Author Archives: expatvoices

Toastmasters: The Inter-Gavel Club Contest 2013

Public Speaking, Toastmasters Leave a comment

The Division I Inter-Gavel Club Contest 2013 is being held this weekend. This event will showcase the best Gavel speakers from Kuwait who will contest for the top spots in the following categories: Table Topics, Evaluation, Humorous and International Speech.

Where: American Creativity Academy, Hawally – Kuwait

When: Friday 26th April.

Time: 08:00 am – 06:00 pm

Directions:  Click this link for Google maps

Agenda:

IGCC2013_Agenda

The winners from this Contest will move on to represent Kuwait at the DTAC 2013 which is being held on  09-11 May, Dubai.

What is a Gavel Club?

Gavel club is basically for young children below 18 years of age and who follow the same Toastmaster International program. In many ways, Gavel clubs operate in the same way ordinary Toastmasters clubs do. They have the same club officer titles, use the same communication track manuals and follow similar club meeting protocols. Gavel club members are not, however, referred to as Toastmasters; they are called “Gaveliers.”

Through the Gavel Clubs, these Gaveliers build their communication and leadership skills so they may become tomorrow’s leaders in business, industry and the community.

So Let the Drums Roll as these Young Leaders take the stage to Battle for the Top Positions. All are invited to attend. Who’s your Favourite? Come and cheer them All!

Who are the Contestants?

IGCC2013_Contestants

Read my coverage about last year’s contest [here].

Kuwait: Division I Toastmasters Annual Conference – 2013

Activities, Events, Public Speaking, Toastmasters Leave a comment

DIVITAC 2013

The Division I Toastmasters Annual Conference – 2013 is being held tomorrow at the Australian College of Kuwait.

This event will showcase winning speakers from various clubs all around Kuwait who will compete in four categories: Humorous, Table Topics, Evaluation and International Speech. There will also be Educational Workshops during the Conference delivered by prominent leaders in Toastmasters fraternity which will definitely be worth while to attend.

The winners from this Contest will move on to represent Kuwait at the DTAC 2013 which is being held on  09-11 May, Dubai.

Registrations free [includes refreshments & lunch], please visit the following link [here]

Venue Map:

ACK-Map

About Toastmasters:

Toastmasters International is a non-profit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of meeting locations. Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, listening, and thinking – vital skills that promote self-actualization, enhance leadership potential, foster human understanding, and contribute to the betterment of mankind.

NBK Walk for a Cause – I walk for Humanity!

Opinion, People, Society, Sports Leave a comment

NBKWalkathon2013_1

Met this gentleman at the NBK 19 Annual Walkathon – 2013 which was held yesterday.  I’d like to make a special mention of this person who is a Kuwaiti citizen, aged 44 years old and who was a participant at the walkathon. I asked him what cause was he supporting and he replied that he was walking for ‘Humanity’, for charity and for Change! His spirits was very commendable as even after the long race, he seemed to be in a very jubilant mood and I even observed him picking up the bottles of water that were thrown around on the grounds by the participants! I really admired this guy and his small act that perhaps could make a big difference and teach a lesson to the younger generation.

Here’s something sad that I observed however and that beleaguered me to write this post. When this gentleman finished his race, there wasn’t any applause or good wishes. On the contrary, there were people with amusement on their faces and some were outright snickering at this gentleman! This scene made me ponder awhile but not surprised given the country’s recent tag of being one of the most unfriendliest! Are we?

This post is not highlighting the point that these people were unfriendly but their attitudes!  Our society has become so materialistic that we forget the precious values that have been passed onto us from generations before. Where is Humanity? Where is the Love and Care for one another? Where is Charity? Do we see race, colour, caste and creed when he reach out to others? Does someone’s nationality count when he needs our assistance?

This is perhaps something to ponder on given the current scenario in our country and around this world we live in. Most of the time, everyone is running their own race, no one has time to pause and extend a helping hand to one in need. We have many expats in this country who are suffering due to various problems. Is there anyone to listen to them and reach out to them?

Our young generation needs to be given a education in those qualities that make a better citizen! They have to be taught to appreciate the hardwork of their forefathers and carry on their legacies that would make the world stand up and admire instead of looking on in disgust!

