ANZAC Day in Qatar

This year as Anzac Day was on a Saturday we could easily go to the dawn service without a work day ahead of us. The dawn parade is organized by a group of Australians and was held at the beach in front of the Marriott hotel. We had to arrived by 4.45am which is very, very early for me! So we were up at 3.45 and away to the event. Around 27 of the Multiserve staff attended and I think there must have been around 200 people altogether.
John lay a wreath on behalf of ANZBIQ (Australian and New Zealand Businesses in Qatar) organisation that we belong to and as he walked forward Hazel started at karakia. It made it very special for us and gave the kiwi flavor to the gathering. Some of the Australians spoke to us afterwards, asked what it meant and that they had never heard one before and appreciated it.

The Australians forgot or didn’t organize the playing of the National Anthems so when most of us Multiservers gathered as a group at the wreath area we sang our anthem in Maori and English. It was quiet emotional and I must admit I shed a few tears then. I noticed the Aussies didn’t sing theirs at all. So it was the start of a very special New Zealand day in Qatar and it made us all feel a little homesick but also happy that we have such a neat group of people here to be with and support us.
Oh and then there was the rugby, we returned home to watch the Hurricanes win!! Told you it was an NZ Aotearoa Day in Qatar.

Dubai - All Malled Out

I have travelled to Dubai twice in the period of a month. The first time I went with my friend Ann to see Cirque de Soliel. I had never been before and it was an amazing experience, I would certainly go to any other productions. The one we saw was Alegria and it was astounding. The whole atmosphere is hard to describe. I can’t say I understood the story but I enjoyed the acts.

Next I went over with Lynne Thomas our ICT specialist to a conference on ICT. The conference was so - so but I did manage to get in some more sights especially as the Friday was a day off and some of the team from Abu Dhabi took as around in their car. The traffic is certainly lighter in Dubai and some of the building sites have just been abandoned because of the recession. I looked at lots of malls but didn’t help their economy much as we can now get nearly everything there in Qatar now. I did have a new phone follow me home from duty free though.

Over two trips I managed to get in visits to most malls. One of the newest and most interesting is Ibn Battuta Mall.
Ibn Battuta (1304–1368 or 1369)[1] was a Moroccan Muslim Berber scholar and traveller who is known for the account of his travels and excursions called the Rihla (Voyage). His journeys lasted for a period of nearly thirty years and covered almost the entirety of the known Islamic world and beyond, extending from North Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, to the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China in the East, a distance readily surpassing that of his predecessors and his near-contemporary Marco Polo. This information is thanks to Wikipedia.
The mall is set out in five sections that show his journeys China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia and Andalusia. I don’t know about the shops but the displays are great. It is well worth visiting.

I have also managed to go to
· Dubai Mall (new with huge aquarium covering two levels and walk through)
· Mall of the Emirates (full sized ski field and other amenities)
· Festival City Mall (as quite new and nicely set out with inside and outside spaces)
· Wafi City – Egyptian theme and underground souq area that is impressive and covers many different groups such as Moroccan, Tunisian, Egyptian, Syrian etc
· Souq Madinat at Jumeriah which is lovely with canals of water around it and the Burj Dubai in the background
So I am all “malled out” for quite some time! Didn’t get to the Creek or beach area this time but I did that last year with Chris Jager. Time to go somewhere else I think , it was nice to get home to Qatar and I still like our Souq Waqif best.

Close encounters of the ostrich kind

We went for another trip to the Zekrit peninsula this weekend. Three four wheel drives off for an adventure to breathe the country dust instead of the Doha city dust. Well - it rained so being kiwis we went anyhow. Luckily it wasn't too wet so we headed for the fort and then we saw the ostrichs and went closer.

The male ostrich was not very happy with us interlopers and circled the suzuki nearly pushing at one side! They are very big, the front of their legs flash bright red and they have very large claws. Luckily we were in the car and he was outside and that's the way we stayed. It even followed us for quite sometime as we were leaving the area. I am glad it didn't attack the car as how would you explain it to the car insurance people, "Oh I am sorry about the damage to the car but it had the cr*p picked out of it by an ostrich." Well they might just believe it here. Believe the pictures don't really do them justice when they are beside with their feathers nearly in your face they are big mommas!

So after our close encouter of the feathered kind we headed for the fort and then up the top to the sea. No flamingoes today they must have decided to head for somewhere warmer as it was only 18 (that's cold here).
We picniced in the rain and then headed but to town - happy for our day out, damp, filthy car, gosh wet sand sticks like...... mud and ostrich free.

