

www.operation-hope-kuwait.com

Embassy of Kuwait D.C.

I posted about the Kuwait Embassy in D.C. a while ago. I had so many problems with getting information from the website and the people who answer the phones were extremely rude and unprofessional.

I visited the site yesterday to help out an employee and I saw some amazing changes with the site. The embassy must have received some money to upgrade the site as every person coming to Kuwait has to have their documents attested which boosts the amount of money coming in.

It's very clear and information is easy to find. I don't know if the people who answer the phones have changed or received customer sevice training but the website is pretty good.

Good job guys!

www.kuwaitembassy.us

Iranian teen loses his life in major Salmiya mall gangfight

Iranian teen loses his life in major Salmiya mall gangfight:

Bloody brawls reported among youths at many places

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 8:

"A 19-year-old Iranian died of chest wounds and two other youths, including an Egyptian expatriate were severely injured in a bloody fight among some 80 individuals at a famous shopping complex in Salmiya area.

The youths are said to have used batons, knives and other sharp objects to attack each other and the injured people were left behind, bleeding profusely, while other members of the feuding party managed to escape at the sight of police. Even so, about 20 of them were taken into custody when paramedics referred the three injured people to the Mubarak Hospital for medical care. Later on, the Iranian died of internal bleeding. A case has since been registered for investigation.

Meanwhile, another group of youths engaged in a quarrel at the same commercial complex over a girl, resulting in severe injuries to a citizen of Kazakhstan and a Jordanian. The injured people were taken to the Mubarak Hospital by paramedics arriving at the scene with security operatives. A case was registered.

In yet another incident, two Kuwaiti juveniles suffered injuries in different places of their bodies, as they fought with six other juveniles at a public garden in Rumaithiya. Paramedics sent the injured citizens to the Mubarak Hospital, while securitymen referred the other juveniles to Juvenile Prosecution for investigation."

What in the world is going on in Kuwait? I've read around 10 or more articles about teenagers fighting and beating the hell out of one another. I think it has to do with bordem. There isn't much to do in Kuwait especially when you're a teenager. There has to be more programs formed for all kids not just Kuwaitis. I know there are a lot of sports clubs for citizens but not expat kids and if there are programs they are really expensive.

It's scary to let your kids go out these days considering majority of the headlines are violence against teens or kidnap and rape. Kuwait is a Muslim country yet so much crime surrounds the people. Enforce the laws like KSA and UAE does maybe that will make a difference.

Kuwait to curb ‘Work permits’

Less talking, more action

Kuwait to curb ‘Work permits’:

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 8:

"The Cabinet has reportedly instructed the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to restrict the granting of work permits to expatriates in the public and private sectors, reports Al-Jarida daily.

Ministerial sources say the Cabinet wants work permits for expatriates to be issued only in vital sectors. It has instructed ministries to limit activities that require a large number of expatriate laborers and instead engage in activities that could be carried out by citizens. It has also asked ministries to reduce the existing expatriate manpower in their respective organizations by replacing them with Kuwaitis. The government wants to maintain the demographic balance and at the same time, reduce the crime rate that has spiked due to an increase in marginal laborers, added sources."

After trying to search for a park to go to and having to turn around and go home because of the overcrowding it's about time for some action. Yesterday every park was full of FN and expats. It's unfortunate that there were hardly any Kuwaiti families at the parks. It's also bad to see FN bachelors hanging around everywhere with nothing to do. The beach was full of them and of course no one wants to bring families around bachelor guys because they just stare at females.

No wonder why Kuwaiti citizens leave for the holidays, there's no way to enjoy Kuwait with so many people.

Falika Island

I want to visit the island after the holidays when it's not so crowded....

You can call for timings as the boat leaves at different times depending on the amount of people. I called 2 days in advance, the boat left at 10 a.m. and came back at 4 p.m. which wasn't enough time to enjoy the trip. If I made my reservation a week ahead then I could get a full day there. It's 16 KD for adults, 12 KD for kids 3-8 and 9 KD for children under 3. It includes transportation on the island to the restaurant and buffet.

You can call for more details:

Marina reservations: 22244988 or reception 90014123, the reception guy is really friendly and gave me great info.

website: www.failakaheritagevillage.com

Anime fans get Ready!

Ready for some Anime?

November 20-22

Laila Gallery Cinescape

5:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.

