Life In And On The Water - Surviving Summer In Kuwait

We have been in Kuwait a little over 5 months now and I realize that there are many things that I have gotten so used to that I hardly notice them anymore. This is of course completely natural and a sign that we are settling in and feeling more at home here now.

Our apartment has a wonderful view of the sea and a stretch of the city beach (as you can see on the pics from our apartment in my previous post Our New Home Sweet Home). With temperatures now rarely below 40 degrees Celsius/104F (that would be at night time) and often reaching above the 50 Celsius/ 122F during the day, people flock to the water even more so this time of year.

These pics are from back in May when it was already unbearably hot much of the time. This stretch of city beach quickly fills up with families bringing out the BBQ, chairs, blankets and coolers.


(People on the beach near the marina in the late afternoon sun with Kuwait City skyline in the background, May 2010)

I had wondered if the women would go for a swim as well - and indeed many of them did. Some wearing their black headscarves into the water, one in full abbaya and others opting for long-sleeved sports suits. I was happy to see that they too were enjoying themselves in the water.

Below the beach seen from the other side. When I stopped to take this picture, an Arab man (not from the Gulf) asked in broken English if I would take a picture with his wife. She looked shy and had covered all but her face but sent my a shy smile and a 'salaam aleikum'. I thought 'why not?' and went to stand next to her as he snapped a photo of the two of us with the Kuwait City skyline in the background. His camera was an old one - not digital and it seemed the two of them were traveling for the first time. He was all smiles and seemed happy to have accomplished his mission. It happened so quickly that I only afterward thought how strange it was - I mean here I am so careful not to take photos of women and then this guys ask - in front of my husband - if he can take a picture of me? Maybe he figured I live by other rules (as I do). I haven't been in strangers' photos since I lived in China and random people would stop me ever so often to join in their family photos in front of Shanghai landmarks.


(A stretch of the city beach full of people, May 2010)

The authorities have put up this barrier thing a few months ago - it seems to be thick plastic containers tied together - in order to keep the boats and jet skiers away from the swimmers. Of course it has added a new water toy - kids climb onto it and wait for some waves to make it wiggle like a snake:


(The water barrier to keep swimmers safe from boats and jet-skis, May 2010)

Jet-skis are popular here and I have seen them ever since I came in February so it's not only a summer pastime (apparently Kuwait has some of the best jet-skiers in the world which is no surprise considering how much time they seem to spend on their jet-skis!).

Racing up and down the long cost line with friends is an all-time favorite - there are small artificial bays to go in and out of like here - the glass pyramid is Hard Rock Café in case you were wondering (all the following pics are taken from my living room window (July) so I apologize for the poor quality but you can click on the pics to enlarge them - I really need to get that zoom lens...):


(Jet-skiing up and down the coast around the pyramid of Hard Rock Café- making the water more busy than the Gulf Road running along the coast)

And of course a short race among friends is always a favorite as well (anyone know if you can tune those things? They seem to go extremely fast here!)


(Racing friends on jet-ski)

With the addition of the water-barrier and since someone is almost always sitting on it, there's a new game in play (one that I see played almost every day). And it's not this one: (chatting to people sitting on the blue barrier - they seem to all be men but then again, most men have sisters...)


(A jet-skier chatting to some guys sitting on the blue barrier)

No, what I meant is this one: 1) spot some people sitting on the barrier and race toward them as fast as you can:



2) get up really close and almost drive past them...



3)...then make a really sharp turn and spray water all over them! (I have seen it done with normal skis in snow and with skates on ice):



4) before you make a quick escape to avoid any retaliation...



There is hardly any reason to feel sorry for the people - it seems to all be part of the game and some of the people sitting on the barrier even seemed to be encouraging it. I suppose that if you're sitting in the middle of the sea in 50 degrees Celsius, being sprayed with water is actually one of the best things that can happen...

There is another jet-ski game that I saw for the first time the other day:

Quite a lot of people own boats here - it's part of the culture (this is after all a nation that started out as fishermen and pearl divers before they struck oil) and it's one of the more obvious activities to engage in considering the climate and geography (can't think of too many desert activities in this heat...). Try playing tennis in 50 degrees Celsius and you'll understand why the outdoor activities seem to be limited to those involving the sea/water...

Boats setting out for a trip around Salmiya area (it's almost a peninsula so you can sail around it and further down the coast toward the Saudi Arabian border):


(Boats, Salmiya)

Now to the game: 1) the jet-skiers will spot the boats as they leave from the Marina (you can actually see one end of the marina in the lower left corner of this pic) and race the boat for a while:



2) then, once they catch up to the boat, some jet-skiers will get onto the side of the boat and others will stay in the water right behind the boat:



3) then - for the brave ones on the side of the boat - they will make a very sharp turn into the waves created right behind the boat. This will send the jet-ski flying pretty high!!:


(A brave jet-skier breaking the wave of the boat and being sent flying high)

The other had to try it as well, of course - and even those keeping behind the boat had some fun waves to fight:


(Another brave jet-skier breaking the wave of the boat, sending his jet-ski into the air while his friends are fighting some waves)

I saw it done a lot of times and not once did any one of them fall of their jet-ski!! I'm quite impressed.


