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My last weekend in Doha began yesterday, and I was determined to make the most of it, despite the fact the the usual crew I hang with is out of the country. So since John and Mike were not around, I decided it was time for a trip on my own - something that I hadn't done until this point becauase, well, because I'm a wimp.

I called Fox Transport at noon and they got there a little after 12:30, and it was on to City Center Mall. It took us about a half an hour to get there, which actually wasn't too bad. Usually the amount of traffic makes it take nearly an hour! So, I got there, paid the driver and went in around 1:00pm. Unfortunately, I forgot (or didn't know) that most of the stores don't open until 4pm (though some open earlier). When I arrived the only things open were Carre-Four (a european version of Wal-Mart), Burger King, and Starbucks. So, I went into Carre-Four and bought a couple of little things while I was there, and headed over to Burger King for lunch.

That's right. I came all the way to the Middle East to have lunch at Burger King.

After lunch I decided to just go walking around a bit. I headed toward the indoor hockey arena, and they happened to be having what I can only equate as "Open Skate." I rented some really horrible skates and proceeded to skate around on the god-aweful ice. One of the major problems here is that it has a glass roof, so in the mid-day desert sun, the ice doesn't really freeze all that well. It was slow going, and open skate just isn't that much fun when you are by yourself, and used to playing hockey. I didn't skate for long.

After that it was only about 2:30pm, so after exchanging a few text messages with John, who was in Amman, Jordan, I decided to just walk around and window shop until the stores opened. I ended up at one end of the mall where there was a Starbucks, so I decided to have a Grande Cafe Mocha while I waited. In the process, I got yelled at because I took the cup to the table myself (and didn't let someone take it for me - oops). Anyway, it drank my "coffee" for a while and just kind of people-watched.

That's right. I came all the way to the Middle East to drink coffee at Starbucks.

After coffee it was about 3:15, and some of the stores had started to open, though it was mostly just the "Qatar Optics" stores - that only sell sunglasses and the like. So, I browsed those until 4, when I was able to start going in some of the stores. I purchased a few more items at a variety of different stores, though I wasn't able to find a Qatari football (soccer) jersey for Tom, like I'd hoped.They had some in the Qatari colors, but nothing with a flag or "Qatar" or even any arabic on them. So I struck out on that one. I'll find something else for him. I finished shopping at about 7pm and decided to go have some dinner. My establishment of choice? Applebees.

That's right. I came all the way to the Middle East to have dinner at Applebees.

After my salad that had way too much caeser dressing on it, and my strawberry lemonade that had way too much sugar in it, It was time to head home. I went down to the Fox Transport booth, and no one was there. Uh-oh. I called them and they told me all their cars were busy until around 9:30pm. Double uh-oh. So, I had to go stand in the queue for the cabs - either Karwa (blue and white) or the Orange and White.... Luckily, I got a Karwa (the orange and whites are a little, oh.... gross?). I was hoping, inshallah, that I would get a driver who knew where either my apartment complex or Doha College was. I wasn't lucky. So then I had the pleasant time of trying to explain to my driver where I lived. He got me to the basic area of Al Samriya Gardens, and luckily I was able to direct him from there. I thought John was a crazy driver, until I drove in that cab. Wow. So, I made it back ok.

After that it was time to head to the pool. There was no one there at all. So I swam for a bit and then got out, ordered a juice and some shisha. I decided to try the "Lemon with Mint" juice that I've seen John have before. That was not a good experiment. It tasted like crap. Ah well, at least I tried it. The shisha wasn't bad - I ordered Apple, which I could taste - but I could also taste a definite Mint flavoras well, which leads me to believe it had been used for Mint in the recent past and possibly not cleaned very well. I enjoyed my shisha and headed back to the apartment. It was a full day, and definitely worth venturing out on my own. I should have done it sooner.

The plan for today? Workout, swim, tan, and later on head to the souq with Maya. Hopefully that all goes smoothly. I'm sure it will. But only three more days here - all of which I'll be working. The time flew by, and I had a great time. I'm sure these last few days will be similar.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 08:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike took a good picture of me shopping for shisha and sent it on to me. I'm surrounded by literally hundreds of hookahs, trying to pick out the best one. One funny thing about this place is that it is called the "Doha Family Store." All they really sell are some bongo-type drums, outside lights, and hundreds of hookahs. So my only thought is - they must be starting their children early on this shisha stuff. Why else would it be called the "Family Store?"

A friend back home in DC, Greg, has mentioned that he and I should go to some shisha bars around the area. I think I'll take him up on that offer.

