It's Energy break in Vienna - which originally started when all schools shut down for a week to conserve energy and the tradition has stayed. Today, most people refer to it as "ski week". However, rather than hitting the slopes, I hit the dunes. Yes, sand dunes along the Persian Gulf! Where? Doha, Qatar. My college roommate works as a resident hall director at a university in Doha and I got to be her first official visitor!! It was such a joy to spend time with Jess and get to learn about new cultures and places!!
A few of the things we did...
- Went duning in the desert and rode a camel
- Visited the Museum of Islamic Art
- Toured Education City (several Western Universities made into one campus)
- Visited the new National Mosque
- Walked through the Souq (the market) - each alleyway had it's own unique smell!
- Visited Fanar - The Islamic Cultural Center
- Ate great Arabic food - Qatari, Turkish, and Moroccan
A few of the things I learned...
- Only 20% of Qatar's population is actually Qatari, the rest of the population are expats or migrant workers (primarily from south east Asia). This leads to a 4:1 ratio of males to females also.
- Qatar Foundation (you may have seen this name as the sponsor of FC Barcelona) is an initiative led by Qatar's First Lady, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. It has three parts - Education, Science and Technology, and Community Development. The country is one of the wealthiest in the world due to their oil, so the purpose of QF is also create an educated and invested community to impact Qatar and the world. Jess works for Education City, which includes the top majors from 6 American Universities where students can receive an American Diploma without leaving the Middle East.
- When a Qatari is getting married they cover the outside of their house with what we would call "Christmas lights" to let people know about the wedding. During the wedding, the women and men are separated for the beginning, and the women wear prom like dresses. Then they all join together and the women return to wearing their Abayas.
- Car to own in Doha - White Toyota Land Cruiser (or so it seemed).
- In some ways there seem to be more "American" things in Doha than in Vienna - Krispy Kremes, Gap, orange cheeses, and many people speaking English, to name a few.
Learn more about this interesting country ...
Some pictures...
 |
Doha Skyline
 |
 |
| The National Mosque |
 |
| The Ladies' Entrance |
 |
| Crosswalk |
 |
Sand Duning - Once we got to the sand they deflated the tires
and the adventure began! |
 |
| That is Saudi Arabia in the background. |
 |
| Museum of Islamic Art |
These signs are ads for QF all over the city. Words like -
Think, Realize, Discover, Achieve, etc, in English and Arabic. |
 |
| On the campus of Education City |
 |
| Fanar - Islamic Cultural Center |
 |
Aspire Park - Where the torch was
lit for the Asian Games |
So jealous!
ReplyDelete