Doha and Melbourne

Hi everyone!

So I'm back in Melbourne, I'm absolutely exhausted and riddled with jetlag. But here's my blog about our stop in Qatar (that I mostly typed on the plane!). 

Initially we were meant to have just a two hour stopover in Doha, but in about June the airline cancelled our first flight and moved us to one four hours early, meaning we then had six hours. Ash and I weren't very happy with this, but found out if we could make it from our gate to B gate section within ten minutes of landing there was a city tour we could do of Doha via bus. 

Luckily for us our plane landed half an hour early and we made it. Despite the gross man photoing me (see last blog) we were really happy because it meant we didn't have to sit around, and we got to see the city. 

There was a group of about 10 of us. We followed a member of staff and bypassed security, then got our free visa and stamp. We met our guide and off we went. 

Our guide Anthony told us Qatar is 160km from north to south and just 80km east to west. I've heard previously that in terms of Australia it's 1/3 the size of Tasmania. 

The population is 2.4 million and only 20% of these people are actual Qatarians. Like in the UAE, no one not born there can become a citizen no matter how long they live there. They also can't buy property. 

Qatar is an extremely rich country due to oil and gas. It doesn't have a natural water resource so desalinates water. The country is so rich due to this that residents don't pay income tax and don't need to pay electricity or water bills. However the wage for a government position is just $10,000 US per year, so I guess it all evens out. Due to the lack of natural water, $1 US will buy you 4L of petrol but just 1.5L of water! 

We passed the old airport which is now used for military and cargo. This place has some sentimental value for me as I passed through it on my way to Europe the very first time when I was just 18. But now they've built a new massive modern one for the FIFA World Cup they're having here in 2022. That's if it goes ahead, I guess it has to, but it's been discovered they bribed FIFA to hold it. Amazing what money can do hey? They've got 6 stadiums in Doha and 9 outside and are currently building a metro to connect them all. 

Our first stop was for a panorama of the city. There were lots of multicoloured strangely shaped buildings and we took some photos. A girl from China on our tour was 10 minutes later than our designated 5 minute time here, and the whole bus sort of ganged up on her when she got back as we had flights to catch. Needless to say she didn't do it at the  other stops! The buildings were mainly government and oil related ones as well as malls. The city began to be built as a modern one in 2000 and the oldest building in Qatar was built in just 1982. 

We passed the king's office which looked suspiciously like a palace to me! Apparently his palace is 30km away. In Qatar men can have up to four wives as long as that's ok with their first wife, and the king has three wives and nine children. Not sure why four is the cut off. If you're gonna have four wives, why stop there? Why not 50?! Haha. Apparently women are also allowed to drive a car without a male companion here unlike a lot of other Middle Eastern countries. I am so grateful to live in Australia. 

Our next stop was the Pearl Qatar island. This is a huge development at the moment and by the end of it there will be 17,000 apartments and 40,000 people living there. It's 30% done and we went to the Ferrari store. I got my picture taken with a few fancy cars! It's called the Pearl because they used to find lots of pearls in the area. 

Our final stop was at Souq Waqif, a standing market. I felt like I was in Aladdin here! I couldn't buy anything as no one took card but we had fun exploring the stalls and the smells and colours. We got back on the bus and headed back to the airport. 

By this stage we only had one hour to kill. We got on the plane and luckily had a spare seat in between the two of us so could spread out. We had about 6-7 hours of sleep and the second flight was much better than the first. 

We arrived in Melbourne at 10.30pm and were picked up by our families, it was so great to see everyone!!!!

I only slept 2.30-4.30am last night so spent the day really tired but did the best I could to get the most out of it. I visited my grandparents in the morning and it was fantastic to see them as I had really missed them!! Then I started to unpack. Oh my god, so many things. And I had to have a clean out of my cupboards before I could put clothes away because I forgot how full my cupboards are. I have a lot of clothes! I'm so used to  not having much due to life in London so it's very strange for me!!

After a few hours of unpacking I walked to the train station to catch the train to the city. It's the strangest thing. Everything at home is the same. My room still has everything in the same places, the house is the same, the neighbourhood is the same mostly, but I feel completely different. I got myself a new Myki (apparently you can't trade in an old one, you have to pay again. Why we didn't just employ the Oyster system in the first place is beyond me, what a waste of plastic cards) and got on the train. It was delayed by 6 minutes, welcome to Metro! I miss you TFL. 

In the city I met Jamie at Southbank. I stared around and again everything looks the same!!! I had felt fine up until this point, but at Southbank I started to feel like I was going to fall asleep whilst walking haha. We had an iced coffee and walked around. I took Jamie to my favourite place by the river and then we walked via all the arcades etc (inc Degraves St and the Block Arcade) to the Myer Christmas windows. The windows were great, the best in years! Set in Melbourne and they even showed props from previous years including my favourite - 'The 11th Hour' in 1998. We both loved it. 

Then we had a drink at the Rooftop Bar which has a fan view of Melbourne, and next I quickly showed Jamie Melbourne Central before getting a train home. 

Last night I went to Mum's basketball. Everyone kept telling me my voice sounds different which is funny, and then I came home and collapsed into bed as I was so tired I literally felt sick. 

This morning I've been up since 4.30am. I've tried to be productive and today I have a day full of appointments. 

Being home is good but strange, it will take a little settling in but once I do I'm really excited for my next adventure, full time teaching work! 

I would like to thank those of you who have followed my adventures this year, I am nearly up to 18,000 hits which I can't believe!! Now I'm home I won't be writing about home life on the blog, but I am going to try and save to go overseas in the June school holidays for a week next year. I will be travelling again as soon as I can, so watch this space. 

Love to all

Claire

Xoxox