Doha, Qatar, June 2022
Our next major trip after Colombia was to Doha, Qatar. Why Doha? Doha is not only a major Qatar Airlines hub for onward connections to the Middle/Far East/Indian Subcontinent and Africa that makes Doha a great connecting airport to transit through; but it also has a lot of history and culture to admire. We made 4 stops in Doha over a couple of years and this is a collection from all the trips in one blog post.
A little about Qatar; located in the Persian Gulf, it is a peninsula off the Saudi landmass; so, it’s only land border Is with Saudi Arabia. Qatar has been ruled as a hereditary monarchy by the House of Thani since Mohammed bin Thani signed an agreement with Britain in 1868 that recognized its separate status. Following Ottoman rule, Qatar became a British protectorate in 1916 and gained independence in 1971. The current emir is Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who holds nearly all executive, legislative, and judicial authority in an autocratic manner under the Constitution of Qatar. He appoints the prime minister and cabinet and presides over the partially-elected Consultative Assembly (Majlis as-Shura). In early 2017, the population of Qatar was 2.6 million, although only 313,000 of them were Qatari citizens; the rest 2.3 million were migrant workers. The official religion is Islam, and official language is Arabic. The country has the fourth-highest GDP per capita in the world. It has the world’s third-largest natural gas and oil reserves and is one of the world’s largest exporters of liquefied natural gas. As a result, it is a ultra-modern city.
Historically, settlements and tools dating back to the Stone Age have been unearthed in the Qatar peninsula. Mesopotamian artifacts originating from the Ubaid period (c. 6500–3800 BC) have been discovered in abandoned coastal settlements. Qatar played a commercial role while under the Sassanid rule, contributing at least two commodities: precious pearls and purple dye. Substantial development in the pearling industry around the Qatari Peninsula occurred during the Abbasid era, and a lot of pearl trade developed with India and China and with other Indian Ocean sea faring nations.
Our first trip to Qatar was during Covid, and Qatar was very strict about making sure everyone was vaccinated, and contract tracing was paramount. So, we had to prove we were fully vaccinated and then had to set up the official Ehteraz App on our mobiles; and had to show this at every public place we visited in Doha before we were allowed to enter. This included hotels, restaurants, Museums, event places etc. Masks were mandatory. Upon landing, we got an Uber to the Sheraton hotel (now Intercontinental) in the Al Qassar area, just past the financial district. Ubers were plentiful and quite cheap; and all the “workers” were foreigners. The Qatari’s appeared to be liberal with foreigners, though alcohol & nightclubs are only allowed in a few licensed high-end hotels. Misbehavior is not tolerated. Views of the city and places we visited with explanations are below.
Party boat ride with several other people (Filipinos and Pakistanis)
Next day, we went for a traditional Qatari breakfast to the Shay Al Shomous restaurant in the Souk Waqif area; the food was very good, and this became our go to breakfast place every time we were in Doha. Started by a woman, who succeeded against all odds in a male-dominated society.
One day, we visited the National Museum of Qatar, an impressive building that is built like a desert rose, which is an intricate rose-like formation of crystal clusters of gypsum or baryte, which include abundant sand grains. The rosette crystal tends to occur when the crystals form in arid sandy conditions, such as the evaporation of a shallow salt basin. The crystals form a circular array of flat plates, giving the rock a shape similar to a rose blossom. Highly recommended. During the day, it is hot and not many people were here.
360 degree view of the National Museum of Qatar
One evening, we visited the Katara Plaza and Cultural Village; the Katara suburb was close to our hotel. There is a stately open air retail center with luxury boutiques and many outdoor eateries that were packed with locals. When we walked to the outdoor seating/eating, we were shocked to find that the outdoor areas of the retail center were air-conditioned. Another first for us to experience & enjoy outdoor open-air, air conditioning 🙂 .
