Yesterday, I decided to visit Doha Festival City and Ikea. Considering that there is only a limited number of people allowed inside , I chose this large facility .
It was late in the evening; however, there were two hours left before closing time. We were lucky we arrived on time. We were happy to see the large Welcome sign at the IKEA restaurant, but when we wished to enter there was a smaller sign that said something like that " Sorry - because of the limited number of customers, we cannot accept more people." The restaurant was nearly empty . We could only see five or six people inside. The menu screens at the serving section were still on. The staff were standing there,bored .We couldn't reach them. There was a red rope barrier between us and our dinner possibility. There was no one to explain how their system was working .
It was fun walking inside the Ikea. After buying some items, we were happy to find out that their bistro was open, but only for take-away!
We walked to the Doha Festival City; it was nearly ten pm. They are open until eleven, not the shops though. They were closing in front of us. Some restaurants and cafes were still open; however, all of them were full . Everybody was turned down. By this time the huge mall was filled of frustrated whirling crowds . No shopping , no eating , no way to relax !
By this time our feet were aching, and we were hungry. Luckily, outside there were lots of taxis to take us back home.
It was a good kind of exercise . Leave your high-heels at home and wear your training shoes! Unless you wish to relax or eat in, in which case you must arrive much earlier than we did !
I see that the reopening should be gradual yet there is one thing I do not understand . Why it is not considered that allowing more places to reopen would result in better distribution of people inside the mall . Social distancing would be easier to practice !
UPDATE
Returning to the mall after one week was much better experience . Amazing ! Like someone read my blog and my complains were heard .
We managed to get to the IKEA restaurant . The cashier told me that they were allowed only 30 % of occupancy but they turn very few people down in the mornings and early afternoons . More cafes and restaurants were open and more seats were placed on public areas .
Then I found a lots of "great prices " when shopping around .That made me feel I might return SOON.
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