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BENJO VAN LAARHOVEN
AlShamel Travel
How often do you hear the words “I work in the travel
industry?” Regardless of context, there’s still a strange fascination with
those that say it, and it never seems to get old. Travel is fun, it’s sassy, it
conveys culture; so who wouldn’t enjoy travel or the company of someone who
travels? The best way to approach this, is to know someone on the inside,
you’re guaranteed to get tips on what’s best for you. When you meet new people
at gatherings, and realize that they work for a travel agency you suddenly feel
at ease to tell them all about your travel woes. Being the perfect way to start
a conversation, Benjo Van Laarhoven found travel to be his thing. A graduate of
law, Benjo left the rigidity of legal practice... read |
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MOE
An artist in the making; a fresh face for your eyes and
ears. Moe is released and shares his story...
As a kid, I had this thing for writing. Not to brag, but I
was good… I mean really good, to the extent that teachers who didn’t know me
would assume that I plagiarized my essays and any written documents so I
usually got into trouble ... read |
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SHELL’S ONE-ON-ONE
Shell gives LOYAC’S interns a taste of the corporate
world
Since Shell’s appearance in Kuwait, it has aimed to provide
assistance to Kuwait National Energy Sector. Making sure that Kuwait has the
fuel necessary from other sources to help meet its local energy demands.
Signing contracts with KOC and K... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work?
With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic
management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Q: Sir Richard Branson, fo... read |
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REMOTE
ACCESS
Your life has literally become afloat
When he first moved back to Kuwait from the States,
he had a vision of bringing the true essence of IT back with him. Upon setting
up the company, he decided to expand on his services to include internet
solutions as well. Shortly after, he rea... read |
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ACANTHE
Teaching etiquette and protocol
Elbows off the dinner table, sit up straight, hold your
head high, and walk with a book on your head to improve your posture. Those are
just some of the things that show whether or not a person has proper etiquette.
As kids we all went through ... read |
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ARGENTINA TO NEW ZEALAND
Around the world in ? days
Have you ever had the experience when you meet someone and
you think “wow, this person is really neat, wish I had their gumption.” Well, this happened to me recently when I met
up with Graham Hughes, a man on a mission. At only 31 years... read |
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ON
BECOMING THE QUEEN
OF HOLLYWOOD
Queen Noor of Jordan makes her first foray into
movies with ‘Countdown to Zero’
In a town
known for famous moviemakers, Queen Noor of Jordan is something of an anomaly
in Hollywood – until you consider the movie she has helped make. Queen Noor,
the widow of King Hussein, sat down with a small group of reporters at a
pri... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work?
With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic
management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Our sales target is a nightmare. We keep
dropping the price but it seems we’re still far from reaching our goals. Any
tips?
LA: How does the offer ‘Pay nothing and get two’ sound like?
Keep dropping your prices and that’s w... read |
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TONI&GUY
AL CORNICHE
IS NOW OPEN
One on One with Mr. Roger Woodward
Over the
past two months we have followed the progress of the new TONI&GUY Al
Corniche Hairdressing salon and on the 17th May 2010 it officially opened its
doors to the public. The salon was inaugurated by Mr. Roger Woodward the
International ... read |
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WAKEBOARD
KUWAIT
SAOUD ABDULLAH AL-BADER
For most of us this name is unknown, but for the water
sport’s enthusiastics of Kuwait Saoud is becoming more and more a popular name.
He is currently the youngest known male wakeboarder in Kuwait. While we spend a
day with him during one of his training session we learned a lot about him. To
start he is only eig... read |
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FREEZE
FRAME
Theroux writes in his prologue in Ghost Train to the Northern Star, “You think of travelers as bold, but our guilty
secret is that travel is one of the laziest ways on Earth of passing the time.”
