Do You Have Reservations?
AdventureMan and I read a lot, and there is a standing joke between us – there are times, like reading a detective novel set in China, when one of us just gets a craving for Chinese food. Or it could be reading James Lee Burke and we have to have some Jambalaya or shrimp. The day we went to the Arabic Early Bird, AdventureMan had been reading the latest Odd Thomas book and needed a breakfast fry-up.
So Friday, after church, when I told him I really needed to go to Tang Chow because a minor character in a book I am currently reading ate Peking duck and Tang Chow is the only place I know in Kuwait that serves Peking Duck without needing advance warning. We usually go to China Queen, but for Peking Duck – only Tang Chow will do.
So we walk in and there is not one single other customer there. The hostess says “do you have a reservation?”
The rational part of me figures some people have called ahead and requested specific tables and she is trying to ask if we are one of those. The irrepressible part of me just laughs to hear such a question when the restaurant is absolutely EMPTY!
We eat around 7 most nights, it’s cultural and also we don’t like to go to bed on full stomachs, we like to have some time between dinner and bedtime. We make jokes about “the American seating” and “the Kuwaiti seating,” like if you are on a ship, and there are separate dining times for the children and the parents. We eat with the children, and as we are leaving, we watch the culturally-late-diners streaming in as we are streaming out.
There are times when it is a special event, and all the tables are reserved. AdventureMan figured out that we can sometimes wheedle a table saying “We are American! We will be gone before they ever show up for their reservation! I promise!” and they will give us the table, and sure enough, we are gone before the reservers ever show up.
It’s still funny to hear that question when the entire restuarant is full of empty seats, like they are going to turn us away if we don’t have reservations.
Qurain Cultural Festival Events Postponed
From today’s Kuwait Times:
KUWAIT: Secretary-General of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters Bader Al-Refai announced yesterday the postponement of concerts of the 15th Al-Qurain cultural festival in solidarity with the people of Gaza who are subjected to brutal Israeli aggression.
Al-Rifai, who heads the Higher Organizing Committee of the festival said in a press statement that the festival celebrated here few days ago the Palestinian Jerusalem as the capital of Arab culture for 2009.
He added that the tragic situation faced by the Palestinian people in Gaza is the reason for the postponement of activities including the final musical concert that was scheduled to be held on January 14 which would honor artist Abdel Mohsen al-Muhanna. He said the postponement was a common desire of the Council, al-Muhanna and the Kuwait National Music Band. – KUNA
A Little Slow
No sunrise this morning – I missed it! When it is cold like this, we end up reading in bed, and before we know it, the book is falling over, and we give up and turn off the lights. Thanks to a little coffee late in the day and going to bed early – I was awake in the middle of the night for about an hour, then when the alarm went off this morning, no, I just didn’t want to get up.
Once up, Qatteri Cat and I just huddle together her on the couch. It feels warmer, but . . . not warm! I have projects lined up, and a thousand things to do . . . and I just can’t seem to get started. I DO love this weather, at least I love it once I am outside and warm and toasty in the sun.
I am also having a problem staying home these days – are you? Most of the year I happily stay inside except for maybe early early in the morning for swimming or an early run for groceries. Now? Any excuse will do. I love NOT using the air conditioning, having windows open in my car, being so comfortable. And I am not getting anything done in the house.
I know these times are fleeting, and not to worry, just to go with it and enjoy it . . . I am feeling so LAZY!
Qurain Cultural Festival – AARRGH
Doesn’t this look like fun? This Qurain Cultural Festival Event was held at the Souk Sharq, so accessible, for shoppers. I would have been there in a heartbeat – had I known.
Qurain Cultural Festival highlights national heritage: Official
Kuwaiti Writers Association celebrates poet AlـFayez”s legacy
Compiled by
Al Watan Daily
KUWAIT: As part of the 15th AlـQurain Cultural Festival, the Kuwaiti artistic group Mayouf AlـMajli for folklore art performed at Souk Sharq before shoppers.
Qurain Cultural Festival Vice Chairman Mohammed AlـAsousi in comments to AlـWatan stated that the inclusion of such items into the festivals was of particular importance and highlighted the significance of local art and folklore. He added that such folklore was also represented outside the country as the Qurain Cultural Festival organizers were keen on having such national folklore represented in regional festival activities.
Meanwhile, the Kuwait Writers Association recalled the poetic artistry of late poet Mohammed AlـFayez, as a part of activities of the Qurain Cultural Festival, in an evening organized by The National Council of Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL).
Writer Abdullah AlـKhalaf noted the late poet, 1938ـ1991, was a remarkable example of Kuwaiti poets, known for his high quality and rich writings. He noted the many writings and poems and diwans of the poet, including the one published posthumously by his daughter.
He added that AlـFayez started by writing short stories, under the nickname of “Zeseif,” which featured later in his writings of “The memories of a sailor,” which was a an epic story, written in a poetic form and narrating a standard example of Kuwaiti life in the days of pearl diving.
AlـKhalaf said that AlـFayez was a pioneer in writing on that topic of hardships of older days in the Arab World, saying that he published this work in the newspapers in the year 1964, and it was printed later as one diwan.
