Asia

[Visited: June 2011]

There were hardly any people out in the Arabian Gulf Street, and I wondered if this was because it was Friday, or because it was very hot. The day before had been worse, so I was told, with temperatures rising to over 50 Celsius. Today, it was a meagre 45, but not humid, and I felt quite OK out in the sun. One of the places I had wanted to see, were Beit Sadu and Beit al-Badr, but both turned out to be closed. A pity: they looked quite nice from the outside, with carved wooden doors. I had no other option than to continue walking, and quite soon, reached another old house, similar to the famous ones I had just seen. The door was ajar, and there was no one around.
For a short while, I wondered if I had been mistaken: was this perhaps Beit Sadu, and was my map wrong? I was too curious to stay outside, and just entered, pushing the door until I could pass. I entered a small courtyard, and still did not see anyone. There were several small rooms around the courtyard: a living and kitchen, where I finally saw proof of people: a big pot was simmering on the fire. The house was made of adobe, and there were decorated wooden columns supporting the second floor, and wooden beams sticking out of the wall, holding the structure together. The stairs leading to the second floor looked very inviting, and I walked up. The second floor consisted of a flat, open section where I caught a refreshing breeze, while there were more rooms behind closed wooden doors.
On the other side of the second floor, there were more wooden columns with a roof, and I imagined this could be a kind of social gathering place with natural ventilation. From the open space, I realized that just behind this house, there were modern, glass-and-steel structures, contrasting heavily with this old, traditional adobe-and-wood house. Then, I saw a man dressed in a white dish-dash walking in the courtyard, but he did not notice me, and I stayed for a little longer, taking in the views from this charming house. When I was back in the courtyard again, I went to the kitchen where I met the man I had seen before. He greeted me in a friendly way, and I fired several questions at him about himself, and the house. Unfortunately, he did not speak any English, and the only thing I managed to understand, was that the house was called Beit Khalid. With a well-meant shukran I bid the man goodbye, glad that I had entered this traditional Kuwaiti house.

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Beit Khalid (Kuwait)

Beit Khalid > Kuwait > Asia

[Visited: June 2011]

Around the World in 80 Clicks