(Brave jet-skiers)

...especially considering that some of them are hanging almost vertically in the air (I know the quality is bad but check out the angle of this guy):


(Jet-skier hanging almost vertically in the air - without falling off his jet-ski)

In case you are wondering why I am not going to the beach, too, there are 2 main reasons (apart from the fact that I am not a big fan of water):

1) I simply cannot stand the heat for more than 5-10 minutes. I see plenty of people who just stand in the water and cool down (not sure how cold/warm the water is - but it looks funny when all you can see is a bunch of non-moving black heads sticking out of the water) which leads to the reason why I don't go and stand in the water like everyone else:

2) back in March the Al-Watan newspaper reported that 'harmful substances four-centimeters thick cover the seafloor of Kuwait shores' - a cocktail consisting of 'sulfur, ammonia, phosphate and bacteria, and is the result of the continuous pumping of approximately 280 million gallons (1,059,915,300 litres!) of sewage water into the sea daily'. 'The danger of the sulfur substance lies in the fact that a concentration of sulfur can cause a chemical reaction and result in a deadly hydrogen sulfide gas.' 'It is believed that the summer season, with higher temperatures and humidity, will experience a mass death of fish.'

If this has been going on since March (or before) you do the math! It was mainly due to a damaged sewage plant but I don't know if they got it fixed yet - and it is a problem in other areas as well where sewage oil waste from the industrial zone is being dumped into the sea. I understand why people enjoy the beach but with this information in mind it's not for me... (Could this possibly be the reason the jet-skiers never fall off their jet-skis :-)? Because they know what is in the water - great motivation to stay out of the water!)

In that case there is always the air-conditioned mall left - as these 3 local men (crossing the parking lot to enter Marina Mall) have realized:


(Local men on their way to the air-conditioned mall on a warm July day)

Museum of Islamic Art In Doha, Qatar

While in Doha, Qatar I went to see the Museum of Islamic Art, beautifully located in the water off the Doha corniche. It's an impressive building - its geometric shapes seem to change depending on the angle you see it from and somehow it's like you never see the same building twice. It is the work of the famous I.M. Pei (the architect behind the steel and glass pyramid outside Louvre in France and the Bank of China building in Hong Kong among many others). He drew his inspiration from many corners of the Muslim world in search of 'the essence of Islamic architecture'.


(The impressive Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar)

A nice palm-lined road with a small cascade running down leads up to the museum - and it is already clear that geometric shapes and symmetry play a large role here (as they do in Islamic art):


(Leading up to the museum)

It'll be date season soon - the dates are growing but are still green:


(Date palm along the road leading up to the museum)

This little bird was eating one of the unripe dates:


(Bird eating an unripe date outside the museum)


(Bird outside the museum)

There is one thing I really appreciate when it comes to museums in the Gulf region: most of them charge no entrance free! I am not sure if it is in order to cultivate a culture of going to museums (something that isn't as prevalent here as in the west for example) or whether it's that the governments have enough money and don't need the entrance fees. Either way, I appreciate it! It's not that I don't want to pay to see what they have on display. There are plenty of museums back home that I have never been to even if they have beautiful collections - the entrance fees are so high that I would never just go for an hour or two - I feel like I would have to see the entire collection to get my money's worth (and because I probably wouldn't come back any time soon). This way I keep putting it off for a rainy day and end up not seeing them.

Inside the museum is this impressive atrium (the entrance door is in the middle of the picture) - it is so thought-through and so geometric. I rarely get really excited about buildings but this one was nothing short of amazing:


(Atrium, entrance level)

At the very top there is a bit of daylight coming through:


(Daylight coming through the top of the atrium)

The atrium - and the giant circular lamp with traditional patterns providing some pleasant indirect light:


(The atrium)

The first thing that becomes visible immediately when one enters the museum is this huge window frame which offers unobstructed views of the Doha city skyline:


(The atrium (seen from the first floor) with its huge window frame)


(View of the Doha city skyline from the atrium - the museum is built in the water hence the unobstructed view)

There was an excellent temporary exhibition on pearl diving, cultivation and trade across the world and across times. It was a really beautiful collection of some of the best pieces in the world and like the rest of the museum it was so well thought-through, detailed and with perfect displays in Arabic and English (no photos allowed). I am not generally a big museum fan but I was really impressed with the quality.

A real favorite of mine is Arabic calligraphy. I truly appreciate the shapes of the letters and the skill of the person who has written them (as I appreciate Chinese calligraphy for the same reason). Being able to write Arabic myself now - with the handwriting of a 6-year old I might add - certainly has not made me appreciate the skill any less... There was a lot of calligraphy on display at the museum - from beautiful illustrated books with golden decorations:


(Book with Arabic writing and beautiful illustrations)


(Book with Arabic writing and beautiful illustrations)

...to exerts from the Qur'an and other scripts in various styles of calligraphy from all over the Islamic world:


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)


(Preserved Arabic calligraphy on display)

This one is a favorite - you can click on the photo to enlarge it - it has different animals drawn within the Arabic letters:


(Arabic calligraphy - with animal drawings in and around the letters)

The museum of course has many other items on display apart from calligraphy.

