First two weeks in Doha

I guess it’s about time that I started my blog! We’ve been two weeks in Doha and are almost settled in. If it’s possible here, I’ll upload a video tour of our home, and I’ve included a couple of photos of Glenn and me by the pool at our compound below (sorry, I don’t know how to make things pretty yet!)

Hello to all our Canadian friends and family who are toughing it out in one of the worst springs in recent memory. We feel your pain, and we’re grateful to be out of the snow and the cold. It’s been warm here, but not overly so. Today is perhaps the warmest so far, at about 36 degrees mid-day (and yes, for those of you in Canada, that’s 36 above). Our home in Al Jazeera Compound 1 is fully air-conditioned, so we’re hanging out indoors today until it’s time to take a cab to a location called The Pearl. We plan to take a walk in an area called The Medina, which is supposed to be modelled on a Mediterranean village (having recently been to the south of Spain, we shall see!). The Pearl is about 13 km from our home in Al Garaffa, and we’ll take an Uber-type car there.

Today is Friday, the first day of my weekend. It’s a bit strange to start work on Sundays and finish the week on Thursday, but I’m getting used to saying to co-workers on my way out, “See you Sunday!” The work day is from 7:30 AM until 3 PM, and that has taken some getting used to as well. I’m really enjoying the long evenings though. On days when I don’t go to the gym here to work out, Glenn and I have tea, do chores, and make preparations for dinner. Occasionally we’ve taken a cab to go out shopping but we usually reserve that for the weekends. Tomorrow (Saturday) we’re going to the Qatar Distribution Centre, the one and only store in Qatar that sells pork and liquor (all under one roof). To be able to shop there, you require a license, which in turn requires a Qatar Residency card (which I got last week) and a letter from your employer stating no objection to the license. The store is miles from here, but a lovely colleague offered to drive us there and back on her run tomorrow morning. We’ve been advised to stock up before Ramadan (mid-May to mid-June), as no liquor purchase will be allowed during that period.

I have to say that getting around in Doha is proving to be one of our biggest challenges. We live 3 kilometres from about 3 huge malls, all of which have grocery and clothing stores, coffee shops, restaurants, banks, and pharmacies. But they’re all on the other side of a large busy freeway, and there is, honestly and literally, no safe way to cross the freeway. We’ve been advised, in fact, against even trying, although, of course, Glenn has done it twice. It’s far safer to take a vehicle, and it costs only about $3 each way to do so. Ironically, Glenn and I have just discovered a walking path on this side of the highway that takes us to a large shopping mall less than 3 k from our door—North Gate Mall—that is currently under construction. It was scheduled to open three years ago, but it appears that there’s nothing there at the moment. Just past this grand but empty edifice is a smaller mall, with a Subway, MacDonalds, and Hardees, as well as a Swiss bakery and a tailor shop, vet clinic, and barber shop. There are a lot of North American and European chains here in Doha: IKEA, Old Navy, Carrefours, La Senza, Forever 21, etc., etc. I’ll post some photos. Glenn and I ate at a Fuddruckers on Wednesday night! Malls—the big malls on the other side of the highway and the many other malls in Doha—are far more elegant than North American malls. They’re newer, for one thing. And there is, of course, big money in this country. Marble floors, intricate light fixtures.

Of course, Glenn and I are not avid shoppers. We’re happy to have discovered a foot path and a bike path nearby. Glenn can now strap on his roller blades! Of course, he’ll have to do that early in the morning or in the evening. I think it will be too hot soon for that kind of thing mid-day.