I began to read this book, as negative as the beginning was. It made me think,
“Am I a traveler?” “Do I think this way?” I sort of becam... read |
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MISHAL AL-AROUJ
Arabic music takes on a different beat
Arabic or Oriental, music has always been the very core of
everything cultural in the Middle East. Throughout the years, westerners have
started to include some of the very beats that give the oriental world its own
funk, into their music to gi... read |
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ZAIN ACCELERATES TO THE FUTURE
Innovators and leaders in the world of communications
From its inception in 2007, Zain has yet to run out of ideas. Striving
to maintain their number one ranking as service provider in Kuwait, their ideas
for their ads and teasers are brilliantly thought-out and executed. A leader in
the Arab worl... read |
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Loaay’s
Two Cents
Got
business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed
shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management,
employees and entrepreneurs thrive
When we
emailed people on our list about our new product only once or twice the
response rate was very low. But when we started to send them multiple emails
about different products some complained about the volume of emails and others
opted o... read |
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NAWAF
AL-MATOUQ & FAISAL AL-BAGHLI
Unique artistic indulgences
Embarking on an artistic journey early on, they
were friends well before they became known as artists. Both encouraged by their
families to pursue artistic paths, they developed their own style far more
inspiring than the conventional mainstrea... read |
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C&J
EVENTS TECHNOLOGY
Event organizing at its finest
A dynamic power couple is taking the event
coordination world by storm. First established in Kuwait in April 2008, they
have started to spread their network throughout the Arab world. Striving to
bring the same level of refined events to Kuwait... read |
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PILGRIMAGE TO BLACK WATERS OF KRISHNA
Mathura, India
Cycles of Earth: rock and sea; from ice to water—from
water to rain. In the lower Himalayas, stupendous peaks called the Banderpooch
slope down to the Yamunotri Glacier. Dripping continuously it feeds the largest
Tributary River of the Ganges... read |
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5 WAYS YOU CAN HELP BEAT
CHILDHOOD OBESITY
Upon my return to Kuwait, one of the police
officers in the airport recognized me and rushed up and said "Welcome back
hope you had a good flight, can you please help me with some advice? My son is
14 years old and is so overweight and I have no idea what to do." So I
asked him "Why didn't you hire a personal trainer to take care of
him?" H... read |
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I
THINK, THEREFORE I CAN
When a back problem led to the adventure of a
lifetime
It all started when he was bed-ridden for a back injury. After spending 15
days in bed, he realized that he should challenge himself. The pain radiating
from his back is nothing compared to that of trekking a mountain, don’t you
think? With t... read |
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LITTLE
JOE MCLERRAN QUARTET
Blues “soup recipe” in Kuwait
It all started when a little boy had a dream. That dream was to create
music that was forever going to influence the world. The toughest part wasn’t
getting started, it was to show that Blues can express any emotion; be it happy
or sad. It’... read |
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LOAAY'S TWO CENTS
Got business problems or challenges at work? With
his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management
consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Many companies around the world have big programs
for society, employees and the environment and they have taxes to pay, higher
salaries compared to other markets and shareholders that demand higher profit.
How can they do all these things and ... read |
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NEXT NETWORK
Nawaf Shallal’s internet consultancy at its finest
Since the
dawn of the internet, it was a foregone conclusion that it was to forever
change the world, in a good way. At the very start, the internet was developed
in the 60’s, or at least the concept was, and at the time wasn’t available fo... read |
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REINA
STYLE’S RANA AL-NAQEEB
When gummy bears explode
If clothes gave off scents, then musk would be the undertone to this
young, hip, designer’s collections. Musk is the scent because it’s a classic
that can be mixed with other scents to create a new fresh twist. Rana Al-Naqeeb
is the brains ... read |
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THE SHORTCUT
Why take the long way?
Nowadays, people have the luxury to sit back and relax without having to
worry about finding something they’re looking for. Thanks to the multitude of
guides in the market, it has become possible to skim through the pages and find
what they n... read |
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THE MISSING SENSE
As most of
my friends know already, I was born hard of hearing. Back then my condition was
mild but steadily progressed to what they call “severe to profound hearing
loss.” Not that I’m sad about it, hell... I find it useful sometimes, and “not
hearing” what I don’t want to hear.
Then again, one must follow all the latest heal... read |
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ELEMENT 8 DOES
IT AGAIN
When laughter became the language of the world;
warning: it’s highly contagious
As promised, Element 8 delivered.
Flying in great comedians is always an excellent move. After all, who doesn’t
enjoy a good laugh? The cleverly named show, So You Think You Can Laugh, was brilliant. The theatre was sold
out, and the crowd wa... read |
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SARAH
AL HAMAD
Cardamom and Lime, Recipes from the
Arabian Gulf
In Kuwait, people are divided into two
categories: Those who eat out of a kitchen in a home and those who consider
local food a mystery. The mystery is where to find it, how to cook it, and how
to make it taste like it should.
Sarah al Hamad... read |
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THE MATTHEW CHRONICLES: ABDUL
HUSSEIN
Agitated sands and dust transform back into stone. Beads, thread through
with colorful yarn. Counted and collected they have been admired over the
years. The present speaks of the past, of iridescent beads - symbols reflecting
upon themselves from the words of Abdul Hussein.
Cell phones, the cinema, and Souk Sharq. Bowling alleys, HD
TVs,... read |
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WEIRD AND WACKY WITH: DINA AL-SALEH
Actor,
Producer, Director and Puppeteer; Dina Al-Saleh is no rookie in show business.
