Walking across the central courtyard of the College to meetings. The birds are always chirping madly in the palm trees above and students and faculty are sitting around the reflecting pools. There’s always a slight breeze blowing which makes it increasingly more pleasant as the daytime temperatures continue their slow movement downward into the high twenties. Most days, I revel in these walks and still can’t quite believe I am here.
The way the security guards in my building are always smiling and singing and saying hello and goodbye whenever they see you.
How unfailingly polite and nice Qataris are. They always hold the door for you when you are entering or leaving a building behind them and never once has anyone failed to say thank you when I have held the door for them. We have wonderful conversations with Qataris who serve us at the QTel store or colleagues at work. I am learning a lot about their culture and how they live and it’s so interesting.
How I can attend lunch time yoga and zumba and other exercises classes free and they’re just across one of the many beautiful courtyards on campus.
That we get daily garbage collection in the compound.
Ditto for our water cooler bottles.
The wonderful perfumes that male and female Qataris wear.
That it only costs $10 to fill up our car when it is on empty – and every gas station is full service. I can’t even remember the last time someone filled up my gas tank in Canada.
That there are so many different cultures living here that a trip to the supermarket means you hear at least five languages as you buy your groceries.
That John can get all of his shirts and suits laundered and pressed and/or dry cleaned for such a pittance that it’s really not worth my while spending any time on such things. Next expense: Once a week cleaner and then I truly will be a lady of leisure when I return from work.
That we get home from work at 3:30 every day and seem to be able to accomplish a lot, including dinner, all before 6 p.m. Of course we’re at work by 7 every day but this suits the morning person I am.
How friendly and helpful everyone is. Everyone has been through the expat move and transition so they have many suggestions, ideas, and pieces of advice.
That you have to check any shopping bags with a security person when you enter a store. I like not having to lug around my packages. Of course, this makes you realize why shopping is the official sport of Qatar – malls are always busy. You forgot how many bags you have until you have to claim them again!
How happy Kate is here. Can’t even begin to list all the things she loves about being in Doha. Latest hobby: Learning sign language from a new friend.
Wandering around the souq areas rather than the malls. Haven’t done enough of this yet but we’re starting to get a sense of where everything is and a colleague took me to some neat little places last night that I will enjoy poking around in when I have more time.
That you can get your car washed while you shop in the mall. Just park your car in any stall and tell the attendant you want your car washed. While you shop, someone will do it for you (by hand) and its costs around $5 (including a good tip).
The incredible mix of food and the mix of ancient and modern all around us.
That we are part of building a country that has ambitious plans and the money and will to make it happen – it has transformed itself in a very short amount of time.
That education is the cornerstone of just about everything Qatar does – I’m soooo happy to be back working with people who value education. Didn’t realize quite how wearing it was to feel like I constantly had to convince some of my clients that learning was a good investment.
That I can drive out into the desert to buy tropical plants for my house at a huge green house operation where it feels like you are walking through a rain forest.
That I drive down the highway and see camels grazing at the side of the road and not cattle! Or course it’s all beige and I miss the green but seeing the camels gives you a jolt and reminds you that you are halfway around the world.
Hearing all of my colleagues’ stories of countries they have visited and adventures they have had.
Being so close to so many countries and planning our November Eid trip to Oman and Christmas in Italy. The more I hear, the more it hits me that Canada is just in the middle of nowhere! It takes so long (and so much money) for us to get anywhere from Canada. Here, I can be sipping tea in Mumbai in three hours or buying a carpet in Istanbul six hours after leaving Doha. So many countries, so little time…
Editing the College Social Committee newsletter (yes, I volunteered!). I get to find out cool stuff that’s going on at the College and in Doha before everyone else!
I think the list is long enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well wherever you may be. This weekend we plan on taking lots of photos so my next blog will be fewer words, more visuals.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, September 23, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
The Doha Dozen
Stories abound of people arriving in Doha and being so overwhelmed with the newness of everything that it's hard to stick to your healthy eating habits. Hence the pervasive story of 'the Doha dozen' - a dozen pounds that you will gain in your first few months. I am determined not to be a victim of the Doha dozen. While I can say I am doing well so far, it's also true that I'm not making any progress the other way either!
