September 1st

As of tomorrow, we will officially have been here for one month. Some days it feels like less but other days it feels like longer.

In one month we have moved into a new home and furnished it. We have bought a car, did some repairs/maintenance on it, replaced the tires and insured it. We have hired a gardener to help us clean up the desert that we call a yard. We have visited every mall in the city, shopped at five different grocery stores and opened a bank account.

We have also braved various immigration procedures – blood typing, medical, eye test and fingerprinting.

But we aren’t finished yet.

Last week we were informed that C’s visa was refused and that I have to attend to an Immigration Committee meeting September 1st at 8:30am.

Background: Everyone that lives here must have a visa and a sponsor. The Company is my sponsor and as C does not have a company to sponsor him at the moment, I (through the Company) apply for a visa for C as his sponsor. On my behalf, the Company applied for the Family Visit Visa for C which, despite the name, is the type of visa required for him to live here permanently. With an approved visa, he can then get the residence permit and when he finds a job, as his sponsor I would give him a “No Objection Letter” stating that as his sponsor I don’t have a problem with him working for said job.

More Background: It was only in November of 2009 that the country updated the law to even allow women to sponsor their husbands. Before it was simply not a possibility. Even though the law has been updated, the final decision still rests with the Immigration Department.

Therefore, my application was refused on the grounds that (and I quote), “in this country wives simply don’t sponsor their husbands, it is usually the other way around”.

Yes, this may be a hard fact to accept and understand for those of us born and raised in a different world. Or at least we would like to think so. But let’s be honest, when most people (not our friends and family) back home found out we were moving to Qatar – 100% of the time it was assumed to be with C’s job.

It is certainly hard not to be upset about this situation, but C and I are in a new world now and here their rules apply. Whatever opinions we might have are for behind closed doors.

Is it also hard to deal with a lack of information but we have learned that the “rules” are 1) in Arabic and 2) subject to change at any time. So don’t worry too much about getting the right information because by tomorrow, it might be wrong.
I also learned, in the book “Don’t They Know It’s Friday” (which I really found useful), that here in the Gulf, they don’t like to deliver bad news or to tell people no. So be careful of information that is vague or not forthcoming as it likely has little to do with information not being available. I think this is where a lot of the “tomorrow” comes from. “Tomorrow” might just mean “I can’t fix your toilet and it isn’t in my contract to do so – so I won’t be doing it”.

So tomorrow I will be taken to the Ministry of Labour and a Company Immigration Officer will meet me there. They will accompany me to the place of my committee meeting and be on hand until it starts. But once it starts, I have to go in on my own.

By myself.

The committee (four to five men) will have my file and I will have to answer questions. What is in the file and what the questions are – I don’t know. Apparently I don’t even have to bring anything. Of course I will. I have my “binder” of photocopies of all official documents ready and waiting. I will even bring the “attested” copies of my marriage certificate and birth certificate to show if needed. Maybe they will reconsider their decision and reverse it and maybe they won’t. All I can be is prepared, polite and respectful. And hope for the best.

And yes, I am the first female expat at the Company to encounter the situation. Lucky us.

What does it mean if they refuse us again? It means that C will have to keep leaving the country on the infamous “visa run” each time his tourist visa runs out until he finds a job and company to sponsor him.

Please keep your fingers crossed for us!

Fill your tank and your soul...

Puttin' on the Ritz

What an amazing night! We arrived shortly after 9pm and were part of a group of 22 - thanks to a sweet girl that I work with who invited us to come along with her and her friends. We ate (lots) and indulged in delicious desserts. We listened to two different live bands (both Arabic) including one with a sultry and shrill lead singer who was a big hit with the Arab men. There was a falcon and his trainer. I guess falconry is very big here and the falcon is an important symbol to Qatar. Normally the falcon's eyes are covered (because they are so fast and so deadly) but the trainer took off the cover quickly for us so we could see the eyes - awesome! There was also a dancer who spun arond with lots of scarves sewn together. The decorations and even the hotel itself were just gorgeous. We met lots of friendly people and had some great conversations. Fantastic evening all around.

