Can a girl find some SHAWARMA?

Ok, so i know that i have been a bit MIA and i wish i could say i have been doing all these cool things like camping in the desert or off-roading on the dunes and such but, nope, I have been a lazy ass bum. I've mainly been trying to settle in slowly and not get too carried away partying and stuff. Actually I have been flat out broke and waiting for my paycheck so i can actually do something.

Qatar is a very interesting place. Its a cross section of East and West. The two eventually meet but never cross over. In the East corner you have Qatari's, Arabs from neighboring countries and unskilled laborers from Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. In the West corner you have European, Australian and American Expats who try to live as lavish as possible because this is the only place where they can afford to, and the Qatari's try to be so hospitable that they have built a number of western ammenities to accomodate the Westerner's "lavish" lifestyle. That being said, there are just way too many FAST FOOD franchises here. I mean come on!, is it really necessary for me to eat Papa John's, Johnny Rocket, Subway, KFC, TGI Friday's, Chili's, Bennigans, McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Coldstone Creamery, Baskin Robbins, Krispy Kreme, Dunkin Donuts, I mean the list goes on and on. I mean of all the fast food joints couldn't they have a Chick-fil-A or a Wendy's? Those are the only fast food places I patronize. Where the hell can a girl get a SHAWARMA around here!! For pete sake, where is the Arabic food?? Seriously though...i had to ask a co-worker where i could go to get shawarma. She laughingly replied, ma fi(not here) and i was like what? Are you for real? she said no but that there were only two places worth going too.
How is it possible that an Arab country has so few arab restaraunts?? I mean i came here to get my tobouli, and Manaesh on! Hell i haven't even had a taste of HUMMUS since i have been here. I really do miss REAL arabic food and was hoping i would be able to eat a lot more arabic food here but sadly that is not the case.

I went to one of the places my coworker suggested and it was so horrible i actually cried...all i kept saying in my car as i wept and choked on the dried up chicken was, i want Jordan...this isn't Jordan...I want Al Faris and Jabri...and i started reminiscing about all my favorite restaraunts there.

After getting lost at night for three hours, i am too chicken to venture out to find the other restaraunt she suggested and will have to wait a while for my next shawarma meal. :sigh: At least i was able to find a falafel mix box at the supermarket yesterday so hopefully i will enjoy some falafel soon.

Things to be aware of when driving in Qatar:

1. If you are an expat and you get into an accident with a Qatari even when it is their fault, you are automatically in the wrong, because you are a foreigner.

2. People only signal when they want to make a U turn, Qataris never use their signal you just have to get out of their way.

3. When a car is behind you and wants you to speed up or let them pass you, they turn OFF their lights and tailgate you until you get out of their way.

4. Drivers seem confused and don't quite know how to move out of the way when an ambulance needs to come through.

5. Driving into a roundabout is like playing chicken.

6. Most people abandon their car if they damaged it pretty bad in an accident.

7. When a guy sticks his tongue out at you, it's sexual, not mean..GROSS

8. When someone makes a talking gesture with their hand in the daylight, it means your lights are on. They still think having lights on in the day time will wear down your battery over here. Apparently that's the reason why some cars still drive with their lights OFF at night.

9. People here intentionally drive with their lights off at night.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way from the Tent....

So my sense of direction sucks! I don't know how foreigners esspecially westerners can navigate their way through these streets. I mean everything is messed up. The traffic signals only allow cars to pass one directon at a time and the light stays green for 5 minutes. Yes that is 5 minutes. So if i miss the green light I have to wait another 15 minutes before i can pass. And when I am stuck in traffic a kilometer before the signal I could wait 20 minutes or more. That's how i got stuck in traffic on my way back from the mall. It took me less than five minutes to get there when i had the green light on my side and 50 minutes to get back home when i was only 4 roundabouts away...see my point?

So I hadn't had much luck at finding my way back directly from work to home. I got lost the first day but recovered soon after realizing i forgot to go to the next roundabout (RB) and turn. I got back on to the right street and horay!, was home in no time. My second day at work...i got so lost and ended up on the highway to Al Khor - The Gas and oil manufacturing/distributing area outside the city of Doha. This happened AFTER i stopped at a traditional bedouin tent to get directions.