At only three years of age, she attended the Kuwait School of Contemporary
Dance, headed by Andy Hicks and soon after, at the age of five, her mother,
Rajaa Al-Bader, Costume Designer to the stars, encouraged Dina to join Kuwait’s
Children’s Theater un... read |
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ABS
OF STEAL
Summer’s hottest look is the flawless stomach
Do you want a flat stomach? I personally don't know a single person who
doesn't! People spend millions, if not billions of dollars, each year in the
quest for a flat stomach. Right now there are about 200 or more ab exercise
devices out there. ... read |
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FAREED ABDAL
28 Faces of the Beloved
Chief architect of the Architecture department in K.U., a professor of architecture, a real estate developer, Fareed Abdal has it all. If we set all that aside and look at it from a different perspective, it becomes evident that he is an artist ab... read |
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alshabab TALENT OF THE MONTH
Yousef Al Qallaf the cartoonist
Every month, the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) has a campaign targeting university students to promote their talents and business ideas. This promotion gives the students a chance to benefit from NBK’s connections in the media and elsewhere. “... read |
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CINDUS ALSARRAF
Coming from a creatively challenging background, Cindus AlSarraf has it down to the last knot. Artistic parents and a degree in Broadcasting, she has always been a patron to the arts regardless of what form they came in. Never having studied fashion, Cindus’s talent comes from experience and passion. Looking up to and admiring the works of Cav... read |
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“WELCOME”
“WELCOME,” he says. Rafat Hussein Mohamed Osman, a middle aged Egyptian Bakala(corner store) owner living in Hawalli, Kuwait. He sips his morning shai(tea) and smacks his hands together clearing away the crumbs to shake your hands. Two kisses to the cheeks of his better friends. His eyes still sag from fatigue, but every day, with a smile, h... read |
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KATHLEEN HELENA BOONEN
Kuwait’s flights get the feminine touch
Being a globe trotter is hard enough, but having to fly yourself from one destination to another is a whole different story. Having trained in Holland, New Zealand, and Canada; this is a woman that flies around the world for a living. Belgian born... read |
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JURGEN DAHLMANNS
RugStar addict
“Everyone has different needs as to why they buy things,” he begins, “and what things he/she surrounds herself/himself with since the things we buy and put into our apartment are a reflection of who we are.” With four main themes and their... read |
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DESERT WONDERS
The beauty of the desert captured
Very few people can capture the true essence of the environment around them in just one photograph. Yet those who dare to try are left with a breath-taking experience. Being a photographer, one must venture into the depths of the world around them... read |
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LIMBLESS DOES NOT MEAN LIFELESS
“If God doesn’t give me a miracle, I can be a miracle for someone else.” Nick Vujicic
Imagine being born with no arms and no legs. How would you perform simple daily activities? All the things that people with useable limbs, particularly arms, take for granted would no longer be possible. Or would they?
The saying that ‘where t... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Q: One of our non-Arab waiters sings in the restaurant around customers. We talked to him but we keep receiving complaints. Should we just fire him or penalize him?
LA: My policy on hiring and firing is simple: hire slow, fire fast. ... read |
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BEING THE CREATIVE HUMAN BEING
Is there a better time to assess who we are? What we are thinking, doing, creating and how we are being?
It is easy in life to react. We react to circumstances, thoughts, assumptions and anything else that comes along. Our negativity can be like a snowball. As it rolls down the mountain side it collects more and more negativity. Semi related id... read |
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DIETING IS A ROLLERCOASTER
How to lose weight effectively
Being a nutritionist and personal trainer for celebrities is not an easy thing. It’s a big responsibility for me. I have to make sure my clients stay healthy and fit at all times, and if my client appears on TV unfit, I will be the one to blame.... read |
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ORGANIC LIVING
When eating right means eating local
From Sydney, Australia, a certified chef has found herself on a journey that will take her around the world. Working all over Europe and the US, she burned herself out and decided to, as she put it, “put up my knives and put on some normal shoes... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Our senior management is clueless about many problems that are happening internally and with customers. We feel that they don’t care. What can we regular staff do?