Well, how would you feel given this situation when your own fellowmen are making fun of you whilst you’re doing your bit to make a difference in society? Would you poke fun or go upto him and support, congratulate him?

Do we still have HOPE? Do we still have HUMANITY? This is a question we need to ask ourselves and reflect on our day to day actions to Make a Difference in this World!!

NBK Walk for a Cause – A Huge Hit with Expats!

Activities, Events, NBK, People, Sports Leave a comment

NBKWalkathon2013

National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) successfully concluded it’s 19th Annual Walkathon on 23rd March 2013 with a huge turnaround from both citizens and expats alike. The theme this year was ‘Walk for a Cause’ such as Support people with Breast Cancer, Stop Smoking, Diabetes, Exercise etc.

The participation is increasing in NBK Walkathon year after year and this year too, droves of people attended this event vying for the valuable awards given away by NBK. Ten winners were selected from each of the 12 categories of participants. In addition to that, NBK even had a raffle for all the participants to win one of the two MG5 2013 sport cars!

Category/Bib Colour Age Race Length Time
Zeina Friends Club Race
Red 5 – 6 years 1 km at 10:00
Yellow 7- 8 years 1 km at 10:10
Green 9 – 11 years 1 km at 10:20
Blue 12 – 14 years 2 km at 10:30
Women’s Race
Light Blue 15 – 20 years 6 km at 14:15
Yellow 21 – 35 years 6 km at 14:30
Red 36 – 49 years 6 km at 14:45
Pink 50 and above 6 km at 14:45
Men’s Race
Burgundy 50 and above 8 Km at 15:00
Green 36 – 49 years 8 Km at 15:00
White 21 – 35 years 8 Km at 15:15
Dark Blue 15 – 20 years 8 Km at 15:30

The walkathon started with the commencement of the kids races held at the Green Island in the morning.  This was followed by the women’s event which started at Marina Crescent and then later followed by the men’s event which started from the Scientific Center located in Ras Salmiya. All the races were concluded at the Green Island followed by the prize distribution ceremony.

Personnel from the Ministry of Interior were on site to help with the traffic regulations during the walkathon. Race officials stood at length during the course of the race to watch for any disqualifications. Rules of walking specify that one foot should constantly be on the ground when the other is on the air. Running automatically disqualifies you in a walkathon race.

The weather Gods were in favour of NBK’s walkathon as it was dry during the whole event whilst it rained and thundered in other parts of Kuwait. Though it was a bit hot during the start but later in the evening the skies were heavily overcast with signs of heavy rains to follow. Thankfully the whole event went off successfully without any interruption of rains. NBK’s volunteers too did a good job of handing out water to replenish the participants along the race.

After all the races ended, the participants, their families and friends gathered at the Green Island to enjoy the lively atmosphere and entertainment provided by the Public relations team of NBK. Various spot prizes were distributed to members of the audience who very enthusiastically supported the race participants. One of the highlights of the ceremony was the Al-Jawhara Draw that was held live on stage with the lucky winner taking home the grand prize of KD 250,000. This was followed by the prize distribution for the walkathon winners in various categories. After this was most awaited  draw for the MG5 2013 sports cars. The lucky winner of one of the cars was Ms.Lavina Aguiar, an Indian expatriate who definitely thanked her Gods in heaven for giving her such a wonderful gift. The prize distribution finally concluded with the bursting of spectacular fireworks over the skies of Green Island as all the winners and participants went home with a tiring but fulfilling day which was held wonderfully together by NBK. T’was a good and eventful day altogether!!

Please visit my Facebook page for the Walkathon pictures.

ExpatVoices.

Kuwait Leadership Mastery Finale

Education, Events, Youth Leave a comment

Kuwait Leadership Mastery - Dr. John P. Hayes

Today is the finale of the Kuwait Leadership Mastery program, which is a unique leadership program is funded by the US State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative and has trained more than 60 young Kuwaiti’s and expatriates in Kuwait in the past four months.

Seven Campaigns for Change to benefit the Kuwaiti Society will be presented by members of the Kuwait Leadership Mastery (KLM) on Wednesday 13 March at 5:30 p.m. at Gulf University for Science & Technology.

Last November, when KLM was organized, the 60 participants were divided into seven teams, and each team was requested to develop a plan to resolve a problem currently existing in Kuwait. The teams were organized around these themes: Sports & Health, Environment, National Unity, Social Responsibility, Leadership Development, Business/Entrepreneurial Development, and Education Reform. Each team will have 12 minutes to make a presentation in this KLM seminar, the last in the series.

