Ramada Doha

Today I picked up my car. After much deliberation (though not nearly as much as I was going/would have gone through in Winnipeg) between buy or rent, new or used, car or truck, I ended up purchasing a new Honda Accord. The buy or rent choice was an easy one for me. The University gives expat employees a certain amount as a transportation allowance that doesn't even cover the cost of a very basic long term rental car. Several of the dealers offer ...

... in our adjustments such as Erika taking Annette to the grocery store with buying tips and Ettieane using this liquor license to keep us stocked up. They also had a nice 15 year old daughter who apparently was not adjusting well over here so they just shipped her back to South Africa to stay with her grandparents.

They took Hailey to the Souk where she bought ...

... and confusing. So many counters I have to go to. Send my purchases home. Taxi to Souq. Leave Nick there and head back to hostel to collect my gear. Return to souq for dinner, run into Nick again. Head down to Corniche to get some nighttime photos of the skyscrapers on the other side of the harbour. Hang and chat til 11:30, then catch taxi to airport. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.

... could. So I gave up on that for now and instead explored my options for passing the night until my connecting flight at around 8 in the morning. The first thing I did was to eat a couple of the sandwiches that I had prepared in Bangkok before my departure (both in order to have something to eat while traveling as well as to empty my refrigerator of perishable food). Having done extensive research on the internet from home already, I first went to the Oryx Lounge to see ...

... was my turn I had already missed two other possible connections and was so happy to be done with that horrible line that I was actually thanking Lufthansa instead of being angry... I finally got a flight and finally had the pleasure of flying on Qatar Airways - and it really was a pleasure! I met two lovely Omanis who were clearly a good omen of a trip there later on...

... the moon, so it can go long if you can't see the moon due to clouds. I would imagine its hard to plan the final celebrating around possible clouds. So what does Ramadan entail? The part most people hear about is the no eating or drinking from dawn till dusk. And that mean NO drinking. You can't have water, juice, coffee or tea..nada. And that means no brushing your teeth or chewing gum, nothing should ever be in your mouth ...

... the awaiting car. But first in traditional Nepalese custom a garland of flowers is placed over my head (see picture taken at the hotel in the mirror). Once in the car we leave the airport and head for the L'annapurna Hotel.By now it is rush hour in Kathmandu. As I have now had no sleep for nearly 36 hours once I am registered as Mrs Helen I am left on my own with arrangements for my guide for the city tour to meet ...