LA: Viva La Revolution! No. But short of you taking over to make a chan... read |
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NATHALIE RYKIEL
Behind the dress
For spring 2010, Sonia Rykiel and H&M are proud to present an iconic 100% knitwear fashion collection and accessories range for women and girls. Bold, colorful and fun, this collection brings together the hallmarks of Rykiel style and its deeply P... read |
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ROMANTICALLY FEMININE & SLIM
Contemporary romantics aren’t taught how to become, they know it deep down. From designing clothes for herself, to showcasing her debut collection at the age of 20 in Piero Fornasetti’s famous art gallery, and skipping through Rome and Paris in the 90’s to flaunt her collections at the haute couture shows; this designer has made it big. Lu... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Q: We’re about to start a new business. It would be great for the image of the brand to name it an international name. My concern is that the general market might not understand some of the names we came up with. Should we choose the English nam... read |
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HUSSAIN DASHTI
BEHIND THE SCENES
Hussain Dashti loves to create. As a young Kuwaiti advertising and commercial director he catches inspiration from everyone and everything that surrounds him and insists that creative people are all around us but they just have to show the... read |
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WAYNE BORG
Chief Operating Officer
Wayne Borg is Chief Operating Officer at twofour54, responsible for developing and managing the company’s strategic operations. In this role, Wayne is leading twofour54’s drive to attract the right mix of established industry-leading and young... read |
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IT'S NOT JUST FITNESS, IT'S A WAY OF LIFE
Lots of my people in Kuwait want to add to their frame so to those who e-mailed me and asked me how to do it, here is the break down. While most people are eager to lose weight, bodybuilders are equally eager to gain it - rock-solid muscle, that is. I sometimes get questions like: "What should I do, eating and training-wise, to pack on 3... read |
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SEEING IS BELIEVING:
The Photography of Emotion
Bader Al Bassam's photography is intensely emotional and raw, two things which are hard to come by in this age of surfaces and pretense. Just a look at one of the young photographers' collections begs a viewer to look just a little while l... read |
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HELP ME HELP YOU:
Dina Lahlou, the holistic therapist
Any psychologist, psychiatrist, or therapist will usually ask you once they meet “why are you here and how can I help you?” All therapists’ goals are to help their patients feel better, but what differentiate them are the methods that t... read |
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LOAAY'S TWO CENTS
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Q Managers involve me in many projects and tasks all at the same time. Everyone is chasing me for feedback and I’m overloaded. I ended up avoiding most meetings so as not to receive more tasks. What can I do to stop this madness?
LA: Take ... read |
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DEFINITELY DIFFERENT:
Meqdad Al-Kout’s Banana
Meqdad Al-Kout’s latest movie, Banana (2009), narrates the story of a married Kuwaiti man called Ahmad. Because of Ahmad’s martial discontent and his societal limitations, he asks a religious imam about the regulations of Temporary Marriage (M... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Q
Since the stock market in Kuwait is down, I was wondering if now is a good time to buy stocks. And which ones do you recommend?
LA... read |
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DIRECTOR OF MOULAN ROUGE RECREATES FILM MAKING
Australian director Baz Luhrmann has often been hailed as a revolutionary. The brains behind the highly successful Moulin Rouge, and the creator of his own production company, he strives for creative control. So much so that, armed with influences ranging from Shakespeare to Bollywood, he has successfully created a unique cinema going experience... read |
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HE SAID/SHE SAID
If you could wake up tomorrow as anyone in the world, who would you choose to wake up as and why?
SHE SAID
By Nada Faris
My initial response was to consider awaking as Q80 Hillbilly himself. Think of all the havoc I could wreak! I would begin by commending my opponent's writing style, her impressive wit and her choice of metamor... read |
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SHREDDED DIESEL ZOOMS IN ON WOMEN'S HEALTH AND FITNESS
In my years of personal training, I have come to develop specific styles of training for clients of all different genders, ages, and fitness levels. I often see new trainers train all of their clients the same way, because they just don't have enough experience to personalize their programs enough for each of their clients.
Don't get me wrong,... read |
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KUWAITI MAKEUP ARTIST INTRODUCES AIRBRUSHING
Yasmeen Mansour Hayat was born in a very stable, supportive and loving family. Her parents were always there for her in the good times and the bad. She was always encouraged to do what she wanted from hobbies to work. To Yasmeen’s parents, education was a top priority. Being well-educated college graduates was the main objective for her and he... read |
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LOOK MA! NO SKATES!
But Alia Shawkat is definitely on a roll
Drew Barrymore, Juliette Lewis, Ellen Page and Kristen Wiig all strut their stuff on skates in the roller-derby comedy/drama, but not Shawkat. The 20-year-old actress, a rising star thanks to State of Grace (2002), Arrested Development (2003-2006)... read |
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MARIA’S CLEANSE
Natural remedies for an easier and smarter path to weight management
Have you ever woken up feeling a little less than good, somewhat lousy actually, and still fatigued even though you got a full eight hours of sleep? Have you wondered why you just can’t seem to muster up the endurance needed to finish a full wor... read |
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STANDING OUT IN THE CROWD:
D’Fineline takes interior design to another level
Line Risom moved to Kuwait from Norway because her passion for interior design, as well as her developed sense of adventure, compelled her to accept an offer by none other than The One home furniture and accessories store in Kuwait. Six years late... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
Our competitors are aggressive. We try to keep up, but no matter what we do, we feel it’s not enough and our budgets are vanishing like the wind. How can we keep up with competition without breaking the bank?
