Overheard in the Souk
the grapevine
● Everyone’s dreaming of having the Metro Rail Network in Kuwait similar to Dubai — driverless, fully automated metro rail network. It’s fast, very convenient and it decongests traffic jams in major thoroughfares. The Metro dream has been much talked about years back till now and with all the ongoing road constructions all over Kuwait, the million-dollar question is — could one of them be the Metro? Or are these just fly-overs? Underpass?
A big number of expats rely on public transport and they would greatly benefit from an efficient and modern public transport system, not with the current buses that ply the streets which are sometimes pelted with stones by some juvenile delinquents putting the lives of commuters in danger, just like what happened to one of my friends who was on the bus. As the bus passed by the Sabahiya area, they just heard some loud noise and a big rock that just came from nowhere broke the window of the bus. Good thing, no one was sitting on that spot, otherwise, that could have injured the passenger seriously.
Kuwait needs to keep pace with its regional neighbours in terms of modern infrastructure and one of the signs of a developed country is a fully modern transport system. Everyone is looking forward to that day. Who knows? It could be tomorrow.
● According to a proposal made by the parliamentary Financial and Economic Affairs Committee, the new electricity and water tariffs will not affect citizens owning private houses or those renting accommodation in commercial buildings. This proposal will attract serious debate in the Parliament this week because the government has different proposal in this issue.
What is now certain is that the electricity tariff increases will definitely affect the commercial and industrial buildings and this will in turn affect expatriates who rent those buildings. This means rent fees are expected to increase because of the increase in electricity tariffs. We remember that recently the rent fees were increased by 40 to 50 percent and expatriates are still trying to cope with this problem, so we can imagine the serious situation expatriates will face when and if another fees increment for house rent takes place.
● There is nothing quite as jolting as the sting of a hot seat buckle in your car in the summer. While we count down to that inevitable moment and await the scorching heat, many will make plans to escape. For those of us left behind, the summer lull is dreaded. But we have the choice to accept the dictates of the weather and use this time to unwind, recharge our batteries and pick up a personal project or two. The pause in our social pulse is necessary to be more productive in the next quarter.
● It is very inspiring to see a woman battling it out in a man’s world. And not long ago, I happened to see one such sight in Kuwait. She was a chef from Turkey who had come to Kuwait for a food promotion.
“Yes, it is difficult,” she admitted, “But if you love the job then nothing is a problem.” Behind her soft exterior was a hard-boiled self, full of determination and ambitions.
She did her graduations in French, Tourism and Hotel Management. But soon she found out that her forte is not the smiley-wily world of public relations, but the rough-and-tumble of five-star kitchens. “I love kitchens so much that I can sleep there,” she says.
Though she is not shown extra considerations for belonging to the fair sex, she is not discriminated against either. She is thankful to her colleagues and bosses for that. “I am treated as an equal.”
If you wonder what gives her the spunk to swim against currents, then a peek into her lineage will throw up the answer. In fact she is only following the footsteps of the great matriarchs in her family: Her mother and grandmother were cooks. Her grandmother had been a successful cook even in those conservative times in Turkey.