The Hotel

The lobby...

Look at the flowers!

The hallway leading to the Sohour Room.

Sohour Room - Indoor Tent Style

I just thought this added to the authenticity... :)

Very neat Egyptian (we think) dancer.

The Food

Shwarma, Kofta, Seafood, Falafel, Arabic bread, and "German Potato Salad" - that's my man! :)

Fruit on display (top plate is papaya!)

Salads and dips of all kinds! Tabouleh, Baba Ganoush, Hommous, beetroot salad, pickled vegetables and so much more!

Chocolate fountain... j'adore.

One of the Ramadan juices...complete with pine nuts.

The Company

Part of the group of 22...

Casey and The FalconUs and The Falcon (note: I am on the farthest side from said falcon)

C and my lovely and kind co-worker who let us tag along with her!

Golfing in the Darkness

Well, I have chalked up another first while we are here in Doha. Night Golfing, yes night golfing. Now everyone out there that is a golfer has tried using a "glow ball" to hit around at night, but have you ever golfed under stadium lights before?

When I was first asked to golf, I wasn't too sure. During the day time, the temperature sometimes hits over 50C. I don't think there is enough Gatorade to help me through that. So my immediate reaction was, "Really, are you crazy?". And the response was that we would be playing at night. Again, "Really, are you crazy?".

Well, I must be crazy because I loved it. What a cool experience. The Academy course isn't that long in comparison to the courses I have played back in Canada. There four par 3's, four par 4's and one par 5. I think the yardage was 2800 yards and for all you math majors out there it is a par 34. The grass is some kind of bermuda. It appears light and fluffy, but when in the heavy stuff it is like steel wool. I have yet to play the championship course, but from what I hear it is awesome.

Here's the link to the Doha Golf Club.

http://www.dohagolfclub.com/courses-/academy-course-36.htm

The green fee I paid was discounted as I am now a part of a Golf "Club", so we paid QAR 190 ($52.20 USD) for nine holes with a cart. Check out the link and go to the rates section under each course. Golf is not cheap...

Anyway, getting back to the round. I was teamed up with a couple Brits and a fellow Canadian (a Calgarian no less). We all arrived at the first tee box just as the lights were warming up and the sun was going down. This was something else, let me tell you. We watched the group in front tee off and I couldn't see a thing. It was like playing golf in the twilight hours back in Canada at around 8:00pm except this was 5:45pm... The ball just seemed to disappear into the hazy light. The only thing you could do was guess where it was going and listen for a sound of grass, gravel, or trees.

After the first hole was over, the sun was finally gone and the lights were shining bright as ever. The course was lit up like a runway waiting for one of the many Qatar Airways jets to land. The tees and greens were lit up the brightest with lights on all sides. The one local rule about the lights is that if you hit a light post you get to have a mulligan. Trust me when I say, if you hit a light post, a mulligan is the least of your concerns.

Once my eyes adjusted seeing the ball wasn't a problem anymore. The thing that was getting me was the humidity. The heat wasn't bad at around 35C, but with almost 90% humidity I was soaked. By soaked, I don't mean I was sweating in the usual places. There was sweat coming out of my eyelids. I should have been wearing swimming shorts, that's how wet I was. There was one guy in our group that started with a grey shirt and by the third hole it was black, every inch of it.

Well, like I said, it was a great experience. Now that I am a part of the weekly event, I hope that the shock factor of playing at night wears off and I can play a little better golf.

Cultural Experiences

Last weekend, C and I attended “Fast A Day with Fanar” with another couple . In the “Time Out Doha” that was kindly put in our hotel room, I saw an ad for this event in their Ramadan issue. Touted as “Best for Culture”, it was a free event for expats to learn more about Ramadan and experience a traditional Iftar feast. So we signed up and off we went last Saturday to the Islamic Cultural Centre in the beautiful Fanar Building.