LA: Simple, you don’t. Ke... read |
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NINA DOBREV OPENS THE ‘VAMPIRE DIARIES’
Nina Dobrev didn’t bite right away.
The 20-year-old actress, a star back home in Canada thanks to her role on Degrassi: The Next Generation (2006-2009), was newly relocated to Los Angeles when the opportunity arose to audition for a pilot called The Vampire Diaries. Dobrev knew nothing about the L.J. Smith books on which the show is based, an... read |
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ROLLING STONE SPEAKS ABOUT HOME
He’s not quite what you’d expect. I first heard about Talal Al-Muhanna through a mutual friend, an artist, who spoke with reverence of Talal’s enviably copious life experiences doused in journeys to several continents, with a talent for performance art which gained him acceptance into New York City’s infamous Julliard school of the arts ... read |
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SHAKING THINGS UP:
ALIA ABDAL TEACHES EXPERIMENTAL ART
Creativity is a word, a concept, attached to several connotations like thinking outside of the box, innovativeness, imaginative problem-solving and alternative ways of going about seemingly regular, daily tasks. It is however also a concept that e... read |
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ALI ABDULWAHAB (AAW) SPECIALIZES IN LUXURY FURNISHING
When we walk into hotels, hospitals or furnished rentals, we usually take for granted the craftsmanship that goes into the fine details of interior fixtures and appliances. “What great finishing this property has”, we tend to think; and the thought usually stops there. I for one personally assume that kitchen furnishing -like ovens, stoves, ... read |
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FOR COMEDY KING JUDD APATOW,
THIS TIME IT’S PERSONAL
Judd Apatow is fast becoming the CEO of what can best be described as Judd Apatow Inc.
It feels as if Apatow has either written or produced every other comedy released in the past few years, and indeed his list includes “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy” (2004), “Fun with Dick and Jane” (2005), “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ri... read |
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SKIN FOLDS AND ADVANCING TIME
An interview with CosmeSurge’s Dr. Max Sawaf
“You are going to look old and you can age gracefully, but you don’t want to have Alzheimer’s… you don’t want to spend all of your retirement money on doctors. You don’t want be a burden on your children. If that is getting old, then n... read |
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SSH AND BRAINSTORM JOIN FORCES
What happens when a mega architectural corporation focused on planning and manufacturing large-scale projects on a regional level joins forces with a small and specialized workshop of design experts? You get more intimacy and craftsmanship in the end product. More importantly, you get creative thinking and the progression of mass production towa... read |
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THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL:
ALI YOUNES’ FASHION JOURNEY
Ali Younes is a young Lebanese man who came to Kuwait with a single suitcase, ready to start a venture with a Kuwaiti friend several years ago. He was no more than 20 years old at the time –tender and impressionable, full of energy, talent, fash... read |
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Loaay’s Two Cents
Got business problems or challenges at work? With his Two Cents column, Loaay Ahmed shares his expertise in strategic management consulting to help management, employees and entrepreneurs thrive.
My story is quite common these days. I was laid off thanks to the current economy. I pushed my CV to organizations in different sectors, but no feedback. I believe I have a decent amount of experience. What can I do to get a job?
LA: If y... read |
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COLBIE CAILLAT
Colbie Caillat has plenty of reasons to feel “Bubbly” these days. The Californian singer/songwriter, daughter of a Grammy-winning record producer, has turned MySpace popularity into a hit-making pop-music concern. Caillat’s debut album, Coco (2007), went double platinum and launched the hits “Bubbly” and “Realize.” She dueted with ... read |
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SHREDDED DIESEL MAKES HEALTH AND DIET SIMPLE
Zee is back this month with the latest fitness recommendations to help shake up the health landscape in Kuwait, bringing those of us who dare to try, closer to a better lifestyle. For those who missed out on last month’s column, Zee – also known as Abdulaziz Al Sayegh – is signed on with Mosely Records as the personal trainer for Hollywood... read |
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THE INDOMITABLE SPIRIT
The Journey of Ahmed Sulaiman Al Huzaimi
Growing up, Ahmed took up running and swimming as a way to stay active, but he made room for other things in his life as well, he didn’t make his whole life simply about sports…“I used to swim; I never thought of getting into it in depth –... read |
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WE BRING YOU SHREDDED DIESEL
