JABER AL AHMAD CULTURAL CENTER AT NIGHT

Last weekend, some work was going on at the outer premises at JACC and so visitors weren't being allowed in. JACC looks so stunning, be it in sunlight or when it's dark. I took a few photos from across.

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - DAR HAMAD RESTAURANT

I am back to posting an interesting photograph for the day from my collection of incessant captures. This photograph is of Dar Hamad I took a few months back when I went out for lunch with a friend. They serve delicious contemporary Kuwaiti cuisine. I'll be doing another post on our dining experience. 

The interesting architecture of this villa styled restaurant is designed to resemble 'Sandook Mubaiyat', meaning dowry box, which is gifted to the bride during her wedding. Dar Hamad is located close to gulf road, very close to Marina Mall bridge.

SOME MORE SUPERMOON PHOTOS

Everyone by now would have seen the Supermoon yesterday. I posted some pictures last night in my blog from what I captured.

This evening, we decided to go up the terrace and see the supermoon again  while its still super duper 30 percent bigger and 14 percent more luminuous as yesterday, before it begins to wane in the next few days. So here they are. Enjoy!

SUPER MOON OF MONDAY 14 NOVEMBER

Did you see the spectacular Supermoon  today which is 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter. The last time earth experienced such a supermoon was in 1948. And the next occurrence will be in November 2034! So we didn't want to miss it. 

In the early evening just after sunset, we headed out first to the Boulevard and then to Salmiyah park near Sable and Mr. Baker, to witness the supermoon. It appeared so huge and so close in relation to the houses and trees, before it rose higher in the sky and appeared much smaller, but more luminuous. So the right time to experience was early evening around 4.45pm  to 6 pm where it feels the moon is literally 'hanging low' from the sky. We had a great time admiring the huge over sized moon. Reminded me of the scene from 'Bruce Almighty' where Jim Carrey pulled the moon way close to earth to impress his sweetheart. Well this wasn't that ridiculously close like in the movie but appeared impressively very close, which was beautiful, flooding you with many coveted picture postcard moments. 

If you missed today's super size effect of the super moon you could experience nearly the same thing if you are outside before 5pm tomorrow with your cameras and mobiles and treat yourself to a visual feast. 

I took these photos with my hand held Nikon camera. A camera stand would do more justice. However, enjoy!

MY BEST SUNSET CAPTURE

Two weeks ago, on a Friday, we were at the Sharq Market beach (Sharq mall). The sky was grey and dreary; it didn't appear we could capture a proper sunset. I am absolutely in love with sunsets. My husband said,  'looks like the sky isn't very kind today'. So we just sat on one the benches gazing at the calm waters, the boats passing by, people picnicking, small children running around, their little joy filled voices like an orchestra in the cold air,  cats and kittens making rounds hoping they would too would get a share of picnic delicacies from kind hearted people.

And then as if to surprise us with a beautiful visual treat,  the canvas in the sky just flipped from dreary to an amazing design of clouds painted with an invisible paintbrush and a beautiful glowing sunset amid them. I said to my husband, 'may be the sky heard you and decided to be kind after all'. It was thrilling to see the colors in the sky change every minute as the sun began to set. The beautiful sun glowed in gorgeous orange looking almost like planet Saturn with a ring around it. My husband said, 'you know that's not Saturn'. I couldn't put my camera down. I kept holding on to my camera clicking away.  I didn't want to miss a single scene where the colors of the sun and sky kept changing every minute until the sun set in the horizon.

I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - I FOUND SOMETHING

I had to be patient to get a shot of of this busy monkey as he moved so swiftly amid the bushes and plants. And lo, he suddenly became still as if to say, 'I found something'. 

Photo taken at Sculpture zone, Thenmala Eco touristic park in Quilon, Kerala, India

Some interesting fun facts on monkeys

* There are about 264 species of monkeys!

* Quite human like, monkeys communicate using vocal sounds, facial expressions, and body movements.

*Grinning or pulling the lip is a sign of aggression in monkeys, along with yawning, head bobbing, and jerking the head and shoulders forward.

* Monkeys spend a great deal of time by grooming each other. That's how they express affection and make peace with others.

* A group of monkeys is called a "troop".

* Howler monkeys are the noisiest monkeys. Their howls can be heard for about two miles in the forest and almost three miles in an open area. 

* The smallest monkeys are about 6 inches long and 4 ounces. The largest ones can be around 3 feet long and weigh up to 77 pounds !.

*Monkeys are great swimmers; though they don't like to be in the water

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - FOLLOW MOM

I was quite amused watching these adorable little pups follow their mom everywhere she went. Taken at the Cutlure Zone and Park, Thenmala Eco tourism in Quilon, Kerala, India.

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - A WOW MOMENT

We all have are 'wow' moments. We should experience them more often, perhaps everyday. Even the simplest things in life can be turned into a 'wow' moment. You don't have to wait for something big to happen to feel that beautiful sense of joy or excitement. I enjoyed taking this picture of this little boy's exciting moment. 

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - SUNSET AT SHARQ MARKET WATERFRONT

This sunset photo was taken last week at the Sharq Market waterfront

AMAZING EARTH DAY CELEBRATION : PHOTOS FROM HADATH ALARTH HELD AT NATIONAL MUSEUM

The Earth Day celebration 'Hadath Alarth' held at National Museum was super amazing! We reached the National Museum around 7.15 pm yesterday. We were lucky to get a parking spot close to the Museum, the parking areas were full ! It was a well planned, beautifully organized event with selected local and international performers. When we reached the National Museum, we were given colored sticker. Yellow, blue, green, red stickers were given out at the gate. The public was divided into groups based on the color of the sticker. Volunteers holding poles with colored lights of the same color were guiding the public. We had to stay with our 'green color' group and follow the volunteer who led us to designated areas of different programs throughout the event. 

We had to go from one area to another to see different shows. The entire event was held outdoors in the Museum premises. Beautiful photographic art exhibits were presented by the cultural office of Chinese Embassy. The evening started off with a speech on Earth Day which is officially observed all over the world on 22nd April annually.  Fire stunt by setting himself ablaze by Irish stuntman, Donal O'Farrell  quite a visual that I am sure stunned the audience. Delightful Rap music was performed by Kuwaiti brothers, Yakoob and Humble Abdul aka 'Sons of Yousuf', in support of our environment. We were taken to the huge courtyard for a soulful cello performance by Mohammed Shoosha, followed by a spectacular Quidams Horse show. After which we were taken to another open area to listen to poetry recital.   Contemporary dance depicting four elements of life, earth, water, fir and air, was performed by students of BAIA - British Academy of International Arts. Across from where we stood, I could see Visual Therapy's mural to show the importance of water conversation. As soon as the dance was over, my husband said, look up over there, and there was this huge inflated balloon in the air , with a beautiful  lady in white, suspended from it who performed the 'Aerosculpture', a dazzling acrobatic aerial show. The Quidams Horse show and Aeroscuplture was organized by the French Institute in Kuwait. We then moved on to the final part of the event, a fabulous musical show by 'Nawaf Gheraibah and Friends'. 

Dr. Qusai Karam, associate research scientist at Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research had presented wonderful sets of re used and recycled art. STP,  Spread the Passion, a non profit organization had more than 50 volunteers including organizers, actors and artists at the show. STP had also put up a light installation by using thousands of used glasses, bottles and jars. Water tanks were given out by NCCAL to five schools under UNESCO associated school project network. It was a beautiful sight to see the colorful finished painting of each of these water tanks by students,  depicting environmental awareness.

Now for plenty of photos I took yesterday of the spectacular Earth Day celebration.