The instructions for the event suggested to fast by starting after breakfast, but we weren’t quite ready for that in the heat. We arrived there around 5 and there was a short presentation and Q&A session on Ramadan. In the auditorium, men and women were separated to different sides.

The presentation was good and I learned a few things.

To recap some of it: Ramadan is the Holy Month for Muslims and fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is the 9th month of the lunar calendar which is why Ramadan “moves” each year and the month in which God revealed the first verses of the Qur’an where revealed. The lunar calendar is approximately 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar (which is the calendar that is generally used worldwide). Every 33 years, the lunar calendar completes it’s cycle. During the Holy Month, Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset. They abstain from drinking, eating and sexual activities. Chewing gum and even drinking water are prohibited. More than that, it is a time for them to connect with God. Therefore, they don’t lie, gossip, slander and they are encouraged to be extra generous and charitable to their fellow man and those less fortunate. Charitable giving is encouraged. Each night, 1/30th of the Qur’an (which is in approximately 30 parts) is read aloud (whether that is in the Mosque or at home among families) and the intent is that by the time Ramadan is over, the entire book has been read.

Unfortunately, there were some people in the crowd who wanted to get “into” discussions about the religion with the presenter (who handled the questions well) but these people ate up the time of those of us who actually wanted to hear about Ramadan itself!

After the presentation, the women were taken to get an abaya and head scarves. We put these on and then we met the men and “breaking the fast” was explained to us. This is referred to as Iftar and happens as the sun sets after the call to prayer. Traditionally dates are eaten along with some milk, Arabic coffee or water. People typically gather together to break the fast. After this, there is a prayer to thank God (Allah) called Maghrib. Muslims pray five times a day and Maghrib is the fourth prayer of the day (dusk prayer). We went to the Mosque in the building and watched the prayer (again, men and women are separated).

After we watched the prayer we had a traditional feast of Qatari/Arabic food – I wish I had been able to catch the names – but there was roast chicken with a rice that had saffron and raisins and these small red things (almost like currants?). There was pureed lamb mixed with cracked wheat (didn’t mind being a celiac for that one!). Another dish had all kinds of vegetables mixed with chicken and sauce and with a crepe-like thing on top. There was a milk/yogurt drink as well. Dessert was fruit, dumpling like fried bread balls (again, a no-go for me) and this sticky, thick jelly that was peach-ish in colour and tasted of cinnamon and cardamom.

Then last night was Garangao (Festival of the Children) where kids dress up in fancy clothes and go around with special bags and receive sweets...sound familiar? Perhaps the Western influence here explains why some kids replaced the traditional clothes to look like ghosts and zombies?!

Tomorrow night we are going to the Ritz Carlton (woo hoo) for a kind of Sahour. Typically, Sahour is the last meal eaten before the sun rises, but here the Iftar feasts (short, light meals) tend to transition into Suhoor banquets that last from 8pm until 2am. They have transformed their main ballroom into an Arabic tent and in additional to the banquet there will be live cooking stations, Lebanese band, falconry, henna tattoos, Egyptian dancers and a mini souq (market). Even better still, we have managed to invite ourselves with a group of people (19!) who are going (I work with two of the 19 attending...so it will be an adventure all around!)

Islamic Cultural Centre (Fanar Building)
Sporting the abaya and head scarf...
After breaking the fast
The Feast (note the lamb and wheat mixture with the yellow spoon...yummy?!)
Chicken, rice and the laban drink in the bottle..

Our Own Green Room

Not to be outdone by the "guest bathroom", should you turn the other way (right) at the end of the hall you will find the foyer outside the "master bedroom" (yes, you read that right - the foyer). Here is where you can find the green lights, setting the stage for the boudoir I guess.

We have no idea why somebody put green lights outside their bedroom.

But since we have very high ceilings (Casey can fully swing his driver in any room in the villa) and we don't have a ladder...the green lights are here to stay.

More of the Villa

From the entrance, you can head straight into the "big room" (see earlier post) or you can turn left down a very long hallway...


