Owner: Qatar Visitor URL:http://www.qatarvisitor.blogspot.com Join Date: Wed, 02 May 2007 03:07:52 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: Provides tourist and resident information about Qatar, as well as photos, podcasts, YouTube videos, major events listings and news commentary. Site statistics:Click here
Jeep Wrangler Roadshow 2007-05-02 09:07:28 Car enthusiasts might want to get down to the Diplomatic Club tomorrow. The Jeep Wrangler Road Show kicks off on Thursday at five o' clock, launching the new Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. The show will include entertainment, games and driving demonstrations on test tracks.Also see: The Qatar Driving TestQatar Visitor E-store (U.K.)TagsQatar Doha Middle East road show
Jeep Wrangler Roadshow 2007-05-02 09:05:59 Car enthusiasts might want to get down to the Diplomatic Club tomorrow. The Jeep Wrangler Road Show kicks off on Thursday at five o' clock, launching the new Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. The show will include entertainment, games and driving demonstrations on test tracks.Qatar Visitor E-store (U.K.)TagsQatar Doha Middle East road show
Car theft 2007-05-02 09:00:49 At times like these, with temperatures hitting the 40's at midday, it is common for residents to leave their cars running with the AC on. However, it may no longer be safe to do so. In another example of rising crime in Doha, a second car was stolen in broad daylight yesterday. The car had been left running outside it's owner's house while the owner entered his house. This followed on from the theft
of a Toyota Corrolla last month which has still not been recovered.Also see: CrimeOther news: In Home on wheels the Gulf Times reports on a Qatari man living from his car after being ordered out of his courts by a Qatari court. Maybe it's time for Fathers for Justice to come to Qatar...Meanwhile, the Japanese Prime Minister visited Qatar yesterday, leading a high powered business delegation. Qatar, which supplies Japan with Natural Gas, requested assistance with developing Nuclear Power. Read the full story on the Peninsula.Read about Japan on Japan Visitor.Qatar Visitor e-store (U.S.)
Camp in the desert 2007-05-02 08:40:48 At this camp on the way back from the Inland Sea visitors can rest, eat and smoke Shisha before the hair-raising trip through the desert dunes is repeated.Also see:A Trip to The Inland SeaQatar Tour CompaniesFind the best deal, compare prices and read what other travellers have to say about QatarTagsQatar Doha Middle East desert Inland Sea camp
Qatar culture 2007-05-02 00:21:24 or How not to lose your job in the first weekBelow we’ve compiled a list of cultural pointers – things we’ve come across from our own experience, rather than gleaned from a book .Of course it’s dangerous to generalize, especially in Qatar
, which is a huge cultural melting pot - Qataris themselves only form 20% of the population. Never-the-less, we have noticed some points that seem to be shared both by Qataris and by many of the Muslim residents from countries around Qatar.Before reading these, it’s worth mentioning that this is not Saudi Arabia and that most minor slip ups are tolerated. In fact, until you get a feel for the culture
, you are bound to make a few mistakes. I certainly have, and have always been gently informed as to my error. However, major transgressions could have more serious consequences.Men and womenWomen’s rights in Qatar have advanced considerably in recent years. Women can drive, with the permission of the men in their family, and often hold position
De-Qatarising Yourself; or How I Escaped: The Whole Story 2007-05-01 22:53:10 By SteveI had been warned, rather fore-armed, that the process of leaving the country is more tortuous than that described elsewhere for entering. And so it proved, although I must say from the outset that it was not as bad for me as it has been for others, and in October 06 they did simplify the procedure somewhat as I discovered on Trial The First. Everyone I had contact with was very helpful and nice about everything, which really helped. The trail leads all over Doha at least three times to every place, some four times, and that’s if nothing goes wrong, which is not possible. Form signings, stampings, checkings, re-stampings, re-checkings ad ridiculusem. Also of course, this is the Ministry of Education experience, others, especially private companies will be different, perhaps easier, perhaps not and employ people to do it all for you. I choose to do it myself just for the laugh really!Read more...Also see: Qatar VisasQatar Visitor BookstoreFind the best deal, compare prices and Read more:Whole