After two hours of roaming around aimlessly not knowing where i was going, taking roads that looked like roads but then stopped and boom your in the middle of the desert...nothing in sight. I keep doing this until finally i see a tent. I drive by the tent and alas...there are people in it! sitting chatting and drinking tea! I stop the car pull over and walk over to the tent. A very nice Qatari man in his white Thobe welcomed me. I took off my shoes as i saw everyone elses's shoes located outside the tent and asked how do i get to Decoration circle (the nearest landmark by my home) everyone looks at me like. "OH MY GOD YOU ARE REALLY FAR!" Yes i am far, i know. "How did you get to be so far, you know that is far from here." "Yes, Yes I know, i replied, I have only been here 4 days." The nice gentleman says, "Come sit i will tell you." He walks over to his car, grabs a piece of paper and comes back and tells the butler to make me some tea. He draws for me a map and tells me about 8 times how to get there. He then asks me to repeat it to him and i repeat it back at least 5 times. He tells me i must stay have some more tea and have dinner with them. I start talking to his friends who are all foreigners. One from Columbia, Venezuela and France. We start talking about Chavez and all the stuff going on in Venezuela etc. I'm really hungry but i don't want to stay because all of a sudden the thought of eating camel popped in my head as i remembered my last meal in a bedouin tent in Joran...I quickly and graciously got up and asked if i could leave because i was tired and it was pitch black and i needed to go home. The kind Qatari asked me again to repeat the directions, i obliged and was feeling confident about going home. Apparently i can't count.

I guess there are lil roundabouts and big roundabaouts and somehow i only seem to notice the big roundabouts so my count was off and i ended up on the highway. I had to drive out 27 Km before i could turn around to go back in the opposite direction. So after stoppipng for directions spending a half hour drinking tea and mingling with strangers i still managed to lose my way.

Tmrw my boss is taking me for a navigation driving lesson.

Nubian Arrives in Oil Rich Desert

So i decided to start the blog earlier than i planned because my friend Susie (who i owe a great deal to for planting it in my head that i could work in the gulf earlier than i had planned and hooked me up with the right person to talk to which later lead me to find this job and apply for it.) encouraged me to start it now after telling her a little story and gave me the title for said blog. I liked the title so much despite the fact i am on 4 hours of sleep/11 hours in the last 48 hours that i was inspired to start it this evening.

Thursday, February 12th 7:30 pm - I walk through the gates of Doha International airport looking for my name and alas the driver i had last time on my interview visit greets me at the door and we drive for an hour in a thick grainy fog where he drops me off at the door and hands me an envelope with the keys to my car. His friend points to the tan Nissan Altima and jumps into the SUV waves good bye and i head back upstairs to the second floor. As soon as i open the door, I see 13 boxes sitting in a corner with my name and a listing of contents on each box. I can't believe my stuff really arrived before i did. This door to door service is incredible! I'm exhauted from my direct flight from JFK but I'm so excited i start ripping open boxes and it feels like christmas with recycled gifts.

I walk around my new home, wow, it hits me..this is MY home. I will be living here for at least a year and possibly up to three years if i choose to stay in this apartment. I open the back door and look out onto the American School Doha classrooms and pool and squeal with excitement how HUGE the patio is. Sangria Party at apt. 226! HEY!!!!

I go to bed around 11:00pm and set my alarm for 8am. I decided to tackle my biggest fear of living here: Driving in the crazy Doha madness. Driving around Doha is INSANE!! i mean absolutely insane but i am really proud that i managed to get my ass up early in the am and drive with the aid of what i would soon discover is a crappy map. I got lost tons of times trying to find where my job is but managed to get home with ease once i decided to give up and follow my instincts. That was the only time i later would find out that my navigational instincts would ever work in this strange roundabout, 2 kilometer long street with a mosque on every corner and palace every five blocks city. Oh boy do i have a story about getting lost...i'll save that for my next post.