Cultural festival at Katara

Come to #katara and explore cultures of 7 Asian Countries in ASEAN Festival 2015 on 30 April in the Cultural Village
Posted by Katara on Monday, April 27, 2015

  The festival will
feature several events and activities
such as musicals, folkloric shows, art
exhibitions, handicrafts stalls and
food from  the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Singapore .

Flights to Katmandu back to normal operation

from the Qatar Airways homepage

"Qatar Airways' flights to Kathmandu airport in Nepal have resumed normal operation. Passengers holding confirmed bookings on the flights which were cancelled on April 25th are being provided with alternative travel options. Larger aircraft are being deployed on the Doha – Kathmandu route to accommodate the back-log of passengers.
Passengers booked on the affected flights are advised to contact their travel agent or Qatar Airways’ 24-hour call centre on +968 2416 2700 or +974 4023 0000 for rebooking options.
Updated: 26/04/2015: 07:30 GMT"

 there are more than 400 ,000 Nepalis living and working in Qatar

The Bank manager who cooked the books

  The name of the bank was not mentioned . Nor the nationality of the  bank manager .He stole QR132,000  and he was sentenced to five years prison and  no more banking here .
  I am shocked . Just like when a half year ago a famous  car's  showroom  was caught selling used cars
 as new ones . They were  forced to close then . I guess the bank  can operate  that is why their name is not mentioned.
 Usually banks offer nice salary  - I guess . Then this amount was ridiculously small  to risk prison .  It seems to me that this guy in question was not only dishonest but very stupid as well .

Kareena Kapoor - Indian actress was in Doha

Photos [HQ] : More candid clicks of Kareena Kapoor Khan in Doha. She's too sweet 😍 pic.twitter.com/7Ve4bzwKZl
— Kareena Kapoor Khan (@KareenaUpdates) April 24, 2015

She came to inaugurate a new jewelry shop . Big draw for the Indian community . Still so many Indians like investing their money in gold .India's gold need for this year is estimated around 9 tonnes !

Doha Festival City to be completed by 2016

You know the place - the big empty area near IKEA - or it might be not empty now I have not been to the IKEA for a while .
By the end of the next year it will be full of wonders . Robotics park , Angry Birds park ,Snow city with new kind of artificial snow /dream of
many kids living in the Middle East to have " snow experience"/space themed zones etc. It is so big that they are building a car park for 8000 cars .

Somehow I am not very much excited . Besides these mega projects every district should have entertainment for kids . I think about old fashioned protected areas
for playing football ,basketball , ping pong ...sandpits , slides and swings . Every district should have a swimming pool .It is so bad to see kids are playing in the streets
as they have no other options . It is not like 30 years ago when cars were much fewer ...it is very dangerous !

I would be excited to see such projects but they do not even talk about that .

this video was uploaded 3 years ago to advertise the facilities

Ezdan Mall Kids Days out

Have a weekend to remember with your kids & join us Today,Tomorrow & after from 4 till 9pm for "Kids Day out" Event pic.twitter.com/SSfmhOzrIa
— Ezdan Mall (@EzdanMall) April 23, 2015

Doha coastline 100 years ago and now

An interesting read on Doha's changing coastline by Dr Colleen from 'Origins of Doha' project. http://t.co/JHLL4iT8Et pic.twitter.com/JJkAV3SDGi
— UCL Qatar (@UCL_Qatar) April 23, 2015

Modern Cityscape Stretched Canvas Prints by almawad

Adoption and responsibility

Adoption of pets or kids is always a big responsibility .
It is so trendy but it is not easy ! The Hungarian short film reminds people about
their decisions and its consequences .


If you can not afford the time or money of adopting a pet then you still
can donate or work for animal welfare organizations . Do not forget ! Qatar has a
No -kill shelter . You can read about them here 

the day of gold wearing - Akshaya Tritiya

Did you also notice that the newspapers are full of  jewelry advertisements  ?  Akshaya Tritiya ( April  21 ) is a special day of the Indian culture  . It is widely believed that buying jewels and wearing them on this day will bring good fortune . So many Indians invest in gold .    Around 800 tonnes of gold is bought per year in India . Mind boggling numbers .