, Yourself
Eid Al-Adha 2007-05-01 22:49:27 At the moment it seems that every pickup truck in Doha has a sheep or goat (sometimes several) bleating plaintively in its back. This is Eid Al-Adha, or the Festival of Sacrifice, which both celebrates the end of the Haj (the pilgrimage to Mecca) and remembers the time Abraham almost sacrificed his son Ismael (as opposed to the Old Testament's Isaac), only to be told in the nick of time that a goat would do instead. It’s also a time when Islam demands a blood sacrifice or Udhiya.Arriving at the live animal market, you could smell blood in the air from the nearby abattoir. These, however, are not the sacrifices, but additional meat taken for feasting. An acquaintance I ran into told me that he would sacrifice his sheep after the morning prayers the next day. “This is from God,” he added. I asked him if he would be sacrificing the sheep himself. “I can’t do that,” he said, a little guiltily – it is considered quite manly by some people to kill your animals yourself. “I h
Qatar football 2007-05-01 22:41:51 Initially the Qatar
i crowd was quiet compared to the Thais sitting opposite. Then a clapping began, swelling up. Then, with the first of three Qatar goals, the crowd – the biggest I have ever seen in tiny Qatar – surged to their feet, yelling their support.We were at the quarterfinals of the Asian Games football, in Al Gharaffa stadium. Qatar went on to beat Iran – who had won their previous 15 Asian Games football matches – in the semifinals, becoming the first host nation to reach the finals in twenty years, and topped it off by beating Iraq 1-0 in the finals in front of an 18,000 strong crowd. This wasn’t just a fluke, either – just two years before they had become champions in the Gulf Cup.Qatari men are football mad, and their national team is the most highly ranked in the Gulf. Yet, until now, little has been written in English about football in this tiny peninsula. We set out to try and collect what information we could.OriginsThe first football club was set up when
Two laws 2007-05-01 22:38:10 "Man to be lashed for illicit relations," proclaimed the Gulf Times in big letters this morning. The court "awarded 100 lashes to a Turkish man (30) after it found him guilty of illicit relations with a Filipina housemaid (38). The court also ordered to deport both the accused immediately. The woman, being a Christian was spared of the lashes..."(Gulf Times December 21).Qatar has Sharia law (i.e. Islamic law). However, as in the example above, the full consequences of this law applies only to Muslims. Nor is the law applied as severely as in Saudi Arabia. While the death sentence is handed down, in practice it is almost always commuted by the Emir. Furthermore, while being drunk in public is illegal and will result in a lashing for Muslims, residents (including Muslims) are allowed to purchase alcohol (if they possess a permit) to be consumed at home, and to drink alcohol in hotels and licensed clubs. Unlike Saudi Arabia, amputation is not allowed by law.I've also been told the lashin
Sacrificial tents 2007-05-01 22:36:18 Sacrificial tents like this one dotted Qatar today. Any animal killed after the Eid prayers at dawn today (Eid Al-Adha) is considered a sacrifice. However, it is now illegal to kill animals anywhere other than an officially designated place, and expatriates repeatedly breaking the rule will be deported.Also see: Eid Al-AdhaEid Al-Adha in Qatar Book flights,hotels or cars with Expedia.Qatar Visitor BookstoreTagsQatar Doha Middle East Eid Al-Adha
Price rises 2007-05-01 22:34:12 The day after Qatar public servants got a major pay rise (40% for Qatar nationals, 20% for other nationalities), food prices seemed to double. I was shocked in Mega mart to see most imported veg was around 18 riyals/kilo ($5) mark. Even normally cheap "local" vegetables were expensive. The small, pale courgettes that are normally as cheap as chips had shot up from 3 riyals (80 cents) to 6 riyals ($1.60). The increase was repeated in other shops such as Carrefour, and small local shops were even worse.So it was no surprise to see the Peninsula screaming "Consumers are ditching Qatar". It seems that it is now cheaper to leave the country and do your grocery shopping abroad.It is usual for prices to increase around the time of major festivals (it's now Eid Al-Adha), and I have also heard rumours that there are temporary shortages of some foods. Hopefully, then, this is a temporary increase in prices, because a lot of people are counting on a fall in prices after the end of the Asian Game
