Hassan Ashkanani Museum

I finally got the chance to visit the family museum owned by Hassan Ashkanani in Bayan. It is a grand collection of old historical items from Kuwait as well as family archives and pictures. I love the fact that each piece has a story and a lot of them are linked to his grandfathers and other relatives who held on to their documents and are now on display.

 H. Ashkanani is an Assistant Professor of anthropology and archaeology at Kuwait University and has been collecting antiques since he was twelve years old. His is aim is to document the old life of Kuwait which includes the pre independence era when the Kuwaiti people limited their life inside the wall.

Inside the wall was a specific lifestyle associated with a specific economic activity. I believe literature doesn't cover the lifestyle details except for some major political, economic and such events. Through 'material culture' we will have a better insight into the old life of Kuwaiti people. How did they live? What materials did they use to survive? What materials did they use in their daily life?

It's a journey of understanding ourselves and how we helped build Kuwait.

You can find more information in Arabic on the website and his IG @has_ashkanani

Thank you Hassan for the visit and education, I really appreciated it and could've spent hours listening to your stories.

Mubarakiya School Museum

On December 22, 1911 the School of Mubarakiya was opened. It all started when Sheikh AlQanai'e led the move to ask people to donate and make a collective effort to establish and construct the first formal school in Kuwait, leading to the opening of the School of Mubarakiya named after the ruler at the time Sheikh Mubarak Al Sabah. The school was built for around 80,000 rupees collected from various donors and citizens. It was built in a short span of 10 months, the first batch of included 254 students.

Al Mubarakiya School ratified fees were based on the student's social and financila status. High Class students paid 2 rupees, middle class 1 rupee and poor students were free.

The museum is located off to the side of Mubarakiya down the narrow road that leads to main road. They are closed on Sunday and have morning/afternoon timings.

Tour- Bait Al Othman from AWARE Center

Inaugurated by the Amir of Kuwait, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al- Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, on April 8, 2013, this Museum hosts rare historical items & antiques for old Kuwaiti houses. Decorating the walls of its Art Gallery are paintings & belongings of Kuwaiti Artists. There are also the crafts & Kuwaiti dhow models on display. Limited Seats. Advance reservations required at joumana@aware.com.kw, Fee: KD 2 per person,Children below 14 years & Pets are not allowed.

This is my favorite museum of all time, you can check out my post about it. It's in Hawally for those who don't want to go with a tour group.

Date: April 20, 2015
Time: 5:30 pm
Register: joumana@aware.com.kw
Fee: 2 KD

Aladdin House Tour- AWARE Center

The Arabs are a proud and sensitive people whose culture is mainly derived from family, religion and language. It is considered a great honor to be invited into the home of the locals and this tour offers a great opportunity to have a look from the inside of a truly unique Kuwaiti house. Children below 14 years and  Pets are not allowed. This tour is open for 15 guests only by request of the House Owner. Advance registration is required through joumana@aware.com.kw Fee: KD 2 per person BUS TRANSPORTATION ONLY!


Date: April 18, 2015
Time: 9 am
Register: joumana@aware.com
Fee: 2 KD

For more information check out my trip post here.

Classic Car Museum Tour with TIES

Are you looking for something to do this week? TIES offers their classic car museum tour this Thursday for more information call 25231015 or visit their website.

You can visit my post about the car museum for some info if you're interested.

Bait Al Othman Museum

I've found my new favorite museum! I saw a tour ad for the museum via AWARE center but decided to visit it on my own with my hubby. Bait Al Outhman house was a restoration project taken on by the Kuwaiti Heritage Team, they restored it back to the beautiful house it once was. The home was built in the late 1940's by Abdallah Al Outhman who was a teacher and retired as "The Great Philanthropist". The house contained 157 rooms, 16 kitchens and 61 bathrooms.

 

The museum is divided into different areas including Kuwaiti house museum, the Maritime museum, Heritage hall, Drama museum, Journey of life museum and the Museum of historical machinery. There is a 1 KD entry fee which is very reasonable. 

Old school Kuwaiti style

 This newspaper headlines the end to alcohol in Kuwait according to my hubby.

The small martyr section with pictures of the remains of a Kuwaiti citizen found in Iraq.

 Some items made by the Kuwaiti P.O.Ws

 

 

I have so many more pictures but you would really have to visit the museum for yourself to get the total feel for it. I wonder what the next restoration project will be?

 

Baith Al Outhman Museum

Hawally- Abdallah Abdullatif Al Outhman St

Telephone: 69999761/69999760

Email: mawrothkw@gmail.com - Twitter: @Heritage_Team - Instagram: @Heritage_Team

 

Take 40 highway, exit Ibn Khaldoon st, continue straight until you see McDonald's, turn right after McDonald's, straight down and you will see the museum.





Kuwait House of National Works- Memorial Museum

My husband and I had visited the Memorial Museum a few months ago and I guess I didn't make a post about it so better late than never. 

 Not so great translation but we get the meaning although it seems no one wants to really remember those days considering schools don't have it in their text books.

During this demonstration Iraqi troops killed Sanaa Al-Foudari

 Kuwait oil wells on fire.

 Citizens who were killed during the invasion.

 Dedicated to the US troops

 Kuwaiti babies were pulled from incubators and thrown onto the floor by Iraqi troops.

The head of Sadam given to Kuwait by the US troops.

I love this museum I just wish they took better care of it and re-located it to a better place. It's hard to find and very dusty inside. We didn't have a guide to tell us about anything, maybe we came at the wrong time. I wish the NCCAL would take control of this museum and treat it with more respect.

Aladdin House - Fintas

Ever since I moved to Kuwait the "Aladdin House" has intrigued me and considering my mom lives behind it I've been seeing it since I arrived in Kuwait. When I searched the internet I couldn't find too much information about it other than a few pictures from the past. The AWARE center is giving a tour for it's members in a couple of days and did not answer my email regarding contact info for non-members so I decided to find out on my own. I got the contact number for Adel Al-Sadoon the owner and an astronomer. He met us at the door and brought us into his family house, the house is amazing and so colorful. He is a historian and has a vast knowledge of Kuwait history which of course made me excited.

He has over 10,000 photos of Kuwait from the beginning until now and I wish I could sit down and look at every last picture. He has published a book about Kuwait history but he only has 3 copies so I'm hoping he will publish some more so I can get a copy. He was generous enough to give me a copy of his book "Kuwait in old maps" which was totally cool and I'm very thankful for the gift. He is quite eccentric and collects a lot of different items,  from his enormous book collection to the McDonald toys his daughter has a child there is something for everyone.

The house was built from his imagination 16 years ago and it would take me some time to see every piece he collects. His hobby is building train sets, he is currently working on an old western city complete with cowboys and saloons. He actually built a saloon that includes a switch to make it rain in his backyard until beladiya made him take it down which is sad because it looked like it was awesome inside and now it's an empty shell.

It took two months for the artists to complete the paintings.

I would like to thank Mr. Al-Sadoon for his time and I hope to visit again real soon.