Do you remember how Timbaland - the famous producer behind much of the success of various musicians like Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake and the now-deceased Aliya – lost a lot of weight right before the 2007 MTV awards, going from tubby-cutie to pumped-up hottie in what looked like a blink-of-an-eye? Well, the man responsible for Timbaland... read |
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DANDELIONS IN THE ROUGH: A KILI CLIMBING STORY
It was Thursday July 2nd 2009. 19 Orchid fundraisers including myself were walking across what is known as ‘The Saddle”, an exposed alpine desert which could best be described as looking a lot like the Moon. It is cold, and oxygen is intensely thin at this altitude; it was indeed, quite an arduous affair. We were making the final approach to... read |
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FATBOY SLIM 5:
Fat Attack
So it’s been two months since we last spoke and some of you might be wondering, what’s goin on with that fat kid who likes to talk a lot? Well the last time we spoke, I told you how I had lost 12 KGS since I started my program with Al Corniche... read |
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IN THE OPEN: A CONVERSATION WITH SHUROOQ AMIN
With a welcoming smile elegantly perched on her face, and graceful body movement replicable only by dancers and yogis, Shurooq led me through the large wooden-gated entrance to her home, across her outdoor swimming pool lounge area, and into her spacious terra-cotta-walled living room rich with artwork. Comfortably seated on an overd sofa which ... read |
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THE SCIENCE OF SEEKING OUT THE BEST LYRICAL DIALECT
Yasmine Hamdan chats about her musical journey
The story is already beginning to have the ring of legend. Yasmine Hamdan, onetime vocalist for Beirut trip-hop pioneers Soapkills, met iconic producer Mirwais at a Madonna concert in Paris. The pair hit it off and set to work on an Arabic-languag... read |
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THE LAST WOW
The tumors had been growing for as long as I had known him. They had spread wherever they could, blocking every effort to reduce their and number. They were entrenched in the fabric of our society, draining whatever of life’s resources to keep them alive and growing. Dr. Jaafar Behbehani desperately wanted to stop them. But he knew that t... read |
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LOAAY'S TWO CENTS
I started a handcrafts business three years ago. It never made any profit, but I’m hesitating to close it because I’m not a quitter and I don’t want to feel that I failed. What do I do?
Loaay: Chinese philosophy has an ancient wisdom that goes like this: When you face any problem you have three choices. You can solve it, live... read |
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WORLD RENOWNED DESIGNER MATHEW WILLIAMSON’S UPLIFTING DESIGNS REACH KUWAIT
Mathew Williamson’s new line at H&M brought down the house recently as consumers emptied shelves only hours after the doors opened. His vibrant use of color and soft material to accentuate the curvaceous feminine physique proved hugely popular amongst Kuwait’s shoppers.
Williamson visited Kuwait to introduce the new line, and told bazaar a... read |
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ART IN THE HANDS OF A SURGEON:
An Interview with Jarrah Al Tubaikh
Please tell me about yourself, your background, where you come from and what you do.
My name is Jarrah Ali Al Tubaikh. I’m a 30 year old Kuwaiti, and I’m a doctor (MD) specializing in radiology at the moment in Germany. I... read |
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FATBOY SLIM 4:
Revenge of the Fat
Greetings again beloved readers! It is I, once more, here to tell you all about my experiences in the fanciest fat camp around, Al Corniche Club. It’s been 90 days so far of great fun and pain with a pinch of confidence and a side order of pride... read |
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FROM DUJEOUS TO KUWAIT
Dear readers:
What up. How are you? We’re Dujeous. It’s pronounced exactly like it’s spelled: doo-jee-us. What is Dujeous? A live hip-hop band out of New York City. Why should you care? ’Cause you’ll like us. Seriously.
Plenty of people that you like, like us. That’s just one degree of like separation! Mark Ronson, for example. He... read |
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LOAAY'S TWO CENTS
Loaay Ahmed returns this month with his Two Cents column, linking readers’ queries on financial woes with his expertise in business consulting. Economic downturns have been the space in which many novel ideas for survival have been born.
In this space, Loaay shares a few pointers. My family owns a Power Tools business that has been in busine... read |
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LOAAY'S TWO CENTS
Loaay Ahmed returns this month with his Two Cents column, linking readers’ queries on financial woes with his expertise in business consulting. Economic downturns have been the space in which many novel ideas for survival have been born. In this space, Loaay shares a few pointers.
Below is bazaar’s Q&A with Loaay.