Trees 2007-05-01 22:31:00 Also see: Um Slal Mohammed: Forts and streamsQatar Visitor BookstoreTagsQatar Doha Middle East Um Slal Mohammed trees pictures images
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Desert cold 2007-05-01 22:26:13 While I was driving this afternoon my phone rang and I passed it to my friend to answer. It turned out to be my wife. After starting to exchange pleasantries, my friend’s voice suddenly rose with excitement.“What! Are you sure? Yes, we’re on our way now.” Then he put my phone down and turned to me. “Carrefour, now, and put your foot on it. They’ve got heaters!”As you might have guessed things are starting to get ridiculous around here. At a time when, according to this article ,Siberian winds are sweeping the region, we are living in accommodation designed for blistering desert heat - large roomy houses with high ceilings and powerful, though currently useless, air-conditioners. Often, it's colder inside the house than it is outside. When I had dropped in at my friend's house earlier he was sitting on his sofa with a duvet pulled around him. Fully clothed. We shouldn’t complain: its not the coldest it’s ever been. It was slightly colder in 1964, apparently, althoug Read more:Desert
Al-Khor 2007-05-01 22:24:02 Older than Doha but far smaller in size (the whole municipality had a population of 31,000 according to the 2004 census) and importance, Al Khor is located an easy 50 kilometres from the capital city, to the North of Doha. This former pearl fishing centre is currently under renovation – beautifully manicured flower beds greet you as you drive in from the desert, but the road alongside the Corniche is shut off and half the city seems to be being dug up.What to doThere’s not a lot to do in Al Khor, although I always find it a refreshing change to Doha. The harbour is worth a visit, and there’s a fish market just in front of the harbour. There’s mangrove swamps to look at, which should prove popular for birdwatchers. You can walk along the beach, where several play areas have been set up for children, baseball nets strung up and sun shelters erected. Between the beach and the harbour, there’s a small museum, although to be honest it’s currently pretty rubbish. Amazingly, I not
Qatar tennis 2007-05-01 13:53:20 Also see: Qatar
footballToday saw the finals of the Qatar Open, with young Scotsman Andy Murray battling Ivan Ljubicic for a US$122,000 first prize, a golden falcon and a golden sword. Ivan took the match in two sets, winning both sets 6-4, although the nineteen year old Scot did get a golden dagger for coming second.The tournament, a yearly event in Qatar, started in 1993 and entrance, even for the finals, was free this year. However, attendance this year has been low, perhaps because of the cold, and even for this evening's finals the stadium was not full.With total prize money of a million dollars, there have been some big names playing in the Qatar Open. Past players have included Boris Becker, Stefan Edberq, Pete Sampras, Goran Ivanisevic, Thomas Muster, Jim Courier, Petr Korda and Marcelo Rios. World number one, Roger Federer, considered by many to be the best tennis player ever, won in 2005 and 2006, although he was absent this year.So with all these players, Qataris must be
Visiting houses in Qatar: a culture chasm 2007-05-01 13:50:49 I went to a local’s house recently, and to me the experience seemed rather bizarre.By locals, I don’t mean Qatar
is. Qataris make up rather less than 20% of the Qatari population, whereas many of the non-Qataris were born here, married here and had children but are still considered foreigners. Still, I understand the experience is not vastly different from what happens in a Qatari household.What seems weird to me may well be entirely normal to many people throughout the world. I am talking from a Western background, with values and assumptions vastly different from the people I was visiting. But more on that later.So, what happens? Well, first you are met at the door by your host, and he leads your wife away into the back of the house. I never saw my host’s wife, even though I had met her previously at a mutual friend’s house.My host lead me into his living room, where there was an array of sweet cakes laid out on a trolley. And when I say sweet, I mean sweet. The tea was even w Read more:culture
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The Sheikh Faisal Museum 2007-05-01 13:49:30 (Full name) The Sheikh