The Hungarian Minister in Doha , the agricultural city project and Hungarian experts

Levente Magyar ,the Hungarian Minister of State for Economic
Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has been received by Qatar Chamber (QC) vice chairman Mohamed Ahmed bin Tuwar.
Qatar is setting up an agricultural city project across 130sq km west of Doha .Hungarian companies could play an important role
in this as well as other major projects, especially in the field of agriculture technology.

source

Zaatar W Zeit restaurant - Doha Rayyan

I just happened to be hungry when in Al- Rayyan and  I stumbled upon this small eatery . It had some retro feel -  the waiter offered us to pull down the spring blinds as we were sitting near the windows . The napkins were decorated  with the restaurant's logo .It was printed on recycled paper . Before the food was served we got a little sachet with hand cleaning gel .
 The menu's selection is not very big . Salads /pizzas /wraps /manakesh -desserts .  We had a zooza salad  and a traditional pizza  and finally ktiramisu . The salad came in a large transparent bowl  with a lots of  lollo rosso  , potatoes slices ,boiled eggs ,beans ,tuna ,olives ,tomatoes ... mustard vinegar dressing .It was a good start. The pizza   dough was quite thin - it came with cheese  and sauce  and  some meat and mushroom . It was tasty but not that typical Italian taste - rather like a home  made  one! The ktiramisu came in a little cup -  this is their " heavenly version " of the famous sweet treat . I could not find out why it was different . It was simply good .
All of those reminded me a bit the eateries of the  Hungarian railways in the 60's  when I would travel with my dad . Might be it was because of Lebanon ?I remember I heard a lot about it in my childhood and I always wished to visit it . As I wished to visit other places in the Middle East like   the beautiful ancient  lands of Iraq , Yemen , Gaza ... all are bombed or being destroyed in other ways . My thoughts went far  from this simple  Lebanese restaurant ... where we had a casual , urban lunch ,,,
 I might try their breakfast in the Souq Waqif one day . They got terrace and the weather still allows us to enjoy outdoor breakfasts .

 Did you know ? Zaatar is a spice mix in Arabia .
 Zeit is the name of the olives in Arabic ...

Japanese restaurants in Doha

 1  Oishi sushi - Royal plaza

Ad Dawha, Ad Dawḩah, Qatar

Located In Royal Plaza 

Phone 4442 8989

Website

 I love their bento boxes  - it is a full lunch menu with soup ,salad ,curry  and sashimi . I love their crepe and sesame ice cream too .And the possibility to dine in a  private room !

2 . Sushi Minto

Salwa road, All Muthannna  Complex

Doha ( opposite the Jarir book store )

Phone

4467 5577

 They have a spacious place  with retro style interior .Their bento was quite good and a bit cheaper than  Oishi Sushi . I did not like that they were offering burgers for kids .

3.Megu

6 La Croisette, Porto Arabia, 

 The Pearl-Qatar, 26663 Doha, Qatar Ad Dawha,

Mon - Sun: 

7:00 pm - 12:00 am

+974 449 538 76 EXT: 2101 - Mob: +974 6611 2115

Megu, which means blessing, is a sophisticated and modern New-York based Japanese fine dining restaurant   - their specialities are  Original Crispy Asparagus, Yellowtail Carpaccio, Tuna and Salmon Tartares, Wagyu Kobe Beef Chateaubriand, not to forget house special rolls and the wide array of sushi and sashimi offerings . 

 see their facebook page

4 . Nobu   - at the Four Season Hotel

Soar to new heights and discover Nobu Doha, coming this Friday! #Doha #Nobu #qatar #nobudoha #foodie pic.twitter.com/Ifxj0J82rV
— Four Seasons Doha (@FSDoha) April 16, 2015

Nobu Doha restaurant to open tomorrow

R u ready to experience Doha’s new culinary chapter?Nobu Doha will open on Friday,17 April!For reservations 44948600 pic.twitter.com/YSEvSKLCCo
— Four Seasons Doha (@FSDoha) April 13, 2015

Mysterious Snake Attack

  A man living in Doha somewhere near Al Kesha petrol station complained about snakes / They all suddenly attacked his home . There were a lots of them in different shapes and sizes .Most probably different species  . It sounds not only scary but mysterious . What might have happened to them ? Breeding  period craziness ? Some kind of odd sounds that we can not hear?( loud noises especially at a low frequency can cause a snake to become agitated) their natural habitat was disturbed due to the metro constructions ? Air   or ground vibration ? What do you think ?

