Qatarversary and a walk through Najma/Mansoura

This week was my Qatarversary. 1 year in Qatar. Time really has flown. To be honest, my first year here was pretty mixed. As I’ve said before there’s been love, heartbreak, homesickness, culture shock, boredom… the list goes on. But one year on, I feel much better prepared to deal with life in this country and *gasp* I am actually enjoying my life here now! That has something to do with a more positive work environment, as well as generally being busier and having as full a life as possible. At this time of year, that’s not too hard.

To celebrate my Qatarversary (17th Feb for those who care), I went and had my car washed. Actually, the car wash was incidental, but while I waited the 3 hours for it to be washed I walked home and took a visual diary of my trip on the way. This is the first of a series of these as I attempt to illustrate my life in Qatar for a few months.

The car wash is about a 15 minute walk from my flat. For those who know it is on B-Ring Road, near the Airport Road and my flat is in Al Mansoura. For quite a short walk, there is a whole load of interesting stuff to be seen along it… Here goes:

B-Ring Road where the carwash is, is one of the busiest streets in Doha at times. It runs around the fringes of the ‘old’ city, before the dramatic expansion that came with the big expat influx and massive oil wealth happened. Unlike most ring roads around the world, this one is really a road to cut through the city when traffic permits. When I left the carwash traffic wasn’t too bad, but later it was gridlock:

From B-Ring Road you turn into the Najma area. This is a very densely populated part of the city for expats ranging from labourers and cleaner earning 600QR (US$165) per month to wealthyish western expats and Qataris.

Like most of Doha, Najma is under construction. Or as a dear friend says: Doha TBC.

Apart from residential areas there are also restaurants, loads of grocery stores, possibly the highest concentrations of barbers furniture stores on the planet and even motorbike repair shops:

At 6pm the streets are empty, but at midday on Friday this street is crammed with people making their way to/from prayer tat Najma mosque.

At Al Mansoura St (Main St) I turn right, into Mansoura and on the way home:

Passed restaurants (samoosas?), Western advertising, bicycle shops and barbers:

Passed telephone booths:

I turn again at Doha’s latest arrival:

And head into my street:

I walk into my building and then up the stairs into my flat:

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Then I’m at home.. for now.

I don’t spend much time in this flat. Since I moved in a month ago I have really just slept here and stored my stuff here, getting out and about to actually enjoy Doha. It’s been a good month and a good year so far.

Stay tuned for the next instalment. This will no doubt be my walk to work. Then, next week I’ll be going home to Australia and documenting my trip along the way.

~ by danavard on February 21, 2008.