Our First Ramadan Suhour (or Suhoor)!

We went to the Ritz Carlton last night for our first Suhoor meal. It was awesome!  There was a band there playing Arabic music and singing. The decorations of the "tent" were beautiful. They call it a tent even though it was in the ball room. We arrived early (for Ramadan anyway) at 8pm so we were able to go around and take pictures with minimal obstructions. The food wasn't exceptional but it was good.  The whole experience was amazing though. I would recommend to anyone who has never been, to at least try it once. They (Suhoor and Iftar) can be a bit expensive so be prepared for that. The prices are listed in the Time Out in Doha magazine or online. Make sure to call ahead for a reservation. The buffet food selections, the Arabic juices and the live music make it truly a unique experience that you can only witness one month out of the year!

Another Fire in The Pearl Qatar, in Workers Cabins!

Another fire in Pearl Qatar, in workers cabins

Last night we were out walking our dog and saw a bunch of fire trucks and police go by.  When we went back into our apartment building we saw this. Apparently there was another fire in the Pearl. This time it was at the employee cabins. Thank God no one was hurt!

Road Trip, Day Trip

 http://goo.gl/maps/AUwN (Here is a link of our day trip route)

To the left is the mosque and to the right are the two Barzan Towers.

The Mosque at Umm Slal Mohammed

This is the second tower.

Today we went on a road trip around Qatar to explore our surroundings and the culture of our new home. We left from The Pearl (which is near Doha) and we headed up Northwest to Umm Slal Mohammed. Here we saw the Barzan towers originally built in the 20th century but since has been rebuilt. This used to be a Fort but now all that stands is two towers and a mosque. Admission is free and if the gate keeper is there he will let you in to roam on your own.

This is the first tower.

This is inside the second tower.

 From the top of the towers you are able to see the whole town.  It's interesting to see the extreme gaps in wealth. On one side of the fort walls you can see expansive houses, many still being built. On the other side you can see tiny makeshift shacks in close proximity to each other.

As we drive west a few minutes we are able to see the other tower that is in Umm Slal Mohammed. This one shows it's age as it has not been rebuilt. Also, there is a family that lives at the base of this tower.


 


As we drove through this town we were able see some of the old architecture and an example of the ornate Arabic doors.

Here is a modern mosque in the right photo in comparison to the fort mosque in the left photo. In these photos you are also able to see huge modern homes in the background, a lot of which are still being built.

Next we went to the Al Zubarah Fort, which is now a museum. This was built in 1938 and is one of the most complete and well known forts in Qatar. Admission is free and there are trailers with bathrooms in the parking lot. Very nice bathrooms, if I do say so myself (Western toilets available), with soap and running water. When on a road trip decent bathrooms are sometimes hard to find.









 This site is also famous for it's archaeological dwellings nearby. The newest excavation site was started in 2004 and is still going on now. It is currently closed and we are told it will reopen in September.  We will be coming back for that.

Inside Al Zubarah Fort

 Once refreshed in the bathrooms (it is very hot to do a trip like this in July!) the gate keeper let us into the fort to look around on our own.

You can climb the internal stairs up to each of three watch towers. There are holes in the thick tower walls that allow you to see out and also let light in. These holes are curved so that enemy fire can not enter the fort. I read somewhere that this fort is now a museum with archaeological pieces inside it, but right now it is empty.  They must have had the pieces here at another time. Would have been interesting to see!

Inside Al Zubarah Fort.

One of the watch towers at Al Zubarah.

Next we drove up North near the coast to check out three old fisherman's villages; Al Areesh, Al Khuwair and Al Jemail. All were closed with guard towers and signs not permitting entrance at this time. This knowledge was not anywhere on the internet prior to our trip.  We were disappointed that we were unable to see these villages! They are completely abandoned today but serve as a great insight into the way of life for people along the coast. You have to get special permission to enter these sites. Probably with a guide of some sort since they are gated and locked.

Our next stop was Al Jassassiya, which is another excavation site. This particular location is supposed to have petroglyphs.  But you must have special permission to enter this gated area as well (I believe through the museum in Qatar). We will be looking into this and hopefully coming back to these places!

Next we went to Al Ruwais. This was supposed to be a great weekend get away town with beautiful beaches and resorts and plenty of things to do.  It is a pretty town and may one day have many beautiful resorts and things to do but currently it does not! There is a lot of construction all around and some very nice large homes near the ocean. The water is blue-green and the view is pretty. But there isn't very many places to eat or things to do. We were able to see everything of interest from our car as we drove through.











