tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-94433832012-01-29T09:36:42.581+03:00The life and times of an American family in Qatardervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.comBlogger1921100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1151326176252137482006-06-26T15:33:00.000+03:002006-06-26T15:49:36.280+03:00

William John Sabin Nov. 13, 1941 - June 25, 2006Beloved father and grandfather

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Painting, Doha Cultural Festival 2005

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dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1142606459502929222006-03-17T17:39:00.000+03:002006-03-18T03:02:33.396+03:00

I walked into a hardware store a while back, needing a couple of items. I found what I was looking for, and it was clearly priced at thirteen rials. I confirmed this with the (Indian) clerk, then grabbed two and handed them to him. He said “Thirty rials”.I said, “No, they’re priced at thirteen each.” He said “Yes, thirteen for one, but two for thirty”. I said “Thirteen and thirteen are twenty six

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This past Eid al-Adha sand castles were built throughout the largest shopping mall here (City Center). Security guards were posted at them to prevent their destruction by overly enthusiastic kids. At the end of the celebration though, the kids did win out in some cases, as at least several were destroyed! Big fun.These aren't the only castles in the sand here, as Qatar is experiencing a massive

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1139861567845399382006-02-13T22:40:00.000+03:002006-02-13T23:23:53.196+03:00

recent photos of the kids (okay, okay, I promise I'll knock it off soon, just indulge me a little bit here!)First is my oldest, Shamsuddin. He's six and a holy terror! He loves to ride his bike, ride horses, and make trips to the desert. Exploring ruins or riding four-wheelers on the dunes are tied for his favorite pastimes out there.ShamsNext comes my daughter Elia. She's three, loves to draw

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1139857492417604262006-02-13T21:52:00.000+03:002006-02-13T22:23:39.743+03:00

awhile back. I know we've already done the baby-destroys-the-cake thing on this blog, but what the heck, here's an encore, this time in strawberry!AnticipationSheer PleasureAbject DestructionShe's walking and talking these days, full of energy and absolutely determined to do everything her big sister does.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1139754276280359522006-02-12T17:21:00.000+03:002006-02-12T17:27:06.023+03:00

MarimaI haven’t been blogging much lately. We made a trip to Turkey this summer, then didn’t have a maid for months when we got back, thus the duties of domestic life trumped blogging for the most part. Since that time, we have hired a wonderful new maid from Ethiopia, her name is Marima, and she's been a Godsend.I’ve also been active elsewhere on the net. I try to keep

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dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1137434338364562242006-01-16T20:58:00.000+03:002006-01-16T20:58:58.376+03:00

Painting, Doha Cultural Festival 2005 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1130624859639114162005-10-30T01:27:00.000+03:002005-10-30T01:27:39.656+03:00

Painting, Doha Cultural Festival 2005 

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Ostrich eggs 

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This is number two, our eldest daughter 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1130624059733504342005-10-30T01:14:00.000+03:002005-10-30T01:14:19.786+03:00

She's a princess 

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She loves high heels! 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1130623890100192392005-10-30T01:11:00.000+03:002005-10-30T01:11:30.130+03:00

Number two turned three recently 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1130623713197169232005-10-30T01:08:00.000+03:002005-10-30T01:08:33.216+03:00

Elephant with make-up, Doha zoo 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1130623014725330082005-10-30T00:56:00.000+03:002005-10-30T00:56:54.763+03:00

Number three is almost ten months old now 

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Chocolate cake! 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1128723619813271902005-10-08T01:20:00.000+03:002005-10-08T01:20:19.826+03:00

My youngest is crawling 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1120940575966244292005-07-09T23:22:00.000+03:002005-07-09T23:22:55.970+03:00

Date harvest 

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1120940075693407912005-07-09T23:10:00.000+03:002005-07-09T23:14:35.693+03:00

The dates are finally getting ripe. After weeks of blistering heat they are starting to turn brown. While still not completely ripe, they are quite good even now... those pictured above are current.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1118429889384831952005-06-10T21:58:00.000+03:002005-06-10T21:58:09.386+03:00

Here's a picture of my youngest

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She's five months old now

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1118424099289904022005-06-10T20:21:00.001+03:002005-06-10T20:21:39.293+03:00

Nursing mother

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The baby latches on

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Here’s something kind of cute. This is a breastfeeding doll. These are hand-made by a women’s group in Saudi Arabia to raise awareness about breastfeeding. Breastfeeding rates in the Gulf are still pretty good, but they are falling as the economies modernize. This doll is part of an effort to slow or stop that trend.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117841786893629612005-06-04T02:36:00.000+03:002005-06-04T02:36:26.896+03:00