At the end of the hall on the left, is the "guest bathroom"....

A stunning piece of renaissance work...I particulary like the bathroom mirror...recently upgraded to the new electric light.

The "guest bathroom" is flanked by the "luggage room" (very common in Nigeria we are told)...

And on the other side...the "guest bedroom". Currently home to a yoga mat and phone. Please note that the yoga mat is not for yoga, but actually for sitting on when you talk on the phone. :-)

More Name that Brand...

I know, these ones are kind of easy... :-)

Main Room & Our First Meal

This is a BIG room.

Good Day

It was a great day. For all of you that have to work today, I am sorry. We get Friday's off here in Doha and it is perfect. Most of the time we wish that Thursday is the last day of the week anyway, well here in Qatar it is.

After the extended sleep in, we had a great breakfast and actually sat down for a moment to enjoy a nice cup of coffee and some good company. It seems that lately, all we have is our own company so we are going to take advantage of it. Once breakfast was over we decided to get the boxes out of the house and off the back step. This is a little tricky considering we don't know the first thing about the garbage pick-up in Doha. So on one of J's little adventures she found a huge dumpster by the Al Meera (local grocer within walking, but who walks anyway).

Now remember I said earlier that we get Friday's off here, well that is because it is the Holy day or the Day of Prayer (like Sunday in Canada). When J went to the Al Meera there was not a soul in the parking lot as they were all at Friday Service. Now was our chance to offload the boxes and be rid of them. Well as in Canada, the Service here lets out at 12:00, and the big sleep-in that we had worked against us. The parking lot we thought was empty was now full of people and activity. Not really in our favour for using the dumpster as our personal garbage bin.

That didn't stop us. Taking advantage of J's stature, we created a two-man assembly line. J threw the boxes to me out the back of the SUV and I chucked them into the dumpster as quickly as we could. The funny thing is that no one seemed to care. They just probably were wondering, "What are these crazy white people doing?".

Once all that excitement was over we came back to the house and started the job jar. Not too bad, but we had to clean the place from all the movers, furniture deliveries, etc. This was in no way exciting. Now we are getting ready to head out for a bite to eat in about an hour and then shopping. We only have a few things left to get and then we are done buying stuff for the house. Soon we will be able to focus on getting some air conditioned clothing...

Welcome to our Villa

We have lived in the villa now for a week. We haven't posted on it for a few reasons.

1. We wanted to post pictures when we had some of our furniture. Happily, everything we have purchased has now been delivered and set-up.

2. We were getting over our initial disappointment of not being in a compound. We had counted on the compound (rightly or wrongly) to be our "community". We had hoped it would be a way of meeting people, not to mention there would have been squash and tennis courts, fitness equipment and pools for us to use. Instead, we are in a "stand-alone villa". Meaning we are on our own in a house in a neighbourhood. Houses here are surrounded by 6 foot solid concrete walls - including the front yard and the driveway. Entrance to the villa and yard is through one of two solid metal gates. Let's just say the sense of community isn't there.

2A. We were getting over the shock of our new home being a 2700 sq ft, three bedroom, three bathroom house.

3. We had to clean. The villa was painted and cleaned before we arrived, but of course we wanted to do some cleaning to our own standard (and I assure you, based off the mould in the fridge, that our standard is substantially higher than that of the cleaning company). Furthermore, the painters didn't use tape or dropcloths. Which means there was paint all over the tile floor. The pictures will come up in stages as we work through the cleaning. 2700 sq ft is a bit much for one day. Especially when that is scrubbing on your hands and knees!

Time

It has been a while since my last entry into the Blog. I must say that things are really starting to come together for us here in Doha. The furniture is arriving, the new car is in our driveway, and we ate our first home cooked meal since we started this adventure a few short weeks ago.

I know it has only been a few weeks, but it really feels like we have been away for much longer. There are so many things happening all at once and time seems to be flying by. Little J is already starting her third week of work (I am still looking for something).