Reader’s questi... read |
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HIP POP TILL YOU DROP:
Al Sabah Gallery brings American Pop Art to Kuwait
Mark Dean is a New Yorker of few words about himself, and much to say about the works of art that have drastically changed his life. Once a suitor of the world-renowned Manhattan financial industry, Mark left behind his self-described robotic care... read |
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DONATE NOW:
Faisal Al Nakib climbs Kilimanjaro to help fight cancer
In the quest for the meaning of life, mankind stumbles upon discoveries that often uncover the complexities inherent in our multifaceted world; complexities which, when explored, make life and the beings within it all the richer. Individuality is ... read |
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IN PURSUIT OF PEACE:
Exclusive interview with Sue Thompson
“In Winter Garden, Florida, real estate developers recently built a large shopping center on the site of a formerly successful orange grove - to honor our past and our future. Sue Thompson created some amazing statues of some of our well known r... read |
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FATHERHOOD UNINTERRUPTED
How often do you hear someone say to a lost child, “Hey little girl, where’s your parent?” Caleb Carroll, drilling engineer and father of two, asks quite the pertinent question. “Hey little girl, where’s your mommy?” is usually the way we sing the tune. In a largely patriarchal society, it’s interesting that the spotlight seems to ... read |
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BAZAAR TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT KUWAIT'S NEW REAL ESTATE GURU, BETTER HOMES
The real estate sector in Kuwait has taken quite a beating, some would argue, and yet others might say that it’s fairing relatively well when compared with its counterparts in countries like the UAE and certainly the United States. While some agents have crumbled under the pressure, others have survived with force, leading the ailing property ... read |
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BAZAAR TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT LEADING INTERIOR FIT OUT CONSTRUCTION COMPANY
Seven years ago, Sameer Dahan sat down with his friend to design a logo that embodied all of the strength and polish of the company he would one day own. Taking his last name, Dahan, they manipulated the letters, stretching the lines of the ‘D’ and ‘H,’ and topped them off with a big red block. After this fateful brainstorming ... read |
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HAND IT UP TO WORLD VISION:
bazaar speaks with Global Humanitarian Organization
World Vision is an international nonprofit organization which was founded in 1950 to help children and their communities battle poverty and injustice. It currently serves over 100 million people in 100 countries, and has recently also created a mi... read |
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MARATHON RUNNERS DO KUWAIT PROUD
The Gulf region, rich in oil and host of many major international sporting events, is not specifically world-renowned for having many successful athletes. Sports, especially extreme sports that require endurance and mental strength do not seem to be what the majority of the local population is invested in. But this might be changing with the fir... read |
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ACRASSICAUDA
They’ve got stones, but not for throwing
So, unless you have been living under a rock lately, you have probably heard of Acrassicauda, one of the first bands to play heavy metal in Iraq. Featured in a recent documentary entitled, “Heavy Metal in Baghdad,” this fledgling group is... read |
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OPERATION FATBOY SLIM, PART 3:
The Fat Strikes Back
Alright, so it’s been almost 2 months (50 days to be exact) since I started this Get Fit/Lose Weight program with Al Corniche Club, and I’m sure you’re all wondering how the results are...
Well, for starters, two modelling agencies have con... read |
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BEHIND THE SHOOT
Six girls and a Guru, one photographer, one parking garage, and one hair and makeup army
Like one famous cheetah used to say: “It’s not easy being cheesy!” Never was that tagline more applicable than the day that the bazaar girls prepared for their photo shoot. We run a magazine, kay? We’re not models. Modeling is harder – t... read |
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TIME OUT WITH FRONTRUNNER IN KUWAIT'S ELECTIONS:
Wasmi Al Wasmi speaks with bazaar
Although all of humanity faces a myriad of political issues which tend to greatly affect their daily lives, there remains a hope that positive change can come along and make the adversity worthwhile. Wasmi Al Wasmi is a man who believes in such a ... read |
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LOAAY'S 2 CENTS
As promised, bazaar has returned this month with Loaay Ahmed’s Two Cents column, linking readers’ queries on financial woes with Loaay’s expertise in business consulting. Economic downturns have been the space in which many novel ideas for survival have been born. In this space, Loaay shares a few pointers.
Reader’s question:
... read |
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THE NEW FACE OF AMERICAN COUNTRY AND WESTERN MUSIC:
A look at singer-songwriter Kareem Salama
If you’re tired of arguing with your pals about whether culture-clash between America and the Muslim Middle East is inevitable, you need look no further than Kareem Salama.