Qatar National Day

This blog is now out of order but I didn’t write about Qatar National Day which is on the 18 December. It marks the beginning of Qatar as we know it and the Emir at that time winning battles to remove the Turks from Qatar
This year for the first time they had a major parade along the Corniche. Steve and I went along and standing beside me were a lovely Qatari family. The teenage daughter happily chatted away and explained what was happening if I wasn’t sure.
It was such fun and we were thanked by locals for sharing their special day with them - how cool is that. The day ended with great fireworks and a lazer light show over the water- this is a great little country
I have put some photos showing the progression of the parade from olden days to nowadays. I will post more on my facebook page if you want to see more of them them .

Sheik Faisals museum

Well I haven't updated the blog for a long time so I will go back to January and share some of our outings with you. One sunny day we headed out of town to Sheik Faisal's museum. It is a private museum that holds a great collection of interesting artefacts from Qatar’s Past. It is housed in this amazing new building that looks a bit like a castle I suppose. It was a great day out and Gaye and Anna Voisey came with us and so did Pat and Jeff Churchill and Hazel Reddington who was looked the persian carpets. Hazel was amazed at the similarity between the designs in the carpets and maori designs.

Sports in Qatar

Andy Murray

Well we have just had the Qatar Exxon Men's Tennis here in Doha. It was amazing this year as we had Nadal (World No 1), Federer (World No 2), Andy Murry and Andy Roddick so even I had to go and watch. It has been a but chilly so you need to rug up warm.

Nadal

Gaye and Anna Voisey and I trotted off to the stadium for the amazing cost of $10 each. We even got seats one down from the "gods" and enjoyed watching Murray, then Nadal and then Federer as win their matches. This was the night before the quarter finals and I must admit I watched the rest of the tournament on TV in the warmth of the lounge!

Federer

Andy Murray ended up winning the title for the second year in a row so he will be one of the favourites in Melbourne. The next sport event is the Qatar Open Golf and Mark Brown is playing so we will get along to that just before we head off to Australia for our semester break.

Khalifa Christmas

We had a great Christmas in Doha this year. First we had our work function at the Intercontinental Hotel, it was an international affair. It started with a small Maori welcome and waiata by a couple of our consultants.This was great as we all felt close to home, progressed to singing and dancing with the karaoke and many of us finished learning Palestinian dancing from some of our translators husbands. It was great. Mind you it was a bit hard to get to work the next day but we all managed. The photo is me with one of our translating team, Bashar and his wife.

On Christmas Day itself we were allowed the day off. So we had 26 people to the Khalifa apartments for a shared Christmas dinner that started about 4pm. We all did different things and in true kiwi fashion there was a mountain of food. The tables were set out on the third floor, where we life, as we have all four apartments on that level. We used the passageway out side for the tables and the apartments for serving and mingling in. It was a great meal and there was much hilarity as we shared jokes, food and wine. I ended my night having a quiet sheisha at Lara's place with Gaye, it was mint flavoured lovely.
Even though we were far away and miss family and friends being with our Qatar whanau was great.

Merry Christmas and Eid Mubarak

We are starting to get the Christmas feel here. I have put up the Christmas tree in the apartment and Adam and Amber helped me put up the tree in the passage way outside our flats. It looks cool. I also found a Christmas shop in Qatar. It is at a shop called “The One”, and its cool. The supermarkets and other places have decorations and most shops in the malls have some sort of Christmas display. I can’t believe this is the third Christmas we have spent in Doha. The first was when we came the first time in 2005 and we are nearly at two since we returned in Feb 2007.

At the moment we are having a week off for our second Eid break. We have two Eid’s and this one is called Eid Al Adha and it is the Eid of sacrifice. It is also the official Eid for doing Hajj which is the journey to Mecca that each Muslim should do once in their lifetime. Our Head translator Osama had gone to take part. I am looking forward to him telling me about it when he returns. Around three million people take part at this time each year.

Last Friday we had thunder, lightning and rain. The rain was heavy and there was some hail it was amazing. It has stopped now and the air feels very clear and crisp. The flooding around the streets was almost instance they don’t do drainage in this place very well! The temperature is dropping and lots of people like it while am I feeling a bit cold. It is down to 15 at nights and only gets to about 25 at max during the day. It feels like winter and while these temps may sound warm to you remember that this is winter and the sun is further away and there can be a chilly breeze. It is not like 24 or 25 at home.

However today, Wednesday, was lovely. As I walked on the Corniche the sun shone and it was a clear sky after our rain and 25 degrees . I couldn’t help but think how lucky we are to be here and experience all this. I had a lovely trip on the harbour on a dhow with a friend and then coffee in the souqs watching many nationalities enjoying the holiday.

It is certainly a week to count our blessings and one touched with sadness. One of my very special friends has a sister who is fighting cancer and we think of her daily and then we heard of another friend in New Zealand who had an accident in a bike race in Christchurch and sadly passed away from his injuries. Our thoughts go to his family even we are so far away we still care deeply.

