Qatar 2006 | George Filev

Life on the gulf.

12 Nov 2006 02:20 Filed in: Qatar 2006
Hi again folks ! Well things are being held up at the Asian Games with delays in getting things ready and stress about things not being finished in time. Unfortunately for us, this means that the stadium is still not at the stage where we can rehearse in it.

As a result we have had lots of time on our hands and this week we were given two days off in a row so we took advantage of that and went on yet another desert trip and this time, stayed over night.

It was even better than last time because the guys that organised this one where up for some fun and along with the volley ball, the swimming and the sand boarding, they bestowed a wonderful atmosphere at the camp with lute playing and singing and dancing through the night. They shook and shimmied their sheikish selves while holding a sword in their hands while we watched and drank Cardamom tea and devoured semolina cakes and nibbled on some baklava with fresh dates.

That evening a few of us chose to sleep up on a sand dune above the camp under the cover of the Arabian night sky and it was really beautiful listening to the water lapping at the edges of the inland sea.

We were awoken by the rose coloured sunrise that greeted us like a warm hug and shortly after the sun came up to say hello, and goodbye, to the moon, we went for a morning swim before breakfast.

On the way back to the compound we got to see the friendly camels once more.

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A few people went for a ride but most of us were eager to get back because we had another adventure planned for the day.

Doha is known for its history of pearl fishing.

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This is a statue erected to honour its past and as luck would have it, a stage manager at work managed to get us all a free boat ride out in the bay with a wealthy entrepreneur.

Here is a picture of his boat.

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Bit hard to see but his is the one in the middle and he organised some amazing food which consisted of soup, lentils, pilaf rice and 3 whole pot roasted baby lambs.

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We started our journey out past the new, (and of course, not yet finished, Islamic Museum).

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Then we floated out past the rest of the city and into the bay. We headed towards an island where we set anchor and had some fun on the beach.

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At the beach we went for some crazy rides on Kalim's speedboat and jet ski.

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I had never been on a jet ski before and I have to say, it was great fun. Boy can those things go fast. It was sort of like riding my scooter, only on water. Then we fired up the bar and filled our bellies with some yummy food.

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This went on well into the evening and we got to see the sun set once again and as usual, it was stunning.

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We were very grateful for the enormous generosity displayed by Kalim, as he didn't want any payment for the day and was just happy to make new friends. We were certainly happy to become acquainted with him.

It was interesting talking to him about the changes in the city of Doha in the last ten years. I am looking at oil in different ways. This city was built on oil. Oil is used to manufacture many of our modern luxury items. Plastics and polymers are one form of oil based products but looking at this city, which has been built on a desert, it is incredible in itself. Nearly everything is imported and it has all the mod cons of a modern city and in exchange they export a black substance that they extract from the earth. What a kooky world we live in and how will it change when there is no more of the black stuff?

This was a day not to forget and it just so happened to be on Remembrance Day. As much fun as I am having here, I can't help but think of my friends and family back home and how much I miss them all. Sometimes my job can be a bit of a drag when it takes me away from those I love. Hopefully soon I will be too busy to feel melancholic and start doing more of what I am here to do. I think the stadium will be ready this week so fingers crossed, we will be in there working overtime, getting this show on the road, or at the least, in the stadium.

Love to you all,

George

xxxooo

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