Tag Archives: Doha

Mother Nature in the Desert

Looks like Mother Nature is letting us know that she is still around, even in the desert. On Tuesday I woke up to find fog all around. This was the first time that I had seen fog over here. Don’t know why, but it struck me as odd to see in the desert. Well yesterday the weather turned in another direction. A little after lunch, the skies darkened and the wind picked up as a sand storm rolled in. The air is just full of dust. It is everywhere, dirty air. I figured that it would only last for a little while, but it lingered through the night and is still around today. You can look directly at the sun and it is about he same brightness as the moon. Everything is cast in a yellow-orange hue. It is hard to see more than a few hundred meters in any direction. It is like fog but with dirt.

So we go from the air having too much moisture, to the air having too much sand. What a week.

Best in Culture

Just saw that the New York Times says that Doha is one of the 44 best places in the world to go. It was ranked number nine overall and number one in culture. Not bad for the small town. The big thing to see is the Museum of Islamic Art. It just opened in December and it getting world wide attention for its comprehensive collection of Islamic arts. With the coming of the Tribeca film fest this year it might be a good time to be here. Doha sounds nice in the New York Times article. I am going to have to get out and see more I guess.

Nice to see Chicago on the list at 14, and I was in DC in 2007 which came in at number two. Maybe I’ll get a chance to hit a few more of those in the next couple of years.

Desert Rain

Windows open letting in the cool air of a desert winter. It is slowly getting darker outside, even though it is just after lunchtime. I almost didn’t notice the change in light until a large crash brought my attention to the window. Was it an accident, some new construction, no, no … and then it came to me, thunder. Quickly small dark circles appeared on the ground. First a few and then more and more. I remember rain, but this was the first time that I had seen it in this country, this desert country. I spoke the word out loud, rain. It sounded odd in this place, and not just because I was alone and talking to myself. The word is out of place here. Rain, more like Reign, an ancient ruling government. Maybe this was God’s way of reminding us of his reign or more likely a turbulent reign of a short lived ruler of times past. More human, more temperamental. It grew a little, just enough for the small drops to come together to cover the ground. And then it was over, just a few minutes, not enough to wash away our sins. It still feels different for some reason. A new beginning. Cleaner start. I shake my head to get out of my thoughts, and look our at the asphalt that paves its way through our little compound. Dark water is starting to lighten, our cleansing fluid is starting to evaporate. It will be over soon, no remains, only memory. My memory of my first rain in Doha, the desert country where I live.