Picture Day!

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Okay, many of you have been bugging me to upload photos. Well, I finally left the compound today (there are definite disadvantages to living and working in the same building). As I mentioned before, Fridays are like Canada's Saturdays, so I had a chance to get out and see the city. I went with Bailey, one of the owner's daughters, who was an excellent navigator. See, it was my first time driving here. I had to learn how to conquer the Qatari road system. They are crazy here. There is basically no speed limit and two lanes can very quickly become four lanes in rush hour. The whole city is comprised of roundabouts and, rather than being based on a grid system, is curved around the water, so there is no such thing as N, W, S, and E. Makes trying to learn a city great fun. We ventured out today because the roads are dead until the evening on Fridays. Actually, most stores are closed here on Fridays--remember when nothing used to be open on Sundays?

Anyway, Bailey and I went to some of the hotels (The Sheraton and the Four Seasons) to check out their memberships. The Four Seasons was AMAZING, but would chew up my whole fitness budget and then some, so I'm leaning towards the Sheraton where 1 hour massages are only $40!!! Okay, it doesn't beat the $2 Thai massages Kristy was taking advantage of last month, but that's pretty crazy cheap. We also went out to the Corniche, which is the stretch of beach lined with palm trees. The road along the Corniche, which is usually crazy busy, was completely deserted due to a road race, so I got some great photos. Hope you enjoy!

C.

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Photos

War Zone?
Despite looking like a war zone, this is an example of all of the construction going on around here. This is the view from my apartment.

The Family Room
Here is our family room. I will have to get photos of my bedroom and the other rooms when they're actually clean! Do you like how the elliptical is complemented with a Sheesha pipe? ;)

View from the Sheraton
Here's Bailey at the Sheraton. The buildings in the background are part of the Four Seasons Hotel.

The Sheraton
This is one of the signature buildings in Doha. If you look up photos on Google, you will probably find a photo of the Sheraton.

The Four Seasons
How beautiful is this hotel?

Orry the Mascot
This is the Asian Games mascot, Orry. He's everwhere. Actually, after taking pics with three Orrys today, Bailey and I decided that our goal is to take photos with every Orry statue in Doha. I'll keep you updated with our progress!

The Corniche
Here is the view from the Corniche. You can see the Sheraton on the right-hand side.

Grand Prix Bike Race
We caught the beginning of the Grand Prix Bike Race taking place here this weekend. There is also a PGA tournament, which I'm probably going to tomorrow. Boys (and Noelle and Shemina), jealous?

Park by the Corniche
Just some pics of the local architecture.

Park by the Corniche 2
And another one.

Park by the Corniche 3
Okay, last one.

Orry Again
Oh, here's the little gaffer again! I'm taking him on in this one. With all of my muscles, I easily defeated him. ;)

Comments

[Auntie Gloria]

Really enjoyed your pics, keep em coming, Thought you had to cover up your arms etc, probably glad you don't have to. Golfing in Qatar? I'M JELOUS!