doha daily 2/15/07

NEW MONTH, NEW ATTITUDE!!! All is well here in Doha. The Qatar Masters was in town a few weeks back, and as I wrote to you about it last year, it still remains in our top three for being a place here in Doha that seems so completely ‘western,’ people outside drinking beer in the grassy beer garden, women wearing Bermudas in public…you know? The IMPORTANT things! And the public is so sparse here, you can really see the players closeup. On the 'western note,' there is a Mall just down the street from us, called “Villagio” which is shaping up to look like a cross between the Venetian and Caesar’s Palace in Vegas, except that the ceiling does not change, remaining the ‘cherruby’ blue sky at dusk. And there is a Venice canal that runs through part of it with gondola’s already standing by awaiting Italian-style clad drivers. It’s kind of a tease with the majority of the stores/cafes not yet open but Karen Millen is now there, ABS too, Laundry, Sephora is coming as is Mac, and down the Mall corridor in the still-closed section I can faintly see a Foot Locker sign.

Thierry’s parents and friends were in town for two weeks. And unfortunately while they were here, it rained most of the time, so we (or maybe I) took advantage and played a lot of golf. We did go out on a half-day tour of the desert, using a private company. We did the standard (as I’m told from all of our friends) dune bashing, riding of the camel, stopping and looking at the inland sea. Good times…

And then we went to Dubai. Whoa. WHAT a place. I mean, what a place compared to Doha. It actually feels a bit like Vegas, as everything there is so faux, without the gambling. And the beaches were beautiful. For everyone that has told me that Doha is going to be like Dubai in 10 years, I say, NO WAY. From the time I stepped off the plane, Dubai felt YEARS ahead of Doha. The trees, flowers…much more environmentally sophisticated. The amount of construction that is going on there is incredible, and it’s not just in one centralized area, like it seems here in Doha, along the Corniche. It is everywhere there. HUGE skyscrapers, the world’s tallest building, golf courses, chic restaurants, hotels and private villas where you either take a dhow boat or golf cart to get to your front door. The shopping…I think in Dubai you feel the wealth everywhere – that, and the traffic, HEAVY traffic. From here, the trip to Dubai by plane is 45 minutes, like whisking up to San Fran from LA.

The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai - four years ago there was nothing around; now, it is surrounded by skyscrapers

The weather is now 17C (63F) in the am and 24C (75F) by midday. I’ve been running outside to the stadium down the street. That must look funny because you don’t really see runners around the hood unless you go to the Corniche along the sea. Even though there are hand-laid brick sidewalks lining the streets, there aren’t that many people using them yet. Perhaps in 10 years…

I had the opportunity to record another radio commercial for Qatar’s telephone company, Qtel. Also, there is an American Arts festival beginning tomorrow running for 3 weeks sponsored by Georgetown University. Can't wait to see that! Jazz, Photography, Poetry.

Tristan still liking nursery, Thierry still working heavily and we are once again starting to talk about summer plans - it's never too soon!

tristan at souq waqif wanting to ride the pony and then kind of not wanting to ride the pony

See you!