Doha takes art to the people
The giant yellow teddy at Doha’s Hamad International Airport is an apt introduction to the importance Qatar places on public art. Lumpy, old Lamp Bear sits there, larger than life, a photographic magnet for locals and visitors alike, offering just a hint of the many surprising art treats that await in Doha. From illuminated streetlights […]
Shopping pleasures in Doha
Shopping in Doha is akin to shopping on steroids. Everything is bigger-better-faster and more convenient in the many malls of Qatar’s capital. In fact, shopping here is pretty much a visual smorgasbord of the sumptuous first-world life on offer in Doha. Every nation (there are residents from least 115 different countries living here), every brand […]
Doha puts sport in the fast lane
For most countries, establishing a sporting culture is a marathon journey. For Qatar, it’s been a sprint. The impressive new sports museum – 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum – in Doha is a fitting example of the expense, drive and commitment the country is making to fast-track its plans to become an internationally recognised […]
Squeaky clean Doha awaits
Pristine, polished, spotless, sparkly, spic and span, ship-shape, shiny … There just aren’t enough superlatives to describe just how comprehensively clean Doha is. This Middle Eastern city is squeaky clean on the grandest of scales. For my sake, and for the benefit of reading this post, please imagine the shiny luxury of a five-star mirrored […]
Doing the Doha drift – driving in Qatar
Driving in Doha is not for the faint-hearted, as you adapt to right-hand driving, four-to-six lane highways, new traffic rules, foreign signage, endless detours, heavy volumes of traffic … oh, and the ubiquitous Doha drifters … Perhaps if I’d previously lived in a big city like Johannesburg or even Cape Town, I’d be less inclined […]