Ruwwais Beach Trip

About a month ago, or perhaps more...errr....it was last Eid, so it was quite awhile ago, my friend Tracy asked me to go to the beach with her and another friend to meet said friends partner, Peter, and John, who were taking a 5 day fishing trip around Qatar in Peter's boat, but it was quite windy, so they were stranded at this lagoon. So, the three of us hopped into Tracy's MRV, and began our little trek north. After seeing much desert, and a few trees (unfortunately no camels), we arrived at a non-descript oil barrel, and Mary says that she thinks this is the turn! Tracy doesn't seem convinced, but we try it anyway....not correct, but that's OK! Getting anywhere here is completely trial and error.

So we continue on our merry way, negotiating non-roads, deciphering where the sand looks like it most driven in....we drive on a paved road, and Mary says just to turn into the desert anywhere, as the beach is directly off to our left, even if we can't see it. So we do, and low and behold, we hit mangroves and the beach, which is also right by an abandoned village! Woohoo! Here are a few photos for you all....

My favorite...the Persian Gulf, or Arabian Gulf (whatever...it's a body of water....no one owns it), is in the background. There are tons of stingray in the shallows apparently, so shuffling feet is a must! I can honestly say that I've never walked with stingray before, and I will admit that I was more than a bit hesitant; however, the water was amazing...bathlike temperatures. The sand, on the other hand, was not at all soft! Oh well ~ it was still nice : )


The beach, and Gulf, is just through these buildings. While we were there, I relished in the idea of moving to a place as isolated and peaceful as this, being able to wake up to this every morning....but, imagine the dust! Ack!

This is the view of the beach as we were driving away, saying goodbye. I must say that it was wonderful to wade in the waters, eat in abandoned buildings, and be will good people. Loved it!


No one can claim that ND is boring and desolate any longer! Though the dunes and beaches are beautiful I'm sure, this is what the "highway" looked like for much of our 45 minute trip! Notice the dirt mark on the window....it never, ever goes away. You wash your car, the dust is back by the morning. Much like winter snow except the dust never stops, and if you wipe it off, you'll have some nice scratches on your car. Good thing I haven't done that! : )



This is Tracy and I at the end of the day, back at Tracy's!

Apologies and updates

Okay, okay...so I've totally failed in keeping up with this blog....however, I will attempt to add somethings now, while I have a moment to breathe; emphasis on moment. Life here is going quite well, even though i am quite busy, teaching 6 classes and 120 some studetns....writing that is....even so, I really enjoy my students, and I think they like me as well. At least they say they do! :) The above photos are of our new apartment, and I think Leo is in the last photo of the front door!

The first photo is of stickers....these stickers are all over the furniture, and are a bit annoying at first, but now I don't see them at all. they say "Made In China". The picture after this is our living room, but is now looking diffrent, as I've been here longer than 2 weeks! Then, you see the master bathroom, a lovely blue, with both toilet and bidet, and, finally, you'll find the entrance to our master bedroom.

I've now been here 3 months, and rarely get homesick though I do get husband/Sara sick : ( Thank goodness they are both coming to visit for all of Thanksgiving Week!!!! : ) Woohoo!!! Sara's very excited, and I'm excited to show her around Qatar. All of my students really want to meet her, and she's going to do interview them all for a project to present when she goes back to Seattle. We thought since she would be missing some school, and most people in the US don't even know where Qatar is, that she could educate some 4th graders! We're going to go to the singing sand dunes to listen to them sing, climb up them, and then slide down. Sounds like fun, no? We'll also take in the beaches, the malls (which are much more than your average mall...think European canals inside the mall. no joke!), the souks (markets), and whatever else strikes our fancy. I don't really care; I'll just be happy to see them. People at the airport will be talking for days about the weird American lady who ran crying across the airport! Well...there is much of an airport to run across, but if there was, that would be me. I get teary-eyed just thinking about seeing Sara for the first time in three months. I've been fortunate enough to see Rabah twice since I got here, and can only thank God that he is a pilot! He may be gone a lot, but we are certainly blessed with incredibly cheap travel opportunities, as long as their are seats on the plane I must say.