This is my last weekend in Doha. It's pretty amazing that this six weeks went by so quickly. I've had a lot of fun (and did some work), and it made the time fly by. It's funny, in my nearly year living in DC I haven't come close to doing the same type of stuff I did in Doha. I think that is because of two things: it is much cheaper here, and everyone I work with is my age and became a good friend fairly quickly - both of which are not true in DC. In any case, I'm sad to go. On one hand, I want to go home and see Martha and Saber (and maybe even Glory), but on the other hand, life was so much less stressful here, it has certainly made a giant impression on me. I think that is probably why I miss Michigan so much - the stress level is much lower.

I'm planning on heading to City Center Mall this weekend on my own (gasp!), to see about purchasing some more souveniers. That should be an experience. I may lay out in the sun a bit as well - though I'm not tan after six weeks here, so I doubt one extra weekend will do much for that.

I'm heading home Tuesday, June 13, and get back to DC on the 14th. Hopefully my flight is good...

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 04:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For those of you who emailed - here is a picture of the hookah I purchased in Doha. It's pretty nice. I was expecting it would be more expensive than it actually was, considering I got to choose each individual piece, and then they put it together for me. It only ended up being around $50 US, though.

The exciting part will be getting this back on the plane, through customs and to the apartment without any mishaps.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 06:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We went out on the town last night to have a little fun. First, Mike and John took me out to Dukhan with the intent of going into Qatar Petroleum city to look around. Unfortunately, that didn't happen - no visitors without an escort. So we turned around, but not before we went to the beach next to QP city.

While at the beach, John proceeded to get the SUV stuck in the sand. Luckily, with a little bit of digging and by scavenging a large rock and piece of wood, he was able to get enough traction to get out. Pretty funny, regardless.

Then we met up with 8 other GUQ-ites and headed over to the souq. My main goal in going was to price some gifts for Martha. I ended up making a couple of purchases - the highlight being a nice blue hookah for me to take back to the US. It's very nice, and was relatively cheap - so I think it was worth it. It's one of the things I had on my list, and I am glad I got it. I also bought some shisha to take home as well.

After the souq it was on to a Lebanese restaurant for dinner. It was a very neat little building - it was designed to appear as if it was made with old clay brick-work. The food was good, especially my "Crack Tea." When we ordered our drinks and appetizers, we noticed this beverage called "Crack Tea" on the menu. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to say I tried Crack Tea while in Doha, so I had some. It was pretty good, and a few hours later I was craving some more. The restaurant's ambiance was very good, it was very authentic and well set up. Unfortunately, other than the cheese rolls, I was not overly impressed with the food.

After the food it was shisha time. John, Maya, Sara, Kathryn and I stayed, and partook in some for a couple of hours. I had rose flavored this time - which I think it probably the most pleasant. The shisha was good, and after that we all went home, since we had to get up for work today.

All in all, a pretty good day. John and Mike are gone next week, so I plan on heading down to City Center Mall to get some more shopping done. I've also heard good things about the Doha Airport Duty Free, so I'll probably make some purchases there as well.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 07:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is by far my favorite photo from our engagement picture shoot. It's the background on my laptop currently....

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 04:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The toughest thing about being in Doha for six weeks is the ever-impending thought that I have to return to the USA. Not that I dislike the USA, or anything else at home (besides my commute to work), but I've had a lot of fun here so far. I've done more in the four weeks that I've been here than I did in nearly a year in DC.

I think it comes down to the fact that here I'm relying on everyone else to get around and do things. It could be that, or the fact that a lot of the people I'm working with over here are my age, and we have similar personalities, and similar ideas of fun. I have a feeling I'm going to go back to DC and have the shock of not having anything to do on the weekend (except plan for the wedding).

In any case, it has been a lot of fun over here after work and on the weekends. I really wasn't expecting that, but thanks to everyone who works over here for GU, it's been a great trip. Only two weeks left, and there is so much I'd still like to do - and a lot of stuff I'd like to buy to bring home. I'm thinking of maybe taking a cab to City Center Mall tomorrow to do some shopping by myself. I'm just afraid that I won't be able to get back to the apartment.... I'm sure it will be an adventure, and good for me.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was driving home from work last night with Maya and Mike, and this lovely sight appeared on the road in front of us. In case you are wondering, yes those are caskets. They are in the back of a pickup truck, sticking out over the edge, with a single rope holding them down (but not necessarily preventing them from sliding off).

I had to take a picture, no matter how macabre you might think it is. It was crazy to see this on the road, especially since in Islam you aren't burried in a casket. So, that leads me to believe they were for some poor immigrant, possibly christian. In any case, it's a great feeling to drive behind a pickup truck full of coffins. That's Doha for you.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 02:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, so I got locked in my bedroom tonight. I had to call John. This was quite possibly the most embarrassing thing that has happened to me in the last 5-10 years.

