Ezdan Hotel & Suites Doha

... curious about that white hat that I found myself hissing quietly to the shop owner "Is it ok to talk to him?" With Muslim tradition being strong here I didn't want to stomp on any toes by accosting this stranger in traditional robed garb and so I hesitated whereas in another country I would have just waded into shallow waters and hope for the best. Here, I am standing at the edge of the sea and wishing I could swim, so to speak. In the end, it ...

Haven't written anything in ages. Work is busy and I still don't have internet at my apartment but I'm latching on to a neighnours at the moment. Ramadan is nearing an end and that means a statutory holiday (Eid Al Fitr) is also coming up. For us at the university it means a week off as we close for a semester break in conjunction with Eid.<br ...

First Impressions<br><br>I arrived in Doha, capital city of Qatar sometime around 10:30 or 11pm. Deplaned onto the tarmac and was somewhat underwhelmed by the heat. I had been informed of oppressive, high humidity heat and was mentally prepared for just that but what greeted me was a dry 35 degree heat. First challenge: the airline (KLM) lost one of my bags. Nothing to do but report it and hope for the best. Second challenge: customs confiscates the VoIP phones I ...

... I spoke pretty harshly of GAP on this blog, and I meant it, but that was not directed doward Ramesh as it was toward his higher ups. In fact, if anyone is ever going to Nepal I suggest you contact Ramesh Adhikari at ramesh@royalmt.com.np. He works for Royal Mountain Travel-Nepal which is the company that GAP booked through. It is nice to have the "quality assurance" of GAP, but it's amazing to see how the money just gets funnelled ...

Believe it or not, the best way to get to Nairobi from Morocco was through Qatar on Qatar Airways. So we decided to do a quick stopover to check it out. <br><br>It was HOT (40 plus celsius)..this land was probably not meant to be inhabitated when you have to have water shipped in. There's a lot of construction and it's definitely a growing city!

... room. It was in arabic so I had no idea what they were staying and it was 4:30am so I was still half asleep. I looked out my window and saw that there was a Mosque across the street. After I realized that it was just the call to prayer I calmed down and was able to go back to sleep. I hadnt thought about that seeing as I was in a muslim country ...

... on a short flight with 144 people on it. The flight attendants hustled and I told one how awesome the flight was. She said it's stressful (no, really?) but it's worth it to make Qatar Airways a five star airline. Whatever they are doing is working. The flight was 98% Indian and Bangladeshi migrant workers returning home. The other 2% were me, a British military guy heading to Malaysia for fun and two Arab guys dressed in white gowns with ...

... wouldn't allow that. Yes Matt is a party pooper and a dream killer! Let's get something out there right away, Qatar is very very very Muslim, and females should show no form of skin. Well my beloved wife had to do the opposite as always. Anyone who knows her knows that Francis constantly tries to test the rules of society and morality. We got off the plane and Francis was wearing a semi see-thru shirt, booty short and sandals. We passed customs and immigration ...

... the hostel, popped in and found out that it was full expect for the dorm without air con. Popped out. I took out the other leaflets I had and walked towards the next one. Actually I was walking the wrong way for about twenty minutes but that's not the point. I got there eventually and found out it was also full. I seemed to be in the arab quarter at that moment, it was nice enough. I then walked around for ...

... of the plane I had a little incidence.. I usually carry one large bag with me, which is allowed in most aircrafts as a cabin luggage. This time, the flight attendant at the gate approached and she took away my bag telling that it will not be allowed this time and will fly as a luggage in the luggage compertment. I did not mind as she assured that i will be able to collect it at Doha while I reach there. And I trusted her..... Unfortunately our (my and my ...