“Time” here in Doha does feel different. I am not talking about the “time of day”, but just the concept of “time”. I am being introduced to the concept of “tomorrow” everyday. What I mean by this is that everything will happen tomorrow even if you know it will happen two weeks from now. Whoever introduced English to the Middle East should have inserted some meaning behind the words…

Another one of my favorites so far is the Qatari 10 minutes. This could mean 5 minutes, it could mean 20 minutes, or it could (wait for it) mean tomorrow! I am finding that I have used this a couple times already to help combat the sporadic furniture deliveries that say they will be there in the evening and then show up unannounced at 12:00pm. So when I come to meet them at the house, I tell them 10 minutes even though I know it will take me 20 minutes or more (traffic depending) to get back to the house. Little games to keep myself amused whilst I wait.

Don’t get me wrong; the people here are very nice and very accommodating so long as you follow the rules of Qatar. This funny thing, ‘cause all you can do is laugh, is that time has no meaning here. I am sure if you didn’t call people on it, we would still be waiting for “tomorrow”.

How hot is it...?

Love this article in the Gulf Times! Have been reading her blog for a while as well for insight on Qatar.

"American expat invents car-baked cookies"

Enjoy!

Censorship?

No Postsecret for me I guess!

For those in a less restrictive world, I have been a fan of Postsecret for a while. Started as some kind of art project, people write their secrets and send them to Postsecret. There are books, website (www.postsecret.com), Facebook page and he does speaking tours. Some of it is weird, others heartbreaking and some just gives you the chills. Hope you can enjoy for me!

Connected

I have to say that being here in Doha is great! J has been busy at work and I have been busy at the house getting things set up. Today we had Qtel come in and hook up the phone line. Now that we have a telephone number we can sign up for Broadband Internet!

I never realized how important the Internet is to J and I. Right now it is our connection back to friends and family in Canada and where ever else they may be. We rely on this as a form of connection figuratively and literally with the outside world. As fascinating it is to learn the different accents and the way English is translated, it is very nice to read something in English from an email or hear/see someone through Skype speaking English.

I also never realized how much we use the internet to find learn about different places to go, eat, see, experience, etc. It is our phone book, the review column, and the place to escape for a few moments. Facebook, Twitter, email, blogging, and other forums for social media have taken control and we both are feeling it, even after a couple days without it. For everyone that has an iPhone or a Blackberry, you will understand this feeling I am describing. It is the feeling that you cannot go ten minutes without checking your phone for that urgent piece of information that you didn’t know you were waiting for. Then when you are unable to get it, oh my, let the freak out begin.

As you are reading my little rant about not being connected you are probably wondering how I am able to post this. We got so desperate for connection to the out side world, we purchased a USB 3G Stick from Qtel. It is not the fastest piece of technology on the planet for internet, but it does the trick.

There will be no watching You Tube or streaming sports highlights from TSN (which I won’t get here) for a few weeks, but be on the look-out for lots of updates as I try and take you on the adventure of pounding the pavement in search of a job here in Doha.

More Process, More Desert

Considering we have only been here for 17 days now, a lot has happened on the process of getting the infamous “RP” (resident permit). But the fun hasn’t stopped there either! We have also experienced the joys of the Traffic Department (for the car), Qatari maintenance departments (for the very old and leaky villa), furniture deliveries and Qtel.

When we last left off the story, I had completed the blood test, had ID pictures taken, gone for the medical and taken the eye test.

Since then, I have been fingerprinted – again another building in the desert (although as my co-worker put it…everything here is actually in the desert…but I swear that all government buildings here are in the most obscure locations!). Again, it was with Mr. H and off to the “Ladies Entrance” for me. The fingerprinting was actually quite quick as it was done digitally (thankfully no old school ink). It took a couple of days to clear (making sure that I am not an international criminal) and then low and behold – I get called down to HR and am given not only my passport back (hallelujah!) complete with “RP” included in it but also I have the infamous and so very valuable “ID Card”. This ID card holds the key to many, many things. Most importantly, as I mentioned earlier, the process for C’s RP can officially begin. But it also means we can buy a car, open a bank account and have Qtel come and set up the house phone. The house phone holds the key to the most valuable item…the internet.

