QATAR - WEEK 4 COMMENTARY

Happy 4th of July! This is the second time in the past three years I have spent it abroad. It never feels right, so maybe I'll cook some hotdogs tonight.

1. So how do you celebrate the 4th in another country? Well through meeting different people here in Qatar I was invited to a party at the US Embassy last night, specifically inside the Marine House. I drank a couple cheap beers and played darts with some of our finest. While some of us (and now and then me included) are against US military movements, I always hold these men and women in the highest of honor. Forunately the ones I was able to meet last night are not on the front lines at this time.

2. Tipping isn't common here. If you do go out to eat there is maybe a 10% service charge included. What I have since learned is that if you leave a few additional Qatar Riyals on the table it most likely will not go to the waiter/waitress. These tips are often taken up by the restaurant or hotel. It is frustrating because these people are already living on next to nothing and most of what they make is sent straight back to home for their families. It makes you appreciate the life back home all the more. I have tried to get in the habit of tipping others (baggers at the grocies, etc.) It's generally no more than a few Riyals which is close to a $1, but they always seem grateful.

3. I went to see Transformers 2 (do not recommend). One thing that's different besides the Arabic subtitles is that you choose your assigned seat. Another thing that's frustrating is sitting next to Qatari's that decided to talk. While in the US I would have changed seats or told them to shut up, I don't have that option. There's a pecking order of status here, at the ex-pats are not on top. The same goes to driving. Here's hoping my boiled up road rage from here won't be unleashed in Houston

4. I understand a lot of the workers here may not have access to showers or may not be accustomed to them. That being said, now and then I wish Doha would just crop dust the area with deodarant. There have been many uncomfortable elevator rides.

5. A lot of celebrities died it seems lately. I think I'll miss Billy Mays the most. Here is he using his signature informercial style to order at McDonalds
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtYdDK1uTDI

QATAR COMMENTARY - WEEK 3

There's not too many new Qatar observations to report.

1. I went jet skiing for the first time ever. Here in Qatar there was no instructions provided. A key and optional life jacket was all that was needed. I also tried to do some negoitiating, but feel they drive a hard bargaining. In the end jet skiing is fun, but even after like 10 minutes, you get the jist of it. You can go fast in open water and do sharp turns. The scenery doesn't change all that much, it's just water.

2. Now I don't know if this is smart or foolish on my part, but I have started to download songs for free on the internet. I haven't done that in years once the RIA started cracking down on it. But I guess I figure new country, perhaps new rules. The songs are quite the excentric mix from Tom Petty "Wildflowers" to LCD Soundsystem "Daft Punk is Playing at My House"

3. I saw MJ passed away. I'm sure it's all over the news in the US, but here I only watch movie and comedy channels. It's werid, but death does seem to usually come in three's. Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett all within a couple days.

4. For as much hanging out at the pool I do, I'm still relatively pale.

5. I feel like I need to follow US legislation a bit more. It seems a lot of bills are being passed at a time when our country is facing massive debt. I would like to assume our leaders are experts or being assisted with experts that will make our country stronger, but when a 309 page ammendment is added at 3AM to the climate bill I can only wonder how many took the time to actually read it. I'm all for organizations reducing emissions, but a cap and trade system isn't going to work. People complain about oil prices, well a lot of the run up was due to speculation. The Street will love to find a way to profit from this new system should it pass the Senate. I'm pretty sure companies will now move to countries that have less restrictions. So the US will lose jobs, and the globe will not be any better off. This purely my opinion and I hope to be proved wrong.

Ok, so I know Doha is a growing city. The North Field, the world's largest non associated gas field, started to bring the country wealth late in the 1970's. Before that it was nothing more than a small pearl and fishing outpost. It wasn't really until late 90's and early 2000's when they developed efficient means to liquify natural gas for exportation. In the previous posts I included pictures of a skyline filled with skycrapers. This photo attached below is an ariel taken only 5 years ago of the exact same area I took those pictures. Just tremendous growth.

So there isn't much to do in Doha. It's a city of shops and places to dine and that's about it. I've done a lot of exploring (i.e driving) to see what's out there. When I was a consultant I would have a wide range of rental cars. As a result I developed nicknames for majority of them.

• Ford Taurus becomes a Taurcedes
• Chevy Malibu becomes THE BU
• Chrysler PT Cruiser becomes the TP Cruiser

and now I have a created a new one. Meet my Nissan Craptima

So driving can be fun/ challenging. There is a heavy abundance of agressive drivers (i.e. local Qatarians thinking they own the road) and roads that are ever changing due to all the construction. Here's your typical intersection: barricades, no working traffic light and lack of painted lines.

So the more recent post will contain pictures around town. There's The Pearl which is like Dubai's Palm Islands. Basically a man made island that is ultra luxurious. I was able to get through security, but once on the island (under construction) I was told by security I couldn't park my car and walk around. There will be pictures of my apartment and it's balcony view. There will be a picture of a big tower by itself. It served as the flame holder for the recent Asian World games. Doha breaks itself into different cities where it clusters similar type of businesses (Sports City, Education City, Entertainment City, Energy city, etc). There's also a couple pictures of Souqs, which is a Arab flea market. Then there's some of just the skyline. Welcome to Doha.

