The Doha Daily: doha daily 3/18/06

Wardrobes, blinds and phone line – CHECK! Clean house, semi-free of dust - CHECK! NOW WHERE'S OUR STUFF?! It has been 17 days since it arrived; could be any day now...so they say. But I've also just learned that the more video's/dvd's/books/music you have, the longer it takes to sort out as Customs could very well be sifting through each one to make certain there is no offensive or forbidden content. And we brought quite a few. Hope the Disney dvd's clear ok : ). Once we move, I think the hardest thing I’ll have to teach Tristan is that smoked salmon and capers don’t just magically appear on a plate each morning for breakfast…as they do here in the Hotel :)

We were walking around the Hotel the other day when I walked into the Shisha tent where the Employees were cleaning and serving the pipes. They are very interesting looking as I have mentioned before and I now I know how they are prepared. The base of the pipe serves as a water reservoir and the tobacco is packed tightly into a cap-like piece at the top of the pipe covered in foil with several poked holes – almost looks like a showerhead. Red-hot coals, 3 or 4, are then placed on top of the foil to begin cooking the tobacco. There is a long mouthpiece connected to a long tube connected to the water reservoir. It is placed along side you as you sit with your friends holding the mouthpiece in your hand taking the occasional toke, while sipping tea, talking about life and eating dates – at least that’s what I see them doing in the Shisha Bar. As Tristan and I were watching them prepare the pipes, they prepared one for ME! Grape. Of course, I HAD to try it, so I took 2 puffs and blew out the smoke, probably in Tristan’s face. It kind of tasted like grape, but smelled very sweet and spicy. Tul, the Shisha attendant egged me on to take more so I took two more puffs and gave the pipe back as a small rush of some sort entered my head – I think it was more of a headache actually. There is no nicotine and I've been told there is no scare for addiction. Everyone started laughing at me and I was told that it could be a normal reaction to the first time (or two…) The tobacco should normally last for about ½ hour. And I was shown a special ball of foil which contained the “hard-core” tobacco that only “old men” smoke. Interesting...

I visited the dermatologist the other day – ironically enough, it took me moving to the desert to be concerned about taking care of my skin. Since moving here, I’ve had extremely dry skin and the Dr. thinks it may due to the water here and the extreme way the seawater is processed and then reprocessed again. Whatever it is, I’m now applying oil to my skin after a shower or bath and using Bioderm, an intense moisturizer made in France to find a cure. I will return to the Dr. in 3 days from now to see if there has been a difference. I guess Vit C doesn’t prevent skin-stuff : )

As we decided a used car was the way to go, I was scouring the classifieds, websites and shopping center bulletin boards for any used car deals. Tristan and I went to a used car dealer last week – Boy…THAT was fun. As we were looking at an SUV, Mohammed, the car Salesman let us into one to see how it performed and began small talk with, “Where are you from?” etc…When I told him the US, he asked me if I could get him a Visa to go there. WHAT?! He then asked me if I was married, to which I immediately replied, “YES!” CREEPY! I cut the car-hunting short needless to say, and told him I planned on returning with someone in the afternoon. Because virtually all businesses shut down between 1 and 4pm here, except shopping malls. And believe it or not, you would think that all of the fitness centers and spas would be PACKED with people between those times, but it’s quite the opposite – that is the time to eat lunch and take a siesta. Ok, back to the used car salesman. As I was leaving, Mohammed started following me to my car (don’t worry, there were PLENTY of people there). He was asking me what time I would be returning. I stopped before I got anywhere NEAR my car and asked, “Why do you want to know?!” He backed off and started walking away, but it was so frustrating! I’ve heard this is a common occurrence with the men here, even if you are at a bar and standing NEXT to your spouse – it doesn’t seem to make a difference.

Thierry, Tristan and I went to Lulu and Nick’s house last evening (The Scottish couple we almost had the pleasure of living next to back in January). They had a dart competition for their friends and ordered carryout from a place called Caravan – the menu is a 6-page foldout with a diverse variety of food – Thai, Japanese, Chinese and Indian, and the food was GREAT! Spicy, but GREAT! So now we know there is a carry-out/delivery service that will deliver in all of Doha. I just need to get ahold of one of those menus. And their friends are all so nice. It’s nice to hear everyone’s stories, where they come from, how many other places they’ve lived – I feel a bit sheltered when chatting with them as this is my first expat experience. Lulu and Nick have a 13-old son, named Jack. Tristan calls him Jack Jack (after the Incredibles) and has taken to him, so BAM! We have a babysitter! And they live quite close to our new place J.

Tristan and I visited the Souq Waqif today (the old souq). Here are some pictures for you: A cobbler in the “cobbler’s pose” and some falcons for sale.

Until next time, See you!