As for the car, well we bought it through the French Connection. However, the seller was leaving the country for good and there was a quite a big rush once we decided to buy it. It is a 2007 Mitsubishi Pajero and if you have seen the driving here (we will have to post videos…it is one of those see it to believe it things) then you know that you need a big car with a big engine. As it was put to me, “you must be able to speed away from dangerous situations”. Unfortunately, in my mind, there is one of those “dangerous situations” about every 5km…a roundabout. Full of people who don’t have a clue/don’t care about how a roundabout is actually supposed to work.

But back to the adventures, since the car had diplomatic plates on it we had to have the plates changed which involved a convoluted paperwork process with Foreign Affairs. Luckily for me, the seller had to do this. Unluckily for me, by the time the papers arrived it was 12 hours before he left the country for good.

I requested some paperwork from HR which arrived Sunday AM all in Arabic. Okay good. That’s usually a good sign. So I am suddenly plucked from work to drive to yet another Traffic Department (different than the eye test place) but conviently also in the desert. This time we have the “Company Liasion” (Mr. O) from the French Connection. I spend 2 hours chasing Mr. O and the seller down hallways were there is even more handshaking and such than before. Every now and then I had over money or my ID card. 400 QAR later, the car has new plates and I have a registration card. Since I didn’t have insurance, they weren’t going to complete the forms for us. Somehow, Mr. O got them to do us a “favour” and I have to promise to take my proof of insurance back to the Traffic Department the next day. Yikes. I don't intend to find out what happens if I don't do this!

At this point I now own an uninsured Pajero. It is promptly parked in our old hotel (reasons to befriend the Concierge) and I return to work to call QIC (aka Qatar Insurance Company) for a quote and appointment. Thankfully, I get both. Appointment next morning.

Interestingly enough, insurance for the passengers in your car is “optional”. Default coverage is just for the driver I guess. You can also get optional coverage for 1) off-road (otherwise your car is not covered off a legitimate road – ie. on a sand dune) and 2) Liquor.

Yup, you can buy coverage that if you get in an accident and found to be under the influence (remember there is zero tolerance here so that limit is anything over 0.00) then you can at least have insurance pay for the damage to the other person and their car. You and your car are out of luck…but let’s be honest…if that happens you have much bigger problems including a fine, jail and deportation.

I get the insurance and our Company Liasion, Mr. H very kindly takes it to the Traffic Department for me. That same day I get my official Qatar Driving License. It is a very exciting day all around so I think, “I should open a bank account now”. I was given a flyer on the services offered to “corporate clients” of QNB (guess what that stands for…Qatar National Bank…seeing a trend here). The features are pretty good so I call the number on the bottom and…get this…the banker comes to see me!! At my office!! He goes through the forms with me and collects copies of all the documents! Now that is good service. In a week or so, he will drop off the debit card for me and some cheques. Brilliant.

All in all, it has been an extremely successful 17 days thanks to the help of a lot of people to whom we definitely owe presents!

Amazing Arabian Night

We went out last night with friends of a friend (the world is a small place - thx N!). They were great hosts - especially as she lived here for about 10 years and has recently returned. Her parents live here as well and have for many years. It was very great to have someone to ask questions too! They took us down to the Souq Waqif which is a market style place that has been restored to look/feel like the original (see the link it is great). We ate a very cool Iranian restaurant (although Casey didn't fit on the floor too well) and had a wondeful Iftar buffet of Iranian food. I even ate lamb for the first time! The restaurant was beautiful and ornate with many mosiacs of coloured glass, metals and mirrors. We finished the night with a wander through the corridors looking a jewellery (pearls!), spices (bags and bins of everything you could imagine) and fabric and scarves of endless materials and designs. We finished the night sitting outside smoking a shisha on this patio that had huge fans spinning water (it is so hot that the water evaporates quickly as a cool mist). By the time we left, we were happy and soaked! Half from sweat and half from the water mist. Casey and I came to the conclusion that we need some new (lighter) clothing! It was so great to get out and spend time with some incredibly kind people - very much a great Arabian night!