  The  victim is still fighting with the snakes  to protect his home ...

Stabbing at the School

How sad !When money matters so much for teenagers that they are ready to kill ! Two high-school students were quarrelling in a Doha school and one of them took a sharp object and stabbed his fellow student .It was about money ! They were Asian students = not Arabs .They might have been Filipinos , Indians , etc .Interestingly ,the Middle Eastern Arabs do not think that they are part of Asia .They refer to people living East from Iran as Asians .
The victim was taken to hospital in critical condition .The attacker was injured as well !

Problem solving should be taught at schools !

 Last year there was a brawl at Al -Mana secondary school !

Princesses and Heroes show coming in May

 Disney on Ice coming to Doha


 | "Enter a world where heroes and hearts prevail. Join Ariel as she yearns to explore the world above the waves and Prince Eric breaks Ursula’s spell to reclaim his true love. See Prince Philip defeat the evil Maleficent as she transforms herself into a fire-breathing dragon in a race against time to rescue Sleeping Beauty’s Aurora. Be there to discover a whole new world with Jasmine and Aladdin as they evade the royal guards in a high-speed marketplace chase! Watch in awe as the dreams of Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, Rapunzel and Tiana all come true! Then journey up the North Mountain with Anna and Elsa to discover how an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart.

The show includes the most exciting moments from the number one animated feature film of all time, Disney’s Frozen. Audiences of all ages will enjoy seeing their favorite characters from the animated film including Anna and Elsa, along with Olaf and Kristoff, live on ice and will love to sing-along with all of the popular songs: “First Time in Forever,” “Love is an Open Door,” “Let It Go,” and “In Summer”.

 When : May 27 ,28 ,29 ,30 - 2015
 Where :
 Qatar National Convention Centre

 Tickets : from QR 150 to 2000

 see more

Songkran festival at Grand Hyatt Doha

Grand Hyatt Doha will commemorate Songkran with a week-long celebration at their award-winning Thai restaurant, Isaan,...
Posted by Grand Hyatt Doha on Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Doha from bird's view

Qatar and Doha (capital) - Witness impressive buildings set in a hot desert landscape. Take an aerial zip-around tour in this short montage video. A good preview if you plan to visit, or if you just want to get a taste of what Qatar is like.

Where to buy cheap clothes in Qatar

v

Well ,clothes are not cheap in Qatar .😒  You can find a lots of very expensive boutiques here . However you can find cheaper items coming mainly from the Indian textile industry .Here are some ideas🙆 about where to go to find affordable fashion items .

Sana Fashion 
Store
Umm Ghuwailina (Ras Abu Abboud St.), Doha, Qatar
family owned business whose history dates back to the retail garment industry to over 100 years in the Gulf region.

my personal comments : avoid it during the top hours - it is heartbreaking to see how some customers  treat the new clothes - but I like coming here to buy pajamas /underwear  - they last long .

☛  let's see the next


Ansar Gallery
location 1 . City Center Mall
location 2 .Al Mansoura, Doha, Qatar
"Established in October 2011, Ansar Gallery at Al Mansoura in Doha is one of Ansar Group's newest ventures in the region. This new addition has been designed to bring its shoppers a wide array of quality products that fall within varied price ranges. Spread over 30,000 sq. feet, the sparkling new Ansar Gallery brings to its shoppers an entire floor of impressive choices in perfumery, fashion wear, foot wear, women's accessories, electronics and much more. Besides that, its consumer-friendly and appealing environment makes spending time here an enjoyable experience."
find out more here 

My personal comment -  I came here sometimes before travelling for cheap oriental gifts or suitcases -some  fashion items are nice but most of them are not very attractive for me ...

⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘

Lulu Hypermarkets
location 1 - opposite the Hamad Hospital
location 2 - Gharaffa area
location 3 - old airport area
find out more

My personal comment  -  long time ago  we used to like fashion in LULU  - but their style changed very much  - even for the kids we could not find something to our taste  - it is not our cup of tea anymore

☙☙☙☙☙☙☙

New World Center fashion items from
from local textile industry, Turkey, Thailand and China
fashion for ladies, gents and kids with a wide collection of apparel and accessories
plus size men's and women's apparel
find out more 

My personal comment - I have not been here for ages  - not because I do not like their things but simply because they are so much out of our way !




❖❖❖❖❖


Carrefour supermarket;s clothes sections etc .
location 1 Landmark branch
location 2 Villaggio branch
location 3 City Center Mall branch

My personal comment  -  it happens sometimes that I buy here t-shirts ,pajamas ,jogging suits  - but  I beware of their underwears  as according to our past experiences they do not last long and many times wrong size is written on them .

❦❧❧❧❧❧

 RED TAG
  in the Center shopping complex among luxurious boutiques
  you can find a reasonably priced fashion shop 

My personal comment -  I found kids clothes very much to my taste  - ladies shoes were so beautiful  - if only they were with heels !

❦❧❧❧❧❧What about you ? Where do you buy clothes for yourself /your family ?

Tell me about your clothes shopping experiences in Qatar !
�����

Latest offers in 2024

  Until  February  13 -  Half Pay Back Offer at LULU

 

The richest Arabs in the world

The richest Arabs in the world - list by the Forbes Magazin ...

 A Saudi prince is the first - then comes a Lebanoni business man who makes his fortune by banking - in the list of the first ten richest there is no Qatari at all . 54 th is Sheikh Faisal Qassem Faisal Al Thani with an estimated fortune of 837 million dollars from manufacturing .96th is Khalid Al Thani with 167 million dollars from a transportation company .

Interesting reading - find out more here

Souq Waqif Celebrations from 10-17 April 2015

Come join us at the Souq Waqif Celebrations from 10-17 April 2015 to enjoy spectacular events & magnificent shows. For more details visit www.souq-waqif.qa #SouqWaqif15
Posted by Souq Waqif - Doha/Qatar on Saturday, April 4, 2015

Reem island Ghost claims being mentally ill

 The  killer of the Hungarian -American teacher says she is mentally ill  and  evil spirits made her  stab to death  Ibolya Ryan last December in the toilets of a posh shopping center in Abu Dhabi . 
I believe her  . She must have been mentally unstable and those evil spirits  sending messages from the media must have inspired her  .Ibolya  just wanted to help a " disabled lady " who asked for her assistance . Then Alaa Bader al-Hashemi   turned into a  merciless killer ! .A woman is killing another woman  who is ready to help her in the toilet  ! A woman is killing a total stranger just for being American .Had Ilona been less helpful she would be alive today !
Three kids are missing their mom ! ...

 source

Lost and found - QR470,000 worth rings

The cleaner of the toilet in  Qatar national Convention center returned the two diamond rings worth QR470,000 ( USD 130 ,000 ) to the owner who forgot it in the toilet during  Doha Jewelry Exhibitions ..A..Zelekew was honoured for her honesty by the QNCC management  . She was given gratitude by the owner and cash reward by her company .

Best thing for everyone .

Numbers in Qatar - 400,000 Nepalis

400,000 Nepalis are working in Qatar

Every day, nearly 1,600 youth leave
Nepal to work in Gulf countries
 their working conditions  could be easily improved 
1 . their salary should be deposited in bank accounts = no employer can deny salary
2 . agencies  that take extra fees from workers should be blackisted here =no fraud during recruitment
3 . Nepali lawyer  should work at the Labour Department 

source 

Persian -Arabian Gulf - satellite image

Persian Gulf Canvas Print by CorbisCollections

MODIS image from the Aqua satellite of the greenish Persian Gulf in contrast with the surrounding brown desert and mountains. Seven countries sit on the gulf (clockwise from top right): Iran, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq. Part of Oman is on the tip of the peninsula reaching toward Iran. Oman also stretches to the southeast along the Gulf of Oman (bottom right corner). At the top of the gulf, where Kuwait, Iraq, and Iran meet, flow the Euphrates and the | Image ID: 20135854 | © NASA/Corbis

