Mercure Grand Hotel Doha

... where the animals are when another man approached and said we could have a look inside the visitors center. It is only open from 9-11 and then 2-5 so he was gracious to open it for us at noon and then take us into each room to see the exhibits.<br> The visitors enter had one of the most poorly preserved set of stuffed animals I've ever seen. Most of the mammals were moth eaten and had a lot of fur missing, the ...

... which was outrageous but by now I am thinking I have very limited options for anything else. This was Shamnas from Southern India. Qatar apparently has private limousine services in abundance, possibly more abundant that taxis. And such is Shamnas. He had probably seen me looking for a taxi and saw a golden opportunity. He actually takes me to a different mall because he didn't know Centerpoint but that's ok ...

... on loans and term deposits, access to some sort of lounge in several of the branches, some free wire transfers and invites to IBQ sponsored events. It's the IBQ events that are most intriguing to me and I'm interested to find out what that includes. <br><br>The whole process with all the signatures and such took less than 20 minutes so I still had time to run to the mall and grab something to bring back to the office for lunch.

... manner. I am Mr. Mark, my driver is Mr. Abdullah, etc. I haven't learned why this is. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that first names are quite often easier to pronounce than last and, with people from all over the world here, it's a way to add some formality with less of a chance for a faux pas. Pure speculation on my part.<br><br>My colleagues had suggested I would feel like a heel jumping the queue of ...

... the hotel and by wikitravel there was nothing else open between 12-4. Our taxi driver did his best job to get us there as quickly as possible, but hit a little traffic, the first we've really seen so far. When the din of the early afternoon prayers hit his ears, he immediately turned off the radio... In the City Centre the sights continued. As you walk in there is another Ice Rink where rock ballads entertain the skaters, like Bryan Adams' "Power of ...

... and a thin pancake filled with egg, cheese and honey). A must for any visitor. Other sights included a stroll along the long Corniche, encompassing the Bay of Doha., pitstops at two of the splendid hotels (Intercon for salsa on sunday evening and a luxury buffet dinner at the Ritz, feeling like stars), a top-down drive in Razak's funky Volvo cabriolet and as highlight a dinner party with local expats ...

... in Qatar and, from what we understand, government-controlled; just like in Communism). Therefore, we decided to stop at one of the many, many fast foods (KFC, Mac, BK, Hardee's, anything you can think of in the US, is here, too. In a big way). After a food bite and a (non-alcoholic) drink we've decided to ask the restaurant owner for directions. As we've mentioned earlier, as a private entrepreneur, he was very eager to help and even offered to drive ...

... and have tea at a kebab shop. Proper kebabs, with koftas cooked on swords. Delicious. Buy an incense burner and some oud for Brian &amp; Cecilia. Buying the oud feels like a drug deal, the shop owner pulls out of briefcase of his product for me to inspect, then weighs it out on a set of scales, and then chops it up into fine pieces all the while telling me that it's such good quality that I'll only need to use a little bit at a time.

Flying with the staff of Qatar Airways was a pleasure. Not only do I think that Seth could charm free gifts out of anyone. He now has a plush Qatar Airways plane, backpack, pencils, sunglasses, wallet, etc. I think, due to the fact he flies so well, people walk out see him and, "there was a child on the plane?" This varies from their reactions coming on board, the relief on their faces comical, when seeing Seth, looking at the row number, and realising it is not their row ...

... and visited the roads alongside the Doha fort, National Area, Souks, Amir's Palace, the Cournice, The new Business districts, The Dow Harber, Golf Course, Qatar University and than we returned to hotel. For me, it was some sort of nostalgic as I thought that my Father was walked through these roads while I was a child. I took my handicam and started to capture as much as I can so that I can show him the city once I return to ...