(PS. The tall building in the picture is the Islamic Cultural Centre)

(PPS. We leave the hotel today to officially move in to the villa which means internet "blackout" for a couple of days as the internet doesn't come until Aug 16 - see you then!)

No Excuse Not To Come & Visit...

...because we will soon have a big car to pick up you and your luggage. So come for a while! We have room. More on that later! Casey will blog about the car and I will blog about the house! I promise.

No. More. Fast. Food.

We have lived at a hotel for three weeks (1 week at home and 2 here) and we are so ready to leave.

So I give to you the top ten things we won't miss about living in a hotel...

10. Same breakfast buffet. Every day.

9. Digging through suitcases to find clothes.

8. Having to make sure you put everything in the safe - or you wonder all day.

7. Only being able to buy mini bar sized food.

6. Paying $30/day for internet.

5. Two rooms: bathroom or not bathroom. Sometimes, couples need alone time too :)

4. E! Entertainment, BBC World and CNN (the only three English channels)

3. Air Conditioning that has two settings 1) Arctic and 2)Off

2. Instant coffee.

1. One bathroom. With paper thin walls. (If you know C, you know what I mean).

Ramadan Begins

The Holy Month of Ramadan started today. Last night I got a text message from Qatargas letting me know...the person who had this phone before must have worked for them. Interesting. We also got an official memo from HR on Monday at work explaining the revised working hours for those who are fasting and the dos and don'ts.

I think most people know the don'ts - no eating, drinking, smoking, or chewing gum between sunrise and sunset. No tight or revealing clothing (for men and women) including nothing low-cut, sleeveless or above the knees. No loud music (including in your house & car) and no singing or dancing in public. Lastly, no swearing in public.

But we did uncover some dos that I think are helpful...Make the most of the community spirit and food at the Iftar events in the city. Try and eat at home since restaurants are very busy and make plans that don't involve driving around sunset. Everyone on the road is very hungry and very intent on getting to where they need to be to break the fast!

In the office today, there were still a lot of people drinking their morning tea and coffee quickly and furtively behind their closed (glass) office doors. Apparently you can go to the cafeteria and eat lunch since the door is solid and the windows are covered and those who are fasting don't go in. By 12:30 though everyone who is fasting leaves so you still have to be discreet (in case someone is still there) but you can eat and have some water).

We left the hotel though when the fast was breaking and there were a few hungry people in the elevator with us - clearly very ready to begin eating. There were staff in the lobby offering us dates and milk to break the fast.

We signed up for a free event at the Qatar Islamic Centre where they offer a free feast for expats to teach them about Ramadan. They put on a traditional Iftar feast and you can try new food and ask questions. It is on August 21 so we have a few more days to discover Ramadan on our own. All the stores close in the mid-day and then tonight they opened back up 8pm and apparently will stay open until midnight or later (some of them 1 or 2am!)

I am looking forward to some late night shopping tomorrow night! (my Friday night is tomorrow)

On an unrelated note - I got my residence permit today! (which means I got my passport back too) and then I also got my Qatar ID card. This card and permit unlocks a lot of things...ability to buy, register and insure a car and open a bank account.

But the best part - they can process C's residence permit now!

Lost In Translation

Apparently I am a “native English speaker”. In other words, English is my first language (not to mention my only). At home, I worked with a few people where English wasn’t their first language and sometimes there were things that didn’t make sense. The wrong word, the wrong tense, maybe issues with ‘plurality’ (is that a word?), etc. Sometimes you had to dig for the meaning as vocabulary is limited and literal translations are often “harsher” than the intended meaning. I remember being told more than once that a supervisor was “disappointed” in me (which I thought was rather harsh…) until I realized he meant “annoyed” (not sure that it was any better than disappointed!). By working with people who don’t speak English as a first language, I have realized how little I know about my own language. I don’t know why I write or say things a certain way. My grammar is atrocious. I have realized that I have a lot to learn about something I pretty much take for granted.