Painting, Doha Cultural Festival 2005

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Swimsuits

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117840777474424332005-06-04T02:18:00.000+03:002005-06-04T05:16:39.933+03:00

Here are some pictures of swimsuits that I found on-line. These aren’t actually from Qatar, but you will see these here, especially among Arab ex-pats. My wife is having one brought back from Egypt. Wearing a get up like this isn’t necessary, but it does tend to cut down on the stare factor.Other ways that women deal with this problem are to swim in indoor women-only pools, to swim with an abaya

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117840231816180042005-06-04T02:10:00.000+03:002005-06-04T02:10:31.820+03:00

Carpets

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117840134240021402005-06-04T02:08:00.000+03:002005-06-04T02:08:54.246+03:00

This might be one of the best places on Earth to buy Oriental rugs. The reason being that Iran and Turkey are close by (you could hit Iran with a rock from here), and the market is highly competitive. The demand for these rugs is huge, as the locals buy plenty of them for their own houses.Due to this, there are plenty of sellers, and plenty of deals. You have to know what you’re doing to a

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117572603447498512005-05-31T23:50:00.000+03:002005-05-31T23:50:03.453+03:00

Old Qatar

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Near Rayyan

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Corniche

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117572409900353042005-05-31T23:46:00.001+03:002005-05-31T23:46:49.903+03:00

Skyscrapers

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Sheraton Hotel

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117572319555633062005-05-31T23:45:00.000+03:002005-05-31T23:45:19.556+03:00

Houses

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I have been giving some thought as to what sort of personal qualities are necessary to make a successful adjustment to the culture here. I haven’t been here all that long yet, but already I have seen several people come and go. Some in fact run away screaming in short order! Adjusting to life in the Gulf is a big step for western ex-pats. In some ways it could be said that there is no culture on

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117329975414442852005-05-29T04:26:00.000+03:002005-05-29T04:26:15.416+03:00

Introducing Fulla

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Fulla Dolls

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Fulla With

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Fulla Without

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I would like to introduce you to Fulla. Fulla is the Arabian answer to Barbie. Barbie of course is well known here, in fact she is found in practically every toy shop, …and so is Fulla.Fulla came about as a result of dissatisfaction about Barbie, and the values, or even the mindset, that she represents. To someone living here, Barbie isn’t considered an adequate role model for little girls. She

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117329575198152252005-05-29T04:19:00.000+03:002005-05-29T04:19:35.200+03:00

Fulla on the go

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117066910995232822005-05-26T03:21:00.000+03:002005-05-26T03:21:50.996+03:00

Potty training

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117056480505673922005-05-26T00:28:00.000+03:002005-05-26T00:28:00.506+03:00

Chocolate chips!

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117056447461834102005-05-26T00:27:00.000+03:002005-05-26T00:27:27.463+03:00

I was looking through some photos today and came across these. They are from last fall when we potty-trained my elder daughter. We got a good laugh out of them so I thought I would share.My youngest was on the way, so it was a good time to discuss bodily functions with #2, and if she showed interest, to go ahead and potty train her. We bought her the pink pony potty pictured above. She loved it

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1117056070687687822005-05-26T00:21:00.000+03:002005-05-26T00:21:10.690+03:00

Play Doh baby

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Surprise!

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116970125282395262005-05-25T00:28:00.000+03:002005-05-25T00:28:45.286+03:00

Hijabi Crossing

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116970076116953972005-05-25T00:27:00.000+03:002005-05-25T00:27:56.120+03:00

Most signs are bilingual Arabic/English

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116970013234603012005-05-25T00:26:00.000+03:002005-05-25T00:26:53.236+03:00

For Hire

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116969556289403662005-05-25T00:11:00.000+03:002005-05-25T00:19:16.293+03:00

My wife is on reduced working hours due to the birth of our daughter this past December. Under Qatari law, ex-pat women are entitled to 40 days maternity leave with pay, plus one year of “mother’s hours”, ie a shortened workday to allow the mother to nurse or otherwise care for her new baby. This is at full pay of course.It’s even better for Qatari women. They get 60 days official maternity leave

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116850805991430072005-05-23T15:20:00.000+03:002005-05-23T22:40:26.460+03:00

Mural, Doha Cultural Festival, 2005

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Ooops! It looks like I owe the United Arab Emirates an apology! My site was NOT in fact banned specifically, but rather my photo host was banned( http://www.photos1.blogger.com/ ). What that means is that somewhere on their (huge) website are photos that don’t pass the censor’s muster. I am guessing that for technical reasons they have to ban the whole site or none at all.While I strongly

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116716702348604022005-05-22T02:05:00.000+03:002005-05-22T02:07:04.936+03:00

Traditional Qatari air conditioning. This is a badjeer, or wind tower. Hot air rises from within, causing cooler air to push downward. The resultant exchange creates a slight breeze. These used to be all over Qatar in the old days, now only a few are left.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116715690764254442005-05-22T01:48:00.000+03:002005-05-22T01:48:10.763+03:00

Window Shopping...

