Doha Nightlife
AdventureMan could hardly wait to show me the change in the very heart of Doha. When I lived in Doha, the Souk al Waqif / Iranian souk was off limits to most Americans, considered a very traditional place, and a dangerous place for a casual visitor.
Of course I went! I have found that if you dress modestly and behave respectably, you have little to worry about in Qatar, or Kuwait, or even Saudi Arabia. People are gracious and kind, and you find the most interesting things – tools for the old coffee roasting braziers, old weavings, old pieces of hand crafted silver . . . you just have to take your time and look.
My favorite booth in the old Doha souks was the man who hand embroidered the men’s bisht, and who pounded the silver flat with a leather covered hammer. I loved the colorful scribe’s booths – sadly, now missing, in the interest of a much larger parking lot for the souks.
Oh! The changes!
They have totally updated the souks – put in reliable electricity and running water, and did not raise the rents for the merchants. Painted everything, gave it a historically accurate facade, put covers over the walking paths made of the old beams and palm branches to shield shoppers from the heat.
But the most amazing change of all is the nightlife. The square where the hardware merchants used to vend their nails and chains and locks, where the shoemakers would mend and polish your shoes is gone, and in it’s place are multiple restaurants and cafes, interspersed with antique shops, specialty shops: people who carve miniature dhows and sailing ships, a shop for sharp edged swords and khanjars, a shop specializing in custom made eqals (the black band that holds the gutra on the head; Qatteris have long tassles coming from the eqal down the back), a couple places for smoking the narghila, and assorted souvenir shops.
Restaurants! Bright twinkling lights! The smell of roasted meats and fresh fruit drinks! Places to sit out in the courtyard, the sounds of laughter . . . Doha has a nightlife!
In the midst of the bright lights, the shops, the restaurants and music, there is a police station, and I think it is brilliant – the police dress in traditional clothing:
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Wauw! This looks like a great place! Not at all what I would have imagined.
Very good photo’s too!
Doha has a terrific nightlife based on what I’ve been hearing (perhaps better than what we have here). Definitely looking forward to visit Qatar someday.
It looks so inviting. We moved right after they started working on this restoration/update project. It is so nice how it turned out!
there is a new boutique hotel going to open at the end of the year at the traditional souk..its going to be really trendy and traditional at the same time..and on thursdays at the main street of the souk they have a traditional dance with a band (men)..really cool
The pics look really nice….I always heard that Doha isint that good lace to visit..
Love the pictures! I’ve never visited but I would love to go.
Aafke – It is a total WOW. What I like the very best is that it mixes the traditional and the modern – it has made the souks a safe and welcoming place. I want visitors to see these places – like the Mubarakiyya in Kuwait – and get the feel of the shopping in the traditional shops, the dining outside, the smells of those meats roasting, and the children running and playing – it’s all the pieces that go together to make a whole. I don’t want western people to be afraid to go to the souks – some are.
Oh Angelo, you are in for a treat.
Mimfoy – I had my reservations about the renovation. I was so totally wrong. I hope you get to go back for a visit.
No kidding, Pink! A boutique hotel? How totally cool is that? How will we know? Will you check back in here and tell us when it opens?
I think Doha used to be sleepy, Amu. It was when I got there. Not any more!
Hope you get your chance to go, Zahra!