I closed the door to keep the a/c in. Then I decided I wanted some water... So I go to the door, and bam! Locked! The keys (that are stuck in the lock) will not turn. There is no way to get out. I call John.... In the meantime, John, Maya, David, Maggie, et al. show up to bust me out. While they are trying to get in, I decide to climb out the bathroom window. Luckily, it works. I get onto the little kitchen balcony (despite some serious scrapes and cuts on my stomach and legs), and make it into the kitchen. Thank god you can open the balcony doors from the outside.

I took the keys with me, and sure enough, they work on the OTHER side of the bedroom door. So I ran downstairs, met everyone and told them the story. So embarassing. For years people are going to be telling the story of the time Jeremy got locked in his bedroom.

Only me. That would only happen to me.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 04:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was looking for something to do last night - it was a pretty boring Friday here. (For those of you who don't know, Friday is a day off - it's like Saturday in the US). I hung out by the pool, did some running, and just chilled out. After a while I started to go a little stir-crazy.

Luckily for me, John gave me a call a little after 10pm to let me know that something was taking shape. The plans required a dress code... this time I was warned in advance, so as not to wear sandals again. Anyway, we ended up at Palomas - a tex-mex style restaurant/bar in the InterCon hotel. We had some food, mine was interesting - a vegetable enchilada. I was thinking that it would be really small pieces of vegetables, but there were actually huge chunks of broccoli, carrots, etc. Not the best thing I've had since I've been here, but it sufficed. While there we got to listen to a live band - John tells me they are from South Africa. They were actually pretty good, and I think if Martha was here with me, we'd visit that place quite a bit.

After that we got word that there was a "Canadian Hockey Party," so we headed over there. Sure enough, there were a bunch of Canadians there. It was a very good time - Jeff, the guy who owned the house where the party was was a nice guy. We had a bunch of beer, and smoked some shisha (once again - this is flavored tobacco). They had a pretty nice pool table, so John and I played a game and got our butts handed to us. They also had paid a DJ to be there, which was cool. Unfortunately for the two single guys I was with, there was a lack of available females. It didn't matter though, everyone seemed to have a pretty good time.

And I can still say I haven't met a Canadian that I didn't like.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 07:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We went on a trip to the desert to go "Dune-ing" on Monday. It was a lot of fun - we had a crazy Qatari driver named Mahmoud, and he took us all over those dunes. Essentially, they all own Land Rovers, and go out to the dunes for fun. In order to actually ride on them, they have to deflate the tires a bit to provide more friction space, or else you get stuck.

After about a half hour drive out to the dunes, he took us for about 45 minutes of riding, stopping occassionally for pictures. It was a pretty cool experience - one I have not had before, and probably won't have again for quite some time.

Take a look at the pictures!

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 09:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

John was so exhausted from the pace of the work in GUQ-IT, that he just collapsed on the couch in this position. We had to dump a bucket of water on him to get him to wake up.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On Sunday I was able to go on a tour of the city of Doha, Qatar, thanks to John suggesting it to HR. They had another guy, Ivan, coming in for a pre-employment visit, so I got to tag along. Our driver was a very nice guy, and we got to see a lot of the city.

I think the highlight for me was the gold and jewelry souq. It wasn't a great experience, but it showed me that if I want to go to the souqs to buy anything, I need someone who knows how to bargain. Which I'm not particularily good at.

I was also impressed with the Emir's Arabian horses. There were a ton of them, and they really took care of them.

So, take a look at the pictures linked here to see what I saw!

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 09:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, so last night at the Ramada Inn was insane. Crazy. Nuts. Beyond bizarre.

I have changed the name to protect the innocent, but I'm sure you can infer who is who in the following story. Our friend, lets call him "Fred" has his own blog, and hit the nail on the head about this night pretty well.
Read about it here.

I can assure you, the prositution was real, and I am not "Tom." Seriously, this was one of the most fun nights I've had since undergrad at Oakland. A real gong show.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 05:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So, here are the few photos that I've taken so far. Click on the picture, and it will take you to my flickr page, where you can view the rest. Right now just pics of the apartment complex. I'm going to the dunes and on a city tour next week, so look for more then.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 07:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It got up to 106 degrees here yesterday. That is some hot weather. Luckily, I am inside almost the entire day, so I miss the brunt of the heat. I got to work out in the nice facility here, but haven't yet had a chance to use the pool. Well, I guess I've had the chance, just haven't been in the mood.

Tomorrow should be interesting, though. I have to go in for my required medical exam - and from what I hear the doctor's office trip isn't one I'll soon forget. I'm nervous, and I have to get up even earlier to get there on time. I'll fill you all in on the details of that tomorrow....

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Friday is a weekend here in Doha, so I ended up going out on the town. John took me with him and another guy - Edward - to a spot called Palm Island.

