A third side of the middle east

What do you do when you have 10 hours between flights in a humongous airport? Stretch your legs, look at the shops, have something to eat, write up your blog and look at the size of it all …

playground

monorail

That fills about half the time, so thank goodness Qatar airways offers a free city tour of Doha. What a city! Qatar is a tiny nation 160km across and 90km wide created by the European powers in the nineteenth century. Things were pretty quiet with agricultural and pearl diving being the main industries, until oil was discovered in the 1940s. It now has a per capita income of about $US 160 000 p.a. – the world’s highest. At least that’s for the 200 000 Qatari natives. They make up just 13% of the total population. Everyone else is an expat worker, mostly from developing countries come to find work. Our driver and guide were both from Nepal and were a delight, carefully and honestly answering our questions. 

The highlights of the tour?

1. The unbelievable buildings:

art museum

women's eyes (in a Muslim headress) at the top of the art museum

?

mosque

There seems to be a council regulation that whatever you build, it has to look weird.

Perhaps the most extravagant is the airport terminal reserved just for the King.

2. The delightful and newly re-built souq.

How am I feeling to be heading home? Sad but so very thankful to God for such an extraordinary trip – to have enjoyed planning it, and to have seen and experienced and learnt so many wonderful things, and to have had the privilege to do it with my son.

So very thankful to be returning to our wonderful country.

And so very looking forward to seeing my family.