Cultural Activities in Doha

When we first came to Doha, we were hard-pressed to find any activity at all. A couple of times during the first six months we were here, there were some music concerts, but that was about it. Since then, Qatar has been investing a bit of money on cultural activities.

Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra

The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra had its inaugural performance in October last year. The orchestra is actually very good and very young. It comprises of musicians from all over the world, including quite a few Hungarians :)

They don't have a permanent conductor yet, so they get a different conductor from a different country everytime.

It's been fun going to their performances.

Doha Jazz Festival























They had a Jazz Festival here in February, and hope to make it an annual event. We went three out of the four nights. It was really fun. Our favorite was the Ronald Baker Quartet from France. I even bought their CD.

Museum of Islamic Art













The Museum opened at the beginning of December last year. The architecture is really amazing! It is said to be I.M. Pei's last project. The location is also very nice (right on water), and the views from the museum are great. More photos here.

Desert Roses

We took a trip out to the desert to dig for desert roses. These are mineral crystals that form under the sand in the desert. Our digging was a great success - we returned home with a few large and several small roses.


The digging was hard work...


... but fun, nonetheless.

The large slabs of the crystals forced some of us to use all body weight:


The final step = refilling the hole we dug up:


On the way to the area with the desert roses, we stopped at a cave. It was fun climbing all the way down and back again. The cave walls had some interesting crystal formations.


And that's a fun-filled day during the wintertime in Qatar!

Qatar National Day Long Weekend

December 18 is Qatar National Day. We had a rather eventful long weekend.

We live very close to the Corniche, which is seafront walking area in Doha. All National Day activities take place at the Corniche, so we got to experience a very interesting set of events.

• Preview: the day before the National Day, I was driving home from work in very heavy traffic. The congestion was caused by a number of SUV's flying Qatari flags and honking and expressing their excitement on the roads. Eventually, I realized where they were going - toward the row of about 10 Qatari army tanks that were coming in for the National Day parade. I thought the excitement was over; but, when I was almost home, I saw a row of about 10-15 camels with camel riders in traditional clothes coming toward me. Talk about an interesting ride home.

• National Day: we didn't go to the parade in the morning, but we did hear some jets flying over us. Before heading out to the Corniche for the fireworks and light show in the evening though, we had quite a show from our window. The traffic was incredibly backed up as you would expect. Some of the reasons for this were not so expected though. There were as many SUV's as lanes driving next to each other very slowly to block the traffic. Why, you may ask? Because some of the people would come out in traditional clothes and do the sword dance :) At other times, the SUV's would do donuts (circles) around the center of the road. It was very entertaining. Then, we went down and enjoyed the fireworks and the light show.
  

• The Museum of Islamic Art: They recently opened the new Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar. Since we had a long weekend, we decided to go to the museum the next day. The museum is designed by IM Pei, so as you would expect, the architecture is amazing! The seafront location also adds to the beauty, and the views from the museum are very nice. There is a traveling exhibition that features historical interactions between Islam, Judaism and Christianity, which was quite interesting. Additional photos from the museum are here.
  

Boyz a Cookin'

Meet Chef de Cuisine, Adil Kouch, and Sous Chef, Rahim Remtolla

Usually, I am the one who cooks for everyone, but on this momentous occasion, Adil decided to cook up his native Moroccon food for 8 of us friends.

On the menu:
Shrimp appetizer
Meat tajine with prunes
Kefta in sauce
Kefta baked
Rice salad
... and I am sure I am forgetting something because it was a magnificently grand meal!

Adil is now welcome to cook for us anytime :)

Souq Waqif - Part II

I wrote about Souq Waqif some time ago. I still think it is one of the best places to go for a stroll in Doha during good weather. Since the last time I wrote about the Souq, I have discovered the official web site for Souq Waqif.

I really like the black and white photos of the Souq on this site. They give you a good feel for the place. As you go through the photos, note:

• The local women do sit out on their rugs and work on their crafts; sometimes they even make some local food to sell.
• The bird you see is a falcon; falconry is still a popular local sport, and there is a man in the Souq who raises falcons.
  
• The men with the wheelbarrows are there to help you shop. You can hire them to go around the Souq with you, and load and push your purchases while you shop.

My only concern regarding the Souq is that the recent addition of international chain stores like Haagen Dazs, Coffee Bean, etc. is taking away from the traditional feel.

Ramadan Rubric

The following rules are imposed on all of Qatar's residents:

~ No eating (including chewing bubble gum) in public during daylight hours
~ No drinking (including water) in public during daylight hours (yes, temperatures are still 100+F)
~ No smoking in public (wish this were the case 100% of the time) during daylight hours
~ Restaurants, cafes and juice stalls to remain closed during daylight hours

These rules come accompanied with the following caution:
Please exercise caution when driving around town, especially around sunset, as the number of traffic accidents increases during Ramadan.