The trip started off initially as a trip to the Marriott, but they were "booked," so we could not hang out by their pool. Thus the decision to go to Palm Island instead. When John, Edward and I got to Palm Island, they wouldn't let us buy tickets because it was "family day." Family day here is a little strange. Essentially, single males cannot do anything when it is a family-only day (even if they are married/engaged, if the female isn't with them, they are single). So, instead we had to wait for the other people we were missing - an Egyptian couple and a Lebanese couple. Once they got there we were allowed in - because all you need to constitute a family is one female. (Ridiculous, because 10 guys could come with one girl, and be allowed in). Anyway, when they got there, we got tickets and were on board.

Palm Island is a small island in the gulf that has, wait for it.... palm trees! It has a beach and a 4-wheeler track as well. We ended up just hanging around, ate some food, and eventually went swimming. The beach was not soft. In fact, it was mostly very unconfortable rock as you walked out into the water. John dove in and scraped his legs all up, but we ended up swimming for quite a while. The temperature by that time was probably high 80s, low 90s, and the water was just about the same. One interesting thing on the island was the smoking of Shisha - a very popular and interesting habit. (This is not hashish, don't worry!) It's basically flavored tobacco - in flavors like apple, rose petal, lemon, etc. In any case, you rent hookahs to smoke it - and everyone on the island was smoking it, including the people I was there with. So, when in Rome... I tried it. It wasn't actually as bad as I thought it would be - it was almost pleasant. I don't know that I'll make it one of my "things to do," however.

So, after the shisha, and the swimming and the lunch, it was time to leave. I could have stayed there all night, it was so nice. Talking with the Egyptian couple (Nelly and Sharif) was very interesting. It seems, from them, that the reputation you hear in the states of people in the Middle East hating all Americans is not true - although I suspected that was the case anyway. It was englightening to sit and talk with them about Egypt, its relationship with Israel, and how it was outcast in the Arab world for eventually having peace with Israel.

After that, we went to City Center Mall for dinner and had some chicken skewers. I got the mild, and tried John's "hot" chicken. It was quite possibly the hottest "hot" I have ever had. I don't know how John ate it all. After that we took a drive down the Corniche - the main drag, and they showed me some more land marks, including the Souks, which are little market shops.

Then it was back to the apartment. I chilled out, watched Lost, and went to bed. Unfortunately, the USB cable I found doesn't work in Martha's digital camera that I brought, so I have to find another way to get the pictures off. I expect John will help me with that, so stay tuned for more pictures.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 03:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday was my first full day in Doha, and so far everything is good. I woke up about 10am, as my boss over here told me to sleep in and call when I was ready to come in. It's a good thing we have serious air conditioning here, as I doubt I could ever sleep in this heat.

When I was ready, I gave them a call - two of the guys I will be working with, John and Mike, picked me up in John's SUV. Both of these guys seem like good guys, and both are close to my age, which I assume will make this trip a lot of fun. They've both been here a while, and I can foresee myself hanging out with them most of the time. When they arrived, they decided it was time for lunch - so we headed out. Our destination: City Center Mall. The drive took about 15 minutes, so I got to see some of Doha. It's dry, gray, and beige - not a whole lot of color. It's also under construction in almost every direction you look. The Asian Games are coming here in December, and that is the cause of a lot of it.

When we finally arrived at City Center, I was pretty amazed by the size of it. It was one heck of a gigantic mall. They have a lot of Western stores, too - I was suprised by the amount. Plus, there are McDonalds and Hardees everywhere! We went in to a place called Pizza Express and had a buffet lunch that cost 35 riyals- which is about $4 US. It was very good pizza, and John and Mike treated me to lunch. Then we went to the equivalent of Wal-Mart to pick up some things for the office, and I got some food to cook at home (although I was told that I will probably eat out almost every night). They didn't have any TV dinners, but I got some pizza and ramen - how exciting!

After the trip to the mall, we went in to the LAS Building at Qatar Foundation's Education City, where GU operates. I got a walking tour of the building, met some people, and then took my seat in IT. We didn't end up doing much, although most everyone was gone because of a conference. It doesn't seem like it will be that bad of a job, however it also looks like I won't get bored, which is good.

Friday and Saturday are their weekends here, so I have today off. John, who has been here over 6 months, is coming by around 11am QT to pick me up and we are headed over to the Marriott. Apparently, the only place to get alcohol if you aren't a resident is the western resorts. The plan is just to hang out by the pool for most of the day. I'm not upset about that at all. I just don't want to spend too much money, as my bank account is virtually empty until I get paid next week.

I took some pictures of my complex last night, and will take some more of the Marriott today. I'm hoping that the USB cable I have will work, and I can get some of them online tonight.

Posted by Jeremy Sarnovsky at 02:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)