A sleepless night despite being exhausted. The 12 hour time difference has messed up my internal clock. After breakfast I order an Uber and I’m hit with a wall of intense heat as soon as I exit the hotel. My whole body is instantly sweating and I can feel rivulets of sweat running down my back and legs. Lovely.
My first stop is Qanat Quatier Canals, which is a housing subdivision built to replicate Venice, complete with canals and colourful buildings. Since it’s Friday, all the shops are closed so I have the place to myself. The humidity is wreaking havoc with my camera and it takes a good half hour until my camera warms up from the air conditioning it was in all night to de-fog. Meanwhile, my shirt is completely soaked and there’s big wet spots where my knees have sweated through my linen pants. That’s a first.
I had planned to do a lot of walking while I was here, but that’s not happening. I usually love the heat but the humidity is sucking the life out of me and I order another Uber to take me to Katara Cultural Village. The brief respite in air conditioning is heavenly and I get dropped off feeling a little refreshed. It’s quiet here as well with all the shops and restaurants closed. A few tourists wander around the area but it’s peaceful having the alleys to myself. A white marble amphitheatre is the crown jewel along with a gold tiled mosque.
I’ve managed to last four hours but it’s time to head back to the hotel. Every piece of clothing, including my straw hat are drenched. The pool is just down the hall and after donning my bathing suit I head straight for the water. Oh bliss! The heat is actually quite bearable once I’m in and I paddle around until it’s time to head off on my afternoon tour of North Qatar.
Omar, my guide, picks me up and we head north into the desert. This isn’t sand dune type desert. It’s rock and coarse sand with a few farms dotting the horizon. This is what Doha used to look like until it burst from the crust of the earth in the last few years. It’s on a similar track as Dubai to create more tourism in the country.
Omar is a an interesting young guy. He joined the army when he was 16 on his brother’s demand due to being a kid that was always getting into trouble and the family didn’t know what else to do with him. It ended up being his calling and he’s now part of the elite special forces unit, has fought in two wars and travels the globe with his unit for training purposes in the span of 11 years. He tells me a few war stories after finding out my profession and feeling comfortable enough to share the grisly aspect of war and the PTSD he suffered afterwards. We chat about politics, the ongoing war between Israel and Palestine, religion and his family. It’s eye opening to have an Arabic perception on what’s happening in the Middle East and gaining insight as to why he thinks it will always be tumultuous in this region. Omar’s the youngest of three and is unmarried so he lives with his parents to ensure they’re looked after. From our conversation, I can see that family is his number one priority and he’s grateful for the turn his life took when joining the military.
We make a stop to check out the reconstructed Al Zuabara Fort which was the first of its kind in Qatar and then swing by the ruins of Lejmail Heritage Village where the settlers who worked in the fort resided. The sun is setting quickly and we arrive at Al Thakira Mangrove Park just as the sky is turning a deep purple and the light waning. I’m trying to keep my eyes open on the drive home as Omar’s club beats rattle around my head.