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116715533481032662005-05-22T01:45:00.000+03:002005-05-22T02:45:26.426+03:00

Did I ever mention Qatar corn? Cups of corn with your choice of condiments... garlic, lemon, chili, butter, etc are amazingly popular here. There are stands selling the stuff everywhere. My kids love it!

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116715275982151872005-05-22T01:38:00.000+03:002005-05-22T01:41:15.986+03:00

I have recently discovered that all of the pictures from this blog have been banned in the UAE. Not the text, only the pictures. I am actually quite baffled by that… I can think of four possible reasons… either it was because of the pictures of the camel jockeys (January archives), the picture of Fitri Iskandar’s wounds (April), the painting of women in traditional dress (March), or my daughter’s

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116528122838784132005-05-19T21:42:00.000+03:002005-05-19T21:42:02.840+03:00

Qatari desert

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116527699147088572005-05-19T21:34:00.000+03:002005-05-19T21:34:59.150+03:00

The desert is getting hot these days. The highs have crossed 100 F (37 C), and the lows are running at about 80 F (26 C). This still isn’t summer, there is still some greenery in the desert, although it’s fast disappearing. The camels are still foraging. Soon the sand will be too hot to walk across by day.Everything slows down in the summer here. Everyone who can gets out of Qatar, at least for a

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116523625553390432005-05-19T20:05:00.000+03:002005-05-19T20:30:54.523+03:00

I found an article on the web that I thought was interesting. It’s a fictional piece about an Emirati (UAE) wedding. The article has it’s flaws. It’s written by a westerner, who is also a Christian (or at least a non-muslim), so she projects a few of her own cultural misconceptions and so forth. Also she manages to pack a lot of negative stereotypes into the same story. It’s unlikely that any one

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116194734105918832005-05-16T01:05:00.000+03:002005-05-16T01:05:34.106+03:00

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116194673601083952005-05-16T01:04:00.000+03:002005-05-16T01:04:33.603+03:00

A few of our friends

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116194626923707672005-05-16T01:03:00.000+03:002005-05-16T01:03:46.926+03:00

The climate is harsh here. Walks in the desert soon reveal the inevitable animal skeleton.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116194094771133002005-05-16T00:54:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:54:54.770+03:00

Neon lights are very popular here. Most shopping centers have them. Many are much more elaborate than this, but this one is typical.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193752104676822005-05-16T00:49:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:49:12.106+03:00

City Center Mall. The air-conditioning alone makes it a great place to shop.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193617673801662005-05-16T00:46:00.001+03:002005-05-16T00:46:57.676+03:00

Qataris love fountains!

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193572186737332005-05-16T00:46:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:46:12.190+03:00

City Center mall

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193523933815622005-05-16T00:45:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:45:23.933+03:00

Skating rink on the ground floor of City Center mall

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193473010694642005-05-16T00:44:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:44:33.013+03:00

City Center shopping mall

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116193082907908172005-05-16T00:38:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:38:02.910+03:00

Twinky Sterling ... the best burger in town.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1116192960505047732005-05-16T00:35:00.000+03:002005-05-16T00:36:00.506+03:00

Twinky is Qatar’s answer to the American fast food outlets that have opened here in recent years. It’s pretty good, and it specializes in hamburgers and chicken. The logo looks suspiciously like the Pillsbury doughboy.Note the apartments on the second floor. Workers from the shops below live here, as well as in an apartment building out back. Not all workers in Doha live in such close proximity

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115912151730477472005-05-12T18:35:00.000+03:002005-05-12T18:35:51.823+03:00

Dervish and friend. Here is traditional Gulf dress for males, for those who haven't seen it. Camels here are glad to pose for you, but it'll cost you a carrot.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115911703972488452005-05-12T18:28:00.000+03:002005-05-12T18:28:24.120+03:00

Couch Arabi

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115911596925840472005-05-12T18:22:00.000+03:002005-05-12T18:51:21.483+03:00

