Doha Days

Right now I'm struggling for a way to start this post. I’m struggling with a few things really. Things like what day it is (Sunday I think), why I’m awake but my brain is not (jet lag), what day is it (oh hang on we've already done that) which brings me back to why my brain is like mush. This is my round-about way of apologising for any incoherent writing ahead.

Doha is pretty amazing. There’s a construction site everywhere you turn. There’s a lot of development happening here and I’m fairly sure it’s not just because of the upcoming Games

I’ve only been here two days and I’m still loving it. The weather isn’t too problematic for me as more often than not I’m in air-conditioning. It’s just when you step outside and have to stand there for more than five minutes that it starts to hurt. We’ve got a buddy system going where you don’t go anywhere by yourself because the heat can get to you really quickly. I must admit there’s still something odd about having a chart on the back of the toilet door that rates the colour of your urine from good to dehydrated. I’m probably sharing a little much but I felt it was necessary

The villa that I’m staying at is fabulous! Gene, you’ll be happy to know that they have gas stoves in the kitchen. My bedroom is a comfortable size and my bed even more so. A queen bed for such a small girl is such a wonderful luxury! I love my air-conditioner in the room. It makes it possible to sleep without being stifled by the heat. I really couldn’t be much happier with the accommodation! By the sounds of things Gene will be staying two villas down the road from me which is wonderful considering he could have ended up in one of the other two apartment/villa complexes. I’m looking forward to seeing him again in a week and a half, although I do
feel like I should explore the compound a little more so that I have some inkling of what’s about! There’s a pool here and apparently a gym as well. I really should get up early for a swim but having fallen asleep at about 02:00 last night and having to be at work at 09:00 I felt that I could be slack on my first day. We’ll see how I do tomorrow!

My first day of work yesterday was a whirlwind of information, as first days are. Today was better although I found my cotton-candy-brain frustrating. The air-conditioning is both a blessing and a curse. Without it you melt and sweat profusely, with it on it sucks all the moisture from your body. I don’t think I’ve drunk this much water since I did the Murray Marathon many years ago!

Yesterday being my first day in Doha I settled into my room and then headed to work (voluntarily, they did say I could stay at home but why would you when there are people to meet and catch up with!). After work AG took Mel and I shopping for supplies. As soon as we reached the Carrefour (imagine a big supermarket with a hint of k-mart and deli) my jet lag kicked in. Mel had a list. I had a sliver of an inkling that I should get some food to cook for dinner. I decided to work from Mel’s list figuring that she’d been here for a day or two more than I had so she knew where it was at. Sadly
that didn’t help me spend less than her or buy milk to eat my cereal with. On the latter observation, I even watched her pick which milk to buy and offered a non-committal opinion. Stupid brain! After a few hours of dodging trolleys, small children and getting lost we made it home with a variety of items including vegies, bananas for less than AU$1/kg, baklava, soy bread, vegemite (because as an Australian you have to buy it), beach towels, pegs and Aussie grown carrots. We also realised that we had enough food to cook about 1-2 meals.

So it was Nando's for dinner as none of us wanted to cook dinner. The food was good (as usual) but the hot tea with mint afterwards was odd but pleasant enough.

One thing I have noticed here is that many of the locals think that I’m Philippino. This is not a huge concern to me but it does mean that I’m right at the bottom of the expat pecking order. Unfortunately this doesn’t mean that I’m exempt from random men trying to pick me up. Apparently the faux wedding band trick doesn’t work so well without a guy there. Shopping was still fun though and I’m looking forward to braving it again when I’ve
settled in a bit more.

My sense of direction is completely lost here. I’ve been to the office
twice now by two different routes and back to the villas by three different routes. I’m just glad I don’t have to drive here because the roads are a little unfinished and lack street signs. Luckily there’s an hourly shuttle to the office.

Well, I’m absolutely zonked. It’s only quarter to eight in the evening but I think it’s time to curl up in bed with a good book.