Climate

Today, it is 46 Celsius (or 115 F) and very bright and sunny in Doha. It's only June. That's all I have to say about it.

Al Fardan Towers

Our new place is in Al Fardan Towers. These are twin towers (taller tower for apartments and the shorter one for offices), with a connector in the middle that has a BMW/Mini dealership, an Illy coffee shop and a super expensive boutique called Aida.

The quality of the place and the appliances is much better than what we had in our original place in Doha. Check out the interior here.

Other things: there is a spa, a gym and a swimming pool/jacuzzi on the top floor (39th floor). Come visit!

Inland Sea Tour

Last weekend, we went on an an overnight camping tour in the desert with two other couples. We were picked up from campus, but the real tour started at the Sealine Beach, where Jocelyn and I went on a short camel ride. Then, all of us got back into the SUV, and were taken on a drive up, down and around the dunes. That was quite a thrill!

From Sealine Beach, we headed to the Inland Sea (near Saudi border). On a road, you say? NO WAY! Why use the roads when you have a massive desert you can ride. The drive from Sealine Beach to the Inland Sea was through the desert, across the dunes. We stopped on the Qatari side of the Sea to have a snack, rest and enjoy the view.

After that, we headed back toward the Sealine Beach, but not all the way. We stopped at the tour company's camping ground for the night. While the tour company agents prepared the dinner (an Arabic barbecue), we hung out, got our feet wet (literally), and relaxed at the beach.

Though we were provided with tents, we decided to sleep outside on the beach. So, we dragged our mattress and sleeping bags out, and enjoyed a cool night at the sea. Waking up to the sunrise was quite a treat, and going into the sea for a swim at 5:00am was totally refreshing. Yes, you would think I would be grumpy at 5:00am; but, when you've got a sea at your footstep, the grumpiness seems to evaporate.

Then, it was breakfast and the ride home - this time, on normal roads :(

Check out our pictures here. O' and if you really want to see me on top of a camel, or better yet, see the two of us crashed out on the beach, look here.

Al Jazeera International Documentary Film Festival

We went to the opening night of the Al Jazeera International Documentary Film Festival yesterday. They showed 1 short film, "The Flowers of Cole" by director Song Leng, and 1 long film, "Kindergarten" by director Yiqing Zhang.

"The Flowers of Cole" is about the life of poverty-struck ill grandmother and her caretaker granddaughter in rural China. The movie does a great job of expressing the thoughts and emotions of the characters without using any dialogue.

"Kindergarten" makes you laugh out loud as it shows the day-to-day life of kindergarten kids in a boarding school in China. They also interview the kids on topics such as love and war.

Overall, it was great fun. If you come across these movies, watch them.

Our Place in Doha

News: We are moving out of the pink villa. Sorry to disappoint all of you who thought it was so perfect for Peter! Because the villa is relatively old, the air conditioning sounds like a truck engine and smells like mold, and we have also experienced some pest problems. So, we requested a move. Before packing up, though, I did take pictures of how we set up the original villa. You can see them here.

The new place will be a 3-bedroom apartment in a brand new high-rise in downtown Doha. The quality of the place, the furniture and the appliances in the new place is much better. Also, it is brighter with windows all the way around and modern in design (more along our taste). I will take pictures and post them soon.

Fuwairit Beach

We finally had our first visit to the beach since we came to Qatar. We went to Fuwairit beach with some friends last Friday. It is about 80km north of Doha, but well worth the drive. Doha does not have any public beaches. Rather, you have to have membership at one of the hotels (like Intercontinental or Sheraton) to use their private beaches. Then, there is Sealine beach, which is closer. You'll remember we went to the sand dunes there. The dunes are fun, but as for the beach, I have heard it is way too crowded. Fuwairit, on the other hand, was nice and isolated and in its natural state. More beach pictures here.

Plant update

Just a quick update on the plants I planted:

One of the citrus plants and both basils are blooming. The other two citrus plants are getting new leaves. Peter thinks it's an orange tree, but I think it's lime.

Click here to see more pictures of the plants.

Random things

A few random things about living in Qatar:

1) Most people don't use email; telephone or in-person meetings are still the primary mode of communication. Considering how much I hate dealing with people over the telephone, it drives me bonkers.

2) Peter had to sign a "no objection letter" for me to get a permanent driving license - WHAT?

3) Apparently, if Peter doesn't want me to leave the country, he can inform the airport (via a letter I think), and they won't let me leave - WHAAAAT?

4) Our rental car company sends a receipt of our payment to us days after we make the payment.