Pictured above is “couch Arabi”. This is traditional Khaleeji (Gulf) furniture. It comes in many colors, but the pattern you see here is the traditional one, and therefore the most common. This particular set is a bit westernized, because the cushions are elevated, like a western couch. Traditional sets place the cushions right on the floor. It’s modular, all the pieces come off, so you can

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115758276531358572005-05-10T23:51:00.000+03:002005-05-10T23:51:16.720+03:00

Doha Cultural Festival, 2005

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115757379571712932005-05-10T23:36:00.000+03:002005-05-10T23:36:19.656+03:00

Abaya and niqab

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115757195172086562005-05-10T23:28:00.000+03:002005-05-10T23:43:02.036+03:00

For the benefit of my western readers, here is an example of traditional dress for women here in the Gulf. The garment covering the body is an abaya. It is loose, opaque, and is worn over a woman’s regular clothing. The garment covering the head is a hijab, while the portion covering the face is a niqab (actually the niqab covers the head too, and is worn over the hijab). Many niqabs have two

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115492877180243282005-05-07T22:07:00.000+03:002005-05-07T22:07:57.346+03:00

Mecca Cola

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115491514974476182005-05-07T21:43:00.000+03:002005-05-07T21:45:14.980+03:00

The Cola Wars are raging in Qatar. Many brands are scrapping for market share. Years ago Pepsi was king, along with it’s affiliated brands, but not much else was here. More recently, Coca Cola moved into this territory with a vengeance, and now a plethora of local brands are coming out as well.The photo above is Mecca Cola. I believe it’s actually made in France, but I’m not sure. In any case it

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330819634152202005-05-06T01:06:00.000+03:002005-05-06T01:06:59.710+03:00

Qatari fashion

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330740360731502005-05-06T01:05:00.000+03:002005-05-06T01:05:40.440+03:00

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330681880881542005-05-06T01:04:00.000+03:002005-05-06T01:04:41.950+03:00

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330591343339892005-05-06T01:03:00.000+03:002005-05-06T02:40:20.473+03:00

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330529200169682005-05-06T01:02:00.000+03:002005-05-06T01:02:09.280+03:00

Qatari dress

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330379633781402005-05-06T00:59:00.000+03:002005-05-06T00:59:39.730+03:00

Note the length... the abaya, or black outer garment is sometimes this long too, even hiding the shoes. Watch your step!

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115330166807006942005-05-06T00:56:00.000+03:002005-05-06T00:56:06.953+03:00

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115329947153532282005-05-06T00:50:00.000+03:002005-05-13T14:35:44.466+03:00

Above are some photos of dresses we found around town. I won’t say that they are typical per se, but you find a lot of stuff like this. It’s hard to say what is “typical”. What sort of clothes are “typical” of the west? You can’t really point to a certain design… there is too much to choose from. The same goes here.Fifteen years ago apparently there wasn’t nearly as much to choose from. Little

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115078814627794292005-05-03T03:06:00.000+03:002005-05-03T03:17:42.906+03:00

Adam and Eve: painting, Doha Cultural Festival, 2005

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1115078529910063762005-05-03T02:57:00.000+03:002005-05-03T03:31:27.343+03:00

I have received some interesting criticism about this blog. It seems that some think that I am too positive about Qatar! I plead guilty as charged. Perhaps I should explain myself.There are many middle-eastern blogs out there that are highly critical of the regimes that they live under, and rightly so in many cases. I think that there is an expectation on the part of many that bloggers will

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811498927183202005-04-30T00:51:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:51:38.926+03:00

Gold souq

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811427172438922005-04-30T00:50:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:50:27.173+03:00

Gold souq

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811381816884532005-04-30T00:49:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:49:41.816+03:00

Necklaces, gold souq.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811312823113702005-04-30T00:48:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:48:32.823+03:00

Rings... note the size, they are huge! Pendants in the foreground.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811240418781302005-04-30T00:47:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:47:20.416+03:00

Golden belts, Gold Souq.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114811145614054972005-04-30T00:45:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:45:45.613+03:00

Gold Souq

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114810729477485232005-04-30T00:38:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:44:49.133+03:00

Above are some photos from the Gold Souq. The area has dozens, probably hundreds, of little shops packed into a couple of city blocks downtown. The items on view are typical. Most of what you see is 22 karat gold. The pieces are sold by weight, and currently the price is 60 rials ($16) per gram. Prices are slightly flexible, but not greatly. You can usually knock about ten percent off, but

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9443383.post-1114809957245091252005-04-30T00:25:00.000+03:002005-04-30T00:25:57.246+03:00

This is a country that loves chaise lounges, you see them everywhere.

dervishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07162071099703255032noreply@blogger.com0