We had what I'm calling our medical adventure last Thursday. This consisted of blood tests (one vial of blood as in your annual physical), a chest x-ray, and another pink prick blood sample from which they do blood typing. This all sounds quite reasonable, right? And in Canada all of this would take about half an hour. Here it took 8 hours which mainly consisted of Kate and I being shunted around from waiting room to waiting room (sometimes returning to the same waiting room several times) before finally having the blood work and x ray 6 hours later. Meanwhile John, who was with the men, got done about 3 hours before us and had to wait in a bus until we were done. And then we had to take the bus to another clinic to have our blood typing done. I have no idea why they couldn't do it all in the same place, especially given the sign in one room of the first medical centre that said 'Blood Typing'. Needless to say the group of women we were with began to get punchy into our fifth hour, at which point we were wondering if pap smears in the cafeteria would be next! We did have a lot of laughs as you simply can't rush anything over here. Kate was completely perplexed when we ended up in the same waiting room for the third time (they had lost our pictures - don't ask) and I found myself shrugging at her questions, saying only in s'hallah (pardon the spelling). When in Doha...
I did try to post a blog earlier this week consisting mainly of pictures but then a notice in Arabic appeared across my screen and I wondered it I wasn't allowed to send them. However I asked one of my new Qatari colleagues about it today and she assured me it was just because it made my blog too big! See below our trip to Souq Waqif for Kate's birthday and I will post more next time of our house, compound, etc.
Kate's first day of school was yesterday and she met kids from many countries and had a great time. After today at school she told me she wants to stay here forever! Given teenage girls' tendency to exaggerate, I will take it with a grain of salt for now but we are really happy that Kate is happy. She is also building herself a nice little babysitting business here on the compound, earning 200 riyals last Thursday night (about $50) with calls coming in fast and furious for this weekend already. Everyone with young children try to firm up babysitters among the teenagers as quickly as possible, and people at the College I don't even know come up to me saying, Don't you have a 12 year old daughter? Does she babysit? Can I have her number? All this while they look furtively around ensuring no one else will scoop her up.
Last Thursday night we were invited to our first TAIT party (Thank Allah It's Thursday - the weekend is Friday and Saturday here).We had a great time - every one is very friendly and helpful as they have all been through this. On Friday we went rug shopping as I am beginning to decorate our villa to make it more homey and we found a nice Persian rug in cream and maroon. On Saturday we took Spoily Dog to Al Wakra Beach, a popular place for dog lovers here. It will be a great place to take her for long runs with the ball once the temperature cools to the mid-twenties between mid-October and April.
I am signing up for softball next week (mixed league with mainly Americans and Canadians) and Kate will either sign up for that too (kids league) or baseball, all run through the American School of Doha. Also doing Zoomba and Aquasize at the College (all free to employees). We have a week off in November for Eid Al Adha so we are going to a resort in Muscat, Oman for snorkeling, etc. For Christmas we are meeting my parents, John's parents, and Ryan in Rome with side trips to Florence and Pompeii. Can't wait to take advantage of how central we are to everything here!
Well this is getting long so I will sign off with a reminder that to post comments you need to register ( see bottom of page). You can also sign up for email alerts (right on page) so you know when I've posted.
Hope everyone is enjoying anticipating the snow (evil, I know, but I couldn't resist!).