Last updated on Tuesday 6/1/2009
Lucky People Tend to Notice More
From today’s AOL News
The key to good luck may be a heightened sensitivity to your surroundings.
Richard Wiseman, a professor at the University of Hertfordshire, spent a decade studying people who had self-identified as either lucky or unlucky. He posits that lucky people, through their superior observational skills, consistently encounter seemingly chance opportunities.
In one experiment, Wiseman asked his subjects to count the photos in a newspaper. In the middle of the paper he placed a message that read “Tell the experimenter you have seen this and win 50 dollars.” The lucky people tended to notice this, but the unlucky — with their narrower focus — often missed it.
Blue Skies, Old Ruins
Running about Kuwait, we stopped just to appreciate these ruins. You drive past them all the time, and it gets so you don’t even notice them. Today, the sky is SO blue, and the ruins are so beautiful, and who knows how long they will even be there?
I wish I could have seen this place in all its elegant splendor. You can see it must have been graceful. It looks like a lot of thought went into its construction. I wonder what it was – anyone know? It is near the Diabetes Clinic, near the British Embassy, near Dasman Circle.
I wanted you to see the beautiful arches and the elegant details against the brilliant blue sky before I show you the entire building, in context, with all the cars parked nearby, the towers in the background – it all somehow diminishes the building in context:
Sunrise Epiphany
It is a golden, glorious sunrise this morning, a little chop on the water, not so much as to even make a whitecap, just a ruffle.
It is still COLD. The temperatures for the rest of the week show a slow, gradual warming of both the maximum and minimum temperatures. We may have just seen the worst of winter.
I have pulled out my toastiest Land’s End fleece robe, bought when I lived in a tiny German farm village, where temperatures got low and stayed low. Because my apartment there had in-the-floor heating, we were always too hot! Maybe once a year, in Kuwait, I pull it out to keep me warm. This was the morning. Although it seems like it is getting warmer, the cold seeps into my building through the concrete walls and marble floors, a little colder every day.
The Qatteri Cat has decided not to get up quite yet. “It is too cold,” he complains, as he grabs his baby and goes back to bed.
Dress warmly, and get out to enjoy another glorious day in Kuwait. 🙂
Teacher Orders Students to Strip
From Al Watan. Wonder how much longer this teacher will have a job? What was she thinking???
KUWAIT: Enraged parents of young female students at one of the intermediate schools in Hawally have filed a complaint against an Egyptian teacher, who ordered all the girls in the classroom to strip. A reliable source said: “The Egyptian teacher entered the classroom and asked the students about the source of some foul odor emanating from the classroom. The students however refused to admit or identify the girl who broke a chemical ampoule, so she allegedly ordered all the students to take off their clothes. The students in turn informed their parents about the incident, after which a group of parents filed a complaint against the teacher at the AlـNugra Police Station.”
Wise Men Still Seek Him
“Oh! You’re putting your Christmas things away!” I noticed, as I was picking up my friend.
“No, no, not until after Epiphany!” she said. “Our tradition is to take down the tree when Epiphany is over.”
Tomorrow, January 6, is The Feast of Holy Epiphany and in celebration, I will post two more works of art I found to celebrate the wise men seeking the child by following a mysterious star. Many people are still looking for a scientific foundation for the Star of Wonder and if you click on the blue Star of Wonder it will take you to a very good discussion of some of the possibilities from BBC News.
I like this one because the Wise Men have on clothing that really looks Persian:
Here, in a painting by Murillo, they look, not surprisingly, Spanish/European, except for the African!
I wonder if in their travels, these wise men came through Kuwait?
Hala February Starts in January
From Al Watan
KUWAIT: The festival of Hala February for 2009 will be held from Jan. 29 until Feb. 24, said the festival”s high committee Sunday.
The committee”s general coordinator Waleed AlـJassem told the press that the event would coincide with the third year of reign for His Highnes the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlـAhmad AlـSabah, affirming that the festival would focus on highlighting the nationalistic values among citizens.
An opening carnival, which last for three days, would illuminate this year”s celebrations, he revealed.
Head of the committee”s media team Waleed AlـSagobi said that families could enjoy the festival due to the fact that the event coincide with the spring break for schools, affirming that the festival would be supported by a strong media campaign. ـKUNA
Among a whole lot of other things, as part of my job for a non-profit, I once wrote press releases. As I learned the ropes, I also learned that the newspapers will print almost anything you provide them, as long as you have proven your credibility, and the information is “print ready.” One TV station did a weekly news item on articles I would send – it wasn’t rocket science.
I am so sorry to say this, but if you are having an event, it is worth your while to take advantage of this. If you provide news sources with an event schedule, guess what? They will print it! If they print it, people will come.
If you print it in English, even more people will come! Isn’t Kuwait looking for tourism? Is there now a Hala February website, with an event schedule in English? Wouldn’t that have been a perfect opportunity, if not to publish the schedule of events (hey, having the schedule ready one month in advance is not that hard) AND a website to go to for event additions.
I really try not to be critical. I really try not to be sarcastic. Forgive me.
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