Qatar Red Crescent needs volunteers

QRC is  a member of the International Movement of Red Cross and Red Crescent . They assist and empower communities in need, regardless of their nationality or religion.Currently  they operate in more than ten countries, including Lebanon, Palestine, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. They work both locally and internationally  .
If you wish to join then you can apply here  .

Coming soon - Gibran the Prophet in the cinemas

Coming soon! May 7, 2015! #Doha #Qatar pic.twitter.com/3ZAz4eBdLB
— Doha Film Institute (@DohaFilm) April 4, 2015

Exclusive Lunch menu at Idam

EXPERIENCE IDAM WEEKLY LUNCH MENU BY ALAIN DUCASSESTARTING FROM QR200For More information: http://bit.ly/1DxAJRV
Posted by Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) on Sunday, April 5, 2015

New Hypermarket in Doha

The New Hypermarket is situated in Bin Mahmoud area  -opposite of it  the metro is being built .

 It  has got a large parking  area but not enough for that big place .They are called  " Quality  Hyper" They got a large supermarket with  Indian style selection ...something like the LuLu . Cheap hot food  ,curry leaves , Indian vegetables but not a good bakery section  . For my usual gourmet items I still have to go to the Megamart .

It has got a department store upstairs .Mens clothes section is quite large but the Women's fashion is modest  However I found  cheap shoes in nice quality  for myself .It was a big surprise for me who needs  special medical shoes for most of the time  and it is so difficult to find  formal shoes that my feet would accept !
Electronics section  and household items are large too -but so far nothing exciting about their prices .

It has got a flower shop  and two small buffets .Pharmacy is coming soon . No ATM inside or nearby . Cards are accepted   but not in every outlets . We wanted to buy flowers but we could not as we had no cash with us .

I think that every districts needs a hypermarket  like this . Traffic jams would be much smaller then if people do not have to travel far for those products .

Happy Easter

Vintage Easter Eggs with cherry blooms Big Greeting Card by almawad



Easter is a nice spring festival in Europe  -  many thinks here that it is only a religious  festival but t is not .It had been widely celebrated before the Christians came to dictate in Europe . Simply  it was nice after the bleak winter to see the hens laying eggs again and the  seeing  the wonderful blooming flowers .
Catholic church claims that these are his religious symbols but it is not . They just declared  about an old existing yearly celebration as it was theirs .


See how and where to go for Easter brunches ,egg roll parties , egg hunting  here in Qatar 

 It is not official holiday here and many Arab Christians celebrate it later not now as they do not follow the pope in Rome .

Terrible dust storm in Doha

I am sitting in the flat behind closed doors and everything smells dusty  - like when you clean a carpet .. the visibility in my rooms became bad ...and luckily in some rooms it is OK so far ..
 I have never experienced so bad dust storm .

 What can we do to protect ourselves ? 
 switch of fans and AC -es
 put a mask on your face that filters dust or at least a dump bandana
 go to a higher place if you can ... 

 put dump clothes on the window AC -es( switched off)

 -----------------------------
 Saud Arabia announced school holiday for tomorrow
Will there be   no school in Qatar too ?
Some on the FB says that school is canceled for Thursday
_________________________________

_____________

 I just read that the visibility on Salwa road is zero .
_________________________________________

 No school today Thursday April 2!

______________________________________

 we can expect some relief from 10 am today

Massive duststorm envelopes Qatar http://t.co/GnnjdFivD5 pic.twitter.com/RpeakyBAS6
— Gulf-Times (@GulfTimes_QATAR) April 1, 2015h

No Paper Day in Doha

April 4 marks the day for NO PAPER DAY, Wyndham Grand Regency team will be collaborating together to raise awareness!...
Posted by Wyndham Grand Regency Doha Hotel on Wednesday, April 1, 2015