We had what I'm calling our medical adventure last Thursday. This consisted of blood tests (one vial of blood as in your annual physical), a chest x-ray, and another pink prick blood sample from which they do blood typing. This all sounds quite reasonable, right? And in Canada all of this would take about half an hour. Here it took 8 hours which mainly consisted of Kate and I being shunted around from waiting room to waiting room (sometimes returning to the same waiting room several times) before finally having the blood work and x ray 6 hours later. Meanwhile John, who was with the men, got done about 3 hours before us and had to wait in a bus until we were done. And then we had to take the bus to another clinic to have our blood typing done. I have no idea why they couldn't do it all in the same place, especially given the sign in one room of the first medical centre that said 'Blood Typing'. Needless to say the group of women we were with began to get punchy into our fifth hour, at which point we were wondering if pap smears in the cafeteria would be next! We did have a lot of laughs as you simply can't rush anything over here. Kate was completely perplexed when we ended up in the same waiting room for the third time (they had lost our pictures - don't ask) and I found myself shrugging at her questions, saying only in s'hallah (pardon the spelling). When in Doha...
I did try to post a blog earlier this week consisting mainly of pictures but then a notice in Arabic appeared across my screen and I wondered it I wasn't allowed to send them. However I asked one of my new Qatari colleagues about it today and she assured me it was just because it made my blog too big! See below our trip to Souq Waqif for Kate's birthday and I will post more next time of our house, compound, etc.
Kate's first day of school was yesterday and she met kids from many countries and had a great time. After today at school she told me she wants to stay here forever! Given teenage girls' tendency to exaggerate, I will take it with a grain of salt for now but we are really happy that Kate is happy. She is also building herself a nice little babysitting business here on the compound, earning 200 riyals last Thursday night (about $50) with calls coming in fast and furious for this weekend already. Everyone with young children try to firm up babysitters among the teenagers as quickly as possible, and people at the College I don't even know come up to me saying, Don't you have a 12 year old daughter? Does she babysit? Can I have her number? All this while they look furtively around ensuring no one else will scoop her up.
Last Thursday night we were invited to our first TAIT party (Thank Allah It's Thursday - the weekend is Friday and Saturday here).We had a great time - every one is very friendly and helpful as they have all been through this. On Friday we went rug shopping as I am beginning to decorate our villa to make it more homey and we found a nice Persian rug in cream and maroon. On Saturday we took Spoily Dog to Al Wakra Beach, a popular place for dog lovers here. It will be a great place to take her for long runs with the ball once the temperature cools to the mid-twenties between mid-October and April.
I am signing up for softball next week (mixed league with mainly Americans and Canadians) and Kate will either sign up for that too (kids league) or baseball, all run through the American School of Doha. Also doing Zoomba and Aquasize at the College (all free to employees). We have a week off in November for Eid Al Adha so we are going to a resort in Muscat, Oman for snorkeling, etc. For Christmas we are meeting my parents, John's parents, and Ryan in Rome with side trips to Florence and Pompeii. Can't wait to take advantage of how central we are to everything here!
Well this is getting long so I will sign off with a reminder that to post comments you need to register ( see bottom of page). You can also sign up for email alerts (right on page) so you know when I've posted.
Hope everyone is enjoying anticipating the snow (evil, I know, but I couldn't resist!).
Monday, August 29, 2011
Update from Doha
I am sitting with my morning coffee looking out the front window of our villa. It is a cloudless, blue sky day (as usual) as far as the eye can see, interrupted only by the sand-colored stucco walls of the minaret at the mosque across the street.We are also across the street from our compound clubhouse complete with workout facilities, wireless Internet, and a swimming pool that my daughter Kate is pleased is only ever a minute away on these 40 degree C days.
Our journey to Qatar was uneventful but exhausting, taking us through Frankfurt, Germany and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The customs official who met us in Doha was far more interested in flirting with his female colleague at the next customs station than speaking with us. I say this with confidence despite the fact it was all in Arabic - some languages are universal!
College representatives met us outside customs and there began a whirlwind two days of orientation, moving into our villa, shopping (ironically) for all the things we had just divested ourselves of in Canada, and just plain trying to het over jet lag (still a work in progress).
As we walked out of the air-conditioned airport, my glasses instantly fogged up in the sauna-like conditions and I immediately re-thought choosing jeans as my travel garment. Entering our nearby air-conditioned hotel brought the same kind of relief you feel when entering a warm building on a -40 degree day in Canada. I now walk from building to building with the same sense of desperation as I did on a cold winter day at home - but now desperate to be cool!