 Next we went to Al Khor (which means "sea on three sides"). This is really a pretty town about 50km from Doha. We really liked it and will be coming back to spend more time here! This town is a little more built up so there are things to do and see here but yet it still manages to be more tranquil than Doha. This would be a good place to go if you wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of the "city" life.

It's like being 16 again!

Today my husband, Trevor went for his driving test. Yes, that's right! It's like being 16 all over again. Here in Qatar you can no longer easily transfer your US driver's license over to a Qatari license. When you first get to Qatar you can get a temporary driver's license. But once you receive your resident permit then it is not valid and you must do your driver's test and it's a multi-step process. First you have your picture taken, then you go for your eye exam. If you pass your eye exam then you make an appointment for the road sign test.
The road sign test is a verbal test of which you must say the answer that they are looking for otherwise you will fail.
If you pass the verbal test then you move onto the next step. You are divided into two groups, each in a separate bus; one for the manual drivers and one for the automatic drivers. This is really important to know because no one told us this: The type of car you test in goes on your license and you are only licensed to drive this type of vehicle, so make sure it matches the type of car you own. This will be marked on the back of your license (example: vehicle-car, automatic). If you take the road test in a manual car, you are licensed to drive both a manual and automatic, but not vise-versa.
The 2nd step in the sequence is a parking test with cones and a hill stop (Americans can skip this part). Once you pass the first 2 steps in the sequence, you can take the driving test. The bus full of people waiting to test follows the car around as each person is tested.  This process can take a few hours. If you pass this part of the sequence you pay $250 Riyals ($67.50USD) and they issue you a driver's license that is good for 5 years. If you fail any part of this sequence you have to return at a later date to retake the test starting with the step you failed and yes, you pay again. You can only fail the 3rd step (the driving portion) twice! Did I mention that men and women are tested separately? What a process right?
Trevor passed, by the way!

Ramadan Iftar and Suhoor

http://www.timeoutdoha.com/restaurants/features/33746/page/2

This website has a list of restaurants that do Iftar and Suhoor meals during Ramadan. Check it out at Time Out Doha.

Back to my home away from home!

We got back from Germany yesterday.  It's really good to see Sammie and Fiona! But we weren't ready to leave Germany!  It is beautiful there.  The weather was warm (but not hot) and it only rained a little bit the whole week. We forgot how much we missed trees and bright arrays of flowers until we visited Germany!  Everything is so green and lush there.  Even Colorado isn't that green.  It reminded us of the east coast in the states. All of these pictures are of Germany.  From the vineyards to the rivers, it's just amazing.

It was great to see our friends and spend time with them.  Plus they were the best tour guides! They took us all over. We got to see quite a few towns in Northern Germany.  They knew all the best places to see.

Now that we are back in Qatar it is time to start planning for Ramadan. Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic lunar calendar. Ramadan begins on a different date each year (it varies by about 10-12 days each year).  It is based on the waxing crescent of the moon following a new moon or rather when the first crescent of the new moon is visible. During this time Muslims fast during the daylight hours. This means no eating, drinking or smoking.  Restaurants are not open until after sundown and most businesses have shortened work days (from typical 8 hour days to maybe 5 or 6 hour days). Non-Muslims are asked refrain from eating or drinking in public during this time as well. I do believe that most 5-Star hotels may cater to expats during the day, though. But I will have to report back to you on that one.

After sunset Muslims break their fast with an evening meal called Iftar. From what I've read about it, charitable organizations set up Iftar tents all around Qatar with food for everyone. Sounds awesome.  I can't wait to try some more of the local foods!

Before sunrise there is a Suhoor meal. This is the last meal before fasting begins for the day so it tends to be a heavier meal.

According to predictions Ramadan should begin on July 20th this year.

Nanstein Castle, Germany

 

Today was Jenny and Bobby's wedding.  Then we went with them to this Castle called Nanstein. It was beautiful! We walked around the castle for a while. Then we went back to their house for their reception and barbecued. We really enjoyed visiting with their friends and family.  It was a lot of fun! The weather was fantastic yet again!

Visiting Germany

We just got to Germany yesterday morning. We've never been here so we are really excited for the opportunity to come! Even better yet, we are visiting a long time friend, Jenny! Plus Jenny and Bobby are getting married tomorrow so we are lucky enough to be here for the wedding! Not to mention that it is really nice to be able to visit her while she's so close to us (it's only a 6 hour plane ride from Qatar) because in a few months they will be moving to California.

Yesterday we made a short road trip from Frankfurt to Kaiserslautern (about 1 1/2 hours if you drive straight through) and we walked around several different towns on the way.

Here are some pictures! The weather was great, in the 70's, with no rain.

We had German beer and Curry Wurst. Yum!