Faisal B. Qassim B. Faisal B. Thani B. Qassim B. Mohd. AL Thani Museum
, Al Samariyah, Shahinaya, Qatar.IntroductionThe museum, a member of UNESCO, is located on a huge estate near the camel racing track in Shahinaya. The estate also contains a variety of animals and game, including the rare oryx. The museum itself contains of a five halls, but will shortly double in size – an adjacent building, of similar size to the first, stands ready for exhibits.The ownerThe museum belongs to Sheikh Faisal, great great grandson of Jassim, who defeated the Ottomans in battle while in his eighties and is regarded by some as the founder of Qatar. Sheikh Faisal himself is an interesting man. He shared the same wet nurse as the Emir, and is known as the brother of the Emir although they are in fact second cousins. He’s a high profile and very successful businessman, and among numerous other enterprises owns the City Centre Mall in West Bay, currently the largest and busiest sh
Pigeons 2007-05-01 13:45:27 On Friday morning this chair has been left outside a shop in Souk Waqif, opposite the KDF Islamic Centre. With an extremely low crime rate, it is common for shop owners to leave their shops open but unattended, or even leave large items outside overnight. This shop owner didn't leave his products, though - extremely valuable falcons.After taking this photo, I was lucky enough to meet the architect. The KDF Islamic Centre represents a combination of five buildings, including the Qatar Centre for the Presentation of Islam. This is an organisation which tries to convert non-Muslims to the faith. The Centre also has a multi-purpose hall and is home to a bank. Three of the five buildings have separate entrances for men and women. The Mosque forms the centre of the building. The idea behind the combination of buildings was partly to attract non-Muslims, who might be scared of entering a mosque, into the building. The spiral shape of the tower is to symbolise touching with the sky and with Read more:Pigeons
Villagio 2007-05-01 13:41:58 Also see Gondolas in VillagioLocation: Between Sport City and Hyatt Plaza on Al Waab Street.Villagio has a mock Italian design, which doesn’t really work on the outside but does on the inside. Its best feature is its ceiling, with the cloud effect successfully giving you a floating feeling of space. Though this place is far from finished, it will be successful as it has Carrefour as its anchor shop, meaning all and sundry will flock to it.What’s there?Not as much as there’s going to be – there’s a few shops already open, but there will be a total of 220 stores spread over 130,000 sq m of retail space (or 150,000, depending on where you get your information from), which just beats the 129,000 metres of retail space at City Centre Mall, currently the country’s largest. Apparently its going to have everything City Centre has got – ice rink, cinema, bowling alleys e,t,c – plus a rollercoaster just to top it off. It already has some of the old stalwarts you see everywhere su
Getting your car inspected 2007-05-01 08:46:22 In Qatar, cars older than three years must have a yearly check. Fortunately, getting the technical inspection done is surprisingly painless. Once you have managed to actually get to the traffic inspection company (through the traffic snarls and potholes of the industrial area), the process is fast and efficient.The inspection itself is meticulous. There are two areas you need to pass: the technical test, which evaluates the condition of the car, and the legal test. On the legal test you can fail on things such as a bad scratch or having dark windows (these need a police report in Qatar).Getting thereIt’s best to avoid busy Salwa Road and the awful roundabout at the end of it. Instead, take Muntazah street. Be careful - although this is a three lane highway with only desert to each side, the speed limit is 100 kmph , not 120, and there are speed cameras. This road will deliver you into the middle of the Industrial area, avoiding some of the worst roads. When you get to the Industrial
Grand Hamad Street 2007-05-01 08:44:28 Grand Hamad Street
is a broad road splitting the centre of Doha in two as it sweeps towards the Corniche. Off Grand Hamad Street you will find the branches of all the major banks as well as Khaleej Insurance. As you drive towards the Corniche, on your right you'll find the bus station, Kathindo - an Indonesian restaurant and shop - and, a little further back, the Gold Souq. On your left, in 2 grey buildings, you have Souq Al Ahmed. This souq has, in addition to other merchandise, a large range of clothing and tailors, while nearby Souq Najada mobile phone and telecommunications shops..Also see Ambitious plans for DohaQatar Visitor BookstoreFind the best deal, compare prices and read what other travelers have to say QatarTagsQatar Doha Middle East Grand Hamad