5) We have a 70 cents per shirt ironing service that picks up and delivers the shirts.

6) The guy from the dry cleaners who picks up our shirts doesn't give us any documentation of what he is taking - documentation of services/products is really a non-concept here. Things just kind of work.

7) Our telephone bill payment doesn't appear on the next month's statement because it takes them longer to process the payment then to issue the next statement.

8) Locals drive up to the sandwich shops or small cafe entrances, and honk for the employees to come get their order and then bring it out. We will never become this local!

9) Service contrasts: from the moment you walk into one of the nicer hotels until you reach your destination (usually a restaurant), you are greeted a gazillion times; but, in the malls, if you walk into a store, you are completely ignored even if you try to get their attention.

10) The landscaping guys (not professional gardeners; rather, laborers from India, Pakistan, Phillipines or Sri Lanka) cut off the new green leaves of the trees (the parts you should keep) and leave the dead parts that are further in or higher because their goal is simply to make the tree shape pretty. It's all about the image. One day I climbed the tree in our front yard to pull of the dead limbs - it was fun for me, but also for those who were watching.

Fog?

Does what you see in this picture make you think of a nice foggy morning in LA? Guess again!

This is not fog. Doha looks like this on windy days. Why? The sand! Yes, we live in a real desert!

So, on very windy days, you actually have to be cautious. My sinuses act up on such days. I may have to start covering my face to protect myself from those fine sand particles.

More pictures of sandy day here.

Souq Waqif

Souqs are the traditional markets in Arab cities. Here in Doha, there are several souqs, Souq Waqif being the largest and most famous. This used to be the old souq until it was demolished as part of the rebuilding/modernizing of the city. People, however, missed the old souq, so they re-built it to look just like the old one.

This souq has sections for clothing, arts & crafts, spices, toys, etc. There is also a section with restaurants and cafes. Weekend evenings are fun at the souq - this is when all the locals go there, hang out at the outdoor seatings of the restaurants, eat, smoke shisha, etc. It's the "happening" place.

I enjoy simply going there to walk around and explore the local/regional products. We found a terrific Yemeni honey place in the souq. The owner lets you try all the various types of honey when you go in. There is also an Indian restaurant there that we like.

To see more pictures of the souq, click here.

Winter in Doha

Believe it or not, it can get quite chilly in Doha. December & January were actually "cold" for those of us coming from LA. February started getting better, but every few days, it got chilly again. We were having a stretch of "nice" days when we decided to eat outside one day a few weeks ago. We were enjoying a nice dinner with our new French friends at one of the outdoor restaurants, when the winds picked up, and it started to get cold - even for the French! The servers at the restaurant noticed all of us shivering, and brought us some "stylish" blankets. Check them out!

Education City

I have not previously said much about where we work. The building in the picture above is the Weill Cornell Medical College building. The big round structure is one of the lecture halls. The campus is located in Education City, which is one of the initiatives of the Qatar Foundation. To see the Education City layout and pictures, click here.

The exportation of American higher education appears to be an expanding concept. New York Times had an article on this topic yesterday.

Advantages of working in Education City?

• Conveniently located Post Office, QTel (telephone service) office, Aramex office, dry cleaners, travel agents.
• There is a recreation center, but we have not used it yet. We have a pool and gym in our compound at home, so that's slightly more convenient.
• Musical, art, etc. events take place here, and we get to hear about them early on.
• Surrounded with college students. I have to say, change the clothing and kids are the same everywhere. They interact with each other and behave exactly the same worldwide. They give the atmosphere a young and energetic vibe.
• Very international environment. Everyone working here is from a different country.
  

Doha Debates

We went to this month's edition of the Doha Debates on Wednesday. This month's motion was "This House believes Arab Governments couldn't care less about Darfur." The speakers for the motion were Ahmed Ibrahim Diraige, former Governor of Darfur, and Nadim Hasbani, Africa specialist at the International Crisis Group. The speakers against the motion were Sirajuddin Hamad Yousuf, Director of the Crisis Management Department at the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Zeid Al Sabban, Head of the African Affairs division of the Office of the Secretary General of the League of Arab States. The team for the motion won the debate strong and clear.

It was very interesting to see the two sides go at it, and yet to see one side be ahead the entire time. If you happen to catch the debate on BBC, look for us in the audience.

Compound Cat

There are a number of stray cats in our compound (gated community - how suburbia of us!) One of them decided that it liked our car port and car, and we often found it taking naps on, under or around our car.

One night, we decided to befriend it, and feed it. Well, it was very friendly and looked healthy. Unfortunately, since then, it has been very cold and rainy, so we haven't seen the cat (or any other cats) around much. Perhaps it will come back around once it gets warmer.

More cat pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/peter.lada/CompoundCat