The College has looked after us well, providing a one-hour 'survival' orientation the morning following our arrival and supplying drivers to ferry us around various and sundry shopping facilities to ensure we settle in to our villas comfortably.
Our second day took us to the College itself, a beautiful and modern facility with lovely courtyards, fountains, and reflecting pools which I'm certain I will enjoy sitting near once the cool weather arrives in mid-October - a pleasant 23 to 26 degrees. My HR friends will appreciate it when I describe that day as "running the HR gauntlet" with many people to see and forms to sign. One of my colleagues turned out to be our tour guide so both John and I got to see our offices. We saw John's first, at which point he made the comment (those who know him will appreciate his sense of humour), "I wonder if my office is bigger than yours". I cannot for the life of me understand why men are obsessed by size... For the record, I will simply note that my office is bigger and leave any sarcastic but satisfying comments to your own imaginations...
Since then, the College has been closed in anticipation of Eid, the celebration marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan (Aamer and Saman - we will miss your Eid celebration this year). With Muslims fasting from sunrise to sunset, we are not permitted to eat or drink in public during those times, something which has presented a challenge on our frequent shopping forays, particularly for Kate who has a voracious appetite most of the time. I discovered her chewing gum as we left our villa for the mall yesterday and she was perplexed to find she needed to spit it out. She is also still somewhat incredulous regarding the need to be modest in her clothing choices (not that she is all that bad to begin with). I sent her back to her room twice the other day as her shirt sleeves were too short and her fashionably ripped jeans show some flesh. Around the compound she can wear what she wants but she needs to get used to trousers and skirts below the knee and sleeves that cover the tops of her arms. It is true that you do see exceptions to this in public but it is also true that it invites stares and comments. I find the vast majority of my wardrobe is suitable for Doha.
Her are some fun and interesting things we have learned so far:
1. Hot and cold water taps are reversed in the summer. More accurately, we have hot water coming from our cold taps and warm water coming from our hot taps. We won't actually have any cold water until December or so once the outside weather cools down.
2. The water supply is controlled by a switch behind the fridge. Don't shove the fridge against the wall and then call the maintenance guy because you have no water...
3. Be sure to have your vegetables at the grocery store weighed and affixed with a sticker BEFORE you go the check out. This will eliminate holding up the 20-person deep line while a helpful employee saunters (and I mean saunters) back to do it for you.
4. Do wear protective gear while shopping. This will eliminate any injuries you incur wrestling with other shoppers to keep your clearly-earned spot in line. Don't be shy or you will find everyone butting in front of you. Also wear proper shoes to avoid shopping trolley mishaps at the hands of aggressive shoppers intent on getting home to prepare post-sunset meals.
5. Drive as if you are the only person on the road and everyone else simply must get out of your way. This is complicated greatly by the fact EVERYONE drives that way, especially around the thousand or so roundabouts in Doha.
6. Triple the amount of time it would normally take you to get stuff done in Canada. A case in point: Yesterday we went to buy Kate's school uniform at the only shop in Doha that carries it. Don't expect detailed directions or addresses from anyone. The shop told me, "we are on Salwa Road near the Decoration Roundabout". Okay. Here are some other things it would have been helpful to know:
a) You can't actually access the shop from Salwa Road which is currently under construction. Expect to drive up and down the road several times trying to figure out how to get to it.
b) Don't expect the shop name to be prominent or in English. Ask for things it is near like, "across from the Mercedes dealership" or "right next door to Alwan Furniture" if they have a huge sign and yours is so minuscule as to be unreadable from Salwa Road.
c) You need to park in the back and then risk heat exhaustion by walking the entire length of the strip-mall like building and double back again. Don't expect signs in the back either to tell you which shop is which.