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Swimming in the sea in Qatar – Is it safe? 2007-04-30 18:53:08 In a country like Qatar
, it’s truly a relief to cool off in the sea – and there are any number of almost deserted beaches in which to do so. But is it truly safe to swim in Qatar’s seas?Before I frighten you with a list of hazards, I should mention that I (along with everyone else I know) go swimming in the sea all the time, I take my two year old daughter with me and I have heard of no fatalities in the two years I have lived in Qatar. However, I do wear wetsuit boots to protect my feet from both sharp coral and the possibility of stepping on a stone fish or sting ray.Potential HazardsGlassBarbecuing is popular in Qatar. Unfortunately, many people do not clean up after themselves and every public beach seems to have broken glass hiding among the sand. It's best to avoid bare feet even before you get in the sea.CurrentsShould you get stuck in a current, the advice remains the same as ever – don’t swim against the current. Either swim across the current, or wait until the cu Read more:Swimming
Qatar fencing 2007-04-30 18:51:32 Once again the clash of swords will be heard in Qatar
, only this time it won’t be feuding desert tribes battling in the desert. The 4th Qatar Fencing Grand Prix (epee), with a total prize of $31,000, will be starting on the 19th January and running until the 21st. The event is being run by the Qatar Fencing Federation (www.qatarfencing.com), will consist of both individual and group events and will take place in the Aspire Academy in Sport City. On Friday, heats for the individual competition will start from 8.30, and on Saturday the competition will start at 9.00, culminating in the individual finals at 18.00. The team events will take place on Sunday, again starting at 9.00 and finishing at 18.00.Contact detailsAddress: Qatar Fencing FederationPO Box 22966 Doha, QatarTel: +974 4838391/2Fax: +974-4838314Email: qff@olympic.qa(When I rang to see how much the tickets were, the federation didn't know, although they thought it would probably be free).Also see: Qatar football Clubs and
Rumeila Park 2007-04-30 18:48:15 Click here to listen to the sounds of birds in Rumeila ParkRumeila Park is located on Corniche Road and has probably the best outdoor children's play area in Doha, with slides, swings and climbing frames all placed on safe sand. There's a large water garden, with shops built around it, an open air theatre, a skateboarding half pipe (which children tend to slide down rather than skate up) and a couple of cafes. The heritage village is located at the Southern end, and showcases a traditional village plus arts and crafts; annoyingly, this is only open during festivals and special occasions. In addition to the water, grass and trees, attract birds, and you can see them play on the ground or listen to their song. There is also a great view across the water to Doha's ever-changing skyline.Also see Blogging in Sheraton ParkBook flights,hotels or cars with Expedia.Qatar Visitor BookstoreFind the best deal, compare prices and read what other travelers have to say QatarTagsQatar Doha Middle E
Qatar's early history 2007-04-30 17:20:58 Qatar’s early history is characterized by uncertainty and speculation. However, with the oldest of Qatar’s archaeological sites, Al Shagra, dating back to 6000 BC, the first habitation that historians can be certain of takes place at the end of the Stone Age.One theory is that these early inhabitants were probably pastoral nomads, searching for grazing for their animals at a time when the climate was more temperate. An alternative theory is that they were hunter gatherers living on what cereals and plants they could gather as well as animals and sea creatures such as gazelle, onager (wild ass), hares, turtle and dugongs. They were probably also fisherman who utilized small and basic boats, and may have been involved in pearl diving. Shards of Ubud pottery, dating back to 5000 BC and originating from Iraq, suggests that some sort of trading network also existed.Originally, it was thought that there may have been continuous habitation from this period on. Now it seems likely that the Read more:Qatar
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