So Eid Mubarak (happy Eid) and Merry Christmas to everyone at home and make the most of everyday and be especially kind to all your special friends and family.

The Wedding

So having had a ladies night the wedding was set down for the following Thursday. Zouheir spent the best part of each day for a fortnight in the courts getting all the documents they required. This was interspersed by trips to the British and Lebanese embassy and to the official translators. It was decided, seeing that Amy’s dad was coming up and he only had a short time here, that it would be better to go on Wednesday and then if anything went wrong we could go back Thursday.

On Wednesday night just after evening prayer we went to the courts in Doha. It was somewhat different to a marriage ceremony that kiwis are used to but none the less special and interesting. Amy, Zouheir, Amy’s dad, Zouheir’s brother and Steve and I arrived at the courts on time. This was a feat in itself as I had to follow Zouheir’s friend who was driving at speed through Doha peak traffic to a place I didn’t know! I kept up though - any film car chase person would have been proud of me or I have been driving in Qatar too long and it all seemed a bit normal!

On arrival Amy and I were quickly told to go into the ladies waiting room. This room, about the size of a very small bedroom has white walls adorned with graffiti (which was in Arabic so we couldn’t read it) was our base for the next half hour. This was slightly longer than normal as Amy’s dad had forgotten to bring his passport and had to go back to TV apartments to get it. There was a little panic when the word “bukra”, which means tomorrow, was heard but we weren’t going anywhere and Steve was left to ensure that the judge couldn’t escape before the wedding papers were signed.

Amy’s friend’s, Anna and Angela arrived. They brought Amy some beautiful flowers as a surprise and the four of us got to amuse ourselves in the ladies room. Amy was allowed out to discuss the papers with the court registrar. The woman must agree on the conditions of the wedding and this had been worked out before the ceremony. The registrar however makes sure the woman is represented fairly and has agreed with everything that has been written down.

Then it was back to the room while the men went to the judge to sign the official documents. We were then told we could come out and they were married. Many hugs and kisses were exchanged as we left the building. The exchange of rings took place outside the court room in the carpark and then the small but happy wedding party went to Layali Restaurant to celebrate. Amy has not stopped smiling yet.

The next night a more kiwi type celebration was held at the Irish Bar of the Sheraton hotel and many of our staff got to come and toast the happy couple.

Girls night out

Well it’s been an exciting week or so as one of our staff members has decided to get married to a very lovely Lebanese chap she meet here in Doha. Amy brought Zouheir around to see Steve and I soon after the Eid break and we got to check him and he passed inspection.

So we ladies decided a “hens night” was called for. Souq Waqif, also known by us a s the old–new souq because it is new but built in the old style, was buzzing on a Thursday night and we certainly turned some heads. We dined at an amazing Iranian restaurant and had a fabulous night with great food, wonderful fruit juices (yes fruit juices - you should try lemon and mint) and some challenges for Amy.

She handled them all well and there was much interest in the group of woman aged from 26 to 60+ wandering about with one of the younger ones wearing a veil. Certainly it was two cultures coming together and everyone was interested and joined in the fun. The young ones went on to a night club us older ones decided it was time to head for home with a smile still in our faces.

Destination Doha

Well of course the Eid holiday is a memory and work here is very full on. I have asked for help especially with the two new schools starting in November. That will mean 13 and the last two with totally new people to Qatar.

It is slowly cooling down which makes it very pleasant with temperatures from 25 to 30ish. We went out to Zekrit peninsula and then Dukkan a nice sandy beach a couple of Fridays ago. We took about 6 cars and had a swim and picnic. The first swim we had was on the Zekrit peninsula and we shared the water with flying fish! It feels decidedly funny to be smacked in the back and rump by landing fish! I was hit by about three as they landed. It hurt a bit but must have been worse for them landing on me! It was a huge school, I don’t know what was chasing them and don’t really want to either. It was quite amazing especially with people in the water and fish out. Later we saw a flock of flamingoes so it was a nice day.

On Thursday night we went to the tennis. We watched Jelena Jankovic, the world number 1 win her match and then Serena play Venus Williams. Venus won. This year they charged for the tennis and it cost us $8 each – don’t know how we could afford it !

I have made a commitment to try and keep Friday work free. This weekend Angela Ryan from NZ is here so went on a road trip up north and then to the old – new souqs and gold souqs on Saturday. It was very pleasant. The photos are ofAngela checking out the ruined village inthe north of Qatar and making friends with a desert camel.

Magic of the Maldives

Well I better just complete my Maldives writing before it becomes just a distant memory that is overwhelmed by work back it Doha. Steve has written some excellent newsletters and filled in the trip details. We did do some activities other than relaxing on the beach or lagoon.

