Rampurple

For the past few months I’ve had extremely fun and busy weekends.  This weekend seems to be a dry one…

I was looking forward to the weekend all week to vent out a bit and instead I got the opposite.  Let’s hope tomorrow things change a bit.

Since we’re on the topic of demolishing history and what not (and since I can’t think of a post topic) I have decided to retrieve a post I wrote on January 11th, 2007. It’s about an architectural structure that I would hate to see demolished, and apparently will be demolished very soon. (unfortunately, i can’t find the pics now and my mac which holds the pics is out of service at the moment)

The Beirut City Center

Many of you might know the Beirut City Center as the Dome, or the Bubble, or the Egg. The Beirut City Center is located at Martyr’s Square in Downtown Beirut and is a piece of art. The images I have uploaded on this post is what the structure looks like 40 years after it was built, including 15 years of civil war… keep in mind that it is located really close to where the Green Line used to be.

The building was designed in 1965 by Joseph Philippe Karam. It originally contained a movie theatre, which is the dome, an exhibition hall, and 6 underground levels for parking and shopping.

The reason I am writing this post now, is because I was just out with my parents and their friends. We were discussing Beirut prior civil war, actually they were reminiscing on the good old days. I asked them about this building since it always caught my eye. One of my dad’s friends told me that the technique used to build the dome was extraordinary for it’s time. He tried explaining to me something about how the shell was on a certain thickness and that it would usually be 5 times thicker or something of that sort. When I got home, I decided I would google it.

Unfortunately, there is not much information available about it. However, it has come to my attention from a bunch of online articles that the dome was going to be demolished back in 2003, but then they decided against it and got Bernard Khoury (architect of BO18, Yabani, Centrale, etc) to fix it up in 2004 and it was supposed to be completed by 2006. BUT I also read that in 2006 they decided to demolish it.

Update: Check out this article by Farah Al-Nakib titled “Demolishing the history of Kuwait” published in Kuwait Times March 21st.

The old shopping street in Salmiya has gone through some major changes the past decade or so. The street that once used to be home to some of the most luxurious brands such as Gianni Versace and Gucci turned into a street full of 100 fils stores and a lot more shabbier places. Later on, a lot of the old buildings, which hold some great memories for those who lived in Kuwait the past couple of decades, were being demolished and replaced with small shopping complexes full of some more 100 fils stores or the land left abandoned. Today, one of the most popular buildings on the street is being prepared to be demolished and replaced with a “unique” mall.

When I think of “old Salmiya” I remember places such as Barakat restaurant, Fay’s Stationary, Family Bookshop, Hungry Bunny, A&W, Mr. Donuts, Kids ‘r’ Us, and Swan Lake. All those places are gone except Family Bookshop which is in the building that’s about to be demolished.

For years I had heard rumors that the street was going to be closed down for cars and was to be made into a place people can walk freely, returning some good stores, restaurants and coffee shops. Apparently, just rumors.

What do you think of all this?

Pictures of the building about to be demolished:

… I made it back

Good morning all!

I’ve been in Dubai since Tuesday morning.

I just missed my morning flight!!!

Taking the afternoon flight back… this sucks! Should be back in Kuwait at 4:30pm.

I’ve never missed a flight before!!

Since lent started, I’ve been wondering why it’s so early this year.  I’ve asked a bunch of friends why Easter is at a different time every year and no one knew the answer.  I’ve been meaning to ask my priest about it but it always slips my mind when he is around.  Well, I just got a forward (below) from a friend that explains it for the Catholics now I need to know the answer for the Orthodox and Coptics

As you may know, Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20).

This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify Passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.

A couple more things you might be interested in!

Based on the above, Easter can actually be one day earlier (March 22) but that is pretty rare.

This year is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population (aged 95 or more) have eve seen it this early. And none of us have ever — or will ever — see it a day earlier!

Here are the facts:

The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you’re 95 or older, you are the only ones that were around for that!)

The next time it will be a day earlier (March 22), will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818.

So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year!

ENJOY THE UNIQUENESS OF THIS SPECIAL DAY AN THIS LITTLE PIECE OF HISTORY!

Recently, I have been hearing a lot of Kuwaitis ranting about different things in Kuwait, the increase of prices, the heritage demolishing, the inadequate funding of certain organizations or ministries, the roads, segregation, lack of nationalism, etc.

How would a Kuwaiti feel about a non-Kuwaiti activist? Is it “proper” for me to get involved and start acting or will I be told “if you don’t like it go back home” or “keyfna! deyretna!”

I was born and raised in Kuwait.  As much as I love Lebanon, my home, Kuwait has become my home too.  Yes, as many of you readers know, for the longest time I fought that fact and kept saying I am only here temporarily but let’s state facts here, Kuwait is my home and each day I stay here, I love it more.

I think it’s sad what Kuwait is becoming.  I do not even want to imagine what could happen to this country if no action is taken.  I don’t want to ever look back when Kuwait’s become another toon town and wish that I had done something.

On Saturday, Kleio, volunteered to take us to a tour of old Kuwait.  I had previously visited some of the places, I had seen some of the other places, and some I never knew even existed.  Walking down the street, through some alleys, allowed me to see some things with a different perspectives.  The walk was refreshing and yet… depressing.  It’s depressing to see a lot of the places ignored, or being demolished to replace with some artificial toon town-like heritage.

Oh readers!

It has been 5 months since my last post… please forgive me!

I don’t even know where to start from. These past 5 months have been quite interesting.

Let’s just say: Life seems to be good!

It’s always essential to have faith in life… every time something slams in your face, something else that’s better appears.

How have you all been doing?

These past few weeks have been one freaking rollercoaster emotionally, mentally, and physically.

I feel like I had an internal struggle and I sense that I am over the rainbow now.

Maybe what I went through was a test.

I don’t mean to be discrete about things but I just don’t know how to explain what I went through.  So many times I decided to post about it but had no clue what to write and while talking to my friends I tried to explain but I just couldn’t.

All I know is that I went through a remarkable transformation.

I also am so happy I did not travel this Eid like I usually do since I had a fabulous weekend here in Kuwait!

I haven’t felt this good in quite a while.  I really did not change anything around me.  It just has been an internal transformation that just makes me handle things different and make me feel good about myself.