We spent some time in the ancient Souq Waqif, which was founded at least a century ago in proximity of a dry riverbed known as Wadi Musheireb. The phrase “Souq Waqif”, stems from the fact that traders used to set up shop at the gates to show off their wares. It was a gathering place where Bedouins and locals would trade a variety of goods, primarily livestock goods. As it was a market used for trading activities, the area used to be located immediately on the sea-shore to allow for boats to access it from Doha Bay. Souq Waqif’s position relative to the bay was significantly altered throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s due to land reclamation for the Doha Corniche, which shifted the coastline approximately 1,100 ft northward.
With the boom in oil & natural gas prosperity in the 1960’s onwards, the souq fell into decline and in 2003, most of it was destroyed in a fire. This event initiated a restoration program by the government in 2006, with the purpose of preserving its architectural and historical identity. Buildings constructed after the 1950s were demolished whereas older structures were refurbished & restoration was completed in 2008. It has different areas with shops specializing in different products such as gold souk, birds souq etc. In the heat of the day, there were few people visiting. Some views of the old restored souq below.
Walking around the Souq Waqif, we came across the Falcon Souq, with many shops selling falcons and all paraphernalia associated with falcons. Falcons are birds of prey of the hawk family and are fierce diurnal birds who hunt efficiently during daylight hours. With almost 8 times better vision than the sharpest of human eyesight, falcons silently swoop down as soon as they spot their prey. The qualities of this wild bird launched the tradition of hunting fresh meat to augment the nutrition of desert nomads, over 5000 years ago in Iran and has spread across the Middle Eastern countries over centuries. The Bedouins introduced the art of this tradition to the State of Qatar. where the raptor is highly trained and used to hunt down migratory birds for food. The bond created between the bird and its trainer always results in a great hunting partnership. Falcons are associated with wealth and nobility, for owning a healthy falcon is an affluent and time-consuming proposition. Falcons are a crucial part of the rich heritage and culture of Qatar, where they are highly honored and celebrated as the national bird of Qatar.
There was even a fully equipped Falcon Hospital here, run by the government.
Further inside the Souq, we came across more traditional market items for sale; see below. Sadly, no fruits and vegetables here.
Further ahead, we came across the Bird Souq; a clean place considering the number of birds here.
Souq Waqif came alive at night as locals and tourists all came out in the cooler temperatures, some scenes below
Doha has a small metro system that we used to get around easily; very clean, efficient, safe, and all stations and the carriages were air conditioned
On one ongoing trip from Doha, we met Faisal Sami, who kindly insisted we look him up on our return to Doha, and he took us around Doha and showed us a few other places; like this over-the-top marble mall (Place Vendôme Mall), Lusail, where Faisal treated us to dinner.
Opulent Place Vendôme Mall in Doha
Faisal also took us to the Museum of Islamic Art, which had exhibits about Baghdad which was a center of Islamic learning & excellence, together with a display of the spread of Islam all over the world. Faisal and his family were super kind to us; complete strangers, and we will always fondly remember them for their kindness. Some images below
Views of the Al Wakrah Souq along the beach
Marchpast of the camel brigade at Al Wakrah Souq
Thoughts on Doha, Qatar. We found Doha to be quite liberal and progressive; but no tolerance of misbehavior, and very limited/controlled alcohol. Almost all workers we came across were foreigners; all appeared happy & living a decent good lifestyle. Because of the wealth Qatar has, the buildings, living spaces, hotels, malls, museums etc. are all very, very impressive and modern. And it was totally safe everywhere. The 5 senses? The place is quite hot, so one has to be prepared. The outdoor air-conditioning at Katara was something to be experienced 😊. All the architecture and buildings were an impressive sight. Food was fresh and very tasty everywhere, and all kinds of foods were available; I suspect most of the food is imported fresh daily. And not expensive at all. Service was excellent everywhere, and we were always treated very well. The best part was that Doha was not crowded, not large/wide-spread, and not hectic like Dubai has become; so, I liken this to a mini-Dubai without the crowds, and easy to get around. Definitely worth a visit as it is a great transportation hub, so stopovers are easy.
