Qatar Visitor


I am joining forces with another blog, and future posts will be put directly on Qatar Visitor blog. I will be moving some of the articles from here to Qatar Visitor, but they will still be available here.

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Qatar

Buying fish on the Corniche

Seven o’ clock in the morning will find boats pulling in to the Doha Corniche, the fishermen still pulling their catch out of their nets to sell on the sea front. Depending on their luck, you can find small sharks, hamour, sherri and other species. Surely there’s no fresher way to buy fish!



Also see: Things to See and Do in Qatar


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The Gold Soukh

If you love gold, precious stones, silver or pearls and you’re in Doha, then you’re in the right place. Instead of shopping in the malls, take a trip to gold soukh, where little shops vie with each other to provide the best prices and hand made designs.

In Kingdom Gems and Jewellery you can get any design you like hand-made beautifully in the workshop above the shop. You can even go and watch it made!

In Noora Jewellery you can have Cartouche made – a square rectangle of gold which has your name written in Latin letters on one side and Arabic on the other. A 5 gram 22 carat cartouche hand carved with your name will set you back about 500 Riyal.

Walk inside the covered jewellery market and you’ll find Bani Yalah Gold and Jewellery store. We were especially impressed here by his range of pearls. As if we were not impressed enough, he pulled out boxes of spectacular designs – pearls with orynx, pearls with coral, all in sets of necklace, bracelet and earrings. He exaplained to us how the growth of Japanese cultured pearls and the coming of wealth though oil had led to the downfall of the local pearl industry. He could still pull out examples of Qatar pearls, though.

Of course there’s lots more – silver flasks, Aladdin style lamps, old coins and currency – you’ll have to go yourself if you want to get a real idea of the variety here.

Also see: Qatar Shopping



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A slightly surreal trip to the Qatar National Museum

If you go down to the Qatar National Museum, you might be in for a silvery surprise!

Okay, most of it is unsurprising. A dozy security guard on the gate blinking an eye at us as we went in, a single other visitor (one more than we expected) to chat too, lazy fans in the rooms slowly turning the stuffy air. The museum itself is set in a restored white washed presidential palace, and looks rather like one of those forts you see in old movies of the Arabian desert.

What can you see?

The view from the walls is superb although some of the rooms are empty. Photographs show the startling growth of Doha from not much more than a village, and the rather gruesome process of fire cupping: the Qatar version of medieval bloodletting. There’s a traditional bedouin tent (complete with T.V. – I wonder where the security guard gets to in his spare time), stamps, stone age flints from prehistoric Qatari settlements, medals and old currency – which included the old Indian rupee. Natural history rooms demonstrate the natural life of Qatar on land and in sea.

Abandoned Aquarium

This is when the trip got surreal. Going out the back of the museum we found an abandoned salt water lake/pond (when does a pond become a lake?) called “The Lagoon”. Peering over into the murky waters, we expected to see nothing. We did see a few little fish. Followed by a few big brown ones (Sherri?). Then a small shoal of gigantic silver fish – maybe five foot in length – shot past us, leaving us blinking in disbelief. I have no idea whether these are left over from some time when the aquarium was actually up and running, or whether these giant fish come in from some underground opening to the sea.


Proceeding into the nearby building, we found wallpaper peeling off the walls, and skulls and stuffed sea creatures spilling lining lying abandoned on the floor next to paint pots and brushes. In the spirit of adventure we descended into a dark cellar, only to find ourselves up to our knees in salt water.

Worth a visit

Despite the empty rooms and the abandoned “lagoon”, the attractions are worth a visit. Defeated by the heat, we certainly did not get to see everything that was on offer.

Coming changes

The Museum is in line for a make-over, and being Doha I’m sure that whatever they do will be high tech and impressive. At the moment it is a little dilapidated and neglected but it has its own charm and interest. And you may get it all to yourself, just as we did.

When to go:

Don’t make our mistake and go in the middle of the day. If you’re in the summer months aim for early morning or evening, like everyone sensible does.

Entry fee:

I found out after that it’s supposed to be 5 Riyals, but no-one ever asked for any money, even though we said hello and goodbye to the security guard.