A group of judges will evaluate the campaigns and select three winners. Audience members will select the “most creative” campaign. The event is open to the public. The winning teams will be recognized at the KLM graduation ceremony on 3 April at GUST.

There will also be an upclose and personal session with Mr. Adel Abdul Wahab Al-Majed, Chairman & Managing Director of Boubyan Bank who will address the candidates on his journey as a leader in the corporate world today and the importance of capable and dynamic young leaders in Kuwait today.

When: 5pm – Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Where: GUST, West Mishref

About Kuwait Leadership Mastery:

http://www.kuwaitleadershipmastery.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/KuwaitLeadershipMasteryLogov2.png

Kuwait Leadership Mastery (KLM) is a non-profit, specialized skill training project to benefit Kuwaiti youth (ages 17-24) and women by teaching them leadership principles that will help them actively engage in their communities, impacting business, government and society at large. KLM seminar training includes principles of leadership, using personality to lead effectively, showing others how to follow, conceptualizing and promoting a campaign for positive change, persuasive speaking and writing, and cultivating and promoting leadership habits.

[source]

NBK 19th Annual Walkathon 2013

Activities, Events, Health, NBK, Sports 2 Comments

NBK WALKATHON 2013

National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) announced the launch of its 19th Annual Walkathon that will be held on the 23rd  March 2013. Participants can register for this event starting from the 27th of February, 2013 at the NBK tent beside the Scientific Center on Gulf Road in Salmiya.

NBK will be giving away two MG5 2013 sport cars as grand prizes during the Walkathon along with many other valuable prizes.

ExpatVoices: I’m in! How about you? This is gonna be a fun event and everyone in Kuwait must try to participate in it. This is getting more popular every year and the numbers keep growing. They have a stage show after the event and don’t forget the raffle draw where you could be the lucky winner of the brand new sports car!

This is also a reminder to oneself of the benefits of Walking. If you’ve lagged off in your fitness goals, now is the time to begin anew. Switch off the telly and go out walking for atleast half an hour and see the benefits yourself within few months.

Did you read about my First Walkathon Experience? Let me know what you think in your comments :)

See you’ll on the tracks denizens of Kuwait! Lace those boots up and get Walking!

NBK, here we come…

 

Kuwait: 2nd International Horse Festival, Egyptian Event & Stud Tours

Activities, Animals, Events, Photography Leave a comment

Arabian Horses pic courtesy [qatarembassy.net]

The Hunting & Equestrian Club, Kuwait, will, in cooperation with Bait Al Arab, Kuwait State Stud and the Kuwait Arabian Horse Society, organize the 2nd International Arabian Horse Festival Kuwait, 2013. The 2013 Festival will include again two events taking place at the Bait Al Arab – Arabian Horse Center in March, 2013:

The 2nd International Arabian Horse Championship Kuwait 2013 on March 13-14, 2013

The 2nd International Egyptian Event Kuwait 2013 on March 15-16, 2013

These will be followed by a Stud Visit Tour on March 17-18, 2013 and a seminar by Judith Forbis on March 19.

Contact Person: 

Klaus Beste – Bait Al Arab, Kuwait State Stud
Phone: 965 99429726
Email: k.beste@baitalarab-kw.com

[Source]

ExpatVoices: You can read the coverage of the First International Horse Festival here below. This is a heads-up for Horse lovers to attend the show with their kids and not forgetting the photographers in Kuwait. Get you gear ready folks.

Desert Heritage

Al Watan Newspaper

Horse killed on street during filming of Hala February programme.

Animals Leave a comment

pic source [ AlRai Media]

Local daily ALRAI Newspaper reported that a horse was killed under the wheels of a car  after it ran astray from it’s trainer. Read more [here]

 ExpatVoices: This is sad. I know we hear of deaths everyday on Kuwait roads, but still a life is a life no matter it’s a human being or an animal. This could have been prevented. All precautions should have been taken to calm the animal in-case it was stressed out on the streets. Hope the authorities penalise these people for this incident and perhaps it will be avoided in the future.

Explosive Boom heard this morning over Kuwait.

