Weekend Update

I apologize for being somewhat lax in my posting recently, but I have been hosting my cousin Matt here in Qatar. We had a busy weekend, running around and exploring Doha and I have not had much time to sit at a computer and write. I shall do my best to give a brief update of the highlights of our weekend.

THURSDAY: I was working in my office and turned when I heard a knock on my door. Much to my surprise, Matt was standing in the door. He had arrived in Doha the night before and due to some technical difficulties with my phone, he missed his call. Luckily, the couple with whom he was CouchSurfing had an idea of where my office was and dropped him off. At the end of my workday, Matt and I took a brief tour of the academic buildings on the Education City campus. These buildings have been designed by premier architects and definitely merit a visit. After enjoying some air conditioning and cooling off in my apartment, Mohammed (a Qatari colleague) picked us up to take us around Doha.

Mohammed wanted to give us a cultural experience and thus took us to what was essentially a Qatari visitation. A relative of one of Mohammed's friends had recently passed away and Mohammed explained that after a burial, there is typically a three-day visitation period during which friends and family pay their respects. Therefore, after assuring us that we would be fine, Mohammed took us to the home of the deceased's family. We were warmly greeted and welcomed into the majalis, which is essentially a sitting room for guests. The majalis serves to separate visiting men from the women of the family. We were welcomed into the majalis in a traditional Qatari greeting among friends: the elder who greeted us welcomed us in an embrace and kissed the right side of our face three times (this is typically not done with expats). The majalis room was breathtaking - lots of marble and very rich colors. There were very plush couches and lovely floral arrangements. We were given Qatari coffee, which is flavored with cardamom. When finished, if you desire more coffee, you simply hold out the tiny cup. If you are finished, you hold out the cup and rotate your wrist slightly, shaking the cup. After coffee, we were served Qatari tea. It, too, was delicious and rather on the sweet side.

After spending time talking with the family, we departed to get some dinner. Matt, having read my blog about tasting camel, expressed his desire to try camel meat, so we went to Tajine as Souk Waqif. Matt's hosts, Dan and Melissa, joined Mohammed, Matt, and I for what was a very enjoyable dinner.

FRIDAY: After sleeping in (I woke up significantly later than usual), we got a ride with Jill and went to lunch at the Butcher Shoppe in the Villagio Mall. The three of us enjoyed some delicious burgers and a rather animated waiter before strolling through the lavish mall. After lunch, Jill dropped Matt and me off at the Museum of Islamic Art. We strolled through the museum for a couple of hours, marveling at the artisanship of the various eras of art. There was an amazing assortment of rugs, vases, carvings, tiles, swords, paintings, and other amazing works. The building itself, designed by I.M.Pei, is also worthy of praise.

After leaving the museum, we decided to head on over to Souk Waqif for dinner and some souvenir shopping for Matt. However, on the way, we decided to stop by FANAR, the Islamic Cultural Center in Qatar. We were planning to visit FANAR on Saturday and wished to look for their hours, but seeing that it was open, we stopped in. We ended up spending about four hours at FANAR, speaking with our guide Dominic, watching prayer, visiting the mosque (masjid in Arabic), and learning about Islam. It was a fascinating discussion and Matt and I spent much of our weekend talking about Islam and its relationship to and differences from Christianity. I will admit that FANAR has been one of my favorite experiences in Qatar. I have a great respect for the Islamic faith.

After leaving FANAR at 9 PM, more so because it was closing than because we were done talking with our guide, we headed over to the Souk to get some dinner. We strolled around for a bit thinking we might get some shawarma, but ended up in a restaurant that looked a bit like a diner and served Arabic food. We encountered a bit of a problem when our waiter came to take our order as he did not speak English and my Arabic knowledge includes nothing related to food or portion size (as a side note, Mohammed told me that most of my Arabic is of a Lebanese dialect, which able to be understood is not the dialect typically used in the Gulf). Only after the English-speaking manager/owner came over to take our order, did Matt and I realize we were the only Westerners in the restaurant. Rather than be upset, we were excited about the authenticity of the food we were about to eat. We enjoyed the falafel, hummus, and chips and left to stroll about the Souk looking for souvenirs. However, by this point in the evening, most of the shops were closing, so we decided to stroll along the Corniche and look for a cab. After a long walk, we found a cab and made it back to our respective domiciles well after midnight.

SATURDAY: Matt got a ride to my apartment at about 11 AM (we had both slept in) and we called for a cab. We were informed that a cab could not get us until 12:30, so we walked to a coffee shop on campus to get breakfast and kill some time. After a quick taxi ride back down to the Souk, we arrived just in time for the shops to close, so we opted to go for a walk around Doha. We walked through a couple other working markets, which were also closed, and finally decided to get lunch.

We came to a restaurant that served Arabic and Indian food and were again the only Westerners in the establishment. The owner asked if we wanted chicken and rice and we agreed. This restaurant was so authentic that the customers were not using silverware to eat, so Matt and I followed suit. Silverware was later brought to us along with ketchup, but it did not go unnoticed that we were the only table which was offered these additions, despite the fact that many other tables were eating the exact same meal. Our meal, which consisted of two big plates of rice, two half chickens, and cokes cost a whopping 25 riyals total ($6.84 USD).

After lunch, we walked back to the Souk and spent a few hours on the porch of Tajine drinking lemon-mints, eating Moroccan desserts, and playing cards waiting for the shops to open. After most of the shops opened, we perused their wares, looking at scarves, spices, jewelry, honey, teas and coffees, candies, artwork, prayer beads, clothing, and much more. After several hours of walking, bargaining, and enjoyment, we decided it was time to eat some shawarma before heading home.

We found a restaurant with shawarma at the back of the Souk and (surprise, surprise) we were the only Westerners. We ordered two chicken shawarmas and two pineapple juices. The shawarma was delicious and the pineapple juice was essentially pureed pineapple. After another delicious and filling me, we paid our tab of 16 riyals ($4.38USD) and left. We caught a cab and made it back for an earlier night, as I had to work the next day.

SUNDAY: We spent our Sundays separately, me at work and Matt lounging around, but met up for dinner. Wil joined us and the three of us headed out intending to eat at Thai snack. However, much to our dismay, the restaurant was closed and we went up the street to the equally enjoyable Turkey Central. After eating, we headed back home.

It was a great weekend and I am glad I was able to share it with Matt. I was the first family member he has seen in about six or seven months and he is the only family I have seen over here. It was great to catch up and explore the city together.