All of these things (and others like them) combine to make going to any new location a somewhat time-consuming albeit interesting adventure. On the upside, you make serendipitous discoveries as you continually get lost, such as the big vet centre we found yesterday that offers grooming, boarding, and medical services for our spoily little dog, Penny. She lost her collar, tags, and halter somewhere between Amsterdam and Doha so we were able to outfit her again and now know where we can go for help with her.
Work starts on September 4 and Kate's school on September 11 so I'm sure I will have more tales to tell from there. Please do post comments - even short ones - so I know someone is out there reading this from time to time!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Our journey to Qatar was uneventful but exhausting, taking us through Frankfurt, Germany and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The customs official who met us in Doha was far more interested in flirting with his female colleague at the next customs station than speaking with us. I say this with confidence despite the fact it was all in Arabic - some languages are universal!
College representatives met us outside customs and there began a whirlwind two days of orientation, moving into our villa, shopping (ironically) for all the things we had just divested ourselves of in Canada, and just plain trying to het over jet lag (still a work in progress).
As we walked out of the air-conditioned airport, my glasses instantly fogged up in the sauna-like conditions and I immediately re-thought choosing jeans as my travel garment. Entering our nearby air-conditioned hotel brought the same kind of relief you feel when entering a warm building on a -40 degree day in Canada. I now walk from building to building with the same sense of desperation as I did on a cold winter day at home - but now desperate to be cool!
The College has looked after us well, providing a one-hour 'survival' orientation the morning following our arrival and supplying drivers to ferry us around various and sundry shopping facilities to ensure we settle in to our villas comfortably.
Our second day took us to the College itself, a beautiful and modern facility with lovely courtyards, fountains, and reflecting pools which I'm certain I will enjoy sitting near once the cool weather arrives in mid-October - a pleasant 23 to 26 degrees. My HR friends will appreciate it when I describe that day as "running the HR gauntlet" with many people to see and forms to sign. One of my colleagues turned out to be our tour guide so both John and I got to see our offices. We saw John's first, at which point he made the comment (those who know him will appreciate his sense of humour), "I wonder if my office is bigger than yours". I cannot for the life of me understand why men are obsessed by size... For the record, I will simply note that my office is bigger and leave any sarcastic but satisfying comments to your own imaginations...
Since then, the College has been closed in anticipation of Eid, the celebration marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan (Aamer and Saman - we will miss your Eid celebration this year). With Muslims fasting from sunrise to sunset, we are not permitted to eat or drink in public during those times, something which has presented a challenge on our frequent shopping forays, particularly for Kate who has a voracious appetite most of the time. I discovered her chewing gum as we left our villa for the mall yesterday and she was perplexed to find she needed to spit it out. She is also still somewhat incredulous regarding the need to be modest in her clothing choices (not that she is all that bad to begin with). I sent her back to her room twice the other day as her shirt sleeves were too short and her fashionably ripped jeans show some flesh. Around the compound she can wear what she wants but she needs to get used to trousers and skirts below the knee and sleeves that cover the tops of her arms. It is true that you do see exceptions to this in public but it is also true that it invites stares and comments. I find the vast majority of my wardrobe is suitable for Doha.
Her are some fun and interesting things we have learned so far:
1. Hot and cold water taps are reversed in the summer. More accurately, we have hot water coming from our cold taps and warm water coming from our hot taps. We won't actually have any cold water until December or so once the outside weather cools down.
2. The water supply is controlled by a switch behind the fridge. Don't shove the fridge against the wall and then call the maintenance guy because you have no water...
3. Be sure to have your vegetables at the grocery store weighed and affixed with a sticker BEFORE you go the check out. This will eliminate holding up the 20-person deep line while a helpful employee saunters (and I mean saunters) back to do it for you.
4. Do wear protective gear while shopping. This will eliminate any injuries you incur wrestling with other shoppers to keep your clearly-earned spot in line. Don't be shy or you will find everyone butting in front of you. Also wear proper shoes to avoid shopping trolley mishaps at the hands of aggressive shoppers intent on getting home to prepare post-sunset meals.