2 movies a day

Sounds like fun, a lot of people and not enough seating.

MoE to hire 300 Kuwaiti women

Kuwaiti women security guards?

MoE to hire 300 Kuwaiti women:

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 5: Ministry of Education is on the verge of hiring more than 300 Kuwaiti women as security guards to work in the schools for girls, reports Al-Jarida daily.
The ministry’s assistant undersecretary for administrative affairs Aisha Al-Roudhan made the announcement and said the ministry will coordinate in that regard with the authority responsible for re-structuring the country’s workforce and a company that specializes in recruiting women security guards.

Al-Roudhan denied that the ministry is planning to recruit non-Kuwaitis from the Gulf or other Arab countries as female guards, except for special cases. She pointed out that the women security guards will start work in the next school year.

According to Al-Roudhan, application is open to Kuwaiti women holding high school certificate or its equivalent, between 30 and 45 years old. She noted the position will be financially rewarding with a monthly salary of KD 617 and holidays consistent with the regular school break in summer and spring. The women security guards will be expected to supervise the students inside the school premises and monitor them during break and other school activities.

Money isn't too bad but does anyone really think they will actually do the job? When I worked at the schools we couldn't get the teachers to watch the kids and now the "security guards" are supposed to do it?

Eid Mubarak

I hope everyone enjoys their vacations... I will be working .....

AWARE Center Acitivities

AWARE Center:

AWARE Monday Museum Tour:

"Historical & Vintage Classical Car Museum" Monday, Nov. 21 at 5:00pm Join us as we further explore the museums of Historical, Vintage, and Classical Cars Museum. Advance reservations are required. Seating is limited. Fee: 2KD. Departure from AWARE: 5:00 pm. This is a 1 1/2 hour tour.

TIme to Pray

Amazing...

Time to pray… pilots land on motorway - Emirates 24/7:

Several Saudi air force soldiers decided to cut their mission and land on a motorway in the middle of the day to perform prayers on time.

A photojournalist who happened to be passing on the motorway just outside the capital Riyadh caught the airmen kneeling down on the road while their helicopters were parked nearby.
“Despite the scorching sun and the hot asphalt, the airmen landed their Sikorsky helicopters on the road and performed prayers on time,” Sabq daily said

Annual Holiday Bazaar

It's that time of year again.......

Operation Hope will have a booth selling cookies and sweets for charity. I hope everyone can attend and pick up a couple cookies, proceeds will help the less fortunate in Kuwait.

Japanese Celebrations

Japan celebrates the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relationship with Kuwait this year with some really great events.

Japanese Drums presentation:

When: November 23 & 24 @ 6 p.m.
Where: Abdullah Aziz Hussein theater in MIshref (next to Mishref co-op)

Bon Odori Dance

When: November 25 from 6-9 p.m.

Where: Souq Sharq, Salmiya

They will have a few presentations during the show.

Can't wait! Thanks Abdullah for the links.

Scientific Center

The Scientific Center has their Feed Show today, open to the public @ 7 p.m.

They will be feeding the sharks & rays....

Ex-MP loses cash, respect

It just keeps getting better....

Ex-MP loses cash, respect:

Million gone in casino

KUWAIT CITY, Oct 31: A former Kuwaiti MP, whose identity has not been disclosed, was reportedly shell-shocked after losing nearly one million dollars in gambling in the ‘casino’ of a well-known hotel in an unidentified Arab country, reports Al-Shahed daily.
The daily added the man was drunk and was seen gambling for several hours. After the Kuwaiti Embassy in the said country was informed that one of its nationals was ‘ill’, personnel were sent to the hotel.

However, they were shocked when they discovered the man was a former MP, he was drunk and had lost a ‘lot of money’ gambling. The officials tried to calm the man down and offered to take him to a hospital but the man refused to leave unless he regained all the money.

When the officials tried to persuade him that what he said did not make sense and that it was not possible to get his money back, the former parliamentarian claimed he was cheated by the gambling ‘den’ officials. The sources added the behavior of the former MP did not suit a person who has represented his people in the country’s Parliament. Moreover, the daily added it was proven beyond doubt the man had lost his money in a fair manner.

When the embassy officials failed to resolve the issue amicably and moreover, because the former MP stood his ground, the officials requested both parties to go to police.

Was it really 'his' money or the country's money? That money could have helped a lot of unfortunate people. Another embarassing moment for Kuwait.