Nature, Safety, Weather Leave a comment

A loud explosive boom was heard this morning at around 09:30 am over some areas of Kuwait. Residents of Abbasiya & Riggae areas were shaken up for those moments when the windows of their homes were rattled and peeked outside their homes to see if there was a blast somewhere. Despite everything seeming normal, panic calls were being made by people and rumours spreading that there was a bomb explosion!

12523-940x625[1]

The Ministry of Defense put everyone’s fears to rest this afternoon after they declared that it was only a sonic boom from a fighter jet breaking the sound barrier. The Ministry Directorate of Moral Guidance and Public Relations headed by Army General Staff said in a press statement that this incident occurred during preparations for the implementation of the Peninsula Shield exercise, which will take place in Kuwait in the coming days.

The above incident happened just two days after a meteorite exploded over Russia in which over 1000 were injured. Of-course the sonic boom from this explosion must have been way louder than the one heard over Kuwait. That boom shattered window glasses of buildings and injured many people.

This incident was fresh in people’s memories and hence the panic in residents of Kuwait today. A chilling reminder of how we are so vulnerable to nature’s wrath. Hell hath no mercy! Thank goodness, in Kuwait we have never been hit by any major natural disasters except for the seasonal dust storms. Currently Kuwait is enjoy bliss temperatures and it is camping season in Kuwait.

Enjoy the weather and Stay Safe Residents of Kuwait!

Back to School in Kuwait: New M&S Schoolwear Launched

Children, Education, Schools Leave a comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Marks & Spencer Al-Futtaim, a leader in family fashion, beauty, food and home ware, has announced that its special Back-to-School range of clothing for children of all ages is now available in M&S stores in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

Designed to stand up to the vigorous demands of work and play, the new Back-to-School collection is great value yet packed full of unique and innovative features that make life more comfortable for children and easier for parents.

Long-lasting and easy to care for, the clothing range includes innovations such as: ink-resistant pockets, water-repellent Stormwear coatings, Easy Close Velcro fastenings in place of difficult-to-close top buttons, Stainaway high-performance finishes, scuff-resistant shoes with Fresh Feet antibacterial finish, Ultimate Non-Iron finish for shirts; permanent pleats, and Skinkind fabric that is recognised by the British Skin Foundation.

Zainab Al Mahry, Regional Marketing Manager for Marks & Spencer Al-Futtaim said, “Only M&S offers children’s school clothing combining such style, comfort, durability and affordability. Children get messy, while parents want them to be spotless; that’s why our collection is packed with clever features that benefit everyone. We also use Fairtrade cotton in many of our cotton schoolwear garments. Combined with hallmark M&S quality, they really are the smart choice!”

The first items from the 2012 M&S Back-to-School collection are now available in all 15 M&S stores in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

For more information and to view the latest Marks & Spencer collections and products please visit: Marks & Spencer

About Marks & Spencer Al-Futtaim

Marks & Spencer is a leader in family fashion, beauty, food and home ware.

A member of the Al-Futtaim Group of companies, Marks & Spencer Al-Futtaim boasts 18 stores in: Dubai Festival City, Mall of the Emirates Dubai, Deira City Centre Dubai, The Dubai Mall, Wafi City Mall Dubai, Abu Dhabi Marina Mall, Fetouh Al Khair Mall Abu Dhabi, Dalma Mall Abu Dhabi, Bawadi Mall Al Ain, Seef Mall Bahrain, Landmark Mall Doha, Villaggio Mall Doha, Marina Plaza Kuwait, 360° MALL Kuwait, Muscat City Centre Oman, Dandy Mall Egypt, Citystars in Cairo, Egypt and Alexandria City Centre Egypt.

True to its brand vision of leading standards, the uniqueness of Marks & Spencer lies in its outstanding quality, value, service and innovation. The stores boast a wide range of products including Ladies wear, Menswear, Childrenswear, Lingerie, Beauty, Home and Food. In addition to this impressive list, the world’s largest Marks & Spencer store outside the UK is the flagship store at Dubai Festival City, which was selected as a model store for M&S international stores in late 2010.

Marks & Spencer, with over 800 stores located in 30 countries around the world, is the largest-turnover clothing retailer in the UK, as well as a multi-billion pound food retailer. Over 21 million people visit Marks & Spencer’s UK stores each week.