Saturday, December 31, 2016

Happy 2017

Happy 2017 -  add photo card


Happy 2017 - add photo card

by almawad

 Thank you all my readers in 2016  - keep visiting my blog  and suggest topics you would like to read about .

Alma Wad  

Jenifer Toksvig's poem about refugees

Friday, December 30, 2016

Dubai New Year Celebrations - look behind the scenes

morning fog in Doha

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

cats musical - coming soon to Qatar

Monday, December 26, 2016

Top Jobs in 2016

Warning ! Fog - Bikers beware of trucks !


   Bikers beware of trucks ! I just heard about the tragic death of an expat riding his bike on Christmas Day on Salwa road !

 Better not to ride in this foggy weather !

Friday, December 23, 2016

the cheapest take-away turkey in town - festive season in Doha


 A whole roast of turkey for QR449  at  the IKEA  ! That is  the best turkey deal I found. Just call and order ! T : 44062555 See more turkey deal  here .

FIDE World Chess Championship - Doha 2016


Learn More about this event . 



New park for families


 This new park is in the Northern area of Qatar . It has  cafeteria ,playgrounds with safe rubber surface,bike tracks ,Wi-Fi ,flowers  some trees and green areas .Its size is 11,930 sq m  .
 I wish we had something like that in our district as well !

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Arab American young man has to leave the plane for speaking Arabic


not the first story of this type  -  I wonder how much more stupid these Americans can be !

Almost weekly there are shootings in their country ,innocent people are dying by white , English speaking men - and they are scared not from them but from the Arab speech !

 And what if the captain was Arab too !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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 This incident also happened  ON Delta Airline !



Delta Airline Passenger Almost Dies Because Flight Crew Didn’t Believe Black Woman on Board Was a Doctor

Monday, December 19, 2016

NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly visits Qatar



HE WRITES ON HIS FB PAGE :" Flew over much of this sand on my Year In Space and often thought about visiting it. Got my toes in Doha, Qatar tonight!"

Numbers in Qatar - more than QR243m in six hours

this sum was collected for urgent relief of the Syrians in Aleppo ,refugees from Aleppo ( more than 66 million usd )

the different charity organizations intend to spend it as soon as possible for family tents with fireplaces ,food baskets ,winter clothes

Sunday, December 18, 2016

DariQatar -a film about us - living in Qatar


 " It is great to be the part of a city as it grows up " 

The story and smile of Hiba Nablusi

Saturday, December 17, 2016

I love fondue . What about you ?

To make  some wonderful fondue you do not need to buy expensive fondue set . I found a video showing how a simple round bread  can  serve as raclette when you put it in an oven .



 You can  choose your own cheese -  this video shows  some Italian cheese  and  way to serve it - simple , short and explains  well without words  .






I love fondue so I have some fondue design as well

Do you love cheese ? Lulu cheese festival


 Would you like taste and buy some Old Roumy cheese,  Akawi cheese,  soft cheese, feta cheese,  mozarella cheese, blue cheese, Kashkaval cow cheese, string cheese,  brie cheese,  Edam ball, Gouda lofes, , Dutch Calora low fat cheese,  goat cheese,  labneh,  Lancashire cheese, Salut cheese and more ?
 Then go to LuLu Hypermarket, Al Gharafa . Choose from 760 kinds of cheese until December 21.Our international community here is full of cheese lovers and it is high time we learned more about each other's favourite one .


Wednesday, December 14, 2016

NO NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATIONS IN QATAR THIS YEAR - SOLIDARITY WITH ALEPPO VICTIMS


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 that is really shocking
 national day celebrations has never been cancelled so far
  it is usually a fun day at school right before the winter break -  the girls just created their cupcakes with I  love Qatar text one after the others when they learned on the school bus that it was cancelled

 we are  not into the military demonstrations or fireworks  - but  these celebrations of smaller communities are really fine and fun  and will be missed

 however I was happy to read that  still it will be a holiday - so no work on Sunday   , December 18 (  Sunday normally is a working day in Qatar )


Monday, December 12, 2016

Soccer Ball Close-up -sweet treats

Match of Champions - all tickets sold out

 All tickets sold out for the match tonight .
 December 13th at Al Gharafa  SC Stadium. No need to come if you do not have a ticket . Al Ahli  saudi vs. FC Barcelona friendly match .

live match can be watched on BARCA VIDEO

Sunday, December 11, 2016

Dhows in Doha -wall art

Mall of Qatar - why is it so special

There are so many malls around here . What makes this new mall stand out ?

- the heart of the Mall -called Oasis
it includes interactive dancing fountains and waterfalls ,a lots of green plants ,a free entertainment programme featuring a 360º revolving stage
- 30 % of the new shops/cafes /restaurants are new to Qatar
- cinemas with modern technology / luxury services

- Kidzmondo - a special entertainment park  where kids can try different "jobs"


Saturday, December 10, 2016

Finally ,winter is here - bellow 10 C expected in Qatar


Finally it is cold in Qatar - we can switch off the AC -s and look for the electric heaters ,blankets ,and warm clothes ! How lucky we are  -we feel -finally we are cold !
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But wait a minute ! Are you sure everybody is happy with this weather in Qatar ?
I am afraid not . I just look around in our street and see some working class people walking in very thin clothes . Just collect whatever you can in your household : warm clothes ,blankets , thermoses and either give it personally to someone in the street   or just leave it near the garbage  bins ... everyday  I see people  hunting items from there .
You do not have to be super rich to  be able to help  ! Just notice people around you !
Do good -feel great !