5. Drive as if you are the only person on the road and everyone else simply must get out of your way. This is complicated greatly by the fact EVERYONE drives that way, especially around the thousand or so roundabouts in Doha.
6. Triple the amount of time it would normally take you to get stuff done in Canada. A case in point: Yesterday we went to buy Kate's school uniform at the only shop in Doha that carries it. Don't expect detailed directions or addresses from anyone. The shop told me, "we are on Salwa Road near the Decoration Roundabout". Okay. Here are some other things it would have been helpful to know:
a) You can't actually access the shop from Salwa Road which is currently under construction. Expect to drive up and down the road several times trying to figure out how to get to it.
b) Don't expect the shop name to be prominent or in English. Ask for things it is near like, "across from the Mercedes dealership" or "right next door to Alwan Furniture" if they have a huge sign and yours is so minuscule as to be unreadable from Salwa Road.
c) You need to park in the back and then risk heat exhaustion by walking the entire length of the strip-mall like building and double back again. Don't expect signs in the back either to tell you which shop is which.
All of these things (and others like them) combine to make going to any new location a somewhat time-consuming albeit interesting adventure. On the upside, you make serendipitous discoveries as you continually get lost, such as the big vet centre we found yesterday that offers grooming, boarding, and medical services for our spoily little dog, Penny. She lost her collar, tags, and halter somewhere between Amsterdam and Doha so we were able to outfit her again and now know where we can go for help with her.
Work starts on September 4 and Kate's school on September 11 so I'm sure I will have more tales to tell from there. Please do post comments - even short ones - so I know someone is out there reading this from time to time!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Doha, Qatar
Sunday, August 7, 2011
The Seventh Circle of Moving Hell
I don't care what Dante says - moving is definitely the seventh circle of hell. Since the beginning of July, John and I have been working 12 hour days, every day to fix up the house,sift through 25 years of crap, and decide what to take and what to leave.
There is nothing like moving overseas to force you to identify what is really important to you and what you have simply accumulated over the years that you convinced yourself you absolutely had to have. And you know what? You really don't need most of it. You realize it's just stuff.
All in all, it's been a very freeing experience but I recommend that you do it over several months and not six weeks like us! This will all be over in 2 weeks when we leave on August 22 but right now it feels like there is no end.
Penny (our dog) is leaving before us on August 16. She will become a jet-setting dog, traveling to Amsterdam to stay overnight in their pet hotel (who knew?) and then on to Qatar the next day to her kennel. Already spoiled, I'm sure she will now demand caviar for breakfast and weekly pedicures so she can be the prettiest dog in Doha. That's what first class world travel for canines results in. Mostly she will probably demand extra peanut butter rations by way of compensation. She's probably Catholic as guilt is her primary weapon.
One more garage sale, 16 kijiji ads, and several mountains of paperwork to go! Next posting from Doha.
There is nothing like moving overseas to force you to identify what is really important to you and what you have simply accumulated over the years that you convinced yourself you absolutely had to have. And you know what? You really don't need most of it. You realize it's just stuff.
All in all, it's been a very freeing experience but I recommend that you do it over several months and not six weeks like us! This will all be over in 2 weeks when we leave on August 22 but right now it feels like there is no end.
Penny (our dog) is leaving before us on August 16. She will become a jet-setting dog, traveling to Amsterdam to stay overnight in their pet hotel (who knew?) and then on to Qatar the next day to her kennel. Already spoiled, I'm sure she will now demand caviar for breakfast and weekly pedicures so she can be the prettiest dog in Doha. That's what first class world travel for canines results in. Mostly she will probably demand extra peanut butter rations by way of compensation. She's probably Catholic as guilt is her primary weapon.
One more garage sale, 16 kijiji ads, and several mountains of paperwork to go! Next posting from Doha.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Introduction to this Blog
The obligatory moving sale prior to going. Sometimes I think it would be easier to simply haul it all to the dump. At least we had a beautiful day for the sale.
Location:W McDougal Rd,Cochrane,Canada
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