The rhythm of Ramadan in Qatar
Doha, Qatar, has its own rhythm of life. While this rise-eat-school-work-eat-relax-pray-sleep routine is generally dependent on your own culture, work and family circumstances in the Middle East, it is collectively shoehorned into a new beat during Ramadan. Yes, the holiest month of Islam, dictates a different rhythm. It does so for Muslims around the world, […]
Katara – a cultural treat and retreat
The Katara Cultural Village is a favourite for visitors and locals alike – a destination in the heart of Doha, Qatar, that celebrates its art, culture, and heritage with a full calendar of events. This replica Arabic village set alongside a sheltered bay with striking views of the Doha skyline is home to an ever-changing […]
Living in Lego Land in Qatar
I live in Lego Land in the Land of Sand. Or to be more precise, my new-found home is in a compound in Qatar. Compounds in the Middle East are a far cry from the compounds of South Africa, areas that were set aside as single sex, living quarters for migrant workers, like miners. Here, […]
A year of here – 10 Qatar takeouts
This month is my Qatarversary – the first year of living in Doha, Qatar, in the Middle East, after moving from South Africa in February 2022, to join the H who is working here. If I was to leave the Gulf tomorrow, I would be forever grateful for the experience, the knowledge gained and the […]
Christmas in Qatar
Christmas is a regular working day in the Middle East. The shops are open, business is ongoing, and heavy traffic continues to transverse Doha’s highways and byways. There’s no tinsel, Christmas lights or Boney M blasting out Mary’s Boy Child in the mega malls. There’s certainly no sign of snow or any frantic last-minute shopping. […]
Camel (and car) racing in Qatar
Sleek dromedaries pounding their way around a fenced and graded sandtrack, urged on by robotic jockeys and a cavalcade of hooting Land Cruisers … Welcome to camel racing in Doha, Qatar. It is a sight, and experience, never to be forgotten. If, like me, you harbour the exotic notion of a stately two-humped camel lumbering […]
World Cup gets ahead with head gear
The smiling police officer stopped the H. “Let me help you, Sir.” And he did. He fixed my bemused hubby’s Arabic headgear, his fan attire for the FIFA 2022 World Cup matches in Qatar. This small, unsolicited gesture randomly repeated time and again by strangers throughout Doha, not just to us, but across the East-West […]
What to see and do in Qatar?
Let’s go or linadhhab, as they say in Arabic, and make the most of our limited time and finances to see and do what we can during our stay in Doha, Qatar. For us, as ex-pat residents, it’s a year or three, but as a visitor, it will be far shorter. And, possibly, if you […]
Eclectic Arabic heritage museum treat
A thousand Arabian oryx, 700 handwoven carpets, 600 classic cars, hundreds of pieces of furniture, a dozen or so dhows, dinosaur teeth and toes … etcetera, all amassed over five decades by one wealthy, passionate collector. And, it’s all available for us to view at the Sheik Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum, about 30km […]
What to expect in Doha for the world’s football feast
If you’re coming to Doha, Qatar, for the FIFA 2022 World Cup, be prepared for so much more than a marvellous football feast. As a super-rich, tiny peninsula country in the Gulf, the complexion and culture of this event is going to be very different from previous tournaments for the anticipated 1.5 million visitors. Expect […]