Vintage Istanbul cityscape with moon light Metal Photo Print

Vintage Istanbul cityscape with moon light Metal Photo Print
Vintage Istanbul cityscape with moon light Metal Photo Print
by almawad

Vintage Istanbul city scape with moon light . .It features a mosque - the sea and some boats . The moon is half covered by the clouds . It has some exotic real Middle Eastern feel .Metal print in small size .
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Courtesy of Library of Congress .The richly colored image looks like photograph but it is actually a photochrom print an ink-based photolithographs .

Wednesday, December 07, 2016

Emirati student in Ohio killed by police officer

After an accident on the roads when his car flipped  - the student fled into the woods nearby . Police followed him . There was a struggle then he was shot on the head . By the officer .

  The moral of story  ? Do not flee after an accident !
                                    Do not go to the USA at all  - apparently police brutality is not just for the poor black citizens !

Or I really do not know .

All that I feel is that it is simply tragic .

  read more

Tuesday, December 06, 2016

Preparing for National Day - scenes from Souq Waqif




National Day celebrations comes with a lot of practice before the event . Here you can see heritage style soldiers with their camels in the Souq Waqif . I like those rehearsals . They are better than the actual celebrations !

Thank you for Benita AndMebs for the video .

Yachts in the Pearl island , Qatar - paintings

yachts at the bay no 2 canvas print
yachts at the bay no 2 canvas print
by almawad

Seafront with yachts at Pearl island ,Doha ,Qatar .Digital painting by Alma Wad .Fresh colors and rough brush strokes are depicting the luxurious urban lifestyle that the artist found here .For modern art lovers .

Qatar International Boat Show 4th

when : December 7 - December 10

where : Mourjan Marinas, Lusail City

what to expect ; boats , yachts   displayed  by major manufacturers and exhibitors, leading international and GCC companies,  local Qatari companies specialised in boats

Monday, December 05, 2016

MSC Fantasia on the way to Qatar

MSC Fantasia soon here in Qatar .If you are interested  what it looks like inside then see this video  .I got the impression that it is a floating luxury mall .



Winter coming soon to Qatar

Doha News is blocked

Doha News is an online news blog started in March 2009 by two American journalists, Shabina Khatri and Omar Chatriwala.[2] It is based in Qatar and provides its readers with daily reports on breaking domestic and international news stories.

 They are blocked now . Nobody understands why . Some people think they were too much critical . Some people think they were brave .


I think  they  had some great articles but they were generally quite boring .They were posting even when there was nothing interesting to post about . Three times a day .To satisfy google robots  and get indexed . They were also advertising themselves heavily .


 One thing is sure  - this ban on them is an excellent promotion . Now Al -Jazeera and BBC is writing about them ! For free !


 If I were a conspiracy theorist I would say that was a plot to make them better known  ! 

  
 In case it  was not a plot then  I really feel with the writers ! Investing eight years in writing a blog then being banned all of a sudden and not even informed about the causes ! It is simply not fair !

It has terrible effect on other writers who will be afraid  that they will be the next .  It will cause self -censored articles . A fearful atmosphere ! Bad image about the country in all !



Sunday, December 04, 2016

Top Arab leaders coming to Doha - Be prepared for traffic jams

Some top Arab leaders are to come today to Doha . Be prepared for blocked traffic due to VIP convoys . Even yesterday the Corniche  road area was already blocked .
I found no official warnings about which road to avoid on the MOI twitter account / but there is a talk on social media that  The Corniche area will be blocked from 2  pm .

  I just wonder if it is true how the school buses can bring home our kids ?

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 My kids arrived one hour later than expected  . I do not understand local authorities  . They should have warned the schools  and early release  should have been mandatory .

 This way it is too much frustration . For those too who  are getting home from work  as well .A  usual 40 minute ride took my husband 3 hours to come home from work !
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 From the Gulf Times article I see that we were lucky  - at least compared to other kids who got stuck on their school buses for 4 hours ! It must have been horrible - little  children and can not use the bathroom for so long  !
It was not something unexpected natural disaster . It was easy to foresee that if main roads will be blocked around the time of returning school buses  then  the kids will not be brought home on time .

Qatar Duty Free 24th Millionaire Draw or Lucky Indians

Qatar Duty Free 24th Millionaire Draw or Lucky Indians  !
AMIT MATHUR, an Indian national was the lucky one to win one million dollar  on 13-Oct-16 .
Departing and transferring passengers have the right to buy raffle tickets for the draw in Doha . It costs 950 rials .
Checking out the winner's list I found out that most of them are Indian nationals .


https://www.qatardutyfree.com.qa/Winners.aspx?Type=Cash Lucky Indians !

Saturday, December 03, 2016

the world's largest solar power plant - well done India


 2.5 million of solar modules
 built within 8 months
 cost less than 700 million dollars

cleaned by robots daily

 If India was able to do it what excuses  of the developed countries have  for not doing so ?

Thursday, December 01, 2016

Numbers in Qatar - 90mn gallons of rainwater removed

 After the  big raining  at the end of  November the work was fast and continuous  - most streets of Qatar were dry  yesterday  !

90 million gallons of rainwater removed!( around 340 million liters )

 read more here ( page 27/28 )


Typical Weather in Qatar in December

Going out with kids in December - Qatar programs 2016


Lagoona Mall 's Fnac have some workshops for kids  on special days of December !

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 IKEA Qatar has Winter Wonderland programs every Friday afternoon in December  .






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Lagoona Mall Fashion Week



 from December 4 to 11   -2016 


 Lagoona Mall Fashion Week showcasing the Autumn – Winter 2016 collections.

December 4-10 in the North Court Lobby 6:30pm – 8:00pm.

4/12 Michael Kors – Max&Co.
5/12 Karen Millen – Versace Collection
6/12 Adolfo Dominguez - bridal wear
7/12 Liu Jo – Cath Kidston
8/12 Porsche Design – Furla
9/12 riva - city malene birger
10/12 Tadashi Shoji - DKNY
expat Qatar