I decided that I would like to do the resorts “Very Special Snorkeling Trip”. Steve said he would come on the boat but not snorkel. Well that was the scariest thing I have done. After a 40 minute boat ride out to a deep sided reef around a sand island we had to jump off the boat into the deep sea. That was my first, I managed that. There were about 12 of us, I was the oldest and two boat men. The deep reef was beautiful but the drop off disappeared into the depths of the ocean and the real down side was strong current which we were swimming against. Even with flippers it was hard to make headway. It was exhausting. No Myra they didn’t have me on a string but I needed to be. One of the boat men helped me to the island in the end and after a brief rest it was back into the current to get to the boat. It took all the enjoyment out of it I was too busy concentrating on swimming and keeping up to enjoy the underwater scene. I was a little pleased to have the two young Swiss girls tell me that they found it exhausting too. They were half my age, fit and much better swimmers. I wouldn’t do it again; I am cured of doing scary thing challenges! Nice shallow snorkeling around the house lagoon reef for me was the answer.

Other neat things that happened though were dolphins around our wharf and flying fish alongside our boat on one of our fishing trips. We did three fishing trips and I caught fish on the two of them. On the last trip I got five fish not very big ones but it was fun. We also saw some beautiful sunsets and sun rises on the fishing boat.

We went into Male one afternoon and did some tourist shopping. I needed a new sarong you can’t get them in Doha. I found some pretty ones as well as a few other little mementos. Male however is best avoided for any length of time it is just an overcrowded city.

Maldives however is a magic place and the island was so relaxing. I have one of Steve’s underwater photos as my desktop picture on my laptop so that I can remember and relax on stressful work days.

Makunudu Island -Maldives

The airport is one long island on its own and we were meet by the Island reps and taken by boat to Makunudu, a 45 minute speedboat ride. We watched little and big atolls go passed. One had the bungalows out in the water. When we arrived at Makunudu we were met by the local hotel concierge and a timid German called Josephine who had the job of looking after guests for a week. I had asked for one of the first four bungalows as, on the web, Steve had read that they had the best beaches and snorkeling and we got number five to that was cool.

It’s a nice room with a sort of outside bathroom and a comfy bed and little seating area. Best of all you walk out to you own little beach area with loungers, deck chair, shade or sun, sparkling white sand and clear blue sea. I could feel the tension leaving me. As you will guess I pulled my lounger into the shade and watched the water before having my first swim and trial snorkel on the waves.

First photo looking into our room. It also had a cool bathroom that was sort of open at the top.

This second photo is from the door (if you have your back to the view in the first photo, looking out towards the beach. You can see the bush, which included coconut trees, and you can see my lounger and deck chair nestled into shady area. It was then just a short stroll to the sea which as well as being crystal clear was a lovely temperature. Just bliss.

Leaving Doha for our Eid holiday

Well we got to the airport in plenty of time as it was the Eid holiday I thought it might be busier, luckily it had settled down from the hectic place on Thursday 25 when loads of people left the country for the 10 day holiday. It was just as well we got there early as the hassles began!

I had booked on-line some months ago, I think in April or May and paid by credit card. All that was good I had checked on-line during the week and the booking was there still. I had downloaded the confirmation and was feeling confident when we arrived. The seating was a bit stuffed up and Steve and I were sitting in separate seats for the 4 ½ hour flight. I wasn’t that happy but they won’t/couldn’t change it. Then came the crunch,”Have you got the credit card you booked this with?” I was asked, well not I hadn’t. I had seen it on my credit card bill and knew it had gone through and I had paid off the credit card. As bad luck would have it I had taken a different credit card with and left the one I needed at home. I hadn’t taken two cards as hey we were going to be on an island for a week.

Well they weren’t going to let us fly as I couldn’t tell them my other card number. So I had to go and see the main airline desk and leave Steve at check in. As you can imagine I was not very happy. The upshot was I had to pay for the tickets again with another card so we could leave!!!!! Yes it defies logic but there you have it..

Airlines have you by the short and curlies so no amount of this is “madness or other airlines don’t do this” worked. They reckon that they only do this in Doha, as there is a lot of credit card fraud. I had to reply with, “So what you are saying is that I might have fraudulently use my on credit card, in my own name, to pay for a flight I am travelling on, in my own name with my own passport and Qatar ID card which I have with me?” This was meet with blank stares. I paid again.

So things could only get better and they did. After a fairly average flight on which we were offered the choice of “chicken or mutt-ton”, on inquiring what “mutt-ton was” my Italian travelling companions were told it is like beef, Steve’s fellow passenger was told it was like a little goat that had grown into a big one (I had chicken) we arrived in the beautiful Maldives.

PS When I got back I hot footed down to the airline with the original card they did refund the extra payment