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:
Palm Island
There used to be a resort out on Palm Island, with a couple restaurants, a swimming area, an amusement park and boats that took the trip out there and back every half hour or so. Now, it’s all gone, flattened. All that is left of Palm Island is this:
And it isn’t even a palm tree!
Truck Loading in Doha
We don’t know what is in these huge sacks; we see the same in Kuwait and think it may be cement on the way to be mixed – or sand to mix with the cement. They are not secured. It may be that the sheer weight of whatever is inside glues it to the truck bed, but we don’t want to be anywhere near these trucks when they go around a sharp curve – or a roundabout.
Here is a close-up. You can see they are not secured in any visible way:
Doha Olympics 2016
Although Doha has been eliminated from the competition, the signs are still up, glorious signs. My favorite one is the woman archer:
Although I also like the joy of the young boy with the banner:
Is it just me, or do most of the women on the banners in Doha bear a resemblance to a young Sheika Mosa?
I love the Doha spirit. The 2016 Summer Olympics were a long shot, and Qatar took the chance. It was seriously considered. Not a lot you can do about the “searing” climate, and, unfortunately, it isn’t cold enough or snowy enough to be considered for the winter olympics, but they have some great golf and tennis tournaments, an a big bicycle tour in February.
Doha Dhow Building
We were so sad, visiting Oman, to see that dhow building has gone into decline in Sur, and then equally delighted to see the craft being revised and guarded in Doha. The new dhows being built preserve the design of the older working dhows, and include extra, labor intensive and expensive touches, like the wood carving:
I had to start with this one, because it includes the fabulous QCPI (Qatar Center for the Presentation of Islam) building in the background – what an impact it gives the Doha skyline!
Night and Day, Doha, The Pearl
Visiting Doha, AdventureMan took me out to see the new Pearl going up. AdventureMan cracks up – “It’s NOT reclaimed land” he cackles, “they are demolishing old buildings at an incredible rate, and using all that rubble to build this new crop of hotels and residences!”
We watched it when it was just cranes and sandbars.
They’ve come a long way in an amazingly short time. This is the Doha Pearl (they are having the same kind of dusty weather that we are having in Kuwait)
The window is a little cloudy, but you can see it is all lights, camera, action at the building of The Pearl, even at night:
Searing Heat Vetos Doha Olympics
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Chicago was among the four cities picked as finalists Wednesday for the 2016 Summer Olympics, setting the stage for a high-profile bidding contest between candidates from the United States, Europe and Asia. Also making the IOC shortlist were Madrid, Spain; Tokyo, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Eliminated from the race were Doha, Qatar; Prague, Czech Republic, and Baku, Azerbaijan.
Doha, capital of a tiny but wealthy Arab Gulf country of about 1 million people, had loomed as the wild card as it sought to bring the Olympics to the Middle East for the first time. It cited its hosting of the 2006 Asian Games as evidence that it can handle the Olympics. Due to Qatar’s searing summer heat, Doha proposed holding the games in October, outside the IOC’s preferred time frame of July or August.
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