QATAR COMMENTARY - WEEK 2

1. I saw the Emir's convoy earlier this week. I have to say I like it more than the USA's. For one instead of black Tahoe's, motorcycles, or Crown Vics guiding the limo, it's red BMW 5 Series. There isn't any limos either in this convoy either. It's nothing about a dozen black Mercedes S Classes just booking it down the road.

2. A lot of the time when you're over here it can feel like the Western world. At lunch we have gone to a couple American establishments. Fuddruckers serves the same burgers with the same decor, Guns N Roses was over the speakers, but then you see a group of men in white throbes and you realize you aren't in Texas anymore.

3. For whatever reason the office bathroom has a horrible odor. It's not a "typical" bathroom odor, but it's not good.

4. Today I'm going to go buy some blank CDs and make a couple mixes. Granted my drive to the office is less than 5 minutes, but one can only hear some much Arabic music before wanting a change. (There is one station that is half the time English other half French.)

5. I met a couple guys that live in the apartment. I tell you what, Aussies are always the coolest people. Even without the accent they always seem down for a good time and have a laid back nature. I kind of wonder if my exposure to Aussies is biased. I only meet those that travel, maybe the ones that stay in Australia are lame.

6. Here's a stimulus package idea that I think would employ thousands and increase productivity across the board. It's seriously time for the US to get on the metric system. I would then be able to avoid these conversations of clarifying temperatures, doing rough math in the gym to convert the kilogram weights into pounds, etc. Think about it, we would need people to construct all the signs, survey the land, and start making new equipment. From weight machines to rulers. I know this would be expensive and a headache, but at least it would put us on par with the rest of the world.

7. Muslims don't eat pork. In fact pork is banned everywhere in Qatar. Now they try to make up with it with beef bacon, but that's not the same. So I find it funny that the headline on the main newspaper was Qatar has it's first Swine Flu case. I don't know exactly how it's contracted, but I think there is some irony there. Jimmy Kimmel I think has found exactly how its passed on from one another: http://video.aol.com/video-detail/jimmy-kimmel-live-swine-flu-prevention-cartoon/1568060893

8. I went to a bar here for the first time. Since Muslim has banned alcohol the only place you can get it is at an international hotel (and at New York prices). Now I know it's one thing to be carded at a bar to make sure one's of age, it's a whole other ordeal for me to drive back to get my passport back in the apt and complete a form. This bar was pretty hilarious in that the guy to girl ratio was literally 30:1. I guess that's what you should expect when you have a lot of guys in construction and oil & gas. But if you were a lady you'd have the pick of the litter. There were Asians, Europeans with their tight jeans and greasy mullets, to Americans and Africans. What is funny is that this place had a square of dance real estate. I don't think I've ever seen a dance floor with a lot more guys on it than girls. Maybe guys just want to dance (not this one). I did get the chance to visit with an old A&M guy I hadn't seen in years. He's here on business and was just telling me there is nothing to do here, but at least you get paid well. If you didn't know this, being an expat has the following the benefits: Base pay plus premium (Qatar is around 40%), housing, usually a car allowance of some sort, education for your children, rest and relaxation budget (i.e. travel abroad or for home which equates to a couple thousand a month). I can see the temptation to work abroad. Anyways we met a few people at the bar and it's interesting to hear their stories. Japan girls who are flight attendants for Qatar Air to Spanish girls working at the university. Everyone has a story that brought them to Doha. The city in the middle of nowhere

9. I love driving here. There's hardly any intersections, just those roundabouts. But there really isn't any rules. I've seen people head towards me head on trying to pass (when passing isn't suppose to be allowed). Everyone drives quick. Pretty much all turns are yields. Oh, and its a rental so no need to slowdown for speed bumps or corners for that matter.

QATAR COMMENTARY - WEEK 1.

I will try and post weekly updates on just random observations and thoughts.

1. It's hot
2. The sky is hazy (unlike the blue you see in postcards)
3. Even though its a new city, they didn't do much planning in terms of sidewalks
4. The most popular car color by far is white
5. I understand Muslims dress conservatively, but I tell you what, the women that even have their eyes covered up, its kind of spooky (I'm not ignorant, just observant)
6. Putting in green space is probably too costly (I've been informed that Doha's two golf courses account for 10% of the total water usage), but this place could use some parks
7. Overall I'd say cost of living is higher. Had a burger and an ice tea at Chilis for $16
8. Instead of intersections they love roundabouts. These roundabouts are tricky because even the people on the inside lane cut all the way across.
9. The rental car I received had a number of dents. So when completing the form I told the guy I saw damage on all body panels. This will make it harder for him to discover any new damage should it occur
10. That even with the AC on while driving, you will still bake. It's hot.

I thought I would create a short video of where I'm staying. Obviously the sound and video isn't the greatest. Then again this was shot using a digital camera in compact mode and my last name isn't Spielberg. Enjoy