Blogs from Qatar, Middle East - page 22

Yesterday afternoon I visited Al Jazeera news rooms where Pia works. Given my job in PR I found it hugely interesting (as were the conversations with Pia and her journalist colleagues - such ambitious and high energy people) even if the Al Jazeera English language centre looked pretty much the same than CNN and CNBC in London. In the evening two nights of hardly any sleep just became too much for me and went to bed at nine. After sleeping around the clock i felt fine and was all full of energy - off to gym then. I was on my own as Sunday is a work day here. Rest of the day i spent on the beach again. When Pia came from work we went to a bazaar - Sorry Pia can't remember anymore how ... read more

Hi all! Well this is just a quick update as to what I have been doing. Mmmmm . . . nothing. This is my second job since the last posting and it has all been pretty stock standard. Vessel positioning and diver tracking etc etc. I am currently in a place called Ra's Laffan in Qatar. It is a port that doesn't let you in or out. "Excuse me" you say, well it's true. It is a very very restrictive place. A few divers just walked up to the gates and were promptly told to get lost with an official coming up to the Captain a little later that night asking what the deal is with these guys trying to do the whole "sneak in the country illegally" thing. It's a nice place though. The weather ... read more

I wasn't sure how long it would take to get my work done at the undisclosed location, so I didn't book a return until Friday evening. That means that today was a free day in Doha. I took advantage of the spare time to sleep in, but I'm over the jet lag thing apparently. I was out of bed by 8:00. Oh well, at least I'll get to suffer when I get back home on Saturday. I went out and decided to head toward the Corniche. I was excited to see restaurants at the end of the Dhow pier, but as I approached, it was obvious they were closed and being torn down. By the time I got back to an area that had restaurants, they were closed. I was able to get some street food: ... read more

MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! A few pics from the last 6 months in the Middle East...time has simply flown! Asian Games came and went and were a real treat. We're excitedly awaiting the arrival of Dave, Brennie and Nome Newnham for Chrissy here in the desert! Then we're off to India to see in the New Year, celebrate our wedding anniversary and learn a few Bollywood dancefloor moves! Hope everyone has a festive silly season and all the best for 2007... Loads of Love, Sal & Gav... read more

Like Burbank, California; Doha's "City Center" is a mall. Everything's air-conditioned and everyone drives large unnaturally clean cars. The comparison might end there. I learned that "Thobe" is the word for the men's traditional dress. "Abaya" is the women's. Service staff is imported and may speak English better than Arabic. I made it to town without much ado, but with increased kindness toward travelers. I now realize that many of the people in airports could possibly have multiple connections, which increases the importance of the earlier flights... My optimally resolved mishaps include: *Dropping my red hat in the middle of the street while running to catch the first bus to the airport! (I learned that the Seattle 5 Express Bus which stops right in front of my house is often late, so the thing to do ... read more