Here, in one week, I have learned something else that has really surprised me. I didn’t realize how much of my communication style (and maybe English speaking Canadians in general?) is non-verbal. Here, I don’t work with anyone who speaks English as a first language. I am told there are some British expats in the office but I haven’t met any yet. All of a sudden, I am the one who is no longer being understood. Even with an effort to speak a bit slower and a conscious effort to watch my choice of words and to avoid any “colloquialisms” – I frequently get an answer that is no where near the question I asked. I know that when someone doesn’t understand you, it isn’t their fault. The onus is on me, the communicator, to deliver my message in a way that will be understood. But I don’t know what to do. Yes, we are speaking the same language. But the nuances aren’t there. When my Team Lead or peers are telling me something, I am left wondering about the full context to what I am being told. For example, at work at home we generally know if we are being told off, if we are being given information as an “FYI” or if we are being told to do something “right away” or “in the near future” and usually without the communicator having to be that explicit.

Here, I don’t know how to read them and they don’t know how to read me. It’s a big old mess of uncomfortable. And while they still have a team of people that they are familiar with, I don’t. So for me it is just lonely. I miss my lunch buddies today. A lot.

Landmarks

Well we are starting to learn the city a little better now. With all the roundabouts, unnamed streets, and supposed landmarks, Doha is starting to get more and more familiar. There is the Sports R/A, the Clock Towers, The Pearl, the TV R/A, the Post Office (pics later on this one), and many, many more. There are still many small intricacies that we do not know and still more that we will never know, but I am certain it will be fine.

One of these little things that I am learning about is the landmark issue. As we all know, landmarks are usually objects or places that stick out in our minds. When mapping, landmarks are used to create a common point of interest that everyone can see. In Doha, this is true to an extent. Sure, there are the major landmarks (most roundabouts, all Shopping Malls, etc.), but there are a few that are definitely personalized. That has proven to make getting around the city a little tricky, but it’s all part of the adventure.

Now, if you are following along in the blogs, we have been talking about everything that has happened to us thus far. We are not that different than most Canadians that come to Doha for work, but I think one big difference for us is that we will not be living in a “compound”. We are living in a community called Al Hilal West. It is a quiet place, other than the prayer announcement, that is riddled with inner city mansions, villas, and working class. There are a couple compounds we think, but can’t be sure. Our new house is much, much larger than what we are used to in Calgary and we are a little scared at how we are going to “fill the space”. I know this sounds silly, but we come from a house that is 1000sq feet to this one that is pushing 2700sq feet. That is a lot of space to fill.

I digress, but for a point. I had to tell you about our house, the community, and the other stuff to make my point about landmarks. You see our airfreight arrived yesterday at 2:00pm. This was very exciting for us, as the home feeling has arrived. Anyway, we gave the people at the custom brokers directions based on a map that didn’t even have our street name on it. Now for me, I am usually pretty good with directions and finding places, but I am pretty sure that when I used the map we gave the guys I circled our new house for about 45mins before I found it. The landmarks that were on the map had absolutely no meaning to me whatsoever, but now that I am getting to know the city a little better these places are becoming a little more common

Ok, ok - comments are on!

We have been trying (unsuccessfully I guess!) to enable comments...should be working now! I swear! Somebody try and let me know :)

More Pictures

C on the Corniche - a balmy 39 degrees.

The haze from the heat looking back at West Bay.

Boat in the harbour of the Bay...

Guess what we found?!

I have never seen C walk so fast...he heard the sounds of the game (pucks, sticks, etc) before we even saw the rink!

That's right - hockey in Doha! Will be checking the league out for sure...who knows...C's equipment might be taking a trip overseas! I can only imagine how it will smell in 40+ degree heat though - yikes!

Name that Brand!

You know them and love them...but do you recognize them in Arabic?