The 31-year-old Salama is known as America’s first Muslim country-and... read |
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THE FUNNY GREEK
Angelo Tsarouchas
Make no bones about it; Angelo Tsarouchas is more man than most of us are accustom to. Not just “more” in the physical sense, Angelo has heart greater than the of his enormous hug; if that is humanly possible. Whether he would claim it or not,... read |
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TED ALEXANDRO
New York grit, universal funny
Ted Alexandro is an observer. While most of us are laughing at the obvious, the broken park bench gags, the fart jokes and the obsessive-compulsive rantings of manic comedians, Ted is watching the rest of the scene, laughing and filing it away for... read |
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MOUSA KRAISH
A chameleon among comedians
Mousa Kraish says a lot of things. Mousa Kraish does a lot of things. Hell, the Palestinian-American IS a lot of things. Some of those things have to do with being Arab, some of them have to do with being American and some have nothing to do with ... read |
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MAZ JOBRANI
Brown and friendly
Inventor of the suction-cup yamaka, notorious for his ecstasy-induced dancing skills; Maz Jobrani is the man behind the new face of Peeeersiyans “Meow”. In the business of bringing the Middle Eastern culture (sans terrorism) to the United St... read |
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AHMED AHMED
Name so nice, they named him twice
One third of the trio who brought you the Axis of Evil, Ahmed Ahmed has had his sights set on the Middle East, long before he showed up on our television sets. A chain of events that started back in 2005 at a fundraiser in London for Palest... read |
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GREG STAINER
Bringin' down the house in Dubai and the World!
With support on his recent productions and remixes from some of the most influential names in the business including Roger Sanchez, Ali Dubfire (Deep Dish), Alex Gaudino, DJ Dove and Timmy Vegas, Greg Stainer has definitely been making a “lot of... read |
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LOAAY'S 2 CENTS
On the couch with Kuwait's strategic business therapist
When you’re a small fish in a small pond filled with much bigger fish, sometimes it helps to have a friend on the Big Fish team. Sometimes you just need a little advice, a push in the right direction, if you will. Business consultant, Loaay Ahme... read |
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OPERATION FATBOY SLIM 2
Return of the fat
I got a question for all my co-fatties out there… Have you guys ever done some real exercise? I mean getting on a bike for 30 minutes, then jumping on the treadmill at 5.5 speed for 20 minutes, then getting on a cross-trainer for 15 minutes, the... read |
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OPERATION: FAT BOY SLIM
Humble beginnings, exponential potential
So here’s the deal: I’m fat; really fat, bordering on obese. What can I do?
Well let's start with honesty... I love food. I adore it, it’s a big part of my day, and it seems I’m not alone in this in Kuwait. What else? Oh yeah, I’m prett... read |
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WHAT’S KEEPING YOU FROM BEING SLIM AND HEALTHY?
It’s not just about willpower
You can be healthy right now. You can lose weight. You can kick your occasional bouts of depression, you can feel young and vibrant again, and you can do it in 5 simple steps. This is not inspiration from Obama for 2009; this is Nutritionist Maria... read |
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THE ESSANCE OF AN ERA
Seeing the world by smell: An interview with Guerlains’ perfumer, Thierry Wasser
How you characterize an era? By political movements, weather patterns, fashion trends or popular music? How about by smell? Think of your graduating class and try to assign an odor to the attitude of the time. Capturing the essence of an era is a ... read |
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THE KUWAIT WEATHERMAN
An interview with Mishaal Al Roomi
Young, enthusiastic, ambitious, hardworking and fun; are just a few of Mishaal Al Roomi's great characteristics. At just 18 years old this young man is focused, goal oriented and knows what he wants out of life and works hard to achieve it. bazaar... read |
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NAHEDA AL BAQSAMI
Reflections of a weaver
Naheda Al Baqsami has always been interested in various craft forms; including textiles but mostspecifically tapestry weaving. "Threads and looms are my sole passion," she says. "I always find solace in weaving. It's a kind of recreation for me."N... read |
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CLAUDIA SHAMES
What's haute on our fashion radar
If you love traditional Arab wear, look out for Claudia Shames’ unique collection of darrahsin a riot of colors, updated with contemporary touches. Spelling elegance with a capital E, this designer’s new collection is a celebration of two cu... read |
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SHREDDED DIESEL MAKES HEALTH AND DIET SIMPLE
Zee is back this month with the latest fitness recommendations to help shake up the health landscape in Kuwait, bringing those of us who dare to try, closer to a better lifestyle. For those who missed out on last month’s column, Zee – also known as Abdulaziz Al Sayegh – is signed on with Mosely Records as the personal trainer for Hollywood... read |
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IS STRENGTH OF CHARACTER A FEMININE TRAIT, OR IS IT A MASCULINE TRAIT?
SHE SAID
It’s interesting that such a question would be asked anyway, since the definition of strength itself varies from one person to another, as does the definition of what a feminine or masculine trait is. Femininity, according to many, is sometimes meekness, or perhaps timidity, softness and pleasantness; to have an air of affability, so... read |
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SHREDDED DIESEL’S DIET FOR OPTIMAL FITNESS
So I’m back to share a little more with you about the importance of eating healthy, and how simple it can really be if you just make the commitment. I promised you a great diet, and now, here it is. I have to note that a diet would be more accurate if I knew my clients age, weight and height, so as to assess his or her BMI along with how much ... read |
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