Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 2484 4500;
www.arabfund.org/aohq
; Airport Rd, Shuwaikh)
Although not strictly open to the
casual caller, the impressive Arab Fund Building, with a host of exceptionally beautiful
rooms, is worth the trouble of gaining access. Call first to request an appointment and ex-
plain that you wish to see the building's interior and you'll be given a guided tour by one
of the employees.
The gravity of the exterior belies the light and airy interior, designed upon Arabic archi-
tectural principles of integrity of space, decoration and function. The magnificent eight-
storey atrium with wooden lattices, opening onto a transparent corridor or an exquisite
hidden
majlis
(meeting room), is an exciting reinterpretation of a familiar theme. Tradi-
tional craftsmanship from around the Arab world is represented in lavish concoctions of
ceramic, carpet and woodwork in one of the most extraordinary expressions of postmod-
ern eclecticism in the Gulf.
Friday Market
SOUQ
OFFLINE MAP
(Souq al-Jum'a; ; south of 4th Ring Rd & west of Airport Rd, Shuwaikh; 8am-4pm Fri)
For a plastic pot
plant, a secondhand dress, an Afghan coat or a smuggled antique from Iran, this enormous
weekly, semi-covered market is more than a shopping extravaganza - it offers an insight
into contemporary Kuwaiti culture and cross-border relations. Five minutes of shuffling
between dusty textiles and sipping on the good-natured coffee of a friendly vendor deliv-
ers more in the way of insight into the complex web of Kuwaiti affairs, domestic and in-
ternational, than one could absorb in a month of lectures on Arabic culture.
House of Mirrors
HOUSE
( 2251 8522; Street 94, House 17 Block 9, Qadisiya)
For a quirky art-in-action experience,
visit this small museum in a residential house in the suburbs of Qadisiya. Reputedly, 77
tons of mirror and 102 tons of white cement have been used in the creation of the mirror
mosaics that spangle the entire house - both inside and out. The creation of Lidia al-Qat-
tan, the widow of Khalifa al-Qattan, a renowned Kuwaiti artist, the project was inspired
by the decorating of an old piece of dining-room furniture and grew to incorporate epic
scenes, as in the Room of the Universe (bedroom) and the Basin of the Sharks (hallway).
Ring ahead to request a tour.
Al-Qurain Martyrs' Museum
MUSEUM