One more surprise

According to Marhaba (a local guide book) the Museum is undergoing major refurbishment and is not open until December 2006! Maybe they were just being nice letting us in. Or maybe we were never there at all and it was all just a dream...

Also see: The Sheik Faisal Museum

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Camels

In smelling distance of the whole salemarket is the live animal market, where you can find sheep and goats waiting to be slaughtered (you won't get fresher meat than this) or camels in their pens.






Can you really go to the Gulf without a trip to see these creatures like these?
Also see:

Camel Racing

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Sailing in Doha

“The rabbit goes up the hole, round the tree, and back down the hole,” explained our instructor for the tenth time as my fingers fumbled round the ropes trying to make a bowline knot.

We – an assorted bunch of expats – were learning to set up a laser dinghy at the Doha sailing club underneath a blazing hot sun. (If you let the sun stop you from doing things here you’ll never do anything. Well, nothing apart from shopping, anway.)

Membership is fantastic value – just 600 riyals for the year, plus a 600 riyal deposit in case of damage to boats. Family membership is also available for a small premium, while one off visitors can pay ten riyals. It’s worth joining for the beach alone, far superior to the cigarette-butt marred sand of the Oasis Hotel Beach next door.

The sailing club divides its weekends up – Friday is racing day for the serious sailors, Saturday for the beginners (that’s me), with free lessons for members. After you have acquired some measure of proficiency, you can obtain a permit allowing you to sail during the week.

In addition, the sailing club is a great place to socialize and meet people, including some friendly Qataris, Barbecues are held from time to time, too, and a blind eye is turned if you want to bring wine along. (Ramadan excepted, of course).

Then there’s the sailing. Get out of the harbour in the afternoon and there are some decent winds to be had. I find the most exciting part leaning right out of the boat, bum hanging over the side, to keep the boat steady when sailing close to the wind. The occasional fish will jump out of the water in front of you, too, especially as the day wears on. (Qatari fish like their siestas, just like the rest of the country).

At the end of the day, you can relax on a deck chair under a palm tree on the private beach, enjoying on of Qatar’s superb sunsets. (And also snug in the knowledge that the guests in the Marriott next door are paying 800 Riyals a night to enjoy the same view!)

Now all I’ve got to do is learn that bloody knot. Up the hole, round the tree...

Children bathe outside at the sailing club as the day gets cooler

Details and tips

- The Doha Sailing club is located on Ras Abu Abboud Street between the Oasis and Marriot hotels. In addition to sailing, you can also try windsurfing and rowing.

- Wear a long sleeved t-shirt and plenty of high factor sun cream, a good pair of sunglasses and a hat. The sun here makes August in Britain feel like December.

- Find a piece of string and tie it to your sunglasses. Loop it round your neck for when you capsize.

- Find some non-slip footwear. Not only will they prevent you from slipping on the jetty and in the boat, and from cutting your feet on the sharp stones, there are also lethal stonefish in the Gulf waters.

Also see: Things to See and Do in Qatar

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sailingclub Qatar

Orrie

Orrie, the symbol of the Qatar Asian Olympic Games, counts down the days, minutes and seconds to the start of the games.

Also see: Qatar Image Library

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Asian Olympic Games Doha Countdown Qatar

Housing Inflation in Qatar

A common thread in conversations in Qatar and on Qatar Living forums is the price of accommodation. Despite the fact that many foreign workers earn low wages (by Western standards), the price of housing can be astronomical.

Proof of this came with today’s Gulf Times. Inflation in the first half of the year was 8.2%, but housing inflation stood at 17.4% for the six months to June 3.

For many people this problem is compounded by the depreciation of the dollar. As the Riyal is tied to the dollar, any fall in its value decreases the amount that can be saved in their own currency. In addition, many wages, especially government wages, are frozen.

Forunately many people have their accommodation provided for by the government or their company. Their are also rumours that people high up are very annoyed at the increase and rents, and that rents will come down after the Asian Games. If so housing prices may not beat the prevous years' increase of 27 percent!

See Cost of Living for more information on living costs in Qatar.

Qatar Resident's Guide

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Inflation Doha Housing Accomodation Qatar