A book listing all the different star constellations with illustrations and explanations on how to identify them:


(Book of constellations)

...along with a model of the sky with the constellations marked on it:


(Globe of the sky with constellations marked)

I cannot remember how old the items were but most of them were several hundred years old - I saw very few recent items on display.

Old anatomical drawings of the human body (as it was thought to look pre x-ray):


(Anatomical drawings of the human body)

A scared looking little blue monkey:


(Blue monkey on display)

And some of the traditional doors I described in my post about the Arab Fund building in Kuwait - no glue is used, it is all carefully carved pieces of wood put together in a complicated jigsaw puzzle that allows the pieces to move (depending on temperature):


(Traditional wooden doors)

And in a very old Egyptian version as well:


(Traditional wooden doors from Egypt - preserved through times)

The museum also has some beautiful wall carpets on display - intricately woven with patterns and Arabic writing in gold thread:


(Wall piece)

...as well as unique pieces of carpets custom ordered for past rulers and their palaces:


(Woven carpet on display)

...and of course paintings of past rulers:


(Paintings on display)

It's not just the items on display that are beautiful, the rooms are as well. Carefully selected construction materials, really amazing lighting and an atmosphere that is difficult to describe. It's the kind of place that makes you forget all about time and the world outside:


(One of the exhibition rooms)

The exhibitions are spread out over the different floors and each time one exits an exhibition room there is a new view of the atrium (that never seems to look the same):


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of the atrium from an upper floor)


(View of one of the upper floors)

Another favorite of mine is ceramics (and the craft and skills that go into it):


(Blue glazed ceramic tiles with Arabic inscriptions)


(A glazed ceramic tile)


(Ceramic tiles forming a geometric pattern)


(Ceramic tile with Arabic inscriptions)

What I also really appreciated about the museum was that they offered an excellent audio guide (again free of charge) - that had extremely detailed information about Islamic art and its different periods in general and about the specific items. It even had a small screen where pictures and video clips were shown to offer more information or to allow a look into the inside of some of the pieces on display. I know many museums offer audio guides nowadays but this one was really something special - also because it allowed you full control over the amount of information you wished to hear. I suppose you could spend an entire day - if not more - in there if you listened to everything on the guide.

Some more details from the museum itself (yes, I went a little crazy with the camera but I just kept seeing new angles and patterns):


(Day light coming through the top of the atrium)


(View of the floors with the circular patterns and the lights of the ceilings)


(Even the ceiling forms a beautiful pattern in itself)


(Close-up of the circular suspended lamp hanging in the atrium)


(From the main staircase - it looks like a 'funny house' where there are stairs upside down as well)


(Different materials, structures and patterns - yet it all comes together beautifully)

The museum has an outside terrace with fountains as well. I suppose they use it for outdoor events during the winter but I don't know if it has other use than being a pleasant 'oasis' offering great views of the city:


(Outside terrace and fountains - and a local man taking pictures)


(Close-up of the outside fountains with a view of Doha city across the bay in the background)


(View from the terrace: the Qatar Islamic Cultural Center Fanar and a fishing boat)


(View from the terrace: a local fishing boat returning to the harbor)

As you walk away from the museum it - again - seems to change its shape:


(The museum from the side)


(The museum from the side - with palm trees, lamp posts, arches and walkways perfectly aligned)

And a last view from ashore (where the water access becomes visible as well):


(The museum seen from ashore)


(The Doha city skyline across the water - as seen from the side of the museum)

There is one more thing I really appreciated about the museum: the custodians were all young local women (I'd guess final year of high school or maybe college students). I don't know if they were paid for their job or if it's somehow part of their studies (maybe they get credit for doing voluntary work at the museum?) but it is the first time in this region that I have seen this scale of locals working.

As I have talked about before, most non-governmental jobs are held by migrant workers. Almost all service jobs (from cleaning and driving to hotels, shops and restaurants) are held by migrant workers from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Egypt and other Middle Eastern and Asian countries. In Kuwait I have seen a few locals work in some of the mobile phone service offices, some doing passport control at the airport and a few are in charge of security at the malls (maybe they don't trust foreigners to do that) but apart from that I rarely see Kuwaitis work in the public space (the majority as I said hold office-type government and ministry positions and a lot of women work from home doing food and cake businesses for example so it's not that they don't work they are just not very visible).

Apart from the many young women employed at the museum - and may I add in very stylish yet conservative uniforms that were designed to integrate the black veils that most Qatari women wear - I also saw a lot of women employed at the airport. Apart from the passport control women there were also uniformed women in control of the queuing lines. I found this a bit of an unusual sight because the women would actually tell men off if they did not wait in line.

I don't intend to make it sound like women in this region don't work - or that locals in general in this region don't work because that is certainly not the case. But as I said I have never been anywhere else in this region where I have actually seen so many locals work in visible positions that elsewhere would have been offered to migrant workers.